This pretty monument is hard to see from the main roads and paths; it's tucked in a very quiet and shady corner of the South Ridge near Moordanaers Kill. Still, it's a popular subject for photos and it's not unusual to see flowers tucked in the hands of the statue or in the two little urns on the pedestal.
The wings have been detached for many years. Twenty years ago, when I first saw this monument, one wing was resting upside down on the base (and reminded me of a giant shell) and the other was propped up behind the monument.
December 2012
Sometime during the last month, someone refitted the wings back into their slots on the angel's shoulders. A closer look shows how they've been secured with thin bits of stone and what look like coins. The tips are long since broken and missing, but with the wings back in place, the pretty figure is now quite stunning.
This monument marks a single grave; Elizabeth "Libbie" Lathrop. Born in Albany in 1852, she was the daughter of Francis and Alida Griswold. Her father was a gold beater whose home was 307 Hamilton Street (his place of business is listed in city directories as 23 Beaver Street. She married Charles Lathrop, brother of Jane Lathrop who, with her husband Leland Stanford, founded Stanford University. Charles served as the school's first treasurer.
Libbie died the same year the University was founded; she passed away of heart disease in San Francisco on July 3. She was thirty-three years old. Her remains were returned to Albany and interred in this peaceful nook of the Cemetery on July 19.
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ReplyDeleteLibbies wings were put back on in August of 2015. New steel biscuits hold her wings in place, and yes,shimmed with stone and coins. She is a soul sought by many hearts
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