We were recently alerted by the Preservation League of Staten Island (PLSI) about the existence of this structure. How long it remains that way is the question…

Stable “A”, Swan Street, Tompkinsville

If you didn’t work or live nearby, you’d probably never have any reason to go down this street -- nestled in at 66 Swan Street between Van Duzer St. and St Pauls Ave., is a unique piece of Staten Island History. While it isn’t the former home of a notable person, nor did anything particularly news worthy take place here, it is historical nevertheless. Resembling more a clubhouse than City facility (with its broken glass-paned windows and spray-pained scrawl on the exterior warning about parking there – all it needs is a “Boys (or Girls) Only” sign) this structure was once an integral part of the newly-formed sanitation system on Staten Island.

One of the “selling points” in Staten Island becoming part of Greater New York City in 1898 was the promise of better public services, which in turn would mean a better quality of life for residents. The island’s growing population, paired with the many “improved roads” of macadam being installed on the major thoroughfares meant an increased need for sanitation to keep it all clean.

In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, the Department of Street Cleaning (later to become the Department of Sanitation) primarily used three types of vehicles to help insure the cleanliness of Richmond Borough: the Garbage Truck, the Ash Cart, and the Street Sweeper. This being before the widespread use of motor vehicles, they were all horse-drawn.

To house the horses, the City built two stables on Staten Island, simply named Stable “A” and Stable “B”. Stable A was built in 1902 on Swan Street, Tompkinsville (as of this writing we have yet to determine where Stable “B” was located) and between the two they housed over 70 draught horses; the "engines" that ran the vehicles that kept the island clean. Stable "A" witnessed the transition from "old" technology to "new": twenty years or so later, the horses and their vehicles were replaced with more modern gas-powered vehicles. Neighboring properties were purchased and the area was enlarged so that the barn and surrounding lots were (and continue to be) used as a storage area for various Sanitation equipment and vehicles. 

As one can see in the “present” photographs, Stable “A” has definitely seen better days, and if it was located in a more visible area of the island it most likely would have been torn down by now; “out of sight, out of mind” has definitely played a part in its survival. It is also clear that the Stable has not been maintained for quite some time. Sooner or later, someone will make that decision to add this building to the growing list of “what used to be on Staten Island”. The good news is that it’s not too late to save the Stable – the PLSI is seeking support in sending Nomination Letters to the Landmarks Preservation Commission of NYC (LPC) in hopes that Stable “A” is recognized as an historically important structure – it is almost certainly the last stable of its kind on Staten Island. It's already owned by the City, so why not have the City protect the integrity (and HISTORY) of this building?

Emails from our fellow Staten Island History Detectives would be extremely helpful in getting Stable "A" calendared for consideration of Landmarking.  Why not email your request to the LPC to save this structure before it is too late? Contact Robert Tierney at:

rtierney@lpc.nyc.gov 



or a letter can be addressed to:



Robert Tierney

Landmarks Preservation Commission

Municipal Building

1 Centre Street, 9th Floor

New York, NY 10007

The PLSI Action Alert about this structure can be found here:

http://www.preservationleagueofstatenisland.org/2010/11/preservation-action-alert-no-1-66-swan.html

The following are some “Past-Present” photos of the Stable and equipment used. All of the vehicle photos were taken on Staten Island circa 1915…