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Taxi Roof Light Purpose?


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Does anyone here have a definitive answer for the purpose of the side roof lights that were prevalent from the late 1920's through the '40's on taxis?

I believe they had to be more than just a fashionable carriage-type statement.

I have seen them on cabs in a million old movies and was always curious as to their function.  And why their demise?  Some were quite elaborate, some more utilitarian, but they all had them so there had to be a reason, as most taxi companies strike me as quite frugal, I cannot see them installing anything that was not necessary or required.

Appreciate any and all input.

Greg

 

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8 hours ago, GregLaR said:

I believe they had to be more than just a fashionable carriage-type statement.

 

Greg, thanks for raising an interesting question.

I never noticed those before, and I'll learn from

experts' knowledge.

 

This shows how educational our forum can be.

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I have one or possibly two of those missing the lens.  As Craig mentioned it could be a city regulation also a sign that the cab was on or off duty beyond the top light at the center of the roof (ie it was already "busy" on its way  pick someone up so wasn't available)

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Earlier lights had these incorporated into the design of the one central center light - I have used this photo here elsewhere but rather then have you go to have to search for it here it is again. Yes, more odd stuff in my collection.

TAXI light 2.jpg

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25 minutes ago, Walt G said:

Earlier lights had these incorporated into the design of the one central center light - I have used this photo here elsewhere but rather then have you go to have to search for it here it is again. Yes, more odd stuff in my collection.

TAXI light 2.jpg

That is perhaps the coolest automotive light i have ever seen!!

 

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Your second picture looks like the lady in the convertible is giving the cabbie a piece of her mind- early road rage!

The center top light would be used to signal the cab was not available as it either had a passenger or was out of service for the day (end of work day). The side lights may have been used for the same reason, just to make it more visible to someone trying to flag down a cab in a crowed city.  Hailing a cab in NY city can be very challenging if you are not as aggressive as the lady in the convertible! 

 

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Thanks for all the input fellas. This may warrant a telephone call to the New York Taxi Administration. 

I could be mistaken but, on closer examination, the lady in the convertible looks like Katherine Hepburn.  I just grabbed these images off google and that one may be a movie still.

 

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3 hours ago, Ben P. said:

My grandfather’s taxi’s which he ran in a sizable MI town never had such side lights and he purchased a new factory purpose-built fleet every 2 years.

I don't really want to hijack this thread, but that is interesting your grandad factory ordered his cabs.  Did they come already painted in the taxi fleet colors? Or were they furnished in primer only, with a local body shop doing the final paint?

 

I posted an interior photo of a 1965 Studebaker 'purpose-built' taxi here:  https://forum.studebakerdriversclub.com/forum/your-studebaker-forum/general-studebaker-specific-discussion/56695-studes-in-roadside-americana-photos/page751   It never got used as a taxi, but for a City Administration vehicle.

 

1962 Studebaker cab, but with a V8 and a four-barrel:  https://forum.studebakerdriversclub.com/forum/your-studebaker-forum/general-studebaker-specific-discussion/77967-another-new-lamb-in-the-flock#post1138445

 

I posted the restored DeSoto Skyview taxi in the National Automobile Museum in Reno here:  https://forum.studebakerdriversclub.com/forum/your-studebaker-forum/stove-huggers-the-non-studebaker-forum/54588-orphan-of-the-day-08-01-1936-desoto-taxi

 

Craig

 

 

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It appears after the war, those side lights above the B-pillar were no longer required:  https://www.junipergallery.com/galleryview.php?targetnode=9136&height=1683&width=2400&targetttl=Home of the Brave&picurl=SHORPY-N4-038A.jpg

 

Perhaps because turn signals were becoming more and more common, and perhaps mandatory on commercial vehicles in NYC long before they were on private cars.   Four-way emergency flashers were also commonly used on commercial and fleet vehicles well before 1966 when they became optional on private cars, and standard from 1967.

 

Craig

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As to the color question car companies offered their standard showroom colors and also had a list of fleet colors. If you bought enough cars or trucks, they would mix up special colors for you. I don't know if 10 or 12 vehicles would be enough but from what you say he was not particular about color anyway.

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14 minutes ago, Rusty_OToole said:

As to the color question car companies offered their standard showroom colors and also had a list of fleet colors. If you bought enough cars or trucks, they would mix up special colors for you. I don't know if 10 or 12 vehicles would be enough but from what you say he was not particular about color anyway.

That they did.  I specifically mentioned a fleet order of 97 1969 Mercury Cougars here---->

 

Craig

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Purpose-built or fleet models were available from a number of carmakers, with the heavy-duty equipment listed.  Fleet colors were simply standard primary colors and some would even supply the cars in primer for the customer to finish in their own shops to save money.  The taxi business was notoriously low margin and cut-throat so every penny counted.

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In the B & W photos posted by Greg LaR at the start of this it shows the small lights above the rear door or at the center door post roof area , this is what they looked like without the lens. I got this with the roof light I posted a photo of yesterday . It is approximately about 3 inches square.

Taxisidelight.jpg

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6 hours ago, GregLaR said:

I have sent a query to the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission.

Hopefully they reply.

fingers.jpg.101686b629f0464316c982d9350816f3.jpg

 

That should be interesting, I wonder if the Museum of the City of New York would be a better source of information on this. 

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1 hour ago, John348 said:

 

That should be interesting, I wonder if the Museum of the City of New York would be a better source of information on this. 

The Taxi and Limousine Commission was formed in the 1970's, IIRC.  Before that, taxicabs were administered by the Hack Bureau of the NYPD.   My mother worked there for many years.

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12 minutes ago, Harold said:

The Taxi and Limousine Commission was formed in the 1970's, IIRC.  Before that, taxicabs were administered by the Hack Bureau of the NYPD.   My mother worked there for many years.

 

I really don't envision the TLC embracing their history, but you never know...

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Thanks Ben.

I read that entire article and then linked one after another for a couple hours and finally came across this obscure article about James Waters and the Sunshine-Radio Cab Co. of New York in the 1930's.

http://www.coachbuilt.com/bui/w/waters/waters.htm

 

It is pretty lengthy but very thorough.  Turns out those side roof lights were "occupancy" or "availability" lights although the article is not clear as to whether the lights were on or off when the car was occupied.  Apparently the center roof TAXI light just stayed on all the time (at night) which makes total sense and availability was communicated through these side lights.  Some time later these lights were deleted and they started using the center TAXI light to show whether the car was available or not.

Here are a couple of excerpts from the article:

 

"The distinctive chrome-plated rectangular rooftop light featured a large central-mounted backlit sunburst that was flanked by two smaller back-lit sunbursts.  Matching chrome plated availability lights were installed above the rear door, each bearing a miniature sunburst globe. The outboard edges of the chrome framework contained red occupancy lights that alerted potential customers as to the cab’s availability."

 

"The new center molded-glass globe was mounted on a chromed base and featured the word DESOTO in small black letters at the top and a much larger SKY-VIEW below it. The bi-lateral occupancy lights were now separate and featured an amber glass globe mounted to a chrome base. Two duplicates were mounted above the B-pillar on the outside edges of the roof alerting potential passengers facing the sides of the vehicle as to it availability."

 

 

"Waters introduced all-new rooftop lighting for the 1942 DeSoto Sky-View taxicabs that featured a rooftop light that spelled out the words “DeSoto SKY-VIEW” in what appears from a distance to be neon. Closer examination reveals the sign was made from a curved piece of clear plastic with the words DeSoto and SKY-VIEW embossed or molded into the lens which is affixed to the reflector with a chrome bezel. By careful placement of the bulbs within the reflector a neon-appearance could be obtained, a trick used in many of today's modern beer signs.

Similarly molded backlit sidelights were also found just above the rear doors that read “SKY-VIEW”.  The expensive lighting system was only found on 1942 Sky-View taxis and did not re-appear when production resumed after the war. It is believed that all 1942 Sky-Views delivered in New York City featured the attractive new rooftop lights as all existing pictures of 1942 Sky-Views include them." 

 

I believe it is logical to assume that if one were walking along a sidewalk or leaving a restaurant/club at night, paralleling a row of curb parked cars, that if these side roof lights were lit, it would be very easy for a passenger to spot an available cab among the parked cars.

 

waters.jpg.5b2ac5c999d19f9ecf6573bf9828856f.jpg

 

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3 hours ago, GregLaR said:

 

I believe it is logical to assume that if one were walking along a sidewalk or leaving a restaurant/club at night, paralleling a row of curb parked cars, that if these side roof lights were lit, it would be very easy for a passenger to spot an available cab among the parked cars.

 

 

 

I can see that, as cars were way taller back then, and people (for the most part) were shorter than they are now.

 

Craig

Edited by 8E45E (see edit history)
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It may not be evident in the photo I posted of the light I have (  on  Thursday) but the round white center section is half a ball shaped circle that projects out at the center. When lit as seen here it is hard to see that it is not  flat but three dimensional .

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While on the topic of NYC taxis, I have a couple of other recollections that might be worth sharing. 

 

NYC medallion taxicabs went to all-yellow in 1965.  Previously they could be any distinctive color combo.  I remember lots of fairly new cabs getting repainted to comply. 

 

The rectangular 'off-taxi-duty' roof light  also came out that year.  The back of the new roof light showed the medallion number of the cab.

 

My mom helped set-up a number undercover cabs for the NYPD.  They had a particular series of medallion numbers on the roof light that indicated they were really police cars.

 

 

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9 hours ago, Harold said:

While on the topic of NYC taxis, I have a couple of other recollections that might be worth sharing. 

 

NYC medallion taxicabs went to all-yellow in 1965.  Previously they could be any distinctive color combo.  I remember lots of fairly new cabs getting repainted to comply. 

 

The rectangular 'off-taxi-duty' roof light  also came out that year.  The back of the new roof light showed the medallion number of the cab.

 

My mom helped set-up a number undercover cabs for the NYPD.  They had a particular series of medallion numbers on the roof light that indicated they were really police cars.

 

 

Taxicab Yellow was, and probably still a standard fleet color for auto manufacturers who offer purpose-built cabs.

 

Craig

64V18927.jpg

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4 hours ago, 8E45E said:

Taxicab Yellow was, and probably still a standard fleet color for auto manufacturers who offer purpose-built cabs.

 

Craig

64V18927.jpg

 

Interesting, very interesting....

 

I remember coming across a 59 Chevrolet in a now long gone junkyard outside of Newburg NY and the cowl tag was stamped "NYC TAXI"  for the paint and trim  codes. 

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On 5/6/2021 at 12:54 AM, GregLaR said:

Does anyone here have a definitive answer for the purpose of the side roof lights that were prevalent from the late 1920's through the '40's on taxis?

 

 

pod2.jpg.71652bfe494c19dbe3c251c10d30d59d.jpg

 

 

Greg, the other theories are interesting, but my guess is that it was to get pretty women in convertibles to notice you. 😉

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8 hours ago, John348 said:

 

Interesting, very interesting....

 

I remember coming across a 59 Chevrolet in a now long gone junkyard outside of Newburg NY and the cowl tag was stamped "NYC TAXI"  for the paint and trim  codes. 

I also recall seeing "TAXI" on the dashboard of some cabs.  The letters were drilled into the metal (in the days before padded dashes were standard).

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Speaking of Taxi's, I spent 50,000+ miles in this one over nine Great American Races.

We were hailed in every town coast to coast without ever lighting the roof light.

1935 Chrysler Airflow C1.   The durable old car did 13 consecutive races before 

retiring as "Endurance Champion".    Next to hold that honor was Stanley Jones in

his 1932 Ford V8 Roadster

Taxi1991.jpg.5e776ad3a49c015869acfb61f5591d8d.jpg

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On 5/8/2021 at 6:59 PM, 8E45E said:

Taxicab Yellow was, and probably still a standard fleet color for auto manufacturers who offer purpose-built cabs.

 

Craig

64V18927.jpg

Craig, what is that build sheet from? "Climatizer" suggests AMC, maybe? Well optioned cab, AC and electric windows, and a stick!

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