Vanderbilt Cup Races

Weather permitting I’ll see you

From Roslyn Times:"Kroplick to speak at Landmark Society" at 7:45pm, Tonight at Atria of Roslyn

Willis Avenue at Mineola RR Crossing as opposed to Main Street Mineola RR would be a better guess, since it travels through to Jericho Tpk.

From Mystery Foto #55 Solved: Walter Christie Driving the #9 Christie in Mineola on September 21,1906

Great letter.  And that Packard is amazing looking!

Ron

From Exclusive Firsthand Account of the 1904 Vanderbilt Cup Race: "A Very Successful Trip"

1906, Paul Sartori driving Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt’s (Willie K’s cousin) 250hp racer. Location could be NYC’s Hells Kitchen near 368 W 53st. based on the address on the horse drawn buggy.

From Mystery Foto #56 Solved: Paul Sartori in Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt's 250-HP Custom Built F.I.A.T.

From Ariejan Bos:

I enjoyed very much the eyewitness report letter. Through these documents the events, which seem so far away in time, come really close to us.

From Exclusive Firsthand Account of the 1904 Vanderbilt Cup Race: "A Very Successful Trip"

From Linda C.

What an interesting letter from 1904 “ A Very Successful Trip”. I enjoyed that

From Exclusive Firsthand Account of the 1904 Vanderbilt Cup Race: "A Very Successful Trip"

Have to give up on this one.
It looks to be Alessandro Cagno, but he only paticipated in one Cup race and not two as suggested by the photo caption. That’s also certainly not the #12 Itala he drove in the V.C.R.- but the car does look like it could possibly be Italian made.
I’ve even searched through many G.G. Bain photo archival websites and can’t seem to find a match there either.

From Mystery Foto #56 Solved: Paul Sartori in Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt's 250-HP Custom Built F.I.A.T.

Driver is Paul Sartori, who participated in the 1904 (finishing 16th in #10) and 1905 (finishing 7th in #20) Vanderbilt Cup Races driving Fiats.

The following was taken from Robert Dick’s book titled “Auto Racing Comes of Age”.  The car in the photo was built by Sartori and French engineer Francious Richard in the autumn of 1905 for use in the early 1906 Ormand Beach race.  It was owned by Alfred Gwynn Vanderbilt Jr., cousin of Willie K. at a cost of $19,000 and built in Alfred’s garage in NYC.  Built with 2 Fiat engines in tandem it was said to have 250 hp and to be “the highest-powered car in the world”. 

Unfortunately after being transported to Florida for the race it practically didn’t move at all and Vanderbilt withdrew it from the race.  It was shipped back to the NYC garage “dismantled and left for the scrap”. 

Howard - see my e-mail to you with a couple of short articles about the the car from its time. 

From Mystery Foto #56 Solved: Paul Sartori in Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt's 250-HP Custom Built F.I.A.T.

From Tom M:

I just want to let you know how much I have continued to enjoy this site.

Thanks for not only keeping it up, but for adding cool new things to it all the time!

From Exclusive Firsthand Account of the 1904 Vanderbilt Cup Race: "A Very Successful Trip"

From Cyril Smith:

There are three rail lines pictured in your Mystery Photo, as Bill Bellmer indicated this is Garden City Hilton Ave. The third line (foreground ) is trolley line spur between GC station Franklin Ave trolley

Note pix taken 1/2 block away from GC Hotel, likely where team was staying. GC had a women’s bicycle club at the time

From Mystery Foto #55 Solved: Walter Christie Driving the #9 Christie in Mineola on September 21,1906

Thanks for the very quick response

From Chrysler’s Chrysler Chronicle VII: Getting Primed For The Finish

Ted, just visited the car today. There will be an update on the website later this week.

From Chrysler’s Chrysler Chronicle VII: Getting Primed For The Finish

It must be pretty near that time that it will be finished, if it’s not already, and for you to get it back to long island, no rush, but when? soon I hope

From Chrysler’s Chrysler Chronicle VII: Getting Primed For The Finish

As for this mystery, you’ll laugh, it’s a mystery to me, but I do say that racer is some kind of a car. To me it looks like it has a larger engine, which makes it a longer and it’s not chain driven

From Mystery Foto #56 Solved: Paul Sartori in Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt's 250-HP Custom Built F.I.A.T.

From Ariejan Bos:

This magnificent photo shows Paul Sartori at the wheel of an 8-cylinder Fiat. The car was owned by Alfred G. Vanderbilt, a nephew of William K.. Built during the end of 1906 by Sartori and french engineer François Richard by combining two hugh 4-cylinder Fiat engines it was meant to break the 2 mile-a-minute record at Ormond-Daytona beach. The engine however suffered from severe mechanical trouble and the attempt was cancelled. Alfred Vanderbilt lost his interest and the car was scrapped. Sartori had raced previously a Fiat (also owned by Alfred Vanderbilt) in the 1904 and 1905 Vanderbilt Cup, but both times without success. Alfred Vanderbilt would die in 1915 on board of the Lusitania after it had been torpedoed by a German submarine: he had given his life vest to a woman with child and had never learned to swim ...

Regards,
Ariejan Bos

From Mystery Foto #56 Solved: Paul Sartori in Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt's 250-HP Custom Built F.I.A.T.

I don’t know who that is, but amazing photo!

From Mystery Foto #56 Solved: Paul Sartori in Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt's 250-HP Custom Built F.I.A.T.

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From Mystery Foto #56 Solved: Paul Sartori in Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt's 250-HP Custom Built F.I.A.T.

John Mc Auliffe 7:34 AM

Another great great job, Howard.  Congrats!
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Janet Guthrie:

Loved the story about your book—lots of nostalgia from my years on Long Island, 1960-1975—wish I could be at your signing!
Best regards,
Janet Guthrie

From Newsday LI Life Cover Story: "Book about North Hempstead marks its 400th birthday"

Ron Ridolph 3:50 AM

Hi Howard:  CONGRATS and Nice job again and again !!!!

  You are the man !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

  Best Regards,  Cordially,  Ron

From Roslyn News: " The Rise of North Hempstead"

Joe Oesterle 11:14 PM

Bridge over N Wantagh Avenue, Massapequa Lodge is the giveaway.  Taken 1908, during construction.  Probably before the official opening in October.  The car belongs to the photographer.
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Greg Oreiro 9:33 AM

Standing on the Wantagh Ave parkway bridge looking East at the Massapequa lodge and the Hicksville Rd bridge in the distance. The date is September 1908.

The car appears to be the same Buick owned by the photographer who took the well-known photo used on the cover of the book taken on top of the Carmen Ave bridge.
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Art Kleiner 8:03 PM

Let’s give this a try:
Westbury Road Bridge with the Merrick Ave. Bridge and the Meadow Brook lodge on the left in the background.
1908
Car is used by a photographer.
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Ariejan Bos

This is Wantagh Avenue Bridge under construction. We are looking east towards the Massapequa Avenue Bridge, the Massepequa toll lodge can be seen on the left side along the road. On the right we see the LIRR. The date must be somewhere in August or September 1908 near completion of the LIMP. The Buick features on several photographs of the LIMP under construction, but doesn’t carry a (visible) license plate. It could belong to an inspector of the road construction company or maybe to a journalist checking the progress.
Of course as always thanks for your work and good luck with the upgrading process of the site!
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Tim Ivers 7:37 PM

Looking eastward from atop Wantagh Avenue bridge.  About 1908.  Massapequa Lodge on left of roadway at the Hicksville Road overpass.  Railroad on right running parallel to LIMP.  Now the power company ROW.  Vehicle belongs to photographer.  Path of LIMP is now the driveway entrance to the “decommissioned” 8th Precinct.

From Mystery Foto #52 Solved: The Wantagh Avenue Motor Parkway Bridge