CASCADE LAUNDRY, Bedford-Stuyvesant

by Kevin Walsh

Cascade Linen Service, which supplied table napkins and tablecloths to restaurants citywide, called this modest red brick building at Myrtle and Marcy Avenues home from 1898-2010, but developers have had eyes on it for some time. The site was purchased for $27M in 2013, according to Curbed, and you would have to think that a high-rise rich-people storage unit will soon rise on the site, taking Cascade and its smokestacks with it.

Cascade is very well-known for its dishwasher detergent line, which it originated in 1953. It’s named for the Cascade mountain range in the Pacific Northwest; its logo, still seen on the Myrtle Avenue, contains a representation of the peaks.

More from Myrtle Avenue

9/2/14

 

14 comments

JaxD September 21, 2014 - 10:30 pm

Speaking of dirty laundry. The old Brighton Laundry at Neptune Ave., next to the F line has just been sold for redevelopment. Anyone have any history of it?

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Lori D December 4, 2014 - 7:03 pm

I just want to make a slight correction to your post. Cascade Laundry was not affiliated with Cascade dishwashing detergent. I worked for Cascade Laundry for 17 years, until it closed in 2010.

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angela williams May 21, 2015 - 10:54 am

Thank you Lori D for your tidbit about Cascade. I live in one of the housing complexes on Throop Avenue near the Cascade plant. My mother grew up in this neighborhood on Whipple street. People don’t like change and I will be sorry to see Cascade building go. It was comforting walking to the train station each day, as the years rolled by to see Cascade still doing business. My memories of the smell of clean laundry from Cascade as with the smell of the bread bakery that used to be on Empire Blvd., will be just that now.

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Ed Gruber May 13, 2018 - 6:11 pm

Is this you Aunt Lori?

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Miguel April 22, 2021 - 6:02 pm

What union did you guys have when you work in cascade linen service

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angelo boccia April 15, 2016 - 2:14 pm

i was born at 890 myrtle ave in 1938 witch is one block from the cascade laundry i lived their till 1955.i went to public school 55 witch was on Stockton st.i remember the 1950s when i was a teenager.many of the guys use to sing down in the subway that you can see in the picture.my dad use to take the train to work from that station every day at 5.am to go to new jersey whear he worked.iuse to hang outa t the candy store on Tomkins ave and play stickball on Vernon ave.i also went to jhs 148 on elery st. it was a great time to remember living in Brooklyn .the house that i lived in is just a empty lot now i am 78 years old now and always wanted to see the old nighberhood again.maybe someday i will be abel to see how it is now.

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Anthony Basti September 12, 2017 - 2:47 pm

Fond memories of my PS 54, Sanford Street grad class of June, 1946. Lived on Marcy and Myrtle by the GG local stop corner and noisy el with woodcars and swinging gates. Recall buying seeds at Spring, time out for a graham chocolate cracker (penny) with small bottle of Renkens milk, we each brought a small Christmas ball for the class tree. Took class trips to Children’s Museum, The new Cloisters, Renkens Dairy. Landmarks were Cascade and State laundries, Griffin Polish, Horn Factory, S&L Deli at Marcy/DeKalb, Albert’s Pizza parlor with hand painted Italy scenes, Colonial Italian bread store, Goldman’s 5 & 10, Dominic the horse and wagon Italian ices man. I recall most every 1946 grad – a treat to hear from you…71 years later. Anthony Basti – your fellow grad.

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Pasquale "Pat" Scida September 28, 2017 - 6:02 am

Dear Anthony, just saw your comments related to Bed-Sty neighborhood. I lived on Walworth Street between Dekalb and Willoughby until I was about 17, 1960 or so. I left PS 54 at 6th grade to attend the new Junior High School on Willoughby Ave between Franklyn and Kent. I’m in the process of publishing a book partially about our old neighborhood and am looking for some pictures circa 1950-1960 of Walworth St or Skillman St or Sanford St. It was absolutely wonderGil by the way to see your post and all the things you mentioned about our old neighborhood. Thanks and hope to hear from you. You might have know my brother Dominick Scida born in 1933-4 and was known as Japo also went to PS 54.

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Carole Eddington February 6, 2018 - 4:24 pm

Hi! I was happy to find this webpage. I had a great uncle named Ben Cohen, who once worked for Cascade Laundry. He lived in Brooklyn, and I know from documents that he was employed there in 1928, but I don’t know when he started or finished. According to his niece, he and his wife had twins, and the diaper situation was quite a challenge, so he came up with the idea of Diaper Service and was then made Vice President of the company.

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Tina Bouza Barbadimos January 21, 2024 - 8:53 am

My dad, Anthony Bouza, was Vice President of Engineering for Cascade laundry in Brooklyn for over 46 years. If there
was ever a dedicated employee, it was my dad. During his
tenure with Cascade, he designed and had patented many machinery inventions to improve washing, folding, and pressing sheets, towels, uniforms, etc. for the restaurant and
Hotel services provided by Cascade. Truly a man who loved his job and loved the lifelong friendships with his colleagues.
Cascade was his life!

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Julio Cuadras October 31, 2018 - 5:02 pm

Wow, great memories. I worked there from 1975 to 1985. I still pass thru but I don’t see the building anymore.

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Steven Dima June 27, 2020 - 11:05 am

.Its great reading all these posts. My parents and just about all my relatives came from the area. Most are gone now but heard such wonderful stories from DeKalb, Franklin, Myrtle and Willoughby Aves. I’m 64 Yrs old

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Rich toth April 3, 2021 - 6:25 pm

Cascade was my first full time job. I worked for the Connecticut office and drove three times a week to the Brooklyn plant to unload and reload sheets pillowcases and bath towels for nursing homes. This was back in late 60’s early 70’s.

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Vincent Burgos April 23, 2021 - 8:44 am

Hello all, my wife worked there in the 80’s and we’re interested in knowing if the credit union they belonged to might still be open.

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