- The 2,869 Contract Two photographs show the continuation of subway construction by the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT), connecting City Hall on the Lexington Avenue Line in Manhattan to Atlantic Avenue on the Eastern Parkway Line in Brooklyn via the Joralemon Street Tunnel under the East River (the 4 train and 5 train). There are many photographs of buildings along Joralemon Street in Brooklyn Heights. Other photographs show the subway being constructed beneath the elevated tracks along major arteries such as Flatbush Avenue. These photographs also show the shopping districts of Downtown Brooklyn including major department stores. The photographs include views of completed station interiors in downtown Brooklyn before they were opened to the public.
- The 1,594 Contract Three, Route 12 photographs show construction by the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) of the Eastern Parkway Line from Downtown Brooklyn along Flatbush Avenue and Eastern Parkway to Crown Heights (the 2 train, 3 train and 4 train). The route covers the following sections: Section 1, Flatbush Avenue from Atlantic Avenue to St. Marks Avenue; Section 1A, Flatbush Avenue from Park Place to Eighth Avenue; Section 1B, the area between Fulton Street, Flatbush Avenue, and Atlantic Avenue; Section 2, Plaza Street and Eastern Parkway to Nostrand Avenue; Section 3, Eastern Parkway from Nostrand Avenue to Utica Avenue. Photographs include views of brownstones along St. Felix Street and Hanson Place near the Brooklyn Academy of Music; storefronts along Flatbush Avenue; Grand Army Plaza; the Prospect Park Reservoir located on the corner of Plaza Street and Eastern Parkway (where the main branch of the Brooklyn Public Library now stands); and many views along Eastern Parkway.
- The 1,143 Contract Three, Route 29 photographs show construction by the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) of the Nostrand Avenue Branch of the Brooklyn Line between Crown Heights and Flatbush, Brooklyn (the 2 train and 5 train). The route covers the following sections: Section 1, Nostrand Avenue from Eastern Parkway to Church Avenue; Section 2, Nostrand Avenue from Church Avenue to Flatbush Avenue. Views include the residential and commercial stretches of Nostrand Avenue. There are many storefronts and brownstones, and some wooden row houses and detached wood frame cottages.
- The 451 Contract Three, Route 31 photographs show the construction by the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) of the New Lots Line or Livonia Avenue Line (the 3 train) in Brooklyn. The line runs from East 98th Street and Sutter Avenue to Livonia Avenue and New Lots Avenue. Most views are of the Livonia Avenue commercial district between Howard Avenue and Van Siclen Avenue in Brownsville, a Jewish neighborhood with many shop signs written in Yiddish. Construction of the elevated line resulted in a number of class action lawsuits between property owners and the City of New York because of the very close proximity between the elevated line and the storefronts. There are also many views of the future site and construction of the Livonia Yard, located south of New Lots Avenue between Hegeman and Lawrence Avenues and Elton and Linwood Streets. The area is mainly undeveloped plots of land with a few detached frame and carriage houses.
- The 1,809 Contract Three, Route 48 photographs show construction by the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) of the Brooklyn Branch of the Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line (the 2 train and 3 train) from Park Place in Manhattan to Clark Street and Borough Hall in Brooklyn. The route covers the following sections: Section 1, Park Place under City Hall Park and along Beekman Street to William Street; Section 2, William Street to Hanover Square; and Section 3, Old Slip in Manhattan to Clark Street in Brooklyn, passing under the East River via the Clark Street Tunnel. Two lengthy series of photographs from 1919 and 1921 shows the interior of the Clark Street Tunnel at regular intervals.
- The 4,056 Contract Four, Route 8 photographs show the construction by the Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit Corporation (BMT) of a portion of the Canarsie Line (sometimes referred to as the 14th Street–Eastern Line) from Manhattan into Brooklyn and Queens (the L train). The route is divided into the following sections: Section 1A, West 14th Street from Eighth Avenue to Sixth Avenue; Section 1, 14th Street from Sixth Avenue to Irving Place; Section 2, East 14th Street from Irving Place to Avenue B; Section 3, East 14th Street and Avenue B in Manhattan to North 7th Street and Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn; Section 4, North 7th Street from Bedford Avenue to Metropolitan Avenue, and Metropolitan Avenue from Union Avenue to Manhattan Avenue; Section 5, Metropolitan Avenue from Manhattan Avenue to Bushwick Avenue, and Bushwick Avenue from Metropolitan Avenue to Meserole Street; Section 6-A, Bushwick Avenue from Meserole Street to Boerum Street; Section 6-B, Bushwick Avenue from Boerum Street to McKibbin Street, McKibbin Street from Bushwick Avenue to Bogart Street, and Harrison Place from Bogart Street to Varick Avenue; Section 6-C, Harrison Place from Varick Avenue to Flushing Avenue and Wyckoff Avenue, and Wyckoff Avenue from Flushing Avenue to Menahan Street; Section 6-D, Wyckoff Avenue from Menahan Street to Halsey Street; Section 6-E-1, Wyckoff Avenue from Halsey Street to Cooper Avenue in Queens; Section 6-E-2, following the Long Island Rail Road tracks from Cooper Avenue along Cemetery of the Evergreens and Trinity Cemetery to Bushwick Avenue and Aberdeen Street; Sections 6-E-Section 6-F, Bushwick Avenue and Aberdeen Street to Broadway Junction.
- The 2,860 Contract Four, Route 11 photographs show the construction by the Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit Corporation (BMT) of a portion of the Fourth Avenue Line from Flatbush Avenue to 95th street in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn (the N train and R train). The route covers the following sections: Section AE-1, Lafayette Avenue and Ashland Place, showing the area around the Brooklyn Academy of Music; Section A-1, Atlantic Avenue and Fourth Avenue to Fourth Avenue and Sackett Street; Section A-2, Fourth Avenue from Union Street to 4th Street; Section A-3, Fourth Avenue from 4th Street to 25th Street; Section A-4, Fourth Avenue from 26th Street to 41st Street; Section B-1, Fourth Avenue from 42nd Street to 61th Street; Section B-2, Fourth Avenue from 62nd Street to 86th Street; and Section B-3, Fourth Avenue from 87th Street to 95th Street. The views include some dramatic, bird's-eye shots of the excavation work that affected the neighborhoods of Park Slope, Sunset Park and Bay Ridge.
- The 1,816 Contract Four, Route 33 photographs show the construction by the Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit Corporation (BMT) of the continuation of the Broadway Line from Manhattan into Brooklyn via the Montague Street Tunnel (the R train), connecting to the Fourth Avenue Line in Brooklyn. The route covers the following sections: Section 1, from Trinity Place and Morris Street to Broadway and Bowling Green, and along Whitehall Street to South Street; Section 2, from the foot of Whitehall Street in Manhattan via the Montague Street Tunnel under the East River to Montague Street between Henry Street and Clinton Street in Brooklyn; Section 3, under Montague Street, Fulton Street and Willoughby Street to the junction with the Fourth Avenue Line at Flatbush Avenue Extension.
- The 566 Contract Four, Route 39 photographs show construction by the Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit Corporation (BMT) of the West End Line extension of the Fourth Avenue Line in Brooklyn from around 36th Street to Coney Island (the D train). The connection from the Fourth Avenue Line required the reconstruction of a portion of the line between 33rd Street and 38th Street. The route covers the following sections: Section 1, Fourth Avenue from 33rd Street to 38th Street, and along 38th Street to Tenth Avenue; Section 2, Tenth Avenue from 39th Street to 41st Street, New Utrecht Avenue from 41st Street to 86th Street, 86th Street from New Utrecht Avenue to Stillwell Avenue, and Stillwell Avenue to Avenue Y and the Coney Island Yard, ending up at the Coney Island-Stilwell Avenue Station. Photographs identified as "Job 467" show New Utrecht Avenue underneath the elevated tracks. Some photographs document lawsuits by property owners along the elevated portion of the line.
- The 377 Contract Four, Route 49 photographs show construction by the Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit Corporation (BMT) of the Culver Line from around Tenth Avenue and 37th Street along Gravesend Avenue (now McDonald Avenue) to Coney Island in Brooklyn (the F train). The route covers the following sections: Section 1-A, from west of Tenth Avenue between 37th Street and 38th Street to a point east of Tenth Avenue; Section 1, from east of Tenth Avenue parallel to 37th Street to Gravesend Avenue, and along Gravesend Avenue to south of Twenty-Second Avenue (now Bay Parkway); Section 2, Gravesend Avenue from Twenty-Second Avenue to Avenue X; and Section 3, from Shell Road and Avenue X to West 6th Street and Sheepshead Bay Road. The series also includes many photographs of the Coney Island Yard.
- The 198 Contract Four, Manhattan Bridge Extension photographs show construction by the Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit Corporation (BMT) of the Manhattan Bridge Branch of the Fourth Avenue Line along Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn (the N train and Q train), including the former Myrtle Avenue Station, which was also known as the Gold Street Station.
- The 2,992 Independent Subway System (IND) Route 101 photographs show construction on the Eighth Avenue Line (the A train and C train) from Greenwich Village south to Fulton Street in Manhattan, and into Brooklyn via the Cranberry Street Tunnel under the East River. The route covers the following sections: Section 5, Greenwich Avenue from Seventh Avenue and West 11th Street to Sixth Avenue; Section 4, Sixth Avenue from West 9th Street to Broome Street; Section 3, Church Street from Canal Street to Chambers Street; photographs captioned Sections “3 & 4”, the area around Canal Street and along West Broadway to Church Street and Barclay Street; and Section 1, Fulton Street from Pearl Street to South Street and into Brooklyn at the foot of Furman Street to High Street between Adams and Jay Streets; there are no Section 2 photographs. This route includes many views of Greenwich Village and, going south, buildings between Houston Street and Canal Street that were demolished to make way for the Sixth Avenue Extension and the new subway line. Other photographs include a large number of images of headstones in St. Paul’s Chapel churchyard. 88 of the Route 101 photographs are captioned Sections 8-11 and are views from West 32nd Street to West 53rd Street on the IND Sixth Avenue Line (the F), including the R.K.O. Building and Radio City Music Hall.
- The 1,845 Independent Subway System (IND) Route 103 photographs show construction of portions of the Sixth Avenue Line (the B train, D train, F train and M train) and the Culver Line (the F train) from Manhattan into Brooklyn via the Rutgers Street tunnel under the East River. The route is divided into the following sections: Section 1, Houston Street from Sixth Avenue to Mott Street; Section 2, Houston Street from Elizabeth Street to Ludlow Street; Section 3, down Essex Street to Canal Street and Rutgers Street; Section 4, the areas around the East River from Rutgers Slip to South Street in Manhattan, and from the piers at John Street along Jay Street in Brooklyn. There are many views of excavation and construction along Houston Street from the West Side to the East Side. There are several Italian specialty shops on West Houston Street. East Houston Street from Chrystie to Essex Streets reveals the large Jewish neighborhood of the Lower East Side. Photographs include vendors and crowds along Orchard Street and Houston Street, and many signs in Yiddish along Rivington Street. Other landmarks along Houston Street include the Puck building and the Sunshine Theatre. Other views include Seward Park, located between Hester Street and Canal Street.
- The 3,626 Independent Subway System (IND) Route 109 photographs show construction of a portion of the Culver Line (the F train and G train) from Jay Street to Church Avenue in Brooklyn. The route covers the following sections: Section 1, Jay Street from Nassau Street to Willoughby Street; Section 2, Jay Street from Willoughby Street to Fulton Street, and Smith Street from Fulton Street to Baltic Street; Section 2A, Smith Street from Baltic Street to around 4th Street; Section 3, Smith Street from around 4th Street to 9th Street, and 9th Street from Smith Street to Fourth Avenue; Section 4, 9th Street from Fourth Avenue to Prospect Park West; Section 5A, Prospect Park West to Bartel-Pritchard Square and Prospect Park Southwest; Section 5B, Howard Place from Prospect Park Southwest to Prospect Avenue, and Prospect Avenue to Seeley Street Viaduct; Section 6, Prospect Avenue from Seeley Street Viaduct to Fort Hamilton Parkway, and Fort Hamilton Parkway and Caton Avenue to around East 4th Street; and Section 7, from around East 4th Street to Gravesend Avenue [McDonald Avenue], and Gravesend Avenue to Church Avenue.
- The 668 miscellaneous photographs include those that are not identified by a specific contract or route number. Many photographs relate to construction on subway lines, including the BMT Brighton Line, BMT Myrtle Avenue Line, BMT Sea Beach Line, and BMT Jamaica Line, not otherwise represented in the Subway Construction Photograph Collection. Other photographs show construction of elevated railroads including the Third Avenue El and the Ninth Avenue El; planning for the Queens-Midtown Tunnel under the East River; construction of a bridge over the Harlem River; images relating to electric power supply and power plants; and a series of photographs of the Central Methodist Episcopal Church, Hanson Place and St. Felix Street, showing damage resulting from the construction of the IRT Eastern Parkway Line in Downtown Brooklyn, and the church's subsequent demolition. Thoroughfares documented in the series include East 44th Street and 57th Street in Manhattan, Southern Boulevard in the Bronx, and Fulton Street in Brooklyn.