Did you know mail used to be sent underground in New York City and other U.S. cities? Imagine an underground world where mail was zipping around in tubes beneath the incredibly crowded and busy New York City streets. That’s what was happening for over half a century 4 to 6 feet below street level. In this episode, host Michelle Young, the founder of Untapped New York, will explain how the system worked and how the technology can still be found today. Special guests: Lynn Heidelbaugh, Curator at the Smithsonian National Postal Museum; Luke Kingma, former Vice President at the science magazine Futurism; Justin Rivers, historian, playwright and Chief Experience Officer at Untapped New York. Music by Kittens Ablaze ("Hotel Room", "Liarbird"), Absent Tiger ("Take it or Leave It"), and additional sounds by Ben Bynum and Mike Koenig. New York City skyline in icon by Bernadette Moke, the Downtown Doodler.

If you love to go behind the scenes and into NYC's' most hidden and secret places, jump onto some of our most exciting tours like the Gilded Age Mansions of Fifth Avenue, the Secrets of Grand Central, or our Underground Subway Tour or join our Insiders program for access to the most off limits places with curated behind-the-scenes events on a weekly basis. 20% off yearly membership at untappedcities.com/podcast20

Have you ever wondered about those orange and white cones you see in the middle of New York’s streets with steam flowing out of them? To find out more we’ve gone straight to the source by interviewing Frank Cuomo, the general manager for steam operations at ConEdison. We’ll also speak to Mark Reigelman, an artist who used the steam system for one of our favorite guerrilla art installations ever. 

The  Untapped New York Podcast is produced by Untapped New York. Music by Kittens Ablaze ("Hotel Room", "Liarbird"), Absent Tiger ("Take it or Leave It"), and additional sounds by GoGo. New York City skyline in icon by Bernadette Moke, the Downtown Doodler. 

This episode is a crash course into manhole covers 101 and why New Yorkers find them to be such curious objects.  How many manhole covers are there in NYC? How are they made? Where do they lead to? Justin Rivers, Untapped New York’s Chief Experience Officer, will be talking about his personal experience going down into a manhole. Lisa Frigand, the former Manager of Cultural Affairs at the NYC Department of Environmental Protection will also be joining us, along with Natasha Raheja, an anthropologist at Cornell University who made a film about manhole covers and how they’re made.  By the end of this episode,  you’ll also have the answer to that famous interview question, why are manhole covers round? 

The  Untapped New York Podcast is produced by Untapped New York. Music by Kittens Ablaze ("Hotel Room", "Liarbird"), Absent Tiger ("Take it or Leave It"), and additional sounds by GoGo. New York City skyline in icon by Bernadette Moke, the Downtown Doodler. 

Who doesn't love the New York City water tower? This episode, hosted by Michelle Young, founder of Untapped New York, is an exploration of how water towers work and why New Yorkers find them so endearing. Guests include artist Tom Fruin, who makes those amazing glass water tower sculptures,  Larry Hoffman, a New Yorker who spent his career installing water towers, the duo behind Boundless Brooklyn who designed a DIY water tower kit that we've put in every office and apartment  we've had, and historian and playwright Justin Rivers,  who knows everything about New York City.  We'll even talk about a secret water tower speakeasy in New York City.

The Untapped New York Podcast is produced by Untapped New York. Music by Kittens Ablaze ("Hotel Room", "Liarbird"), Absent Tiger ("Take it or Leave It"), and additional sounds by Daniel Simion. New York City skyline in icon by Bernadette Moke, the Downtown Doodler. 

Did you know mail used to be sent underground in New York City and other U.S. cities?  Imagine an underground world where mail was zipping around in tubes beneath the incredibly crowded and busy New York City streets. That’s what was happening for over half a century 4 to 6 feet below street level. In this episode, host Michelle Young, the founder of Untapped New York, will explain how the system worked and how the technology can still be found today. Special guests: Lynn Heidelbaugh, Curator at the Smithsonian National Postal Museum; Luke Kingma, former Vice President at the science magazine Futurism; Justin Rivers, historian, playwright and Chief Experience Officer at Untapped New York. Music by Kittens Ablaze ("Hotel Room", "Liarbird"), Absent Tiger ("Take it or Leave It"), and additional sounds by Ben Bynum and Mike Koenig. New York City skyline in icon by Bernadette Moke, the Downtown Doodler.