meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
The Bowery Boys: New York City History

#347 Steam Heat! A Gilded Age Miracle

The Bowery Boys: New York City History

Tom Meyers

Places & Travel, History, Documentary, Society & Culture

4.73.9K Ratings

🗓️ 11 December 2020

⏱️ 58 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

It's HOT in the city even during the coldest winter months, thanks to the most elemental of resources -- steam heat. This is the story of the innovative heating plan first introduced on a grand scale here in New York City in the 1880s, a plan which today heats many of Manhattan's most famous -- and tallest -- landmarks. While most buildings in Manhattan derive heat from a private source (most often furnaces, boilers and radiators), some of the largest structures actually get heat from the city.  If you've worked in a large Midtown office building, visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art or had your clothes dry cleaned in Manhattan, you've experienced steam distributed through ConEd's steam service through a system known as district heating.  Because of steam, the city's skyline isn't filled with thousands of chimneys, belching black smoke into the sky.  FEATURING An interview with Frank Cuomo, the director of steam operations at ConEd, who will help explain to us how the city produces steam today and how customers use it. PLUS We answer some pressing questions about city heat. Why is there no steam service in the other four boroughs? Why does your radiator clang loudly at night? And what's the function of those orange and white chimneys in the streets? Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/boweryboys

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Today's show is brought to you by The Weekender from TripAdvisor.

0:05.0

Do you love taking new weekend road trips?

0:08.1

Do you also like knowing the stories behind the destinations you visit?

0:12.2

Then you need The Weekender from TripAdvisor.

0:15.7

The Weekender is a free newsletter curated by TripAdvisor writers who want you to road

0:20.7

trip like a local across the New York region.

0:24.4

Every issue is a pre-packaged weekend trip that gives you the best local spots to eat,

0:29.9

stay and experience, told through the perspective of the locals.

0:34.6

To get this free newsletter, sign up now at TripAdvisor.com slash The Weekender.

0:40.8

That's TripAdvisor.com slash The Weekender.

0:44.8

The Bowry Boys episode 347.

0:47.6

Steam Heat.

0:49.6

Hey, it's The Bowry Boys.

0:52.6

Hey.

0:53.6

Support for The Bowry Boys is provided by our listeners.

0:56.7

Join us for as little as $1 a month by visiting patreon.com slash Bowry Boys.

1:05.5

Hi there, welcome to The Bowry Boys.

1:07.3

This is Greg Young.

1:08.6

And this is Tom Myers.

1:10.1

And today we are cranking up the heat on the show.

1:13.1

Oh, and not just any old kind of heat.

1:17.4

We're cranking up the steam heat.

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Tom Meyers, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Tom Meyers and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.