Taken in the early
80's, at the corner of 5th Avenue and 32nd Street, this 2nd generation
twin-lamper sported a strange-bedfellows combination of lights.
The very asymetrical pair are a 1940-50's cuplight and a depression
era Mission Bell. One of the pole's signs points towards a fallout
shelter, just in case of an attack by aliens. Perhaps the patriotism
of this staunch streetlighting stalwart protected it from being
dispatched, as so many of it's castiron compadres were, in the
mid 60's mercury vapor invasion. The walk signs with the sun visors were phased out in the late 80's, when NYC adopted as standard citywide, visorless signals with black grids in front of them to block the sun glare. |
Lastly, for anyone
who was wondering, no! Ernest Hemingway did not return, reincarnated
as a delivery truck. Another rare surviving (as of 1982) 2nd generation 5th Avenue twin-lamper, at the corner of 28th Street, sported 2 Cuplights, one of which is missing it's cup. The small, oval light hanging onto the pole marks the presence of a fire alarm box, somewhere on that corner. To my knowledge, both these poles still survive into 1998, but I've not been to that part of 5th Avenue in years. I'm also ignorant of the present status of the luminaires they're sporting. |