Abandoned Albany Middle School still has Student Murals & Secrets

Part of the abandoned Kenwood Convent property in Albany, here's a look at one of the buildings that was home to a middle school.

WARNING: Under no circumstances should you enter this property. By doing so you risk bodily harm and/or prosecution for trespassing on private property.

Explore the Abandoned Middle School at Albany's Kenwood Convent

This abandoned property is part of the Kenwood Convent complex in Albany. If it's the same story as the rest of the property, it's been vacant since 2009. There have been some ownership changes and it appears there is still power in parts of the building. As with the convent, it also looks like work was being done by construction crews to clean out and/or restore the building, but that has since stopped (as of the 2020 date of these photos).

The Albany Business Review says the county was about to hold an auction for the property, but its current owners filed bankruptcy two days prior - putting a hold on any further development or sale of the site.

As we can see from the photo tour, there is some magnificent architecture, window frames, even old murals on the wall depicting the a journey down the Hudson River from the City of Albany to New York City.

The most recent relics are some tools, ladders and construction equipment left at the scene, but there are some other pretty cool finds including an early flat screen TV, some antique door & window frames and a pool table in near perfect condition.

Remarkably, this is one of those abandoned places that has gone relatively untouched by vandals and graffiti artists. Let's hope it stays that way until a new use for the property can be determined. For now, it sits in legal limbo waiting to be renovated and rehabbed. Enjoy the tour!

Abandoned 1800's Convent in Albany

Believed to have been built in the 1860's, this building is part of a vast complex that spans almost 75 acres off of Southern Boulevard in Albany. It was once a convent and then became part of the Doane Stuart School, which operated on the property until 2009.

Although abandoned for a long time, it's nice to see that graffiti artists and vandals hadn't hit the building as of these photos. According to the post, this video was taken in July of 2020. At the time there was clearly some work being done rehabbing the building. Strands of lights for construction crews were hung in the hallways and new steel beams were being put up.

Apparently the plan was to turn the property into a mix of townhomes, hotels, an amphitheater and art gallery. In 2019, the banks foreclosed on the property and those plans were stopped.

The Times Union reports that the buildings were about to be sold at auction in 2022, but the current owner declared bankruptcy and its future is now in the hands of the courts.

Hopefully someone can breathe new life into the property before nature takes over.

WARNING: Under no circumstances should you enter this property. By doing so you risk bodily harm and/or prosecution for trespassing on private property.