The Collector

In December 19, 1970 the writer Joseph Mitchell crossed the Hudson River from Manhattan to scavenge in the condemned Hoboken Ferryhouse. Its windows were knocked out, the paint was peeling and the tin roof rolled back on itself. Broken glass, old newspapers, rags and trash covered the floors. Mitchell, a reporter for The New Yorker whose reputation as one of the city's best chroniclers survived mosdy in the memories of a small number of devoted readers, wandered around as his wife Therese, a photographer, took pictures. In one, he tugged on a fence. In another, he stooped to examine a stair rail. He removed an illuminated sign that read NEXT BOAT from a wall, then collected the curved brackets that held it in place, as well as the nuts, bolts, screws and washers. He bagged them all and jotted down the date and some notes about their location.

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