Vanderbilt Cup Races

1917 Winton Custom House Car

-What year was this house car built and who was the original owner?
1917, The original owner was Dr. Fithian of Grove City PA. He used it to campaign for the Prohibition Party.

-Who were the manufacturers of the body and chassis?
1917 Winton 6-cylinder, 48-horsepower house car custom built by McKay Carriage Works

-When this photo was taken in 1957 which Peter Helck famous friend was the owner?
-Which museum owned the house car in the 1970s?
Bill Harrah purchased the Winton for his Harrah’s Automobile Collection in Sparks, Nevada

-Who is the most recent known owner of the Mystery Auto?
Automobile collector Buck Kamphausen acquired the vehicle when over twelve hundred of Harrah’s vehicles were auctioned off after Harrah’s death in 1978.

-Kudos question: Link the manufacturer of the House car to a character that Howard Kroplick played in a cable series.
Howard played Alexander Winton racing Henry Ford in The Men Who Built America on the History channel.

From Mystery Foto #51 Solved: The 1917 Winton House Car Owned by James Melton

I didn’t realize I grew up in the “Desert of Queens”!  It’s funny that the most desert-like part of Nassau Co. (formerly the eastern half of Queens, pre-consolidation) was the Hempstead Plains, central-to-south. The north sides of current Queens and Brooklyn were the rich farmland and woodlands of the townships of old Newtown and Flushing (including Bayside) where I grew up and where my ancestors farmed.

From Kleiner's Kolumn: The Long Island Motor Parkway in Maps (Part III)

I remembered the below 2 “stub roads” on my 1994 Hagstrom. At the time, I didn’t know what these roads were about. ‘Willow’ may have become the entrance way to the substation, and ‘Kenwood’ could be the old entrance just west, before the overpass.

From Kleiner's Kolumn: Part I-Mapping the Motor Parkway, Mitchel Field & Mitchel Gardens

Howard, thanks for this article! Didn’t know about it.  Happy Holidays.

From Popular Mechanics (February 1938): George Robertson "Making of A Race Driver"

Howard knows that I’m a model/slot car guy. I enjoy admiring models done in a different media. Excellent work, nicely done! Thank you and Happy Holidays to all.

From Alexander Buchan's Kinetic Sculpture: The Checkered Flag

Howard and Art, I ran across this map, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_Island#/map/0, on which it is amazingly easy to trace virtually the entire length of the LIMP RoW.  One more resource.  Sam, III

From Kleiner's Kolumn: The Long Island Motor Parkway in Maps (Part III)

Thanks Steven.  Some maps are taken from newspaper archives which sometimes aren’t digitized clearly at the source.  I have a few more map posts coming up in which I’ll try to increase the resolution.

From Kleiner's Kolumn: The Long Island Motor Parkway in Maps (Part III)

Wonderful research, Art. I sure do wish the maps were larger and readable in many cases. Is this possible? Regards, Steve

From Kleiner's Kolumn: The Long Island Motor Parkway in Maps (Part III)

Harry Grant
August 1960
AACA

From Mystery Foto #50 Solved: Joe Tracy & Jerry Helck in Old 16 at the 1945 Franklin County Fair

Sam, The location of the Parkway ROW on the 1911 NYT map is pretty accurate. Prior to the determination to end the Parkway at Lake Ronkonkoma, the ROW to Riverhead was south of the lake with a spur to the Inn. The Parkway had already acquired several parcels of land just south and east of the Lake prior to that decision.

From Kleiner's Kolumn: The Long Island Motor Parkway in Maps (Part III)

Found this;

From Mystery Foto #50 Solved: Joe Tracy & Jerry Helck in Old 16 at the 1945 Franklin County Fair

I’m revising my guess. The date would be June 1946 with Joe being 73 and Jerry being 16.

From Mystery Foto #50 Solved: Joe Tracy & Jerry Helck in Old 16 at the 1945 Franklin County Fair

I’ll say that’s a 69 year old Joe Tracy and a 12 year old Jerry Helck in 1942.

From Mystery Foto #50 Solved: Joe Tracy & Jerry Helck in Old 16 at the 1945 Franklin County Fair

Just a few last minute guesses: I think that might be Joe Tracy and Jerry Helck. The photo may have been taken in September of 1948 on the 40th. anniversary of the Locomobile’s Vanderbilt Cup win. That would make him 75 years old and Jerry at 18.

From Mystery Foto #50 Solved: Joe Tracy & Jerry Helck in Old 16 at the 1945 Franklin County Fair

Oh, why not guess?  Joe Tracy and Jerry Helck?  SCCA?  Sam, III

From Mystery Foto #50 Solved: Joe Tracy & Jerry Helck in Old 16 at the 1945 Franklin County Fair

I blew up the 1911 NYT map but it’s too blurry to read; the eastern terminus and Lake Ronkonkoma seem oddly displaced, relatively.  Thanks again, Art, for this fab. thread.  Sam, III

From Kleiner's Kolumn: The Long Island Motor Parkway in Maps (Part III)

Mystery Foto #50… In the photo the driver is Joe Tracy and the mechanician is Jerry Helck. But I don’t have any other answers regarding ages and date taken.

From Mystery Foto #50 Solved: Joe Tracy & Jerry Helck in Old 16 at the 1945 Franklin County Fair

Nice film . The track layouts in 1936 and 1936 from Nixon- Racing The Silver Arrows. Also from Nixon- Rex Mays took 3rd in an Alfa, J. Thorne 6th in another Alfa. Fastest lap Rudi Caraccioli in a MB at 84.5 MPH. The 36 race was interesting an American car, the Bird Pistion Special , Mauri Rose driver 6th, MB and AU did not compete.

From Film of the Week: An Amateur Color Film of 1937 Vanderbilt Cup Race

Being a sculptor myself, I’m very impressed with his detail and accuracy.

From Alexander Buchan's Kinetic Sculpture: The Checkered Flag

Hi Howard.  Thanks for another great topic.  The Bullitt Mustang holds continuing fascination for many people across the world.  I really hope that a museum such as The Henry Ford or The Petersen buys this car.  Ford has had decades of promotional benefit from its association with Bullitt.  Maybe they can now give something back.  I am in the UK and saw the car at Goodwood in 2018 but I totally support the prevailing view that this is a hugely important car that must be kept in the USA.  And, no, I don’t think that it should be restored.  Conservation and mild use is the way to go.

From Market Watch: Steve McQueen's Bullitt Mustang