Seeing as how we’re north of 1100 blog posts (as of March 2019), it’s probably too late for a Frequently Asked Questions post, but here it is anyway. This is the blog of Old Structures Engineering. Most of the posts are written by me (Don Friedman) but not all. Topics include pretty much anything touching …
The picture above, a fairly normal 1920s Manhattan street scene showing mostly late-1800s buildings, is hiding a secret. The south side of Duane Street – the left side of the photo – was part of the “Negros Burial Ground” for nearly all of the 18th century. The best estimates are that more than 15,000 people …
The combination of a rectangular grid of relatively narrow streets and tall buildings produces some weird effects. For example, it’s much easier to see what’s around you from a distance than from up close. The picture above is East 33rd Street. A bunch of loft buildings of various types, right? Look up a bit… Hey! …
The picture above isn’t one of our projects. It’s a couple of steel-framed loft buildings across the street from where I was working on one of our projects. You can just make out the narrow gap between them on the left; the building on the right seems to be getting brick and terra cotta replacement. …
When I was discussing rowhouses a week ago, I mentioned in passing that I think of rows of houses that are absolutely identical as being “London style” rowhouses. The picture above shows a mild example: the row of eight houses on the left have been modified a bit (and apparently, based on changes in brick …
That very nice example of Neo-classic architecture is the headhouse of the old Curzon Street station in Birmingham. It was in railroad use for 128 years starting in 1838, and it wouldn’t surprise me if that was some kind of record for longevity among railroad buildings. Originally, it was the front of a dead-end station …
