Monday, November 14, 2011

☞ REMEMBER: Engine 69 circa 1910

The fire station currently standing at 248 West 143rd Street was built sometimes in 1917 so the above photo taken 7 years earlier shows the original building located between ACP/7th and FDB/8th Avenue. Nevertheless, the more modest building still made a dramatic addition to the block when white steeds appeared out of the gates to attend to a local disaster.   This block today has the single classical fire station standing but most of the surrounding buildings consist of housing built in the mid century.

Fire engine leaving fire station ca. 1910 via the digital collection at the Museum of the City of New York
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1 comment:

  1. Beth in NYCNovember 16, 2011 at 9:38 AM

    What a great photo! I shared it with my friend who is the director of the Fire Museum and he had a clarification to the NYPL's caption of the photo:

    Engine Co. No. 69 was organized in 1898 at 243 E. 233rd St. in the Bronx. If you blow up the picture the plaque on the house says it was constructed in 1898 under Chief Hugh Bonner and Mayor Scannell. 69 Engine was disbanded in 1916 and reorganized in Harlem in 1917. This is Engine 69 in their quarters -- but this is in the Bronx, not in Harlem.

    This is 69 Engine's Harlem quarters, built in 1917:
    http://static.panoramio.com/photos/original/29988591.jpg

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