--- title: Photos of Subway Systems Over Time: Exhibit Shows Evolving Underground description: You can learn a lot from these vintage train photos canonical: https://time.com/3688533/subway-gallery-photos/ author: Lily Rothman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-02-05T12:30:26.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T05:05:57.501Z article:section: History og:title: Photos of Subway Systems Over Time: Exhibit Shows Evolving Underground og:description: You can learn a lot from these vintage train photos og:url: https://time.com/3688533/subway-gallery-photos/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdc4510537626c424/69877caea988ca826f6ac2e6/galloway_subway-tunnel-construction_1932.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2560 og:image:height: 1440 og:image:alt: Subway Tunnel Construction, N.Y., February 22, 1932 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Photos of Subway Systems Over Time: Exhibit Shows Evolving Underground twitter:description: You can learn a lot from these vintage train photos twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdc4510537626c424/69877caea988ca826f6ac2e6/galloway_subway-tunnel-construction_1932.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # See How Subway Systems Have Evolved in the Last Century > Sponsored content. 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They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription.  by [Lily Rothman](https://time.com/author/lily-rothman/)  ## Lily Rothman Rothman is managing editor at TIME. Feb 5, 2015 12:30 PM UTC  Subway Tunnel Construction, N.Y., February 22, 1932 Subway Tunnel Construction, N.Y., February 22, 1932 © Ewing Galloway—Courtesy of Stephen Bulger Gallery  by [Lily Rothman](https://time.com/author/lily-rothman/)  ## Lily Rothman Rothman is managing editor at TIME. Feb 5, 2015 12:30 PM UTC Millions of people around the world start their days on subways, metros and undergrounds — and, though that experience may be a commuter’s low point, interest in images of subway systems still runs high. In fact, that daily-grind element may be the reason that interest exists in the first place. “I think in many ways when people are riding the subway they tend to be acting like photographers. They’re looking at their surroundings with just enough distance to try to make sense of it visually,” says Stephen Bulger, who recently curated a new exhibition of subway-set photographs for his gallery in Toronto. “People marvel at that because they’ve been there and seen that.” The show includes a range of photos, from the uncredited documentation of the building of New York City’s subway system to pieces from modern artists who work in undergrounds around the world. And, in bringing those photos together, Bulger noticed that the history of subways has tended to follow a set path regardless of the city in which the system is set. Early trains were traditional and sturdy; a period of decay began in the mid-20th century; modern cars are streamlined and more obviously designed. “It mirrors the industrial age itself,” he says. “Things fall into disuse and neglect but there seems to be rebirth of urban spaces.” Looking at the subway, then, isn’t just a matter of seeing one’s commute reflected on a gallery wall — it’s also a way of looking at the history of the city as a whole. _The exhibition_ Subway _is on view at the Stephen Bulger Gallery in Toronto through Mar. 14, 2015._  Brooklyn Rapid Transit Co., 1058, 1910-20s (from a portfolio of 20 Ferrotyped gelatin silver prints) © Photographer Unknown—Courtesy of Stephen Bulger Gallery  Subway Tunnel Construction, N.Y., February 22, 1932 © Ewing Galloway—Courtesy of Stephen Bulger Gallery  NYC, circa 1957 © Dave Heath—Courtesy of Stephen Bulger Gallery  Subway, April 19, 1970 © The Estate of André Kertész— Courtesy Stephen Bulger Gallery  Fun, Fun, Montreal Metro, 1987 © George S. 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