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J and I were already having a rough day. We'd just driven across town to check out an old industrial site he hadn't visited in a while, only to find it erased. Nothing left but a slab of concrete and chain-link fence. So we took a detour. Sometimes you salvage a disappointing afternoon with a backup plan, even if you're just ticking a box. The former Virjune plant hides in plain sight off Thomaston Avenue. If you drive past in summer, you'll miss it completely. Trees and shrubs swallow the building whole, nature reclaiming what industry left behind. Come winter, though, when the branches go bare and the world turns gray, the red brick skeleton reveals itself. Even then, you have to know where to look. I pulled up old Sanborn maps to trace the building's history. The earliest tenant was an auto body shop in 1922. By February 1950, something bigger had moved in. The map labels it simply "Stamping Wks." No company name. No flourish. Just function. That namele...
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Abandoned Church of Divine Flames
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The main attraction 😍😍😍
A surprise I would never forget.
One cold morning, S and I headed across town to check out a church many Instagrammers have trodden upon when this church became known for its abandonment in the sprawling green lawns of this residential neighborhood. It seemed every day when the first image appeared of this church's unique stained glass windows everyone all of a sudden appeared within its walls within the next two weeks. Mind-boggling how one picture starts out online and all of a sudden everyone knew about it.
S and I parked the car and took a spin in front of the church only to realize that from the street level, you could see another feature of this church prominently displayed in full view (main photo above). It was the plastic/glass rods hanging from the ceiling. Finding no entrance from the front, we went around and made our way past the high chain link fence and entered the partitioned side of the walkway to the busted door lock. Making our way inside, I headed straight for the chandelier and clicked away happily until S shouted to come to take a look inside the main church hall.
👀
Inside was just the way it was even though months had passed since the last posting of this property. Everything was in unblemished condition except for bad graffiti in the balcony seating some immature scoundrel(s) decided to mark up. The red seats, in particular, show their age where many congregants sat for years and years of church service. Behind the pulpit stood the shimmering and brightly colored stained glass depicting the red-hot yellow flames smoldering bush from a green base. It was all there and more from the very first moment I saw it appear in my Instagram feed.
Center Aisle
Balcony
The Biblical Bush
On the side stood the piano forlornly waiting to be hammered into religious harmony. Behind stood a standalone church kitchen and backroom where I assumed the congregation gathered for light lunches and church dinners. Chairs and tables are piled high throughout. The only sound emanating from the room was water dripping down from somewhere. A tell-tale sign of an unmaintained roof. After clicking away with delight we headed upstairs to check out the rooms and find the way up to the balcony overflow seating. After finding it and shooting from above, we found more empty rooms, office storage, and a standalone room which must have been a church classroom due to the blackboard. Nothing of note besides the balcony existed upstairs. So we made our way down the basement level.
No sweet melodies
Center View
Front of Pulpit
Down in the basement, we found a pitch-black room large enough for a dancehall party of 100 people or more. If I remember correctly there was a disco ball or not. It has been a while since I visited this church. My memory was a bit fuzzy of what I explored down in the basement. Nothing of note and no tools to aid us in lighting the room, we made our way underneath the chandelier and clicked away at all angles until we decided our time was up and left.
Office Room
Bumping our fists heading to the car, another exploration completed in the books.
It's hard to believe it's been so many years since I stumbled upon that enigmatic, medium-sized factory in Pennsylvania. The memory, dating back to 2016, is like a photograph slowly fading at the edges, leaving behind a mosaic of vivid yet disjointed images. The exact location, shrouded in the mists of time, eludes me, despite my best efforts to pin it down on my ever-expanding Google MyMaps. I remember it as the 'chop shop' factory, a moniker I whimsically assigned but now regret not investigating further. The scene, as I recall, was something straight out of a gritty noir film – a pile of black rubber car tires heaped to one side, the floor covered in a fine layer of dust and grime, and the walls adorned with a kaleidoscope of oddball graffiti. It was a place that whispered stories of clandestine activities and hasty departures. Gaining access to this mystery location was surprisingly easy, a stark contrast to the complex mazes of some larger sites. Its relatively s...
Anamet Inc I recall my ventures through Anamet vividly. A breach in the fence was our gateway into this forgotten realm, leading us straight to the old powerhouse. The front office building and the rolling mill eluded our exploration. I believe we did not venture into these two buildings based on not having anything useful inside but just empty spaces and open windows. Nothing inside was appealing I am guessing since we did not venture inside on this day and I did not return to this area for a good few years. A huge disappointment in my book as I looked over my pictures on this day. The grounds were littered with the debris of abandonment – beds, household odds, and ends, remnants of haphazard demolitions, all evidence of a space left unguarded. The powerhouse, known as Building 27/27A/27B, was a relic of industrial might. Within its walls, boilers and assorted machinery sprawled across multiple floors, each piece telling a story, each corner a snapshot in time, adding dept...
When I arrived at the former Aerosol Techniques factory, I was filled with a mix of anticipation and curiosity. Meeting a group of new friends for a day of urban exploration in Connecticut, we had a lineup of intriguing abandoned sites on our agenda. Our itinerary included the hauntingly beautiful Seaside Sanatorium, a former hospital, along with a few other potential spots that we were less certain about. We chose the factory as our starting point, mainly because it offered easy access and was conveniently situated next to a Lowe's hardware store. Walking along a well-trodden path, our group made a seamless transition onto the property. The sense of camaraderie was palpable as we embarked on our adventure with eager enthusiasm. The factory grounds, long deserted, were a canvas for countless graffiti artists. Every inch of the building was adorned with vibrant and eclectic street art, each piece telling its own story. This rich color and creativity set the perfect stage for our imp...
As the third anniversary of his untimely death let's appreciate the energy and unique art form Bashar Barakah Jackson aka Pop Smoke gave to the world. A solemn head bow and a moment of silence for the woo God. I have been hunting for murals depicting drill rapper icon Pop Smoke all over Brooklyn. I came upon this mural while hunting for something else in the area. From the pictures, I knew I had to go see it in person, and boy did it not disappoint. From the images below you can see someone recently laid flowers and lit some candles to pay the woo homage to Canarsie Brooklyn’s fast-rising chart-topper. In addition, from the intense Internet interest in these beautiful murals of Pop Smoke, I knew I had to share them with my drill scene readers. Each mural I have visited is uniquely different from the others and invokes different emotions and personal feelings when viewing them. You just have to see them, to appreciate them, not for the social media post but for the passion, l...
This is the second mural installation of deceased Brooklyn drill rapper Pop Smoke. This was done by Haitian artist Kenny Altidor who has done quite a few murals around the area which also include the late great Chadwick Boseman. #popsmoke #pop #kennyaltidor #woobaby #woos #woo #canarsie #brooklyn #canarsiebrooklyn 🎤 Did You Photograph This Pop Smoke Mural? Did you visit this mural when it was freshly painted? Do you have photos from different angles, or shots of the artist at work? Have you left a tribute at any of Pop Smoke's Brooklyn murals? Share your Woo memories below. Drop a comment below or contact me directly . Full credit given to all contributors. 🎤 More Brooklyn Hip-Hop Murals & Street Art 🎨 Pop Smoke Mural in Canarsie The redone tribute to Brooklyn's drill icon—mural No. 1. 👑 Pop Smoke Mural No. 3: Kings of Brooklyn Featuring Biggie Smalls & Sean Price alongsid...
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