My Bronx Tale - Episode 1

THE QUONSET HUT YEARS

Today I am starting a series of blog posts about my roots. This will be a chance for me to document the history of my early life and give you a little insight into where I came from.
 

Do you remember the miniseries Roots that was televised in 1977 and was based on the book by Alex Haley?  The book and miniseries followed the life of Kunte Kinte, a young African man who was abducted from his village, sold into slavery and then taken to America to work on a plantation. Well, my story is not quite that dramatic and won’t last that long (the book was 899 pages and the miniseries was 12 hours long).   

Over the next six days, my "miniseries" will cover the years leading up to when I was born on January 30, 1951 and conclude with our move to Long Island on October 30, 1960.  Those are the years of my life when I lived in the Bronx and since next Tuesday marks the 52nd anniversary of our move out of the city, I believe it is a good time to tell my story. 

So let's begin...

Growing up I’ve often heard my mother speak of times when our family lived in the Quonset huts. I was too young to remember that time as we moved from there when I was just three and a half years old.  I know a Quonset hut is a type of building but I searched the internet to find out more. 

Quonset huts are semicircular buildings typically 16 ft. wide and 36 ft. long.  They are usually made from corrugated galvanized steel.  They became popular during WWII because they were easy to assemble and could be shipped anywhere the military needed temporary housing or office space. They are named after the place where they were first built, at a Navy base in Quonset Point, Rhode Island.  

After WWII ended, there was a shortage of housing in New York City due to the influx of returning veterans.  To combat this shortage, the New York City Housing Authority set up temporary housing until more suitable and permanent housing could be built.  In 1946 they built 473 Quonset huts to house 946 families (two families to each Quonset hut).  One of the locations where they built them was in the Soundview neighborhood of south central Bronx. 

The small black dot shows the approximate location
of the Soundview neighborhood in South Central Bronx.

 

When mom came to New York from Vienna, Austria in 1948, she, my brother Bill and my dad all lived with dad’s parents.  They also lived in the Bronx at 944 Leggett Avenue.  While living there, my brother Mike was born in November of 1949.  Things got a little crowded as the family grew because there were other aunts and uncles still living at home besides my family.  Sometime in late 1950 [Mom can't remember the exact date] and just before I was born [January 30, 1951], my family moved to the Quonset huts on Morrison Avenue.

My mom tells me they had to submit an application to the City in order to get into the Quonset huts.  Since this was low income housing, they had to make sure you were eligible.  Mom recalls the monthly rent being in the $30-40 range.

At the same time, my parents submitted an application to the City to move to the new apartment projects that were being built a few blocks away. This move wouldn’t happen for a couple of years. 

I mentioned earlier that the Quonset huts housed two families, one on each end with a wall in the middle separating the two living areas.  An African American family lived on the other end of the Quonset hut we lived in.  Mom remembers the lady’s name was Cora and she had a little boy around the same age as my brother Bill.  June was another neighbor lady who lived in the Quonset hut next to ours.  Both were friends with my Mom.  Mom still keeps in touch with June, who now lives in Owensboro, KY.  

Let's take a "commercial break" to view some pictures taken during the time we lived at the Quonset huts on Morrison Avenue. 

Me, Mom and brothers Bill and Mike taken
sometime in the fall of 1951.

Me, Mom, Dad, Bill and Mike Easter 1952.
Mike seems unhappy about something!
Did he drop some Easter candy?

Summer 1952 with me, Mom, Bill and Mike.
You can see the Quonset huts in the background
and you can see why my brother Bill had the
nickname Whitey.  His hair was very blonde!

Early 1953.  I love this picture of me with my
brothers and my Dad.  Why does everyone look
happy except me?  I'm probably cold.  And if you knew
my mother, you would know how long she would make
us pose to capture the "perfect" picture!

Me on the swing in the yard.  Mom tells me that some
neighbors gave us the swing when they moved.
Picture is from Summer 1953.

Summer 1953. Family picture taken shortly after 
baby brother Rick was born.  I look mad!!  
Maybe I was hoping for a sister!!

I absolutely love these old pictures!!  They show glimpses of what my memory has forgotten and it has forgotten much. 

And now, the conclusion of Episode 1.

Shortly after we moved to the Quonset huts, Dad started working at a company called Majestic Molded Products.  They made all kinds of things out of plastic.  Dad worked on one of the injected mold machines. 

Mom settled in nicely raising us kids and adjusting to life in the US.  We added another member to the family a few months before we made the move to the Soundview Housing Projects.  My baby brother Rick was born in July of 1953. We moved to the Projects sometime around October of that year.  October seems to be the month when our family made big moves. 

The next episodes will be about growing up in the Projects. 

Stay tuned!

~ P