☞ BESPOKE: Standard Cast Iron Brownstone Posts

Since many of the brownstone blocks of Harlem were built during the time the trains were being planned uptown over 100 years ago, one may notice that some of the architectural elements to various houses look a little similar. When the stone townhouses were going up in the city at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, homebuilders would basically have been able to choose from an array of available mass-manufactured cast iron components from a catalogue.  Assuming that many of these manufacturers were available on the market at the time, these intricate details were probably a little more affordable to the average developer.

The top photo shows the block of west 122nd Street by Morningside Park and one can see a perfectly preserved row of substantial cast iron posts with an urn-like finial topping them off.  Complete rows of preserved staircase posts are harder to find in Central Harlem but West 131st Street has a couple of similar cast iron posts in various conditions on the block between Lenox and ACP/7th Avenue. The difference between the two blocks can be seen at the cap of the posts since the South Harlem set has a pyramidal variation while the Central Harlem set has a stacked step look to them.

Today's home catalogues have more anemic (but affordable) versions of stoop handrails which may be found on the moderate renovations around uptown.  Those seeking more historically accurate architectural elements usually have to have the parts cast again and one ornate post can run up to $5,000 to have replaced.  The Architectural Iron Company has a few examples of replicated posts and cost specs for those who are interested: LINK