Kutsher's Hotel and Country Club

Kutsher's Hotel and Country Club was the last of the Borscht Belt grand resorts, opening it's doors in 1907 and expanding through the 1920s, with the largest expansion occuring in the post-war era through the 1980's economic boom.  The nightclub saw such acts as Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong perform during it's heyday.  Amenities for guests included kosher meals, an indoor pool, indoor raquetball, and indoor ice skating, as well as outdoor sports.  The hotel continued to operate until an accidental death in 2013 and the hotel was sold to a developer intent on demolition.  Kutsher's Hotel was demolished in 2014.
I visited soon after the furniture auction was held, but prior to pick up.  Lights were lit, rooms intact, and the elevators mostly functioning as we roamed the hallways on found bicycles.  The color scheme spoke of a different era, with pinks and greens decorating the halls and rooms.  One could almost hear the strains of jazz music in the dark blue starlight lounge.  And so it stood, one of the last functioning giants of the Borscht Belt left us with the decaying notes of an age gone by.

Rockland Psychiatric Hospital, Revisited

Last winter, I got it into my mind to go bowling  And so, on a bright cold morning, we trekked through the winding campus of Rockland Psychiatric Hospital to Building 40.  Building 40 was used as a recreation hall for patients during the heyday of the institute and featured a projector for films, as well as an indoor basketball court and bowling alley.  While the ball return no longer functions, we bowled a few frames the old fashioned way.

Connecticut School for Imbeciles

The Connecticut School for Imbeciles opened it's doors to the feeble minded and other-wise unwanted in 1860, merging with a school for epileptics some time later.  As with most training schools for the developmentally disabled, it was rife with over crowding during it's heyday.  Residents worked the farm adjacent, providing food for the campus.  The school closed for good in 1993, following a series of lawsuits.  One of the more prominent buildings on the campus is the Knight Hospital, which has suffered greatly from vandals and the elements over the years.  The lower levels flood periodically, while a lone gurney sits in a staff access hallway near what is left of the lab.  The ceilings of the upper floors have developed skylights in some places, turning the walls to rot.