Thread by @MiningNS

#SesameStreet is 50!
Its set is based on a typical #Harlem #brownstone neighborhood. #Brownstones are a type of townhouse that are mainly brick but have #sandstone facades. They became popular in the 1800s and today are an iconic image of #NewYork.
#nspoli #NovaScotia #mining #ns

The stone was mainly provided by the #Portland #Brownstone #Quarry which operated for 300 years until it closed in 2012. It was on the #ConnecticutRiver which made shipping easy.
Portland is named for Portland #England, a place famous for its quarries.
#nspoli #mining #NS #mining

Steam-powered machines in the 1800s allowed the #sandstone to be cut and shaped faster and more cheaply than ever before, making it affordable - significantly cheaper than stones like #granite or #marble. The stone is pink when cut but turns brown as it weathers.
#nspoli #mining

#Brownstones have their distinctive #stoops - a word that comes from the #Dutch word for stair: "stoep" - to raise their front doors above the horse manure and filth of city streets in the 1800s.
The Dutch used stoops to raise main floors above flood waters.
#nspoli #NovaScotia

Some #Brownstones have faces carved into them for decoration - #celebrities, mythical characters and even building owners. #Sandstone is relatively easy to carve because it's a soft rock but it also absorbs water, so detailed carving like faces wears away in time.
#nspoli #mining

While #SesameStreet's set was designed to show a racially-diverse, working class neighbourhood, many #NewYork #brownstone neighborhoods have been gentrified and brownstones often sell for $10 million+.
Not exactly Oscar's trash can!
#nspoli #NovaScotia #NS #mining #minerals