Energy in Harlem

A Look at Energy Infrastructure in Harlem and its Implications for Environmental Justice

The history of access to energy in Harlem relative to greater Manhattan is characterized in large part by delays in the development energy infrastructure. This had significant implications for the citizens of upper Manhattan and Harlem.

Early energy infrastructure in Manhattan was mostly comprised of coal yards, which were primarliy situated on waterfronts. Subsequenlty, as petroleum gained popularity, large gas tanks began to appear, sometimes in notable proximity to nearby housing.

Early Harlem Coal Yard

Early Illustration of Frederick Fuel Plant in East Harlem

Image Courtesy New York Public Library

ConEdison Gas Company

A 1940 New York City tax photograph showing Consolidated Edison's gas plant located at Second Avenue and East 111th Street. Of note is its situation next door to a residential tenement.

Image Courtesy NYC Municipal Archives

ConEd Gas Plant

111th & Second Avenue

Image Courtesy NYC Municipal Archives

Early Electric Service

New York Edison & United Electric Companies:

In the following maps, the red lines indicated electric lines that had been established at the time these were created. The map on the left-hand side showing the New York Edison Company is from 1906 and the map on right-hand side showing the United Electric Company is from 1904.

Click and drag the blue circle in the center to reveal the different electric services.

Energy in Housing

A Look at Energy's Prevalence in Housing:

A look at a Harlem housing report from 1915 conducted by the National Urban League, an early civil rights organization, reveals a myriad of issues surrounding the environment in which Harlem residents lived.

Overall, the NUL report projected that 53.6 percent of all tenements in the district of the study had operating central steam heating systems. Further, it noted landlords’ increasing tendency to shut off these steam “apparatuses,” as they wore out or even prematurely due to “poor service” and mounting coal costs (National Urban League 1915).

The predominance of central heating systems seen in the following map from 1940 illustrate the continued reliance of Upper Manhattan on local heating systems. Downtown, by contrast was becoming less reliant on these central systems because of the ability to utilize a municipal steam system. The data presented below was derived from National Historical GIS:

Interestingly, as one looks closely at this 1940 map, East Harlem has relatively fewer buildings that rely on central systems compared to the rest of Harlem and Upper Manhattan. This could be explained by the findings in the National Urban League's discussion of landlords opting to allow the late 19th centruy central heating systems to fall into disuse. Their study was focused particularly on East Harlem.

Over the span of 10 years (between 1940 and 1950), little change can be recognized in terms of quantities of central systems, as the Lower Manhattan municipal system remained at the island's southern end. This map shows 1950.

1922 New York Daily News Article on Jacob Solotroff

Landlords Controlled Heat Delivery

Beginning in 1918, in response to widespread complaints regarding insufficient heat, landlords were required to keep their buildings above 68 degrees during the heating months under a new addition of Section 225 of the Sanitary Code of the city (NYC Housing Preservation and Development). Despite this effort, the accounts of landlords neglecting to adequately heat their apartments are innumerable. A 1922 New York Tribune article for example details a violation of Section 225 by Jacob Solotoroff, noting that he had purchased roughly one sixth of the amount of coal necessary to adequately heat the 72 units across his four buildings in Harlem (New York Tribune 1922).

Click the Individual Census Tracts on the Map Above to Reveal the Ratio of Coal Used in Each One. These are Shown Under "Coal" as a Decimal.

A look at Consolidated Edison's Steam district map helps to further contextualize Harlem's situation. The district spread from Lower Manhattan uward towards 96th Streen on the Upper West Side and at 89th Street on the Upper East Side. The following map shows the district map in blue as it is today.

Consolidated Edison Steam Service Map, 2012

Thank you.

This Story Map was created under Professor Bilge Kose's Digital Heritage Documentation and for Professor Erica Avrami's Historic Preservation Studio II in the Spring of 2022.

Click and drag the blue circle in the center to reveal the different electric services.

1922 New York Daily News Article on Jacob Solotroff

Consolidated Edison Steam Service Map, 2012