Come One, Come All...

*Double-Posted In The "Gothic_Babes" Community

These Next Few Photos Are From A Recent Shoot Of Mine.

I Just Gained The Ability To Shoot Indoors, And Am Still Getting Used To It.
I Constructed Some Lighting Out Of Stuff From The Home Depot.
My Grand Total Was Just Under $150,
So I Would Like People To Know That There Are Alternatives
To The Super-Expensive Lighting Kits Sold At Photography Stores.
Like I Said, I'm Still Learning How To Properly Use These Lights.
I'm Accustomed To Natural Lighting, And This Is a Big Switch For Me.
Also, I Painted That Little Table Myself :)
I Found It In The Garbage, With A Family Of One-Dozen Spiders Living In It O.o

*Yes, The Sky Is Photoshopped. I'm Not Trying To Fool Anyone*






( More Bright Colours This Way... )

* Please Note That All Location Names From Now On Will Be False.
Too Many People, Via My Posts On YouTube And Myspace, Are Going To These Places And Being Asses.
I Am Not Posting These Locations For People To Tag, Get Stoned In, Trash, Or Burn Down.
These Posts Are Made Out Of Respect To The Buildings And The History They Represent.
If My Actions In Posting These Entries Are Causing A Disservice To These Places,
Then What I Am Doing Is Counter-Productive.
That Being Said...
True Names Will Be Revealed Once The The Location Is Either Gone,
Or Re-Opened To The Public.

Onto The Entry...


Three-West State Homeopathic Hospital



The doors of Three-West were opened to the public on April 20, 1874.
Hailed as the first homeopathic asylum in the world, a fact that was later proven to be false.
It was the first asylum in the United States however, to operate under homeopathic management.

Now, I know some people might be about to open Dictionary.com,
I'll save you the trouble...

ho·me·op·a·thy    (hō'mē-ŏp'ə-thē)
n.   pl. ho·me·op·a·thies
A system for treating disease based on the administration of minute doses of a drug
that in massive amounts produces symptoms in healthy individuals similar to those of the disease itself.
ho'me·o·path' (-ə-pāth'), ho'me·op'a·thist n., ho'me·o·path'ic adj., ho'me·o·path'i·cal·ly adv


Three-West was erected upon a 250 acre parcel of farmland. 200 acres of land, plus fifty acres of forest.
Construction was under way by March 1872.
The foundation of what was to be the central and executive building was almost complete.
The dimensions of which were 172 feet long, by sixty-two feet wide.
A "good substantial stone wall, laid up with hydraulic cement and sand for the superstructure to rest upon"



A store house, depot, blacksmith shop, and shed had  been built, and already were in use by 1872.
Grounds were also being prepared for gardens, a fruit orchard, and new road.

The cost break-down for that time-frame is as follows...

"Expense of the land" - $34, 616
"Labor and improvement" - $2,051
"Construction of railway switch" - $1,770
"Construction of water mains" - $2,155
"Opening and grading of new avenue" - $338
"Masonry and stonework" - $3,481
"Excavating and grading grounds" - $1,643
"For building account, which included cost of tools and other supplies" - $2,572
"General expenditures" - $2,664
"Architect Fee" - $175
"Salaries" - $600
"Salary of superintendent" - $1,457

Total cost for that year, including the land, was $56,346

Upon it's opening in 1874, and going against the original plans,
it was decided that the facility will treat women as well as men.
Sixty-nine patients were treated at Three-West during it's first year of operation.





By the year 1902, the asylum had a population of over 1,200.
By 1909 several other structures were built, and the patient population grew to 2,25o



October 8, 1921
One in the morning.
Fire starts in the attic of the main building.
A night watchman was alerted by the sound of an automatic sprinkler, and came to discover the roof to be ablaze.
The building was lost, but luckily not one person was harmed.
The patients had all been tought how to properly exit the facility in case of fire, and they all preformed exactly as intended.

The origin of the fire remains a mystery.
There was no known wiring in the attic, and no visitors had been on that floor during the previous day.
Upon the spot where the main building once stood, a new "fireproof" one was erected.
The new building was occupied in 1927.



1924 marked 50 years of work for Three-West.
During that span, 12,957 patients had been admitted.
3,949 were discharged as "recovered.
249 were reported as "improved"
1,559 shown "no improvement"
and 3,546 died.




Three-West continued to sprawl itself out across it's acreage throughout the years.
Currently it remains an operating facility, though it is solely based out of the newer buildings that scatter the campus.
What was once the beautiful and grand executive building was partially demolished,
the remaining wing was left as a ward for the more violent persons of Three-West.

As time went by, this too ceased to be of use, and was left vacant...
To be more specific, condemned by the state.
It remains to this day, rotting,  sitting in amongst the newer and more plain buildings that it helped spawn.
A throw-back to the old world of medicine. An echo of the land.

The building itself is in exceedingly poor shape and is very dangerous in places.
In some areas of the structure several floors have collapsed onto each other, finally finding rest in the basement.

The only inhabitants that remain to call this place a home are the countless pigeons that occupy the third floor of the facility.
They also add  to the eeriness of the atmosphere, as you can hear their coos throughout the entire structure.

And now, finally, onto the photos...

( Take The Tour... )

A Group Of Abandoned Houses Located In Rural NJ.
Their Interiors Are Literally Covered In Foul Writings,
At Points From (On The) Floor To (On The) Ceiling.

I Have Known Of These Houses For Many Years Now, But Have Never Done Anything About Them.
A Total Of 4 Houses, Plus Some Barns, Dot A Large Plot Of Land In The Woods.
All Buildings Are Abandoned, Overgrown, And In Severe Disrepair.
One Of The Houses Is Quite Large, Along The Lines Of A Manor.

They Stand, For Now, Awaiting Their Inevitable Collapse.
Disgraced Shells, Only Vaguely Reminiscent Of The Homes Once Were.
A Quiet Sadness Seems To Exude From Them, As If Asking,
"Is This What It Has Come To?"

All The Structures Are Becoming Quite Rotten, And I Feel That They Do Not Have Much Time Left.
For That Reason I Feel The Need To Preserve Them, And Share Them Via Film.








( A Walk In The Woods... )

*Double-Posted In Gothic_Babes*

Just Took These A Few Days Ago...
The Location Is An Old Abandoned Manor In The Forest.
The Interior Is covered In Offensive Writings, About Many People.. And Things.
At Points The Graffiti Goes From The Floor To The Ceiling.

The Building Itself Is Huge, And It Must Have Been Very Nice Some (Long) Time Ago.
So Sad, But Also Very Pretty In It's Own Way.
I Think There's A Strange Restfulness And Beauty That Is Only Found In These Forgotten Places.

Here Are The Images.







( This Way... )

*Double-Posted In The Community "Gothic_Babes"*

Just Finished Up Photos For Emilie Jerard Clothing.
www.EmilieJerard.com

This Shoot Took Place At Letchworth Village.
An Abandoned, Century Old, Village For The Insane In NY State.
(I Have A Previous Post About It's History If Anyone's Interested)
After Climbing Through A Basement Window, Wading Through Muck In The Tunnels,
And Climbing A Small Staircase To The Main Lobby...
You Are Greeted With A Beautiful Picture Window.
When I First Visited This Place, I Promised That Window I Would Return With Models.

Also Note,
I Have Not Included The Photo Chosen For The Ad, As Per The Request Of The Designer.
It Will Be A Full-Page Ad In An Upcoming Issue Of "Death Rock" Magazine Though,
So Keep An Eye Out Kiddies.

Anyways, Here Be The Photos...







( The Last Great Disgrace... )

The Pines Inn currently lays dormant in the woods of northern NJ.
Once a retirement home, it now sits empty, overlooking a scenic lake.
Abandoned only last year, the inn has quickly fallen into disrepair.
It is obvious by the missing baseboard heaters and removed radiators,
that scavengers have already discovered the place.
I also noticed that an unusual amount of personal belongings
were left behind here.
Clothing, furniture, books, trinkets, photo albums...
There are even cleaned dishes stacked next to the sink,
never having been put away.
It makes me curious as to the fashion in which the elderly residents were removed.

The rot and decay can be smelt as soon as you enter the inn.
It has not been vacant terribly long, but a few broken windows is all you need.
Nature quickly reclaims what people leave in the woods...

I do not know the exact history of the structure itself, but it seems to be quite old.
I would not be surprised if it dates back 100 years or better.

At any rate, here are the photos.

( Slightly Eerie Photos This Way... )

Old Amber Is A House That Sits Rotting
In The Forest Lands Of Northern NJ.
It Is A Location I Have Been To Many Times,
And Have Grown Quite Familiar With.

If You Follow My Photography Work At All
You Will Likely Recognize Some Of The Scenery.
I Use The Inside Of This House As A Backdrop For
Several Series Of Portraits.

As A Result Of All The Time I Have Spent At This House,
I Feel A Kind Of Bond With It Now.
And Because Of This, I Feel That I Should Tell It's Story.

But, To Tell The Story Of Old Amber Is To Tell The Story
Of Many Other Homes That Share It's Fate,


( And It All Starts With A Flood... )

Anyone Out There Read Fangoria?
If So, Do You Have Issue #283?
It Looks Like This...



Well, If You Do...
And You Feel Lonely At Night...
You Can Flip To Page 49 And Stare At My Face.


:P

Letchworth Village



In 1909 the state of New York built
a facility for the aid and housing of the "feeble minded and epileptics"
Named after William Pryor Letchworth,
a key player in the creation of the facility and noted humanitarian of the time.

The grounds were set up in a college campus style.
Building were kept relatively small, and typically did not exceed two-stories tall.
They were all located within a relatively short walk of each other.
They all shared the hand-cut stone,
arched-window, and stone column "Greek" aesthetic as well.

A large stream ran through the campus,
it served as a divider between male and female patients.
Letchworth Village also housed it's own power plant, farmland,
waste disposal, and water supply.
Making it the first all-inclusive facility of it's kind.



Of the research performed there, one of the most note-worthy was the
development of the polio vaccines used in the Congo
by Dr. Hilary Koprowski.
It was revealed that he had been the first physician
to preform a polio vaccine on humans.
Those humans were twenty "mentally deficient" patients of Letchworth Village...

In the 1960's and into the 1970's Letchworth
Village began to badly suffer from overcrowding.
The then local reporter Geraldo Rivera created a
documentary about this situation titled
"The Last Great Disgrace"
It was later turned into a nationally-aired documentary by ABC.

As expected, the public outcry from this was sizable.
This, coupled with the nations shift toward mental care on a smaller scale
(Such as group-homes, which is what ended a lot of these facilities lives)
resulted in the slow re-distribution of the patients of Letchworth Village.

In 1997 the last of the residents was relocated,
and the power was forever cut to the campus.

 

 

( Your Tour Begins, Right This Way... )

Fangoria Is Hosting A Contest Via Their Website.
The Winners May Receive Goggles Made By Yours-Truely,
Or Hair Falls Crafted By My Lady-Friend.

If You're Interested In Such Things (You Know You Are), Have A Look...

Click Here To View The Contest Info

"Building Four" Is Located In A Complex Of Abandoned Structures
That Once Formed An Asylum For The Insane.

Built In The 1890's, It Sprawls Some 90 Acres Of Land...

Time Has Not Been Kind To This Place,
And The Atmosphere Can Only Be Described As "Haunting"

I Know It's Likely All In My Mind...
But This Place Is One Of Only Two Places I've Been
That Has Felt Wrong Inside.
You Could Literally Feel The History In The Walls,
The Air Was Almost Thick With It.

But I Lived, And That's What Matters I Suppose.

There's A Video At The Bottom As Well,
So This Is Really Just A Big Spooky Multi-Media Post....

Also, As Usual...
Please Do Not Ask Me The Location.











( Welcome To Building Four... )

- This Entry Is Double-Posted In The Group "Gothic_babes" -

Took Some Pics For The Clothing Designer "Fashion Whore" This Past Week.

*That Cake Looked Waaaaaaaay Better Than It Tasted*








( Some More Deceivingly-Bad Tasting Cake Pics This Way... )

This Old Abandoned Abbey Is Located In Northern NJ,
About 15 Minutes From My House.

I Have Been Wanting To Get Inside This Place All Winter.
I'm Sooooo Happy Spring Is Here...






( A Ton More Pics This Way... )

I Recently Did Another Shoot For The Clothing Designer MtCoffinz.
Like All My Other Shoots, Everything Is Lit Entirely By Natural Lighting (The Sun)
This Location Worked Out Well Because Of The Many Windows On Both Floors Of The House.
*The Only Photo With Digital Manipulation Is The First Pic, I Edited The Sky In That Shot*

The Models Are As Follows:

Pink = Machine Sex - http://www.modelmayhem.com/machinesex
Red = Yuffie Bunny - http://www.modelmayhem.com/yuffiebunny
Green = Smierc - http://www.modelmayhem.com/Smierc
Blue = Porphyria - http://www.modelmayhem.com/1478
White = Miss Chloe A Creepy - http://www.modelmayhem.com/ChloeCreepy

Afterward We All Hit A Diner, Where More Than A Few People Stared.




( Many More This Way... )

My Journal Got A Sweet Face-Lift A Few Days Ago...
Though It Is Likely That No One Has Noticed
Because They Are Viewing My Entries On Their "Friends Page"

But, Now You All Know...

To Celebrate The First Day Of Not-Spring-Yet-But-Kinda-Warm-Out
My Lady-Friend Christina And I Went On An Adventure.
I Had My Camera With Me, So I Documented The Day...

This Rather Foreboding Old Place Sits In A Small Clearing Atop A Grassy Hill.

*First Tick Of The Year Award Goes To Christina*
**EDIT**
I Win The First Tick Of The Year Award...
Twas A Deer Tick Too.
-Photo At End Of Cut-







( Bunch More Pics This Way... )

Has Been A Very Goggly(?) Past Few Days...
I've Had The Flu, And Have Been In Bed Watching Movies For A Couple Days.
*My Body Temp Was 96.9 Degrees*
Is That Normal For A Flu?

Anyway, Things Piled Up A Lil,
But All Is Done Now...