Tuesday, June 27, 2017

UPDATE: THE FIRE WATCHTOWER RESTORATION

Harlem Bespoke:  New York City's last remaining fire watch tower that was on the highest point of Marcus Garvey Park had been dismantled a couple of years ago for restoration purposes but an initial summer 2017 deadline has pretty much come and gone for the local landmark.  These structures from the 1800s where used by the fire department to not only visually locate burning buildings but to also to sound off various signals by utilizing the large hanging bell within the tower.  Apparently it was more economical to take everything down and replicate the missing parts than to brace what remained but when will things be finally put back into place?

According to the Facebook site for the historic landmark, the new date for the installation of the restored tower will be in Spring 2018 so the delay was only pushed back for only about six months.  Another interesting point to note is that the Landmarks Commission has analyzed old chips of paint and has approved a tan color for the main frame with a copper roof topping everything off.  For an example of what this might look like, check out our past post for an archival image of the watchtower when everything was fully intact: LINK

HarlemBespoke.com 2017

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