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DL&W concrete homes - where?
https://www.rypn.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=10196		 Page 1 of 1
Author:  Aarne H. Frobom [ Mon Jul 12, 2004 10:39 am ]
Post subject:  DL&W concrete homes - where?
In a post below, there's a photo of the DL&W East Binghamton tower being demolished. This is one of the many poured-concrete structures built by this railroad early in the last century, and it reminded me of another little-known Lackawanna site.

At a meeting of the Society for Industrial Archeology some years ago, there was a superb paper presented on one of the Lackawanna's wierder experiments in concrete architecture: a neighborhood of cast-concrete houses for coal-company employees. The block of homes was built by building a circular railroad, putting a concete plant on a flat car, and pouring a few feet of each house at a time as workers erected the forms steadily higher and the concrete mixer went round and round. Every detail of the houses was cast concrete, including interior walls. The houses eventually fell out of use, owing to the difficulty of modifying them for indoor plumbing. As built, they were provided with concrete privies.

The neighborhood was in the vicinity of Wilkes-Barre, but I neglected to note where, and I couldn't find them the one time I tried. Does anyone remember where this neighborhood is, or was? The derelict homes were still standing as of the time of the author's presentation (early `80's), having served occasionally as an indestructible practice site for local firemen.

Aarne Frobom
Author:  Scot Lawrence [ Mon Jul 12, 2004 11:00 am ]
Post subject:  Re: DL&W concrete homes - where?
Its called "Concrete City" and is apparently still mostly there!

http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=19 ... put=gplain

http://www.coalregion.com/Towns/townsC.htm

http://www.coalregion.com/images/concrete_city.jpg

> In a post below, there's a photo of the
> DL&W East Binghamton tower being
> demolished. This is one of the many
> poured-concrete structures built by this
> railroad early in the last century, and it
> reminded me of another little-known
> Lackawanna site.

> At a meeting of the Society for Industrial
> Archeology some years ago, there was a
> superb paper presented on one of the
> Lackawanna's wierder experiments in concrete
> architecture: a neighborhood of
> cast-concrete houses for coal-company
> employees. The block of homes was built by
> building a circular railroad, putting a
> concete plant on a flat car, and pouring a
> few feet of each house at a time as workers
> erected the forms steadily higher and the
> concrete mixer went round and round. Every
> detail of the houses was cast concrete,
> including interior walls. The houses
> eventually fell out of use, owing to the
> difficulty of modifying them for indoor
> plumbing. As built, they were provided with
> concrete privies.

> The neighborhood was in the vicinity of
> Wilkes-Barre, but I neglected to note where,
> and I couldn't find them the one time I
> tried. Does anyone remember where this
> neighborhood is, or was? The derelict homes
> were still standing as of the time of the
> author's presentation (early `80's), having
> served occasionally as an indestructible
> practice site for local firemen.

> Aarne Frobom


sscotsman@yahoo.com
Author:  Scot Lawrence [ Mon Jul 12, 2004 11:02 am ]
Post subject:  Re: DL&W concrete homes - where?
another photo:

Concrete City
sscotsman@yahoo.com
Author:  Paul [ Mon Jul 12, 2004 11:54 am ]
Post subject:  Re: DL&W concrete homes - where?
burned and vandalized, but still standing in Nanticoke, Pa.

pvanmeter@msn.com
Author:  Superheater [ Mon Jul 12, 2004 3:12 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: DL&W concrete homes - where?
> burned and vandalized, but still standing in
> Nanticoke, Pa.

This is true. I suggest you avoid the place. I was there a few years ago, and in addition to being an EMS place-there was plenty of indications that its been visited by "temporary residents" of all kinds, drinking parties and perhaps a little gunplay.

The land is settling and the structures show noticeable breakage and I think are unsound and unsafe.

Superheater62@yahoo.com
Author:  Steve Schwartz [ Mon Jul 12, 2004 8:10 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: DL&W concrete homes - where?
Ahh-The Concrete City! I was fascinated by that cluster of buildings as we travelled the "Middle Road" between Wilkes-Barre and Alden Station when we visited my grandmother in another little coal town down the road. I remember my mom telling me that they had problems with sewage and other utilities there, and they abandoned it. Seemed strange, since it LOOKED good. The cluster of buildings was also featured in an ancient publicity film about coal mining. Someone had gotten killed in the nearby mine, and was taken to the family's home in Concrete City. Don't know where you could get that film, but it's interesting, too.



schwartzsj@juno.com
Author:  John Isaksen [ Mon Jul 12, 2004 10:41 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: DL&W concrete homes - where? *PIC*
Those are intestingly similar to the Edison (yes, as in Thomas)Concrete houses. There is still a cluster of these in Phillipsburg, NJ's Valley View section. Formerly an Ingersoll-Rand company town development, the community is located adjacent to the former I-R plant, along the branch of the CNJ that served that facility.

In P'burg's case, the square, flat-roofed houses were fully detached, and featured coal-fired forced air heating.

Believe me, they were SOLID concrete! Made any modifications or upgrading of infrastructure (plumbing, wiring or interior walls) a real challenge! How do I know? My wife's grandfather owned one of them!

It's no accident that Edison's New Village cement plant at Stewartsville, NJ was just a few miles up the Lackawanna's Phillipsburg branch, either ! ;^)

Here's a link to a photo from the Edison National Historic Site of the Ingersoll-Rand Edison Concrete houses.

PS - Edison National Historic site actually has some of the concrete forms used for this style house on display.

NPS concrete house photos
Image
johni@warwick.net
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