Opening a fire hydrant is a city summer tradition

"The first fire hydrant in New York was installed in 1808 at William and Liberty Streets downtown. By the end of the 19th century, city streets were dotted with iron hydrants, the kind we’re used to seeing today. The hydrants were certainly important when it came to fighting the deadly fires that beset the city in those days. But it didn’t take long for residents of the tenement districts to start wrenching open hydrants during heat waves and using the high-pressure spray for cooling off in blistering heat. Who led these activities? New York kids, of course. ..."
Ephemeral New York