Vanderbilt Cup Races

Nice shots.
A: Looks like Bay Park looking South? Waterway looks the same.
B: ?
C: Kew Gardens looking West. Forest Park top left.
D: ?
E: Looks like Garden City looking North? Mayan Ruins on top left.
F: ?
G: Harbor Hill, East Hills looking East.
H: Lido Towers, Lido Beach looking North.

Howard, sending attachments.

From Mystery Fotos #19 Amost Solved : Eight Amazing 1928 Aerials from the Cradle of Aviation Archives

The idea of restoring the LIMP for a bike path seems reasonable a more so given the success of The Highline.  It occurs to be some deep pocket private corporation with an interest in fitness might be approached to contribute.

  How does The Fitbit Long Island Bikeway” sound?

From New VanderbiltCupRaces.com Series: My Motor Parkway Story #1- Jerry Mintz

I have some answers,also some questions,that I’ll get .
A- Is a roller coaster,probably one of largest in Long Island.
B- Is that the race course in the upper left corner?
C- Where in Queens.
D- Got me on this one.
E- This one too.
F- Same here.
G- Harbor Hill 648 acre Estate in east hills,where the Mackay Horse Statute was.
H- Have no idea.

From Mystery Fotos #19 Amost Solved : Eight Amazing 1928 Aerials from the Cradle of Aviation Archives

Howard, I believe mystery photo F is of the Hengstenberg greenhouses located on the south side of Graham Ave. in the village of Hempstead between Rose Pl. and Hemlock Dr. The complex was on 8 acres.

From Mystery Fotos #19 Amost Solved : Eight Amazing 1928 Aerials from the Cradle of Aviation Archives

Documentation sent to Howard for some of these.
Mystery Foto A: Playland Park, Freeport
Mystery Foto B: Deepdale Country Club (Lake Success)
Mystery Foto C: Kew Gardens (showing LIRR, part of Forest Park)
Mystery Foto D: High School?
Mystery Foto E: Curtis Aircraft Corp.  (with Motor Parkway shown)
Mystery Foto F: Joseph Feldis Greenhouses - Hempstead
Mystery Foto G: Harbor Hill Estate, Roslyn
Mystery Foto H: Lido Beach Hotel, Lido Beach

From Mystery Fotos #19 Amost Solved : Eight Amazing 1928 Aerials from the Cradle of Aviation Archives

Oops!  Belay my last comment.  My chicken coop-cum-poultry house comment was with the 1956 Skyviews LIE blog of 30 Apr; NOT here.  Sorry ‘bout that.  Sam, III

From MysteryFoto #18 Solved: An Abandoned Hotel on Little Neck Parkway and Northern Boulevard in 1926

Hey!  I sent a P. S. identifying the thin black line above the curved road at left center in the 1956 Skyviews aerial as the WKV Deepdale “chicken coop” which was demolished some 10 years back in spite of my efforts to have it preserved.  Some chicken coop!  Massive solid concrete, more akin to the Maginot Line or Fort Knox!  Do you know exactly when it was razed?  Gotta find my pix.  Sam, III

From MysteryFoto #18 Solved: An Abandoned Hotel on Little Neck Parkway and Northern Boulevard in 1926

O. K.  I’ll bite.  I think I know my Imperials better than most people but just what might a “16 Custom Imperial chassis” be?  It’s not 1916, it’s not a 16’ chassis (more like 22’ or so), the wheelbase is 11’ 8”,  and it’s sure as shooting NOT a V-16 (Imperials from 1931 through 1951 were all straight 8s).  Do tell, please.  Sam, III

From The Art of Jack Juratovic: 1937 Chrysler's Chrysler

Even though I prefer 1920’s cars including Packard and (Springfield) Rolls Royce, this car is, to me, a piece of art, a statement of what a car could be!

From The Art of Jack Juratovic: 1937 Chrysler's Chrysler

Without cheating, only E and H are certain.  I worked in the office wing of E ca; 1956; it is (or was recently) the Esselte/Pendaflex plant at the south-east corner of Clinton Street (Glen Cove Road) at Stewart Avenue in Garden City.  It started out as the Curtiss Aeroplane plant and still had the outline of the original Curtiss wind-tunnel throat in the south wall of the second floor passageway between the offices and the factory in 1956.  The LIMP RoW is visible along the upper left (just north of Stewart Avenue)  H is the Lido Beach Hotel-cum-Towers.  F is almost certainly John Lewis Childs’s massive nursery and greenhouse complex on the north side of Jamaica Avenue (Jericho Turnpike/Route 25) in Floral Park and G sure looks like Clarence Mackay’s Harbor Hill high up above Roslyn (at today’s Harbor Hill and Roslyn Roads.  I don’t doubt the rest will elicit “Well, Duh!” from me.  Sam, III

From Mystery Fotos #19 Amost Solved : Eight Amazing 1928 Aerials from the Cradle of Aviation Archives

My stories and pix are posted on my Website beginning at <http://sbiii.com/limtrpwy.html> but not all pages are converted yet so I’d suggest starting with the LIMP index page, <http://sbiii.com/limpndex.html>.  Over 20 of the over 50 pages have been converted so far and I’d better get busy restoring the rest.  As I note on my site, I will be happy to restore any page out of sequence if someone has a pressing need for it.  Preference will be given first to old LIMP Panelists and then to members of the LIMP Preservation Society.  This is a great new project, Howard, and I agree that “then and now” location pix would be a terrific asset (it would be especially nice if those who submit old pix would also take the “now” pix).  It would also be a great service to your audience to post the entire 1926/1950/2000 Nassau County aerial photo survey strips at high resolution and keyed to the current Hagstrom’s atlas (and, possibly, the USGS topographic maps).  Hey - I can dream, can’t I?  Sam, III

From New VanderbiltCupRaces.com Series: My Motor Parkway Story #1- Jerry Mintz

So many photos, so little time! I think I’ve identified a few; the rest I’ll leave to Greg and Art: foto C could be the LIRR over Forest Hills; foto E is the Curtiss Engineering Plant in Garden City with the LIMP in the upper left corner; foto G is Clarence Mackay’s “Harbor Hill” estate in Roslyn; foto H is the old Lido Club Hotel, now the Lido Beach Towers condo. Great pictures. Can’t wait to see what the others are.

From Mystery Fotos #19 Amost Solved : Eight Amazing 1928 Aerials from the Cradle of Aviation Archives

Roy: Fantastic story. All is similar today as you’ve experienced, the pedestrian bridge over the LIE, and the still disorienting LIMP entrance at Peck, being as choppy as ever, especially the bridges!. And that last hill under the GCP, like you, open ‘er up in high gear! I’ve recorded it as 8% grade but correct me if I’m wrong. Still nothing compares to that thrill?

From New VanderbiltCupRaces.com Series: My Motor Parkway Story #1- Jerry Mintz

Garden city Hotel

From Mystery Fotos #19 Amost Solved : Eight Amazing 1928 Aerials from the Cradle of Aviation Archives

Foto g Otto kahn estate

From Mystery Fotos #19 Amost Solved : Eight Amazing 1928 Aerials from the Cradle of Aviation Archives

From Gary Hammond

Here’s my answers to this weeks mystery photos:

Hammond’s Historical Happenings

• Photo A: Playland Park, Freeport; existed 1924-1931; 9 acres at South Grove St. & Front St., Freeport (see attached post card (c.1920’s) for details)

• Photo B: Fresh Meadow Country Club, 255 Lakeville Rd., Lake Success; buildings still exist today (as does the swimming pool hidden in the trees), although much expanded

• Photo C: Kew Gardens, Queens; looking NW down LIRR tracks; lowest bridge is Lefferts Ave.; LIRR Station is just above it on right side of the tracks; next bridge is 82nd St. Bridge; then 80th St. Bridge; then the next bridge is now replaced by Jackie Robinson Pkwy; the Park at top left is part of Forest Park; road on right side of photo is Austin St.; road on left side of LIRR is Grenfell St.; all the street names are based on current road names, as I don’t know if that is the names used in the 1920’s or if they have been renamed since then

• Photo D: Is obviously a superimposed artistic rendition of a proposed school building, location unknown to me

• Photo E: Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Corporation Plant, Clinton Road & Stewart Ave., Garden City;
1. Note name “CURTISS” spelled out on the smokestack (still exists today); for many decades the building was home to Oxford Pendaflex, and is today used by both Nassau BOCES and FedEx
2. also the old gas tank (now removed), both an obstacle & navigational landmark for the aviators flying at Curtiss/Roosevelt Fields; the still site is occupied by National Grid as 600 Stewart Ave.
3. on the right are some of the old wooden WWI warehouse buildings left over from Camp Mills
4. the building on the left side of the photo also still exists, although today it is a Chase Bank
5. the 3-story building on the right, just below the gas tank, is used still by the 1st Marine Corps District, 605 Stewart Ave. (see separate history below)
6. and of course we can’t forget the LIMP running diagonal across the top left of the photo (notice the white concrete posts), pass Raymond Ct., where many of those homes still stand!

• Photo F: An unknown greenhouse complex

• Photo G: Clarence Mackay Estate, Harbor Hill, Roslyn

.    Photo H: The Lido Beach Hotel

History of Marine Corps building (from their website):

“The current 1st Marine Corps District building was built by the Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company (A&P) in 1923 for a warehouse and distribution center.  The building became outdated, and A&P built a more modern warehouse further east on Stewart Ave. The vacated building took occupancy in 1941 by Sperry Gyroscope, famous for manufacturing war materials.  During their occupancy, they added several buildings, to include the guardhouse and a cafeteria. Today the cafeteria occupies the same structure, half of which was converted into the 1st MCD Enlisted Club.
The building was purchased by Navy Records Management Center (NRMC) for $319,000 immediately following the end of the war in 1945 in order to process and microfilm the paperwork of the thousands of discharged servicemen of WWII. Being on Long Island for ten years, NRMC moved to more up to date facilities in St. Louis, Mo. in 1955.
For almost a year, the building was only occupied by a small caretaker team. Alicia Patterson, publisher of an up and coming newspaper called NEWSDAY, tried to acquire the property. When she failed, she built her plant next door.
A public affairs officer was scouting the New York area to relocate the 1st MCRD&RD; headquarters. With the help of the caretaker personnel, 11 officers and 53 enlisted Marines took occupancy of the property on August 3, 1953.  In 1956, the 1st Marine Corps Reserve and Recruiting District (MCR&RD;) headquarters moved from Boston to its present location on Stewart Avenue in Garden City, N.Y.  On 11 October 1985, the District held a commemorative naming ceremony to name the building in honor of the historical Marine from the metro New York area, Cpl. John F. Mackie, the first Marine to be awarded the Medal of Honor.”
Gary Hammond

From Mystery Fotos #19 Amost Solved : Eight Amazing 1928 Aerials from the Cradle of Aviation Archives

Howard, Thanks for posting these great photos. I can’t identify any of the locales, but many of them look familiar, at least in a generic way. The country club and high school especially so. The greenhouses look like they’re at the intersection of Front Street and East Meadow Avenue (formerly Newbridge Avenue) where a large nursery property was located when we moved from the city, but I don’t think there could have been so many residences nearby in the 30’s. So that locale is probably much closer to a larger population center. I’m not usually nostalgic about Long Island, but I thank you for reminding me about its many interesting features.

From Mystery Fotos #19 Amost Solved : Eight Amazing 1928 Aerials from the Cradle of Aviation Archives

Foto E is the old Curtiss Engineering Co. grounds; now belongs to School District - plant where the NC flying boats were built - First Across the Atlantic!  See video of Nc-4 here… http://www.pbs.org/opb/historydetectives/video/1486853815/

Cheers,
John Bayer

From Mystery Fotos #19 Amost Solved : Eight Amazing 1928 Aerials from the Cradle of Aviation Archives

Wow,something else for your collection of goodies. At this time I would like to wish all mothers out there to have a very HAPPY MOTHERS DAY.

From The Art of Jack Juratovic: 1937 Chrysler's Chrysler

Howard,
Thank you for all your exploration and explanations of everything LIMP. How many times I have stood on LIMP next to American Legion on Willis Ave. and wondered how and where the bridge crossed and what it looked like. There must be more pictures like this one. I fear pictures like this are bring discarded by next of kin not realizing how important they are to people like us. How can we reach out to Long Islanders to search their attics for these treasures?
Thank you,
Mark Lanese

From The Long Island Motor Parkway Bridge over Willis Avenue in Willison Park