Canopies on Cambridge
Tuesday’s post about brownstone window awnings in Bed Stuy prompted one reader to send us this photo of Cambridge Place in Clinton Hill from 1928. It looks like these ones cover even more of the window. You’d really have to duck down to reach the front door. 1920s: Houdini, Flappers and Window Awnings? [Brownstoner]
Tuesday’s post about brownstone window awnings in Bed Stuy prompted one reader to send us this photo of Cambridge Place in Clinton Hill from 1928. It looks like these ones cover even more of the window. You’d really have to duck down to reach the front door.
1920s: Houdini, Flappers and Window Awnings? [Brownstoner]
one, maybe two sweet looking parking spaces there…
I found a similar front door awning in the cellar of my house. We put it up and you did indeed have to duck VERY low to get under it. It was a nice green-striped canvass. Unfortunately, it was very brittle and fell apart almost immediately. I think we still have the frame, but wouldn’t re-use it because it’s so low.
My tax photo looks pretty good, although the camera was tilted and it’s poorly composed (AND doesn’t show any awnings–looks like it was shot in Winter). Despite the prohibition on copying, I scanned mine and it’s on the “My Brownstone” page here. I don’t think the prohibition has any teeth. AFAIK think local governments can’t copyright documents produced with taxpayer funds.
BTW, I’m not a car expert, but the one in the tax photo above looks like it’s from the early to middle ’30s–the corners are too rounded, I think, for it to be from the ’20s.
hey benson,
our co-op is actually meeting next week to discuss a more pleasing solution to our garbage cans out front. do you have any ideas i could take in? i’m sure we will still have them kept outside, but do you have any info on people in the neighborhood who do some nice looking containers to store the cans in? or any other ideas/solutions?
I’m with ya on this one as a first floor street facing owner in a browstone. Can’t wait to do something about those cans.
I’m with you Benson. The garbage can thing is getting out of hand.
I’ve noticed quite a few apt buildings now keep garbage and recycling bins on the sidewalk outside gates/railings these days around me…which pretty sure is violation.
And a relatively new 6 unit -condo bldg near me (above a commercial restaurant)…
has only 2 cans for whole bldg tucked into a unused doorway, always uncovered and often overflowing and no provision for recycling.
To Anon 9:48: Some homes did have exterior shutters. In fact, a house on Union St between Court & Smith Sts in CG has recently restored its brickfront and installed lovely exterior shutters. Perhaps they still had the original hardware affixed to the facade…or obtained a tax photo…but they did a very nice restoration. My house had exterior shutters on the rear facade; the hardware is still there, so maybe when I hit mega-millions, I’ll restore them too.
looking up my tax photo was one of the first things i did after we bought our home. 10:55 AM is right, microfiche prints look horrible but the photos look great so it’s worth doing.
Folks;
The best way to order the tax photos is to go to the Municipal Archives, rather than on-line. Here’s why. The 1939 tax photos were organized according to block and lot number, not address. You can ask the City for the cross-reference between your address and these numbers (it’s contained on your property tax bill too). HOWEVER, some of the block and lot numbers have been changed since 1939, and you have to make sure you have the older numbers.
That is why it is worthwhile to go to the Municipal Archives. They have a book right there with all this information. More importantly, they have all these photos on microfilm. Hence, before you order a photo, you can look it up on the microfilm and make sure that you are ordering the correct one. It’s relatively easy.
Now, back to my campaign about the garbage cans….
Yente,
I understand what you are saying. However, considering that in these historic districts the City is already telling you what you can and cannot do to the front of your building, I don’t think it is too much of a stretch to regulate the placement of the garbage cans.
Ultimately, it would be better if a sense of neatness and aesthetics would be developed within society again, without the need for the law. No argument there.
Benson
I am anonymous 9:44. I’ve ordered the tax photo for my house. Every residence in the City was similarly photographed once between 1939-41. I don’t think the City ever did this kind of an effort again. You can look your house (or any house) up on microfiche at the NYC archives on Chambers Street. Don’t be put off by the quality of the microfiche print. (You don’t have to do this, you can order the print without looking up the microfiche first.) Mine looked horrible on microfiche and I was scared to order, but they print from the negative onto photographic paper and do a good job getting the contrast right. Prices are on the archive’s website, and they offer 8×10 and 11×14. All you need is your Block and Lot.
Benson, just a guess, but I’d say we consume more these days, therefore, we create more garbage. It’s a throwaway society. Granted, we can hide it, but to enforce a law telling us what we can or cannot do in our front yard would be kinda big brother.