A LOOK BACK.

68jk09 said:
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A great photo taken by Wesley Pearman in January of 1970 on East Fordham Rd in the Bronx. There is an old saying that every picture is worth a thousand words. This is certainly one of them. What I found most amazing about this photo and several others taken from this job (floating around the internet) is that it captured an era of rapid modernization in FDNY fleet. In this picture alone you can see a Ward LaFrance gasoline motor hand cranked wooden aerial (a reserve piece that Ladder 33 was using). I am told that a few companies around the city were regularly using these as late as 1974. Directly behind this rig is a new 1968 series American LaFrance covered cab roof, diesel powered motor with vertical exhaust pipe (loud, especially under the Els) with a 100 foot steel aerial. Satellite 2 is operating in the only 5 year old Super Pumper System and Satellite 3 was also placed into operation at this job. Visible in the right background is one of the 1969 series Mack CF diesel powered pumpers with the Conestoga Herculite Hosebed cover. And not visible in this photo, but in others taken from this job that morning was Tower Ladder 44 operating. TL44 was one of the first 5-10 tower ladders to be placed into service starting in 1965 and was quickly being discovered as an invaluable fire killer as the Bronx was burning. Lastly, first alarm company E75 was not even in the top 25 citywide for runs or worker when this photo was taken. 5 years later they would be # 1 in the city. 33 truck would vault to #1 or 2 as the fire storm roared out of the south Bronx into the 19th Battalion. 33 truck was the only truck from Webster Avenue to the Harlem River and from the Cross Bronx Expressway to Kingsbridge Road, (ladders 56 and 59 had not been assigned to E48 and E43 yet), and in 71 or 72, Ladder 33 was issued a new tower ladder and was being special called all over the northwest Bronx and upper Manhattan. I lived in this area as a teenager before we bailed in 1975 along with 10’s of thousands of others for the suburbs. Lastly over the decades the taxpayers along Fordham road from Sedgwick Ave over to Southern Boulevard were notorious for multiple alarm jobs over from the 60’s and into the 21st century. Great times and great memories. Thanks for posting Chief JK.
 
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Looks like the corner of Fordham & Bathgate - pretty sure that's Roosevelt HS on the other side of Bathgate (on the left) - and you can see the clock tower on the bank (Grand Concourse) in the distance
 
FDNY 1st Tower Ladder was TL-1 the Second I believe was in fact Tower Ladder 119 in Brooklyn. Brooklyn's Tower Ladder 105 was also early in the evolution of FDNY Tower Ladders. I Buffed the 1st fire that an FDNY Tower Ladder was used at a at 9th or 10 Alarm at Brooklyn Box 289 in Williamsburg. NOTE this Fire warped the metal of the alarm box, Brooklyn Box 289, that was used to report the original fire. Photo BELOW
ALSO Note Tower Ladders were developed in FDNY when the problem of the Snorkel units ELBOW on narrow NYC Streets was discovered.
Captain Bob Rainey FDNY Engine 26 retired. FDNY Engine_212 Deck Gun Attack Lumber Yard Fire 1950s.jpg
 
Captain784 said:
FDNY 1st Tower Ladder was TL-1 the Second I believe was in fact Tower Ladder 119 in Brooklyn. Brooklyn's Tower Ladder 105 was also early in the evolution of FDNY Tower Ladders. I Buffed the 1st fire that an FDNY Tower Ladder was used at a at 9th or 10 Alarm at Brooklyn Box 289 in Williamsburg. NOTE this Fire warped the metal of the alarm box, Brooklyn Box 289, that was used to report the original fire. Photo BELOW
ALSO Note Tower Ladders were developed in FDNY when the problem of the Snorkel units ELBOW on narrow NYC Streets was discovered.
Captain Bob Rainey FDNY Engine 26 retired. View attachment 47151
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Wasn't TL-14 the first Tower Ladder?
 
8060rock said:
Looks like the corner of Fordham & Bathgate - pretty sure that's Roosevelt HS on the other side of Bathgate (on the left) - and you can see the clock tower on the bank (Grand Concourse) in the distance
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8060 you are on target with the location. It's East Fordham Rd btw Bathgate Ave & Lorillard Pl. Looking into the photo I see what appears to be a rig from the Fire Patrol (left side of photo). Also showing is the Fordham Rd station of the 3rd El. The clock belonged to the Dollar Saving bank up on the Grand Concourse. Now Lad 27 & 38 had the ALF tillers at the time.
 
Captain784 said:
FDNY 1st Tower Ladder was TL-1 the Second I believe was in fact Tower Ladder 119 in Brooklyn. Brooklyn's Tower Ladder 105 was also early in the evolution of FDNY Tower Ladders. I Buffed the 1st fire that an FDNY Tower Ladder was used at a at 9th or 10 Alarm at Brooklyn Box 289 in Williamsburg. NOTE this Fire warped the metal of the alarm box, Brooklyn Box 289, that was used to report the original fire. Photo BELOW
ALSO Note Tower Ladders were developed in FDNY when the problem of the Snorkel units ELBOW on narrow NYC Streets was discovered.
Captain Bob Rainey FDNY Engine 26 retired. View attachment 47151
Click to expand...
Thanks Cap. Good stuff.
 
Another amazing thing about this photo is the depth of field captured by the photographer which captured the El , the dollar savings bank on the grand concourse and the H types along Briggs, Bainbridge, Valentine etc

These recent photos of the fire building (rebuilt) show the EL is gone (finished removing in early 70’s) and how the massive building at 1 Fordham plaza etc block the view of landscape west of Webster. The second modern photo shows the Dollar Savings Bank Clock Tower and the H types on the right.
 

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