Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge, NC

These images are from the Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge, right next to the old lifesaving station. When I first came out here, the lifesaving station was abandoned; it was half covered with sand dunes and was fenced off with barbed wire. Because of the dunes you could walk right over the fences. The lifesaving station has been mostly rehabbed, though I'm not sure what it is going to be used for. They haven't quite finished cleaning up the exterior after getting rid of a modern addition to the station. Lucky for me. How often do you get to see a fire hydrant in a sand dune?

St. Augustine, FL

I'm all for the Peanut Buster Parfait, but don't know about the DQ chicken salad...
St. Augustine is, by the way, the oldest Euro-American city in the continental United States. The Spanish founded it in 1565. Galileo was one year old in 1565.


A word of praise for St. Augustine and its city leaders. The city was built to last, and so are its fire hydrants. This one dates from 1965. That was the year St. Augustine held its quadricentennial celebration. It was a very big deal.

As an aside, I have seen more Mueller fire hydrants during this project than any other name. I think the Neenah Foundry may have the lead in modern manhole covers and sidewalk fixtures and whatnot, but when it comes to fire hydrants, Mueller takes the prize. Three cheers for Chattanooga.

Kill Devil Hills, NC

A fire hydrant in the Outer Banks, North Carolina. It has been enjoying its day at the beach since 1963.







A different fire hydrant down the street. It was made by the same company 46 years later. Clearly, it feels Awful.

Phoenix, AZ

First you look for the fire hydrants. And then the fire hydrants start looking for you... This one found me at Copper Star Coffee in Phoenix. It is from 1966. I have no idea why it is there.

Ithaca, NY

Everyone knows that the Reuben is the king of sandwiches. The Shortstop Deli in Ithaca makes the best Reuben in the universe, hands down. While you are eating your Reuben, walk a block south, watch your feet, and you will see this:





This one is on State Street, headed up the hill.


Not really a great road for cycling, so this guy gets burly points.


On Williams St. in Collegetown,

State College, PA

This image is from State College, PA, home of Penn State University. Joe Paterno has been coaching Penn State's Nittany Lions for longer than this thing has been in the ground.

Alexandria, VA

Two downspouts attached to buildings in Alexandria, VA. Between 1791 and 1846, Alexandria was part of the District of Columbia. In 1846, Alexandria left the District and shortly thereafter rejoined the Commonwealth of Virginia. This means that the greenish downspout marked "Alexandria, DC" dates to before 1846, and the tan downspout dates from some time after Alexandria's retrocession, though both downspouts were made by the same firm.






Fire hydrants from the 1940s. Maybe not as interesting as the downspouts, but still, worth a picture.



And another:

Rome

Not exactly manhole covers, but pretty close. The second is dated 1922, the year Mussolini and the Fascists came to power in Italy. Near Santa Maria degli Angeli.

San Francisco, CA

These shots are from different places in San Francisco. Some of these fire hydrants would have been installed just three years after the earthquake of 1906.


A fire hydrant from 1909.







The same fire hydrant, in color.



The foot of a lamp post installed in 1917.



Another fire hydrant, this one from 1934.










A fire alarm dated 1930.

Washington, D.C.

The color pictures were taken on 4th St. NE in Washington, DC. Both of these manhole covers predate the Lincoln Memorial and Union Station, among other major DC landmarks.




This one, from 1893, is near North Capitol St.


This fire hydrant from 1969 is just off of Pennsylvania Ave:

Launching this ship...

I will admit up front that this blog is likely to appeal to a fairly select group of people. It is, at its core, a collection of pictures of urban infrastructure inscribed with dates, usually in such glorious forms as fire hydrants and manhole covers. Still, there is a reason why I like to take these pictures. It mostly has to do with the idea that these objects have been sitting in the same place, unmoved and unchanged, while the world around them has grown, gone to war, enjoyed peace, raised families and retired to Florida. They have withstood earthquakes, floods, suburbanization, Urban Renewal, riots, gentrification, shifts in modes of transportation and every other creative and destructive force that has been thrown at cities through the decades.

I also like to take these pictures because it gives me a way to see cities from a different perspective than that which is part of the usual tourist program. It makes every trip a scavenger hunt. You can wander around a city of millions and know that you are noticing details that probably only you have consciously looked for.

Of course you do get the occasional funny look from passers by, but you're taking pictures of fire hydrants, what do you want?