Vanderbilt Cup Races

I couldn’t even take a guess. All that I know is that it had to be were there’s a lot of property and there’s a lot in Nassau County.

From Mystery Foto #74 Solved: The C.K.G. Billings "Farnesworth" Garage in Locust Valley

It keeps getting more and more exciting - I can’t wait to see her in action - likely first on a new video, eventually in person!

From Chrysler’s Chrysler Chronicle XI: Countdown to Pebble Beach-Two Months

Thanks for the thanks Frank. I found out that where the grass seeds weren’t planted. because of cement or concrete being there, isn’t part of the motor parkway from Al. at the meeting last week

From Pilot Section of the Motor Parkway Trail Is Under Construction in East Meadow(Updated:June 17, 2014)

I Have been doing research regarding Madonna Heights - the information I have
from Our Community - Concerned Taxpayers of Wheately Heights/Dix Hills, Inc. Civic Ass’n. Bagatelle Rd. was named for the well-known Bagatelle Nursery in the early 20th Century He bought the castle from the grandson of Cornelius Vanderbilt, and later sold it to an order of Catholic Nuns (Current site - Madonna Heights -
I had heard it had turned into a retirement home for the nuns.  Any light you can shed on this history would be greatly appreciated.

From Was the "Bagatelle" Mansion in Half Hollow Hills Built by a Vanderbilt?

Thanks as always for these great memories.  I am always grateful to those who share them as it was such a wonderful time and I agree there will never be anything like it again.

From VanderbiltCupRaces.com Exclusive: Rog Patterson's Memories of the 1951 Bridgehampton Races

My compliments to Gary Hammond.  Can he please tell us where he gets his eyes checked as I would like to be able to see half of what he was able to in this photo.
Nice job !

From Mystery Foto #73 Solved: A Spectacular 1933 Aerial of Hempstead and North Hempstead

Purely guessing, it’s Willie K’s collection located in Deepdale Estates, taken approx 1920.

From Mystery Foto #74 Solved: The C.K.G. Billings "Farnesworth" Garage in Locust Valley

Howard,
Sorry but my earlier response failed to mention where the buildings are located. The estate is on Planting Fields Road in Upper Brookville. Most of the estate buildings have been torn down and the property divided up.

From Mystery Foto #74 Solved: The C.K.G. Billings "Farnesworth" Garage in Locust Valley

Howard, I spent much time in these buildings as a youth; the buildings were built by the estate’s original owner, C.K. Billings. In the 1920s the estate was given as a wedding present to Winifred Bird by her father. The building on the left in the photo was for the automobile collection the one on the right in the photo was for the estate maintenance equipment. When I was a kid in the 1940s Bird’s collection of cars included a Bugatti, two Duesenbergs and several others. They were all auctioned off in the 1950s. The cars in the photo are before my time, probably in the 1920s and I can’t identify any of them.

From Mystery Foto #74 Solved: The C.K.G. Billings "Farnesworth" Garage in Locust Valley

The film is a treasure. On the featured event, the hundred mile race, at the start on the second row inside is a car called the Meyer Special #4. This car was driven by my father, Bruce Stevenson who died in 2007. He co-founded the Bridgehampton races with Austie Clark. Originally it was an MG event starting back in the late 40s, which eventually became an SCCA event. My father often talked about the races in the late 40s and early 50s in Bridgehampton, Linden, NJ and of course, the granddaddy of them all at the time, Watkins Glen. They were an extraordinary group of gentlemen. Just back from WWII, they were this country’s greatest generation and knew how to get things done and enjoy their efforts immensely. There will never be another generation as vibrant.

From VanderbiltCupRaces.com Exclusive: Rog Patterson's Memories of the 1951 Bridgehampton Races

Whil(e)(st) you’re identifying the great and near-great, don’t forget that that’s Chas. Addams in his 1927 S Mercedes on the right ca. 0:53-0:54, between Corrigan in Austie’s Duesie and Tracy in the Stanley!  Sam, III

From VanderbiltCupRaces.com Exclusive: Rog Patterson's Memories of the 1951 Bridgehampton Races

It is the Green Farms estate where the Vanderbilts once had a home. In 1861 Decan F. T. Bradford bought it. His family lived there into the 5th generation. Lucie Bradford married Briggs S. Cunningham II in the 1930s and the garage was home for his car collection. One of Lucie’s aunts married Robert Thurlow Vanderbilt and father was an executive at Standard Oil.

The first car looks to be about a 1910/11 Franklin next is a Brewster bodied towncar likely with a Knight engine. The 4th one is a Pierce-Arrow 66. There are a couple more Pierces farther down the line likely Model 48s.  This must have been about 1913 or 1914.

From Mystery Foto #74 Solved: The C.K.G. Billings "Farnesworth" Garage in Locust Valley

In the garage we see on the left two Delaunay-Bellevilles, probably from around 1910. The other cars all appear to be Cranes of around 1913.
The garage belonged to the Farnsworth Estate at Locust Valley, LI. The estate was built in 1915 by Cornelius Billings, founder of the Union Carbide Company. The year of the photo could well be 1915 also.
Billings, who was a a real “horseman”, nonetheless had a large car park, which he ordered mainly through Brewster & Co., located in Long Island City, NY. Brewster was the New York distributor for Delaunay-Belleville from about 1905. After a large number of Delaunay-Bellevilles and a few Renaults, Billings next bought a series of Cranes, which were also bodied by Brewster. Crane is better known from the name of the merged companies Crane and Simplex. 
Interesting is that all cars but one (a Delaunay) are equipped with Universal Shock Eliminators, a telescopic-like shock absorbing device with two springs inside. The U.S.E. Inc. was located in New York City (Wall Street and/or Broadway) from around 1913. U.S.E. director was Samuel H. Shaw, who was formerly racing manager of the Darracq Automobile Company and who was involved next in the Rainier Automobile Company. Besides, Shaw was involved in the organisation of the Long Island Auto Derby in 1909 and of the Brighton Beach 24 hr race in the same year.
The Farnsworth property was later owned by Standard Oil heir Wallace Clinton Bird, who died in an air crash in 1941. He appeared to have stored in the 27-car garage a large collection of automobiles (consisting of Duesenbergs, Mercedes, Bugattis and Hispano-Suizas), which were auctioned only after more than 20 years, on May 12, 1962.

From Mystery Foto #74 Solved: The C.K.G. Billings "Farnesworth" Garage in Locust Valley

I believe this is the same Rog that wrenches on Chasing Classic Cars show on Velocity network. And that MG in the hay bales was driven by a famous reporter from CBS News. Anyone know who? I want to sat Walter Cronkite but not sure?

From VanderbiltCupRaces.com Exclusive: Rog Patterson's Memories of the 1951 Bridgehampton Races

Wow, what a garage and collection! Don’t know off hand but hope to come back with more. There’s even antlers hanging on the walls, sheez.

From Mystery Foto #74 Solved: The C.K.G. Billings "Farnesworth" Garage in Locust Valley

That winding trail on the historic right of way looks inviting. I believe it’s open for business. It’s time to rock and roll. Thank you Ted and all for presenting the pics and keeping its status updated!

From Pilot Section of the Motor Parkway Trail Is Under Construction in East Meadow(Updated:June 17, 2014)

Thanks for the memories, Howard. Just a reminder; the 21st annual Rally and Show at the Bridgehampton Museum is Oct. 4, and while we’d love to see you and The Beast there again, we understand if other commitments come first.  However, we’d still like to do something special for Mustang’s 50th anniversary if you can suggest anything.  Mustangs figured prominently in Bridgehampton’s later history during the TransAm and Double 500 days.

Earl Gandel

From VanderbiltCupRaces.com Exclusive: Rog Patterson's Memories of the 1951 Bridgehampton Races

Frank - couldn’t tell you for certain, but a possibility.

From Was the First Parkway Fast Food Restaurant Located in Central Park (Bethpage)?

A very interesting story lies behind this picture.  Marriage, plane crash, murder, haunted houses.  Howard, I’m sending you some background info. that others might enjoy reading.  Plenty of material on the web also!  Thanks for an interesting research task!

Where is the garage located? The garage was part of the Farnsworth Estate in Matinecock and still exists today as a private residence. 

-Who built the garage?  The garage was built for C.K.G. Billings of Union Carbide by Guy Lowell in 1915. 

-Who later owned the estate and stored his large car collection in the garage?  Estate was later owned by Wallis Bird, a Standard Oil heir, who stored his car collection there.  After Bird’s death in a plane crash his wife moved abroad but continued to own the estate and the cars remained in the garage.  After her death (in which her Dr. was found guilty)  the cars were auctioned off in 1962.  One car was actually purchased by Austin Clark for $1750 - a 1928 Bugatti two seater.  And in 1966 the estate was demolished, but the garage was spared and lives on today (but not as a garage)! 

-What year was the photo taken? Let’s say 1962, the year of the auction.

-Identify the automobiles - I’ll let others exactly ID the cars but those sold at auction included the Bugatti, Rolls Royce, Bentley, Hispano Suizas, Dusenberry Model J, Stutz Bearcat, and an Alfa Romeo. 

Hope everyone had a good topic this weekend!

From Mystery Foto #74 Solved: The C.K.G. Billings "Farnesworth" Garage in Locust Valley

My 92 yr old father gave me a scrapbook of newspaper clippings from Cincinnati started before the Civil War plus a photo of a race car in an old frame. His mother, Myers, moved to Los Angeles in the early 1900′s. I did some research and believe it is an ALCO, #14 which I cannot find any info about. Any ideas?

I can’t attach the photo to show you in this comment section.
_____________________________________________________________
rom Howard Kroplick

Ann, thanks or the email. Please send the jpegs to me at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) and we will see I we can identify them.

From Mystery California Alco Racer Identified