The Holy Trinity Church

Declining populations affect other institutions other than businesses and schools.  Churches are no stranger to abandonment and The Holy Trinity Church is no different.  Established in 1901 as a small wood frame house of worship, the church served the community, expanding to include a school(later demolished) and rectory adjacent to the remaining stone structure.  The Holy Trinity Church was abandoned in the 1970's as the population shifted and ground was broken for a new church with less expensive upkeep.  The choir loft is currently populated with pigeons.  Jesus wept.

A Most Unusual Post

I am quite proud to announce that there is now a portfolio site up for the work I do here.  It can be found at undertherumtree.com and features some photography not of a vacant nature.

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.