A concerned resident filed a 311 complaint about the tripping hazard caused by this depressed former coal chute on Braddock Park in the South End.

Flipping through Google Street Views for the chute in question shows it was flush with the sidewalk in August, 2018, but that by September, 2022 it had begun its spiraling descent towards the center of the earth.

The chute is a remnant of the day when proper Bostonians heated their homes with coal. Many had embedded, round glass "jewels" to allow sunlight into basements.

As coal went out of fashion, many residents either covered them over with cement or replaced them with boring steel plates, although you can still find jeweled covers around the Back Bay and the South End if you keep your head down as you walk along the byways.

Although many

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