Village Trivia

Oddball Fire Department Alarm Box

Photo by Brian J. Pape AIA.

Did you know that these red alarm boxes are still active, for citizens to use to alert the FDNY in case of a fire? That may seem like a thing of the past, but I checked at our Fire Squad Company 18 station at 132 W. Tenth Street, and they assured me, they still work. Some are mounted on streetlamp poles, some are ornate round ones, some have been wrapped in yarns and some have solar power panels on top. But I don’t believe they were originally installed with this angled shape, do you? What could bend the bottom and not the top with it? This is probably the only one that looks like this. Do you know the location of this one?

Trivia answer: This ancient FDNY Alarm Box is active despite its forlorn and mis-shaped appearance, right in front of Malatesta Trattoria at 649 Washington Street at Christopher Street.