Old Radio Towers

[pintopkp]

Now that I have access to the experts around here, I remembered a question that has always puzzled me. On the Taconic State Parkway S/B at Pines Bridge Road there is a small shack with a tower and antenna. That thing has been there forever and I was always curious as to what is is/what is was for. I know of a similar shack/tower on the property of Fox Lane HS in Bedford. At that particular one the door is off the shack and the only thing in it was leaves, trash, and an old looking GE brand microphone. There was also an old antenna lying on it's end against the wall. The tower itself still had an antenna on it but it obviously wasn't connected to anything anymore (all the wires were just left lying in the rubbish in the shack). Since these two sites looked the same, I was wondering maybe if they're old tower sites from some archaic radio system? Anyone have any idea?

 

[Gilligan]

Could have been a guard shack at some point. Could the one in Bedford (high school) have been related to sports events? Just some ideas.

 

[pintopkp]

No idea. The one on the Taconic is just a little metal hut with electric going to it (fed off the Pines Bridge Road power lines) and the one at Fox Lane has what looks like a radio microphone in it, not like a PA microphone (if that makes any sense).

 

[archduke]

Dredging my memory I think it served two purposes, but I can't remember in which order.

At one time there was a low band coaxial antenna on top and since there was no need for NYSP there since they already occupied the top of the 350' tower at the county jail in Valhalla, the only thing I could think of was the 47Mhz system of the State Highway Dept.

At another time there were 2 VHF high band station masters, one on top and one side mounted 2/3s the way up. In the 1970's there was an unsuccessful repeater Highway Maintenance system on the Taconic State with a repeater at this Pines Bridge location, another way up the line at Claverack, NY and for some reason another one in New Rochelle just off the Hutchinson River Pkwy.

That Pinesbridge road is actually a very nice location, elevation wise etc. I bet you could hang your own (expendable) gear some night and no body official would ever notice.

 

[Alarms50]

Westchester's new Fire/EMS trunked system will utilize a site at the Fox Hill campus. Reportedly the five non-County owned sites will be operating by the end of the year. The four County owned sites are currently operating.

 

[pintopkp]

Thank you, archduke! You have no idea how long I've wondered what that thing was all about! The one on the Fox Lane campus is trashed and still has its antenna, but it was probably for the same highway maintencnce system being that it's off a hill just off I-684.
There is a tower site on Guard Hill (just east of the visitor parking lot for Fox Lane Middle/High School) which is the one that the new system will use. The county PD's current system uses this site as well as Bedford PD (and some otheragencies I'm sure). It's a hell of a location for a site; very high, but the road to get there is akin to trying to drive up the side of a mountain.

 

[Astrosaber]

Pintophp,

Archduke is correct. those old towers (pines bridge and bedford) were apart of the old NY State highway and DPW lowband system. Some of witch are still in use upstate; but down in our area the plows and roadcrews are able to get by without the help of those towers due to the high powered low band mobiles that they all have in there trucks. Each Maintence yard (ie New Rochelle,Yonkers, Odell) has there own antenna or tower in there yard; so as to communicate with the crews.

Now, the tower that you are talking about on the Fox lane campus, is not Guard Hill. let me clarify...Fox lane school, has an access road to another tower site, wich overlooks 684 south. That site houses an antenna for Bedford Pd, the radio station WFAF 106.3, AT&T(cingular) and Verizon have a site there and 2 other commercial repeaters.

Guard Hill site is off Guard Hill road on the farm. This site also houses another reciever for Bedford pd, a "Tie-Line" antenna for State PD (RX and TX) and another mysterious antenna, from what I remember is just there.This is where the county is supposed to be putting additional equipment and antennas for the notorious uhf trunked fire/ems system.

hope that helps.......

 

[Alarms50]

Astosabre
I had also heard that Guard Hill was going to be a site for the trunked system. This site has not been mentioned in several years as a site for this system. To my knowledge the area will be served by the North Salem(Mountain Lakes) site(currently testing) and the Pound Ridge(Adams Lane) site. Guard Hill is not currently one of the nine sites licensed for the system. There already is a proposed phase two of this system to add more "transceiver" sites. This is according to the Westchester County Planning Board proposed 2007 budget proposal.

 

[Astrosaber]

Alarms,

Your probably right, although, I have also heard they were supposed to dismantle the Adams lane site,(due to the neighboors compaint of how it looks) but I guess they have not.

 

[Alarms50]

The Adams Lane site was ordered to be taken down due to legal issues regarding the deed to the property. Another site elsewhere on Adams Lane is to be built.