Remember the coal choots and ash cans?

[Eddie Acunzo]

Those of you that know me know that I grew up at 1576 Taylor and lived there from 1952-1976. People from that era, remember when many of the buildings in the neighborhood were still heated with coal? In my memory I can still hear the coal chunks rattling off the trucks, down the choots, through the basement windows, piled up by the furnaces below. Then after the coal was consumed in the furnaces, the building supers would dump the ash into galvanized cans and line them up by the curb to be hauled off for disposal. There was a story that was part of neighborhood folklore, I never did find out if it was true or not, but the story went that Stratton parkers were gang-fighting with a rival neighborhood who had the audacity to cruise into our neighborhood during the turf war. The group protecting SP had hauled a full ash can up to a roof of one of the buildings and dropped it directly onto the cruising gangbangers to protest this sign of disrespect.

As I recall, these coal furnaces were converted to oil. Though 1976 was the last time I lived in a dwelling using heating oil, my memory can still vividly smell the stench of an unloading oil truck too. Its funny how certain smells, sounds and sights stay forever entrenched in the memories of our youth.

[benny]

I remember the coal and the ash cans very well. My folks were supers of 1527 Taylor. The ash cans extremely heavy, my dad would have to use a hand truck to get them up the stairs. What a pain in the back!! One day when I came home from school, I remember giong in the boiler room to see that the boiler had imploded. No damage to the building or the boiler room. Was scared bleepless giong in there after that. After we moved to the 4th floor in 1527 and new supers took over, the landlord (rapperport) converted it to oil and put ramps on the sides of the steps so it would be easier to get the garbage cans up. No more 1,2,3 pull, thump, 1,2,3, pull, thump.

[bob5915]

Hi Benny: I lived in 1531 Taylor Ave right next door to you and yes I remember the coal and the conversion to oil. I also remember them putting the ashes on the sidewalk when it snowed out so you would not slip and it would also speed up the melting. The landlord rapperport was one of the best landlords that we had.
Regards, Bobby Roth