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All the United States New York State New York City Staten Island Mount Loretto Beach Rock Garden
Mount Loretto Beach Rock Garden is permanently closed.

This entry remains in the Atlas as a record of its history, but it is no longer accessible to visitors.

Mount Loretto Beach Rock Garden

Eccentric stone cairns built on a public New York City beach.

Staten Island, New York

Added By
mrobscurity
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Staten Island’s stone cairn garden.   http://www.bridgeandtunnelclub.com/bigmap/...
Staten Island’s stone cairn garden.   http://www.bridgeandtunnelclub.com/bigmap/...
  http://www.forgotten-ny.com/YOU%27D%20NEVE...
iron bench-concrete debris on beach- Mount Loretto Unique Area   Beth Ogando / Atlas Obscura User
iron bench-concrete debris on beach- Mount Loretto Unique Area   Beth Ogando / Atlas Obscura User
iron bench-concrete debris on beach- Mount Loretto Unique Area   Beth Ogando / Atlas Obscura User
bluff/erosion Mount Loretto Unique Area   Beth Ogando / Atlas Obscura User
only rock towers we found   Beth Ogando / Atlas Obscura User
Mount Loretto Unique Area- erosion/bluffs   Beth Ogando / Atlas Obscura User
brick wall debris- Mount Loretto Unique Area   Beth Ogando / Atlas Obscura User
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About

In 1996, the Staten Island Advance ran a front-page photograph of an odd assortment of stone cairns that had recently appeared on a beach in Mount Loretto State Park. The newspaper asked in its headline if the piles of rocks were a “Sophomoric Prank or Cult Activity?”

In fact, they were neither. Spanning nearly a half mile of beachfront, the stone sculptures were the creation of Doug Schwartz, a zookeeper at the Staten Island Zoo, for whom this unusual outside – and outsider – art has been both a hobby and a passion for more than a decade.

Schwartz can be found working on the beach at least one day a week, making him something of a local celebrity. However, it is for another eccentric Staten Island tradition that he is best known. Schwartz is the keeper of Staten Island Chuck, a groundhog who serves as the fifth borough's answer to Punxsutawney Phil. For most of the year Chuck lives in a a cage in Schwartz's office at the Staten Island Zoo. He emerges every February 2nd on Groundhog Day to try to find his shadow.

There are now close to 200 rock towers overlooking Raritan Bay on the southern shore of Staten Island. Some are precariously poised, others are propped up with sticks, or buttressed with old beer cans. For Schwartz, the stone formations are simply a form of self-expression, and a relaxing way to spend a morning at the beach. He has built several benches out of stones and washed-up lumber so that visitors can take a load off while they contemplate his slate and ochre garden.

Update 6/11/17: There are no rock towers remaining. It is still an interesting beach though, with a lot of erosion creating mini cliffs with tall hanging trees. 

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Outsider Art Statues Beaches

Know Before You Go

There is a place to park your car on Sharrott Avenue, just south of Hylan Boulevard.

Community Contributors

Added By

mrobscurity

Edited By

Beth Ogando

  • Beth Ogando

Published

February 2, 2013

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Sources
  • http://www.forgotten-ny.com/YOU%27D%20NEVER%20BELIEVE/loretto/loretto.html
  • http://watch.thirteen.org/video/1162700043/
Mount Loretto Beach Rock Garden
Sharrott Ave. and Hyland Blvd.
Staten Island, New York, 10309
United States
40.510813, -74.210128
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