THE blue and white 60-foot by 60-foot Columbia University “C” on the Marble Hill side of the Harlem River has been painted and repainted on the gneiss rock facing the Harlem River since 1952. After its original concept by Robert Prendergast, a medical student of Columbia University and coxswain on the heavyweight rowing crew team, Prendergast approached the New York Central Railroad for permission (which was given) to have this sign painted on the 100-foot-high wall of Fordham Gneiss, which was completed in the fall of 1952 by the rowers of the crew team, which continues to maintain it.
Columbia swim teams have raced from the Manhattan to the Bronx sides at the C across the river for decades. Wien Stadium, used by Columbia for football, soccer and other sports, is nearby on Broadway. The sign continues to be maintained by Columbia’s crew teams.
For decades, Marble Hill kids have climbed the Columbia rock and jumped into the waters below. Circle Line patrons would sometimes see a brave diver jump from a 100-foot height into the Harlem River.
I happen to have a cloth “C” in the same shade of blue. I am a lettered athlete: I was on the bowling team for Cathedral Prep High School, which usually finished dead last in its division.
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10/12/22