Horse Drawn Snow Carts at the River After a Blizzard in New York City Circa 1899

The Blizzard of 1899 was one of the largest in the history of the United States. New York City only saw about 16 inches, but other parts of the East Coast received up to 4 feet of snow. Before we had motorized and truck-mounted snow plows, City workers used to shovel the snow into horse-drawn carts where the snow was then dumped into the River. In this vintage photograph from 1899, we can see these carts alongside the Hudson, getting ready for dumping.