Vanderbilt Cup Races

From Dave Duricy:

I recently learned that you exhibited the Chryslers’ 1937 Imperial town car at the former Chrysler estate on Kings Point. I was gratified to see that car in that place.

I’ve written about Chrysler automobiles and Chrysler history for many years. I believe that the man and his corporation were deeply influential, yet they are woefully under-appreciated today.

This may sound strange coming from a complete stranger, and stranger who didn’t even attend the show, but thank you for driving the Imperial home.

Best Regards,
Dave Duricy

From Chrysler's Chrysler Returns to Its Kings Point Home This Weekend

From Steven Vilardi:

“Great show, beautiful surroundings, magnificent mansions, million dollar view and the hot dogs were even good. The uniformed midshipmen of the institution were all helpful and friendly. The shuttle busses were great. Both you folks and the school did a wonderful job of coordinating a fine event.”

From Chrysler's Chrysler Returns to Its Kings Point Home This Weekend

Quite a challenge this time! First of all, we see Barney Oldfield (with cigar) in the light colored stock car racer, which appears to be a Stearns, recognizable by the white line radiator (patented in 1909!). It is one of the larger models, which had the round-bended springhorn with shackle. The year must be 1908, as this is the only year that Oldfield raced with Stearns. The other racer appears to be a Stearns too, but a smaller model, having a different front spring system. Oldfield’s regular team mate and opponent in 1908 was Charles Soules, who raced against him regularly on several tracks that year, so it could well be him. The track is clearly a very small one, but I couln’t find a track matching the background details of the photo.
The link with the Vanderbilt Cup is of course Barney Oldfield, who despite his brilliant career raced his first Vanderbilt Cup only in 1914.

From Mystery Foto #20 Solved: Barney Oldfield Driving a Stearns Racer in St. Paul on July 15, 1908

Hi Howard! 
Great show!  Very proud and honored to have had this experience!
Thank you!

Ann

From Chrysler's Chrysler Returns to Its Kings Point Home This Weekend

Just like stepping into a time machine. Amazing!

From Chrysler's Chrysler Returns to Its Kings Point Home This Weekend

Friday’s photo shoot was an amazing time. It was a very moving emotional “homecoming” to see the Chrysler parked there at the back of the Chrysler mansion.
Great to see my editor and great friend Richard Lentinello for several hours as he photographed that magnificent car. Photographing a black car is not an easy task! The mirror finish reflects everything . Look for a full two part story in consecutive issues of Hemmings Classic Car magazine towards the end of this year, of both the history of the car and the extensive restoration it received. Hats off to you Howard and Roz for stepping up to save this car, see it restored correctly and authentically to the absolute last detail and now share it with all of us, AND keep the car on Long Island where it has its heritage.

From Chrysler's Chrysler Returns to Its Kings Point Home This Weekend

Absolutely beautiful!

From Chrysler's Chrysler Returns to Its Kings Point Home This Weekend

Mike, you’re dead on with the gravestone! Lol. We share the same possibilities. Though, after reconsidering its height (approx 7-8ft.), It’s most likely not a cemetery entrance post (those would be much larger and grand), but most likely a monument for sale by same vendor on Horace Harding Blvd (Nassau Blvd). Another possibility is that the stone was purchased close to the date of the photograph (1931), and most likely installed somewhere in Cedar Grove or Mount Hebron (too expensive to transport to another cemetery). Not sure.  Also, I have strong suspicion we crossed paths that same day by the lake in FM Park. Contact me. .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

From Mystery Foto #18 Solved: The Western Terminus of the Motor Parkway in Fresh Meadows on July 23, 1939

Hi Frank and Howard,  I totally agree, and in going to the cemetery’s site they provide an immediate street view, so I “cruised” east of the entrance…...and low and behold,  there’s the Monument Store !!! My guess is that the HH road was very close to the graveyard (probably the service road). Over time, ramps went up,  houses were demolished and it must have been an earth moving extravaganza - and we all can agree that the LIE is north of the service road looking east -  however, we do have a gravestone right next to the road in that old picture, with no ramps or LIE yet, but the cemetery was there since the 1890s, and im guessing, so was the monument store. However, with an earth moving ordeal going on all around during the construction of the LIE and ramps, it was possibly a grave that had to be relocated, or it could be a gravestone not yet sold from the monument store…....definitely a great mystery. I’ll bet that someone at the cemetery office has an old diagram in their records.  Mike

From Mystery Foto #18 Solved: The Western Terminus of the Motor Parkway in Fresh Meadows on July 23, 1939

Howard, I think Michael’s photo in question may make a great mystery!

From Mystery Foto #18 Solved: The Western Terminus of the Motor Parkway in Fresh Meadows on July 23, 1939

Hi Michael! That corner is still there. It’s where Cedar Grove Cemetery is located on Horace Harding Expwy and about 350ft east of College Pt. Blvd. It used to intersect with Rodman Street (still existing) there but the L.I.E. changed all that. Heavy traffic there then, and still today! I believe the white sign below the Motor Pkwy sign on the post says Cedar Grove Cemetery. This is 3mi. west of the LIMP terminus. Those cars are indeed speeding, and they’re on the future L.I.E., heading east towards the terminus. The gravestone may have been used as an entrance post for the cemetery once but removed., After using Google street view, I was unable to locate it but it may still be there requiring a visit for a closer look. I doubt it’s there though because it looks too old and out of date to be used as an entrance post, if that’s what it was. But looking at that roadway, I cant decide which I’d prefer, dirt or potholes. Lol. Keep on ridin’

From Mystery Foto #18 Solved: The Western Terminus of the Motor Parkway in Fresh Meadows on July 23, 1939

Hi Frank, This Picture is the one im curious about….what is that stone marker ? Mike

http://www.vanderbiltcupraces.com/blog/article/from_the_nyc_municipal_archives_images_from_the_motor_parkway_and_the_1937_

From Mystery Foto #18 Solved: The Western Terminus of the Motor Parkway in Fresh Meadows on July 23, 1939

Thanks Frank its good to know, im looking for some bicycle adventures and that area is so nice. The first time i was there was in November at a funeral at St. Marys Cemetery….little did i know of the history surrounding it. Last week i went to the Springfield Avenue Bridge (where the 2 ladies in the old mystery photo stood against the abuttment). Going up the ramp led to some beautiful terrain, and i can’t wait to explore it more.
  One other question i have is that there is an old picture on the VCR website… near the terminus of an old car flying by a signpost with many different arrows pointing to everywhere, and it looks like in the very foreground of the picture there is a gravestone or a road marker. Is that corner still there today ? Mike

From Mystery Foto #18 Solved: The Western Terminus of the Motor Parkway in Fresh Meadows on July 23, 1939

Mike, the greenway bike path was extended and now mostly connects all the area parks (Alley, Cunningham, Kissena, Flushing Meadow….). But to stay closest to the LIMP, it starts off the RoW at the bottom of the LIE pedestrian overpass (also part of the greenway path) hidden behind the school at LIE and Peck Ave, then winds around through Holy Cow Playground back towards Peck Ave (where the N Hemp Tpke bridge used to be located). There you’ll find the existing LIMP RoW next to the sidewalk. Brace yourself for a hilly, heavy downshifting adventure. Willie K made some of them pretty steep and choppy! Follow the path and have fun!

From Mystery Foto #18 Solved: The Western Terminus of the Motor Parkway in Fresh Meadows on July 23, 1939

From Greg D. Merksamer:
HI, HOWARD!  Mystery Friday Foto #19 is most-familiar to me as the Ford Mustang II concept given its world debut at the October, 1963 U.S. Grand Prix in upstate Watkins Glen, NY.  It was Ford’s more practical four-seat follow-up to the fully-open two-seat Mustang I shown at the same race one year prior in 1962.  The Mustang II was also treated to an encore showing at the 1964 International Auto Show in the New York Coliseum (the above photo was taken by future Pierce Arrow Society Publications Director Bernard J. Weis) to herald the production Mustang’s unveiling at the New York World’s Fair the Monday after the show closed. - See You At Greenwich!  GREGG D. MERKSAMER, Historian of the NY Intl. Auto Show

From Mystery Foto #19 Solved: The 1962 Mustang II Prototype Built By Dearborn Steel Tubing

Hi Frank I did it in picture and fax viewer and saw boats on the lake, too bad the photo didn’t capture the Trilon and Perisphere, i guess that would have been more to the right after the picture ends.
    I was in Fresh Meadows again on Saturday and saw the Hollis Hills Terrace Bridge and the Springfield Avenue Bridges. I want to take my bike for a ride there, but where does the bike path actually begin since there is no more Western Terminus ?  Is it 73rd Avenue or somewhere in Cunningham Park ?? Mike

From Mystery Foto #18 Solved: The Western Terminus of the Motor Parkway in Fresh Meadows on July 23, 1939

http://bigdogperformanceparts.com/blogs/blog/tagged/history
(Scroll down to ‘The Strange Journey That Led To The Original Ford Mustang’)

http://www.autolife.umd.umich.edu/Design/Halderman_interview.htm

From Mystery Foto #19 Solved: The 1962 Mustang II Prototype Built By Dearborn Steel Tubing

The original Mustang II, a concept car? derived from one of the early prototype design of the production Mustang, not the Pinto-powered Mustang II they were pushing on the odd-even gas lines of the ‘70s. It was first displayed on October 1963 in Detroit, designed by Mr. Gail Halderman under Joe Oros at Ford Motor Company. Hal Sperlich was also responsible for its design under the Gene Bordinat team at Ford. Eventually was used in Arizona by the Ford Division in the original Mustang commercials, had its roof chopped off as a convertible, and never returned as promised to Mr. Halderman, its primary designer. Was intended to be a ‘personal car’ with smaller rear seats (all new ideas of the time).

From Mystery Foto #19 Solved: The 1962 Mustang II Prototype Built By Dearborn Steel Tubing

First of all thank you all so much for the kind comments. It really was a fun day and one of those great father/son days I’m sure we will both remember.

My personal favorite stretch of Parkway starts at the Old Courthouse Road bridge (a great location—interesting to think that this bridge was built prior to the Bethpage Restoration bridge which was so much closer to the Parkway ground breaking) running east, over Shelter Rock Road (over a fence) and then continuing eastward to IU Willets Rd through the bamboo near Herricks HS. It’s a great section of original road that has a very private feel to it, fairly undisturbed with lots of posts, green and quiet. There are many great sections, and several I would recommend to “rookies” before this run, but I felt almost thrown back in time for this portion of the journey. Sammy’s favorite location will be disclosed upon its arrival on Howard’s future postings of our adventure! Stay tuned!

From Sam & Dave’s “Excellent Motor Parkway Adventure”II: Lake Success & Manhasset Hills

Nice investigation work guys! Wish I could persuade my teenage girls to do the same on the MTB’s but I think I may have ridden too many miles with them already. lol. It’s great cruising along the right of way while imagining cars 100 years ago used to speed through here on the early roadway. Maybe the roadway will return in the not-so-far future. Now that would be really neat. Looking forward to more of your updates on how the old roadway is keeping up after all this time! Thanks so much.

From Sam & Dave’s “Excellent Motor Parkway Adventure”II: Lake Success & Manhasset Hills