Waterside Generating Station, Manhattan, NYC
June 28th, 2005 by Bad Guy Joe
The minute that 383Fury pointed out the Waterside Generating Station was being shut down, I knew it was ON.
Getting in was far from simple. This spot was well secured. That never stops us though. Not when you have a power plant this huge just sitting shut down. It took some doing, but we quickly found our way around security and into the buildings.
Inside? It was LTV time. Everything was intact. Nothing broken, Nothing stolen. Most explorers never get to see buildings in this pristine state. You could hardly tell it was this buildings final hours.
I only got around to visiting here 2 or 3 times before demolition began. If I had it to do over again, I would have went in there every night for a month. There was just that much to see in there. Nevertheless, it was an honor to be amongst the only explorers to ever break into this facility.
History
The Waterside Generating Station located at 1st avenue and 40th street, just south of the U.N. It was a Beaux-Arts style industrial structure designed by C. Wellesley Smith. It was massive in size - covering 9.5 acres of prime Manhattan real estate.
Completed in 1900, the Waterside Generating Station produced both electricity and steam. Steam was, and continues to be, a vital energy source within NYC's older buildings. Grand Central Terminal, for example, is heated with Steam provided by Con Ed, and also cooled by this steam via a chemical reaction between the steam and lithium bromide within a conversion plant located under the main floor of the terminal.
During a typical year, the Waterside Generating Station could produce over 2.4 million pounds of steam and 160 megawatts of electricity.
Today, there is no trace of this facility. It joins the long list of former industrial sites around NYC that have been wiped clean from the maps.
15 responses to “Waterside Generating Station, Manhattan, NYC”
Worked at Waterside from 1961-1969. Great pix of the grand old place. During my time at waterside, It was avery noisey environment to work in and only once for a period of 8-9 hours, during the first NYC blackout, did I experience the silence that you encountered during your visits to the facility after it was already closed. FYI–production figures during a typical year are actually hourly figures.
Around 1980, spoke with Bob Nunnelly of ConEd who worked at Waterside I and II. He said there’d been numerous changes to the plants over the decades. By way of example, the original ninety low pressure boilers were replaced with two high pressure units.
He said Waterside I had one or two boilers which produced 1600 pounds per square inch of steam at a temperature of 950 degrees. Waterside II had six boilers which exhausted into the two stacks.
Combined power output of the two plants was around 225 Megawatts.
The buildings were architectural treasures, destroyed by bloomberg’s mad craving to ruin things of beauty and replace them with steel and glass sterility.
Paul Vincent Zecchino
Manasota Key, Florida
29 DEC ’20
I worked in waterside from 1989 to closing.
The people I worked with make the job fun, interesting and fulfilling.
So sad to see it get shutdown and sold.
We all worked so hard to keep it running, I couldn’t drive past during demolition.
I was there when we shut down the last unit and isolated electrical feeders and steam send out mains.
The station became dark and quiet, everything a generating station should not be.
I’m retired now for 14 years but thinking about station and coworkers still makes me smile.
Met my wife in station
Greg Misevich I remember when you went to PGM in 1980?I worked in the Waterside plant and got injured in 1993 June 28th when a Boiler tube struck me on my right side….I was unconscious and taken to Bellevue…I was also their during the steam explosion and went looking fo Gene Murtha(died)and Fire Captain Ron Mcteague whom got burned 3rd degree burns and sued Con ed and got 3 Million $$$$
Thank you all for sharing so many interesting memories of Waterside.
Greg Misevich – I think I have a photo of your signature on a wall – I believe towards the building lobby? There are a bunch of signatures on it from when the plant shut down.
The signatures were on the kitchen west wall of the centralized control room. People started signing just before we shutdown.
Greg Misevich
I worked at waterside from 1963 to 2000when I retired.worked with great people we kept that place running. Hi
Was it demolished? What is it now?
Big empty lot.
My father worked there..I remember as a kid one 4th of July we watched fireworks from the rooftop.
Lol , those power plants are very interesting buildings. Not meant for the living but meant to generate power and make super heated steam . I worked in several Con Ed power plants and they’re cold in winter and HOT A F in the summer. I’m semi retired and feel for my friends who still work in the plants, hey east river, Hudson and big Allis I’m talking to you !! Nicky P. , Eddie P., Erminio M. I miss working with you guys !! It’s a family like cops or firefighters , u could die , get great training ,save a life , meet your mate all while making light from darkness
I worked there in 2004. Viewing the fireworks over the river were spectacular.
Walter Johnsen pasted away on 04/26/2023. He taught me all about waterside station and life. He was tough and fair and i will miss him greatly. He was truly the older brother I never had. He always appeared when the plant was in trouble and I needed help.
Walter, you will never be forgotten.
Hey Gregory,
If you still check this will you shoot me an email? It’s stories@nycblackout2003.com
I have a question for you about working at Waterside Generating Station. Thanks! -Mia
Worked at Waterside from April 1971 to June 1973. Started in the condenser gang, and moved on to tending the turbines in Waterside 2. Later I transferred to the electrical maintenance department. Did a lot, learned a lot. Was always fascinated by the facility’s charm, and history. I left Con Edison reluctantly for a career with NYC DEP. Never thinking the entire complex would come to an end some day