Nicknamed after the brainchild of the lamppost, the Donald Deskey was once the common lamppost to see throughout the city of New York in the late 20th century. It made its debut there by the end of the 1950s decade and was considered at the time the new lamppost of the future.
This photograph below shows one of the earliest Donald Deskey lampposts in Manhattan. Possibly 1959.
The lamppost was made of aluminum, and it had an octagonal base. At the top, a short goose neck was attached, in which had a street lamp head. A simple, yet unique design.
Several years after it was introduced, the Donald Deskey first became widespread. The D.O.T. of New York City intended to modernize, so, as a result, many replaced decorative street lampposts that dated back to the early 20th century. Because the lamppost was practically everywhere, there were several variations that were designed and installed in New York City. Each kind had its own purpose. Below, are some of the popular variations that once existed.
The first kind that made its debut in the late 1950s was common to see on ordinary streets in the five boroughs. The first photograph above is an adequate example.
For 5th Av. in the borough Manhattan, a special variation was designed and installed in the mid 1960s. It supported two street lamps and was dark brown. It also supported an 8" vehicular head, which was painted brown as well. Some of you may recall that at this period in time, the G.E. "bronze signals" of 5th Av. were ultimately replaced by them.
Wide roads, major expressways, and service roads typically had lampposts of this kind.
To provide an adequate illumination of the road below, the street lamp was attached to a long goose neck. For additional support, a second goose neck (the average size of the first kind) was attached to it.
Major thoroughfares that have multiple lanes in both directions had these. This variation was located on the median, and two street lamps were attached to it. The curved metal piece in the middle provided support for both.
Then there were those that were located near or at major airports in New York City. These in particular below could still be found near LaGuardia airport in the borough Queens.
They are short in appearance, and the idea is to prevent the confusion of an actual runway for an aircraft. Interesting nevertheless.
The Donald Deskey lampposts also supported traffic signals commonly located on medians. Minus the goose neck and street lamp.
Over 25 years ago, production of these variations stopped, and, since then, they have been slowing dwindling, due to new designs of lampposts and modernization,
All pictures are courtesy of Kevin Walsh.
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