Silver Rail
Image via Google Street view circa September 2024. 
Image circa 1940s via NYC Municipal Archives. 
Flushing NY North Shore Daily Journal 1938 p. 15 
The New York Age 1951 
NY Long Island Daily Press 1935 p. 7 Known Name(s)
Silver Rail
Address
107-15 Northern Blvd. Corona, NY
Establishment Type(s)
Tavern
Physical Status
Extant
Description
The tavern Silver Rail was located at 107-15 Northern Boulevard, Corona, NY, on the north side of Northern Boulevard. It is a long, rectangular mixed-use, brick building with a flat top roof. The attached building to the west is of the same design. An image from the 1940s shows the first floor was a shop with storefront windows flanking a central, recessed business entrance. A second front facing door with 10 glass panes arranged in two columns was directly east of the windows and opened to a stairwell leading to the upper floors. The upper two floors each had three windows, and the windows were outlined by red bricks that ran upward and curved over the top three third-floor windows into round arches. The second floor’s three windows had straight brick lintels. Grey rectangles decorated with festoons filled the spandrel area between the second and third floors. At the very center of the building’s parapet, there was a grey circular element outlined by dark colored brick. The south-facing wall of the building was covered in advertisements, one of which displayed the name “Stegmaier’s” in bold font.
The furthest west third-floor window had a metal fire escape balcony outside it with stairs leading down to another metal fire escape balcony outside the furthest east second-floor window. The balconies’ metal railings were decorated by swirling flourishes that are interspersed between the bars.
As of September 2024, the upper two levels of the building have retained their original exterior although the first floor has received a few alterations. In 2022, the south door on the first floor had become fully glass and there was a blue rectangular shaped over-hang above the storefront windows with the title of the medical practice, “Be Evergreen” on it. By 2024, however, a retail business named 107 Mini Market had taken residence on the first floor and installed a red overhang with the business’s name on it.
Detailed History
The building that houses the Silver Rail Tavern was built in 1930. The Silver Rail Tavern was a Green Book location from 1950 to 1952. The upper floors of the property were rented out as apartment space throughout the ’30s and up to ’41. An advertisement described the space as having 3 rooms with steam heat and hot water available all year round. During this time, the apartment was home to several tenants, including a newlywed couple by the name of Elain Rago and Giorne Roseto who lived at the property after marrying in 1935. An image from the 1940’s shows the first floor of the building was a shoe repair shop named “O’Sullivan’s.” Window signage stated they offered “quality shoe rebuilding” and used the brand Griffin Shoe Polish.
The first floor of the property likely became a tavern at some point in the 40s prior to 1950, and due to a lack of advertisements listing the property as an apartment after 1941, it’s possible that the dwelling spaces were taken up by either the manager or proprietor once it became tavern. While operating under the name Silver Rail, the tavern was likely part of a chain based on descriptions of locations with the same name in an article from the New York Age newspaper. However, evidence indicates that the Silver Rail may have changed its name in 1951 based on another article in the New York Age. The article refers to the establishment as the “Old Silver Rail (Corona)” and then goes on to say, “now known as Corona Club.” In the same text it also describes the tavern’s new owner, Charlie Wilson, who was reported as being rude to women customers and that Coronaites were “gunning” for him.
In 2022, the first floor housed a medical practice called Be Evergreen. The property’s commercial space has since changed hands and is now used by a shop called 107 Mini Mart, which sells groceries, beer, soda, fruit, and more.
