I was inspired to create this virtual memorial after reading an archived New York Times article from 1990 that I stumbled across a few years ago. As a native myself of the Greater New York area, I was touched by the plight of these children, who were buried in Potters Field (Hart Island, New York) by corrections inmates in the winter of 1990. Of course, many of their names are not known; they are simply denoted with an F/C for female child, or an M/C for male child. Their causes of death, and their biographies, are not known. At least, they are not alluded to in the article. Were these children abandoned? Did they die of natural causes? Were they stillborn? All that is known, according to the article, is that they were just a sample of New York City's "indigent poor" who were buried in this potter's field, which was described as being one of the largest in the country. I felt that this memorial would be a fitting tribute to them, and to the others who have met fates like theirs.
I was inspired to create this virtual memorial after reading an archived New York Times article from 1990 that I stumbled across a few years ago. As a native myself of the Greater New York area, I was touched by the plight of these children, who were buried in Potters Field (Hart Island, New York) by corrections inmates in the winter of 1990. Of course, many of their names are not known; they are simply denoted with an F/C for female child, or an M/C for male child. Their causes of death, and their biographies, are not known. At least, they are not alluded to in the article. Were these children abandoned? Did they die of natural causes? Were they stillborn? All that is known, according to the article, is that they were just a sample of New York City's "indigent poor" who were buried in this potter's field, which was described as being one of the largest in the country. I felt that this memorial would be a fitting tribute to them, and to the others who have met fates like theirs.
