Madonna and Child Statue

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I came across this statue outside St. Mary’s Church (Poughkeepsie, New York). According to Wikipedia:

The congregation was organized in 1873 when the Rev. Patrick McSweeney, D.D., pastor of St. Peter’s, Poughkeepsie purchased a former Universalist church building on Cannon St. The church was dedicated on July 20, 1873 by Cardinal McCloskey. On May 18, 1886, Rev. Terence J. Earley was appointed pastor of St. Mary’s. During his pastorate, John McCann, a feed and grain dealer and a founding member of the parish, deeded his property on South Hamilton Street to St. Mary’s, and a Gothic-style church built there was dedicated in 1893. A stone which had been removed from Poughkeepsie Bridge, Pier No.2 served as cornerstone, presented by The Bridge Committee. The new church was built and dedicated on October 22, 1893.

The church was destroyed by fire in 1968. Msgr. Matthew J. Cox, pastor of St. Mary’s from 1970 to 1982, guided the parish through the four-and-a-half-year process of rebuilding. James McCann, whose father had given the land for the church, died a year after the fire. Before his death, the younger McCann, who had been successful in the stock market, set up a philanthropic foundation. One of its first donations was $330,000 for the new church, which was more than matched by parish donations.

John J. Gartland, an attorney and president of the foundation, salvaged the baptismal font, the only item from the old church still in use. He and his wife also donated a 34-foot-high mosaic of Christ Triumphant that serves as a backdrop to the altar. Incorporated into the mosaic design are the original church and the Mid-Hudson Bridge, which parishioners see as a symbol of their call to build bridges with others and spread the faith. The work was designed by American artist Lumen Martin Winter, who also sculpted the marble statue in front of the church depicting Mary holding the Christ Child above her head.

…

In November 2014, the Archdiocese announced that St. Joseph’s Church on Lafayette Place would merge with St. Mary’s. Although remaining a church which may be used on special occasions, Masses and the sacraments will no longer be celebrated on a regular weekly basis at St. Joseph’s as of August 2015.

For more information see the website of the combined parish of St. Mary’s-St. Joseph’s

Unfortunately I haven’t been able to find any more information about the statue itself.

Urban Decay

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In the previous post (A Couple of Buildings on Main Mall Row, Poughkeepsie, NY) I mentioned that there were a lot of lovely buildings in Poughkeepsie. While that’s certainly true there are also a lot of boarded up shop fronts and abandoned houses. This seems to be typical of many of the larger Hudson Valley river towns. It’s been a long transition from the largely industrial days of the past to re-inventing themselves according to a different model. I suppose Cold Spring is a good example of a successful transition. Without any real knowledge I get the feeling that Poughkeepsie is on the way back.

This house was on a street parallel to Main Street. I couldn’t help wondering which came first: had the house fallen into disrepair and then been abandoned? Or was it abandoned first and then felt into disrepair afterwards? I suppose it doesn’t really manner as the likely root cause for both is financial.

A Couple of Buildings on Main Mall Row, Poughkeepsie, NY

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The Cast Iron Building, 1872.

We’ve been to Poughkeepsie a few times, but we’ve always been going somewhere specific so this was the first time I’ve been able to walk around a bit (for about an hour – less than I would have liked, but I can always go back.) down Main Street and around. There were a few decent looking restaurants and some lovely old buildings – like the two facades in the pictures, once part of what was referred to as “Main Mall Row”.

According to Wikipedia:

Main Mall Row is an adjoining group of nine commercial buildings along the northeast corner of the intersection of Main and Garden streets in downtown Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. They were mostly built after a fire in 1870 destroyed the previous buildings on the site. The new structures were three-to-four story buildings in the Renaissance Revival style, many with ornamental touches such as bracketed cornices, paneled friezes, arcaded facades and molded lintels. 315 Main Mall, at the east end, has an ornate cast iron facade. They are considered among the most architecturally significant commercial buildings in the city, and are still in use as stores today. The building at 3-9 Garden Street retains its original storefronts. The row, as with many of the other buildings in downtown Poughkeepsie, was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.

Their current name comes from the city’s attempt to establish a pedestrian mall in the area, the two blocks of Main between Market and Academy streets, during the 1970s. With the nearby Luckey, Platt & Company Department Store, a commercial mainstay of the city, losing customers to suburban shopping malls, city planners thought they could sustain downtown by offering shoppers a similar experience. In 1973 the two blocks were closed to vehicle traffic. However, the decline of the downtown continued as most shoppers continued to choose the malls, especially after Luckey Platt closed in 1980. The city reopened the street and ended Main Mall in 2001, helping to revive commercial and residential development in the area.

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The Grinder

Tree Shadows on a Wall

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My wife had ordered something from Sears and had to pick it up. While she was inside I took the dog for a short walk around the parking lot. It was around 4:00 pm on a very bright sunny day. The sun was low and the light was very contrasty. As I was walking back to the car I noticed a line of trees casting very dark shadows on the light wall behind them. The shadow of a single tree on the wall looked as if it would make a decent picture. A group of people walked up while I was getting ready to take my shot and decided to take some phone pictures of themselves (I’m not entirely sure why as it wasn’t a particularly scenic location. Maybe they noticed the shadows too). At first I was annoyed because they, probably without thinking, cast their own shadows on the very wall I was trying to photograph. I waited patiently taking a few pictures and eventually they moved on. I then took my picture of the shadow on the wall and that was that.

I always shoot RAW so I always have to work on pictures on the computer and as I was doing this I realized that I actually prefer the picture with their shadows (the one above) to my idea of just a tree shadow on a wall (the one below). I find it more visually interesting and I think the diagonal makes the composition stronger.

Funny how things turn out sometimes.

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Redeemed Christian Fellowship – Church of God of Prophecy

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The Redeemed Christian Fellowship – Church of God of Prophecy was established in Poughkeepsie, NY in 1992 in a different location. As the church grew more space was required and the church moved to new premises in 1995. Yet more growth required another move in 2008, to this building – formerly the First Presbyterian Church of Poughkeepsie. According to Wikipedia:

First Presbyterian Church is a historic Presbyterian church located at Poughkeepsie, Dutchess County, New York. It was built in 1905 and is a large, five sided stone building with a wing. It features a three story square tower with a pyramidal roof and arched Romanesque window surrounds.

It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. The related rectory was added at the same time.

The former First Presbyterian website provides the following brief history:

1749- Presbyterians form first English speaking congregation in Poughkeepsie

1826- Original First Presbyterian wooden church building erected

1832- Present church bell cast

1850- New brick church built at present location

1890- Last Supper Tiffany stained glass window installed

1897- Winslow Chapel built

1905- Present church dedicated

1912- Boy Scout Troop 10 organized (One of the first in the U.S.)

1923- Began support of India Missionary

1924- Parish House built

1954- Capital improvement campaign: Built Education Building. Extensive renovation of sanctuary

1955- First women elders elected

1974- Church became a Meals-on-Wheels center

1978- Sponsored Grace Smith House which opened in Manse in 1981

1985- Church became AA center

1985- Began major capital improvement campaign. Gym removed

1986- Church became handicapped accessible

1997- Winslow Chapel, Ludlow Room, and Sanctuary refurbished

2005- Building being used by other worshiping congregations: St. James Orthodox (Arabic Speaking), Templo Christiano Fe (Spanish Speaking), Christian Way Pentecostal Church, Poughkeepsie Community Church of God 7th Day. In addition the DCA Seniors Center is here Mon-Fri 9:00 to 2:00

A fuller History of the First Presbyterian Church of Poughkeepsie, New York also exists. I spent a bit of time browsing around on the Internet to try to find out exactly why the First Presbyterian Church closed and was unable to find anything conclusive. I imagine that it was some combination of: declining congregations; declining revenues; high cost of maintenance; opportunities for merging multiple churches etc.