I’ve seen lots of buildings and houses with an outside basement entrance like Bill’s Cabin Creek structure here in Pennsylvania. Some have been upgraded with the ubiquitous Bilco doors which seem to be standard for outside basement entrances in newer houses who’s lots don’t slope enough for a “walk-out” basement. The covered basement entrances were more common than the open type Bill Werre mentioned, but I’ve seen those around here also. Sometimes in cities there is just some heavy steel movable plates that are flush with the front sidewalk for basement access, usually there are stores on the first floor, which living spaces or offices on the higher floors.
Also, many houses in this area had a basement under the front porch that was used for the coal bin. Loading was done through a basement window with a chute from the coal delivery truck. Ashes were placed into a separate metal can for pick up, at least in towns with garbage service. There was usually a solid masonry wall between the coal bin and the rest of basement, under the front wall of the main part of the house, except for a wooden door. There seem to be many preconceptions that there are eastern and western buildings. Building styles changed with the fashion of the times. There were plenty of false front building in the east, especially when you get away for the large cities. I have a book with a picture that shows my great-grandfather’s wooden blacksmith shop in Mauch Chunk (now known as Jim Thorpe), Pennsylvania taken in the late nineteenth century. The picture would not be out of place in one of my Colorado narrow gauge books covering the same time frame. Dave Heine Easton, PA
