In the late afternoon on Dec 31, 1951, a soldier from Fort Devens got an early start on his New Year’s celebrations. He chose to go to Symphony Hall, but he went there the hard way. He took a joyride through the Boston subway system–in a Buick. Entering by way of the portal on Huntington Avenue, the soldier drove for almost a half mile before getting hung up on a switch. There a press photographer snapped this photo of the car.
Buick, inbound to Park Street, hung up on a switch.
This of course completely blocked the inbound Arborway line. Some 40 trolleys piled up behind him before the car was finally removed from the tracks. It had to be pushed or towed to the Mechanics (now Prudential) station and lifted on to the platform. How the MBTA later got the Buick out of the station is a mystery.
The soldier’s motives also remain a mystery. Perhaps he had been down at Izzy Ort’s or the Silver Dollar Bar enjoying a few afternoon beers and decided to go for a drive. But he got confused, mistaking the portal for the entrance to the Sumner Tunnel.
Or perhaps his plan was to go to Symphony Hall, where that night the Lionel Hampton Orchestra was to ring in the new year. Our soldier knew Symphony Hall was on Huntington Ave someplace, and sure enough he found the Symphony station, but there was no place to park. Some things never change.
So wherever you’re ringing in the New Year tonight, don’t go the hard way. Drive safely. See you all next year.