Vanderbilt Cup Races

David, also another mystery!

From Mystery Friday Foto #28 Solved: An early view of the Long Island Aviation Club and a special parking area within the Motor Parkway right-of-way.

And I thought that the real mystery was what were all those people (mostly) in white were doing on the field!

From Mystery Friday Foto #28 Solved: An early view of the Long Island Aviation Club and a special parking area within the Motor Parkway right-of-way.

1962. This is early use of on-board cameras facing front and rear from a racer. Perhaps the first.

From Film: The Holman Moody Challenger III at the 1962 Nassau Trophy Race

We are looking primarily southeast over the Hempstead Plains, today’s Levittown. The bridge in the upper left corner is Jerusalem Avenue going over the LIMP. The buildings were part of the L. I. Aviation Country Club with the hangars on the left and the clubhouse on the right. Since the airfield opened in June of 1929 and the roof of the hangar building appears to be incomplete, I think the photo dates from around that same year. The special mystery is that the clubhouse was built approximately where the press Box / officials stand once stood for the 1908, 1909, and 1910 Vanderbilt Cup Races with the public grandstand directly across the LIMP from the press box and the temporary road to the grandstand is still visible.

From Mystery Friday Foto #28 Solved: An early view of the Long Island Aviation Club and a special parking area within the Motor Parkway right-of-way.

Nice Mystery Foto, Frank!  The aerial photographer took this image viewing southeast, capturing the Long Island Aviation Airport & Country Club in Island Trees NY. From east to west - Jerusalem Ave HWY Bridge over the LIMP, Airplane Hangar & the Clubhouse. Established in 1929, I’ll say this is no later than 1930. Hangar appears to have a flat roof, later images show a split bubble roof. No Tennis Court & Pool is seen, later images show that. Notice the worn paths on both sides of the LIMP, with barriers,parking areas for cars. The road leading to the club on the north side from Jerusalem Ave. Former grandstand etc was here & nearby. Did I stumble upon the mystery within the mystery with my comments??  : )

From Mystery Friday Foto #28 Solved: An early view of the Long Island Aviation Club and a special parking area within the Motor Parkway right-of-way.

Great early photo I’ve never seen before of the Long Island Aviation Country Club , in the final weeks of its completion. It’s just north of the Motor Pkwy, visible on the right. The access road (with a car driving to the left/east) is closest to the airport structures.  (The photographer in a plane overhead was looking slitely East.
The Motor pkwy bridge is at the top left, probably between where Jerusalem Avenue and cipher Lane or Cool Lane are now located. (I’d love to know more precisely, Frank, as well as where this photo was found!)
The structure at the bottom right is the airport clubhouse. Two of the little add-ones to the East and west wings of the clubhouse have yet to be constructed. The swimming pool and tennis courts aren’t in yet, eithertwo long .  So there’s no telling when all of this would be in place. Also mysteriously missing is the curved roof(s) of the hangars . The existing roof shows evidence that the word “Country” has started to be painted. It makes me think that the painting of the rest of the airport’s name was halted because it was decided (or perhaps dictated by the govt) that a curved roof was going to be added.  Perhaps this is the mystery ?  As to the date of the photo,it’s my guess that it was taken about six to eight weeks prior to the airport’s June 29, 1929 opening.

From Mystery Friday Foto #28 Solved: An early view of the Long Island Aviation Club and a special parking area within the Motor Parkway right-of-way.

Interesting mixture of cars. You would never see that today. By today’s standards, the ‘62 Ford Galaxie and the Corvair looked out of place.

From Film: The Holman Moody Challenger III at the 1962 Nassau Trophy Race

From my biased perspective the most important building captured in these photos is Hanger #16, near the corner of OCR and Clinton Avenue, where Lindbergh’s Spirit of St. Louis spent the last few days before he took it solo across the Atlantic to Paris.  It is notable too, that the hanger remained intact until the demise of Roosevelt Field.  Hard to believe that such an historic building that figures so prominently in the development of aviation could stand there largely obscure for another 25 years before being crushed by the development of “progress.”  What a shame.

From Mystery Friday Foto #27 Solved: An amazing 1951 aerial over Roosevelt Field and Mitchel Field

Corvair at 4:41. The race likely copied for Elvis’ Viva Las Vegas scene

From Film: The Holman Moody Challenger III at the 1962 Nassau Trophy Race

Amazing rare historic race footage Howard. There’s a Chevy Corvair on the track! Great stuff

From Film: The Holman Moody Challenger III at the 1962 Nassau Trophy Race

This is a picture of the Long Island Aviation Country Club.  The photographer is facing southeast.  The LIMP is on its southern border and the bridge on the upper left of the photo is Jerusalem ave going over the parkway.  The clubhouse and the hanger is clearly visible in this picture.  However, the absence of the tennis court and pool date this picture closer to its opening in 1929.  So I’m going to date this photograph between 1929 to early 1930’s.  On a side note to Richard Sloan or anyone who can possibly update.  Has there been any progress on erecting the historical marker by the Town of Hempstead near this site?

From Mystery Friday Foto #28 Solved: An early view of the Long Island Aviation Club and a special parking area within the Motor Parkway right-of-way.

SE over the Long Island Aviation Country Club in present day Levittown.  That is the Jerusalem Ave highway underpass in the top left corner.  The buildings are the clubhouse and the hangars.  The roof of the hangar covers a building by my house in Bethpage today, I believe.  There are no hangar ramps or pool and tennis court in the photo.  My guess is early !930’s because of it and the good condition of the parkway.

From Mystery Friday Foto #28 Solved: An early view of the Long Island Aviation Club and a special parking area within the Motor Parkway right-of-way.

This would be the LIMP, looking southeast over the Long Island Aviation Country Club from what would now be the Levittown-Hicksville border. The LIMP runs immediately to the south of the airfield. The bridge is the Jerusalem Ave bridge. The buildings are the LIACC hangar (left) and clubhouse (right). I would guess the year is 1929-early 30’s, as there is no swimming pool or tennis court built yet, nor are the concrete ramps yet built on the north side of the hangars.
The roof for the hangars is different from what I have seen before. This appears to be a flat roof rather than the vaulted roofs it would have for most of it’s existence. I would assume this is very shortly after being built in 1929.

From Mystery Friday Foto #28 Solved: An early view of the Long Island Aviation Club and a special parking area within the Motor Parkway right-of-way.

Photo of Thomas Edison viewing the races at Eagle Rock in 1903.  From “Horseless Age”, 1903.  Wonder who the passenger is.

From Greg O's Garage: The first Automobile Publication; The Horseless Age Part 2

The Falcon was actually the most sedate of the compacts introduced by the Big Three for the 1960 model year. GM had the rear-engined Chevrolet Corvair with its bathtub styling, and Chrysler had the Virgil Exner-designed Plymouth Valiant. That was an amazing transformation to make the Falcon into the Challenger III.

From Greg O's Garage: The Holman Moody Falcon Challenger III's extensive body modifications

Need to make a couple corrections to my post. Renwal occupied the building NORTH of the U.S. Printing & Lithographing Co. building. Mason was on the east side of U. S. Litho.

From Mystery Friday Foto #27 Solved: An amazing 1951 aerial over Roosevelt Field and Mitchel Field

Greg, Great Post!  Love being able to hear about, and more importantly see all the details documenting the construction and alteration of this historic vehicle, especially those hidden away from a spectator’s normal view.

From Greg O's Garage: The Holman Moody Falcon Challenger III's extensive body modifications

Amazing details Al!

From Mystery Friday Foto #27 Solved: An amazing 1951 aerial over Roosevelt Field and Mitchel Field

Glenn, The building you labeled # 13 was actually the Laboratory Furniture building opening May 1951. At that time Renwal occupied the building south of the Mason Au Magenheimer plant today occupied by Macy’s. Renwal would later occupy the building on the east side of Laboratory Furniture. Prior to the construction of Laboratory Furniture, Dade Brothers, the owners of the property, tried to open a Drive-In Theater on that site The Town turned them down.

From Mystery Friday Foto #27 Solved: An amazing 1951 aerial over Roosevelt Field and Mitchel Field

I read in a couple places that the 1004 Tucker was on display at the Petty Museum in NC, and they had no idea it was once a NASCAR racer.

From Profile Series: Tucker 1004- The Only Tucker to Race in NASCAR