Hardly touched: The Old City Hall subway station. Picture: Metropolitan Transportation Authority / Patrick Cashin Source: Supplied

New York’s first ever train station, City Hall, is buried underneath the city’s oldest government building, but since its closure in 1945, few have walked along the station’s elegant platform or glanced their eyes upon its breathtaking design.

Opened on October 27, 1904, New York City’s debut route — dubbed the Manhattan Main Line — began at City Hall and travelled north to Grand Central Terminal, through Times Square and up to 145th Street.

At its peak, City Hall station was the flagship of the Interborough Rapid Transit Company’s subway line. Picture: Metropolitan Transportation Authority / Patrick Cashin Source: Supplied

Fittingly, Mayor George B. McClellan christened the first train using a Tiffany silver controller. Now that’s class.

“The night took on a carnival atmosphere, like New Year’s Eve,” writes Clifton Hood in his book, 722 Miles: The Building of the Subways and how they transformed New York.

“Many couples celebrated in style by putting on their best clothes, going out to dinner, and then taking their first subway ride together.

“Some people spent the entire evening on the trains, going back and forth from 145th street to City Hall for hours. Revelling in the sheer novelty of the underground, these riders wanted to soak up its unfamiliar sights and sensations for as long as possible.”

Financiers, city officials, and policemen ride New York City's first subway on October 27, 1904 at City Hall station. Seated toward the front of the ceremonial flat car were Alexander Orr, August Belmont II, John B. McDonald, and Mayor George B. McClellan. Picture: Corbis Source: Corbis

The original plans for City Hall Station. Source: Supplied

Architects George Lewis Heins and Christopher Grant LaFarge designed an extravagant reflection of the “City Beautiful” movement, a time when “graceful, uplifting urban settings reflected the civility of a society, and, in turn, helped to strengthen the community’s moral and cultural environment”, according to the New York Transit Museum.

Brass chandeliers adorn the tiled, arched, antique ceiling, while on sunny days, natural light floods the space through glass skylights. Oak furnishings and glazed plaques inscribed with “City Hall” rest barely untouched today.

So intricate is the detail, its light bulbs were designed with treads in the reverse direction to prevent theft.

The station owes its breathtaking design to architects George Lewis Heins and Christopher Grant LaFarge. Picture: Metropolitan Transportation Authority / Patrick Cashin Source: Supplied

The station, which operated from 1904 to 1945, is often referred to as "the jewel in the crown,". Picture: Metropolitan Transportation Authority / Marc Hermann Source: Supplied

Yet in the 1940s, as more subway stations were built, City Hall came to a grinding halt, failing to match the standards of newer stops that could hold more commuters and accommodate longer trains.

Passenger numbers dwindled, and with the bigger and better Brooklyn Bridge station close by, officials deemed City Hall a thorn in the subway’s side, and closed it to the public on December 31, 1945.

It was the end of form over function.

The station soon became obsolete and is no longer in service. Picture: © Metropolitan Transportation Authority / Marc Hermann Source: Supplied

These days, the station rests entombed underneath City Hall, and visitors have few opportunities to see the site for themselves. But there are ways.

If you have the money to spend, visitors can sign up to become a member of the New York City Transit Museum and purchase tickets for a Jewel in the Crown: Old City Hall Station members-only tour.

The Museum only offers around two tours a month, with tickets released seasonally. That’s approximately eight tours per season. The next round of tickets will go on sale in mid-August. Tour dates, times and the on-sale date are released in the e-newsletter.

But you’ve got to be quick. When tickets go on sale, the entire season generally sells out within an hour.

Tour tickets to the Old City Hall Station and other tours are available for purchase here.

The original architects of this space designed the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. Picture: Metropolitan Transportation Authority / Marc Hermann Source: Supplied