New York | To Die for Images

Charlotte Canda (February 3, 1828-February 3, 1845) died on her 17th birthday in a carriage ride on the way home from her birthday. She is memorialized in an elaborate tomb at Green-wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York.

Robert Launitz and John Franzee made this monument to reflect her life. The monument cost $45,000 to create. It is 17 feet and 17 feet wide. While it is tough to capture all of the details in her marker, many represent her life. She owned parrots and could speak five languages, which are illustrated on the monument.

Below are public domain stereograph images. Courtesy the New York Public Library.

This is my first post in the category of “Not Southern, also known as the “Mostly” part of my blog’s tagline. I shot these photos in 2010, a few months before the Chelsea Hotel was sold and went through a multi-year renovation process.

The fireplace is in the room where Madonna filmed her video, “Justify My Love.”

The Chelsea Hotel is located in Manhattan in the Chelsea neighborhood. Built on 23rd Street between 1883-1885, it has been the long-term home for many artists, musicians, and writers over the years. The architecture firm of Hubert, Pirrson & Company designed the twelve-story Queen Anne hotel to be one of the city’s first apartment cooperatives.

The hotel was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977. There are many stories that I could share here, but many writers and musicians have told the story of the Chelsea Hotel better than I could. I thought people would want to see photos that I was able to take in 2010.