06/11/2026
You're looking at a "Y"-shaped branch of train-track, called a Wye. Why?? Because we are going to talk about the Long Island Railroad.**
Originally, the train landed at the old fishing village at Fort Pond Bay, because LIRR President, Austin Corbin, wanted to turn the bay into a transatlantic port! But between Corbin's death and the shallow, rocky bottom of the bay, his plans never materialized.
And then in World War II, the U.S. Navy commandeered the area to create a torpedo testing range (with barracks, docks, and a seaplane base!)--and that's when they relocated the Montauk train station.
This wye track we see here crosses over Industrial Road, nearly touching the actual Ford Pond (the pond). The triangular track configuration enables train cars to swing around via a three-point turn, so the huuuuge train of cars doesn't need to be turned around as one unit. The wye isn't really used anymore because, nowadays, LIRR trains have locomotives on both ends (generally in summer) or push-pull configurations in the off-season, when the trains have fewer cars and one engine can both push and pull the whole thing.
**We hope you enjoyed this triple-pun. We are incredibly proud of it.
