Rich Romano Photography

Rich Romano Photography Historian & photographer capturing unique views of New Jersey and the surrounding region. Message me for prints & canvases.

Author of books featured on Amazon and sold at Barnes & Noble, Just Jersey Goods, Batsto Village Museum Shop, and more.

Neon Pegasus…The Vacuum Oil Company was founded in Rochester, New York, in 1866. Its famous flying-horse “Pegasus” symbo...
09/01/2026

Neon Pegasus…

The Vacuum Oil Company was founded in Rochester, New York, in 1866. Its famous flying-horse “Pegasus” symbol was first used by a Vacuum Oil subsidiary in South Africa in 1911. Following Vacuum Oil’s merger with the Standard Oil Company of New York (Socony) in 1931, the red Pegasus was adopted as the new company’s trademark and became one of the most recognizable symbols of the Mobil brand.

Decorative tile mosaic on the the former Hoboken High School building. The structure at 158 Fourth Street opened as Hob...
08/30/2026

Decorative tile mosaic on the the former Hoboken High School building.

The structure at 158 Fourth Street opened as Hoboken High School in 1911 and was renamed A.J. Demarest High School in the mid-1920s to honor Superintendent Abraham J. Demarest.

It remained the city’s public high school until 1962, when students moved to the newly constructed Hoboken High School at 800 Clinton Street. Following the relocation, the building was used for pre-K classes and administrative offices and the eventual transition to Demarest Junior High / Hoboken Middle School.

Houston from above…
08/30/2026

Houston from above…

The Carmelite Monastery in Morris Township occupies the former estate of George Goelet Kip, a New York attorney and memb...
08/30/2026

The Carmelite Monastery in Morris Township occupies the former estate of George Goelet Kip, a New York attorney and member of the prominent Dutch-American Kip family, whose roots in New York date to the 1600s and also include the branch that built Kip’s Castle in Verona/Montclair.

Kip acquired the 11-acre property along Madison Avenue in the early 1880s and established his country estate, Ruremont. Following his death, the estate became home to a community of Discalced (barefoot) Carmelite nuns, who were founded locally in 1926.

After moving to the Madison Avenue site, the nuns constructed a cloistered monastery complex with its chapel consecrated in 1941. Known as the Monastery of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel, the site remains an active Carmelite monastery today.

Midland / Odessa Texas, part II
08/29/2026

Midland / Odessa Texas, part II

Scenes from Midland, West Texas…
08/28/2026

Scenes from Midland, West Texas…

The first skyscraper in Midland, Texas was the Petroleum Building. Opened in 1929 by oilman T.S. Hogan, this 12 story, ...
08/27/2026

The first skyscraper in Midland, Texas was the Petroleum Building. Opened in 1929 by oilman T.S. Hogan, this 12 story, Neo-Gothic structure was meant to concentrate oil company offices in Midland. At the time it was known as the Hogan Building and eventually Hogan’s Folly when the stock market crashed followed by an oil surplus - the building quickly lost almost all of its tenants. Fortunately, in 1936, another oil boom was upon the Permian Basin and companies returned to Midland. Today it remains an office space and historic landmark.

08/26/2026

The New York City Lunatic Asylum opened in 1839 on Blackwell’s Island (now Roosevelt Island), and the Octagon served as its main entrance and administrative center. In 1887, journalist Nellie Bly went undercover for ten days and exposed the horrendous conditions within, leading to institutional reform and the eventual closing of the asylum.

It reopened in 1895 as Metropolitan Hospital, treating patients until its closure in 1955 when it relocated to East Harlem; the structure stood empty for the next 50 years. In 2004, restoration efforts began on the abandoned building, which reopened in 2006 as the centerpiece of a luxury residential complex known as “The Octagon”.

Read more about the dark, institutional history and modern renewal of New York’s Roosevelt Island in my book “Death Island”, available on Amazon (info in comments).

The New York City Lunatic Asylum opened in 1839 on Blackwell’s Island (now Roosevelt Island), and the Octagon served as ...
08/26/2026

The New York City Lunatic Asylum opened in 1839 on Blackwell’s Island (now Roosevelt Island), and the Octagon served as its main entrance and administrative center. In 1887, journalist Nellie Bly went undercover for ten days and exposed the horrendous conditions within, leading to institutional reform and the eventual closing of the asylum.

It reopened in 1895 as Metropolitan Hospital, treating patients until its closure in 1955 when it relocated to East Harlem; the structure stood empty for the next 50 years. In 2004, restoration efforts began on the abandoned building, which reopened in 2006 as the centerpiece of a luxury residential complex known as “The Octagon”.

Read more about the dark, institutional history and modern renewal of New York’s Roosevelt Island in my book “Death Island”, available on Amazon (info in comments).

Old-timey sites currently still visible on the Seaside Heights boardwalk…
08/24/2026

Old-timey sites currently still visible on the Seaside Heights boardwalk…

Address

Wayne, NJ

Website

,

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Rich Romano Photography posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share

Category