Elizabeth, New Jersey, was an important crossing point for railroads. The New Jersey Rail Road extended its line to Elizabeth, first known as Elizabethtown, in 1835.
Here, it crossed the route of the Central Railroad of New Jersey. The future Northeast Corridor route, then owned by the Pennsylvania Railroad, elevated the tracks through the city during the 1890s.
In April 1893, the first train passed over an elevated trestle in Elizabeth.
“The spectators lined each side of the elevated track, and the rails were literally strewn with pennies and nickels which were placed on them by the people, who were desirous of securing souvenirs of the noteworthy event,” The New York Times noted of the event.
“The small boys were in their element, and managed to secure a large number of the souvenir coins which were shaken off the trestle after being crushed by the car wheels,” the newspaper added. “They were picked up by the urchins and sold to the persons who originally owned the coins.”