Vanderbilt Cup Races

These images are excellent! More than glad Mr. Conroy offered his research to you, Sam III. He knew this fell in good hands. Note - the ‘today’ comparison image of Wheeler Bridge #2 is LIMP view west to Springfield Blvd.

From Sam Berliner III: A 1970 Walking Tour of the Motor Parkway in Queens

Frank Femenias picture of the New Bridge Road overpass has several details that I particlarly like. Peeking above the left side embankment is first a square old style rail road crossing sign. Also there are two poles with a single cross-arm off one side of the pole only; these are used for an overhead power wire.

In 1908 the Pennsylvania Railroad electrified this portion of the Stewart line from Garden City to test various ways to power electric trains. This was important as they were building Pennsylvania Station in NYC and needed electric engines there.

Source: http://arrts-arrchives.com/newpage1.html

From Mystery Foto #44 Solved: One-Acre Property Purchased by the Motor Parkway for a Borrow Pit

Hey, folks; Frank F. posted one of the most iconic views of the LIMP, showing next to nothing but the touring car, the open plains, and the ubiquitous construction water pipe at left.  It’s SO iconic that I use it on my main LIMP page!  But on looking again, I see a busy skyline, with a hill dead ahead, a steeple{?}, woodlands, and somethng off to the right [a spot? - a bird? - a plane? - Sup—- (no, Jor-El was on Krypton and Kal-El hadn’t even been born yet!)].  It could (should?) be a mystery photo in its own right and may well have been one, but, worse yet, I can’t find the story of this pic.  HELP, please.  Also, in Frank’s 1950 view directly above, there’s that gas holder and the Curtiss stacks {or what?}.  Hey!  That’s no 1950 view; there aren’t any of the WWII-era buildings along Stewart Ave., especially the Marine Corps center.  I vas dere, Cholly, ‘way back then - I’m sooo old!  :·)  Sam, III

From Mystery Foto #43 Solved : A 1955 View of the Motor Parkway in Levittown Looking West

Good information all around.  Love that last pic, Frank!  I just obtained my latest FOIL request back from the NYSDOT regarding the building of the Wantagh State Parkway in the area for a future blog post.  Here’s two from 1936 and 1952 showing the outline of the borrow pit.

Pete M. - I see you’re on Grace?  I’m on Norman just north of you.  Want to compare notes sometime?

From Mystery Foto #44 Solved: One-Acre Property Purchased by the Motor Parkway for a Borrow Pit

Great historic reference by all! Thank you Howard and everyone for your contributions.

From Mystery Foto #44 Solved: One-Acre Property Purchased by the Motor Parkway for a Borrow Pit

Look at that, the answer was (and still is) there for all to see.

From Mystery Foto #44 Solved: One-Acre Property Purchased by the Motor Parkway for a Borrow Pit

1950 rare view of the Motor Pkwy just south of Roosevelt Field, heading west towards the Garden City lodge. Photo likely taken from the top of the Roosevelt Field bridge.

From Mystery Foto #43 Solved : A 1955 View of the Motor Parkway in Levittown Looking West

Art, Your welcome. Like you I was also impressed how quickly the bridges went up. With regard to the Central Ave./LIRR bridge their was an additional concern.  Supplying the steel and erecting the same at this location was by the Miliken Bros. of Brooklyn who the year before in 1907 had declared bankruptcy. Two of the girders they supplied were 110 feet long each. I wish I could have seen how they managed to raised these to the 24 foot height mandated by the LIRR. They were paid $4,561.25 for their efforts.

From Kleiner's Kolumn: Removal of the Central Avenue/LIRR Motor Parkway Bridge

Oops - typo.  Sorry.  “Banking”, NOT “backing”.  Sam, III

From Kleiner's Kolumn:Update-Historical Markers for the Long Island Motor Parkway & Vanderbilt Cup Races

The 1 acre property is in Levittown, where the electric substation is on Newbridge Rd, but the station has grown today to 7.5 acres. Dunno the reason for purchase but three possibilities;
1. The lot was included with a RoW property purchase just to the north (unlikely).
2. The lot was purchased to serve as an intermediate fuel service/tire change station during the races (more likely).
3. The lot was purchased to serve as a parking facility for race spectators observing from the top of the Newbridge Hotel, on Newbridge Rd just to the north, a favorite viewing site for the races (most likely).
By 1936 the lot was already being used as a substation while the LIMP was still in operation (see below). 
Anticipating this week’s answers. The stress is wearing out my timing chain. Hurry up!

PS.  Check out the steepness of the Newbridge Rd bridge below! It reminds me of the bridges still standing in Queens on the Brooklyn-Queens Greenway.

From Mystery Foto #44 Solved: One-Acre Property Purchased by the Motor Parkway for a Borrow Pit

Obviously the property is slightly west of Newbridge Road in Levittown with access to
Newbridge Road. Since the LIRR Central Branch ROW is between the LIMP and the site, could there possibly have been some joint plan in the works to build a combo lodge and railroad station? The site is about midway between Meadowbrook and Massapequa lodges. Today there a large PSE&G substation on this site.

From Mystery Foto #44 Solved: One-Acre Property Purchased by the Motor Parkway for a Borrow Pit

First of all, fantastic work lately Art. Great stuff.

There is a lot to see at Battle ROW, but no historical marker is there now.

From Kleiner's Kolumn:Update-Historical Markers for the Long Island Motor Parkway & Vanderbilt Cup Races

Al - thank you.  Yes, the scenario of removing the bridge but not the abutments appears to be the conclusion I’m also coming to with other bridge removals.  As we’ve seen, this practice has led to unforeseen accidents causing injuries, so ultimately the abutments needed to come down.

From Kleiner's Kolumn: Removal of the Central Avenue/LIRR Motor Parkway Bridge

Well, it states right on the plan that it was a “Borrow Pit” and so probably furnished fill for the Newbridge Road bridge abutments.,. It’s at the east end of today’s Salisbury Park Drive, opposite the west end of today’s Carnation Road, and is now the site of LIPA’s power substation distribution tower.  Sam, III

From Mystery Foto #44 Solved: One-Acre Property Purchased by the Motor Parkway for a Borrow Pit

Art, Great write up of the Central Ave./LIRR bridge and it’s ultimate fate, well done. With regard to the confusion over the actual removal date let me describe a possible scenario. The Parkway bridge over Clinton Rd. in Garden City was taken down the week of April 2nd 1939. However,  the outer abutments were not removed until April 1944. Could something similar have happened at Central Ave. ?

From Kleiner's Kolumn: Removal of the Central Avenue/LIRR Motor Parkway Bridge

Damn, damn and double-damn!  This feature just reinforces my very clear recollection of the three-bar grilles in the ‘37 Chrysler’s rear quarter panels as pre-vanity-mirror hidden, private peek-throughs for Della.  Don’t bother me with facts, Walt - I was all over that car when it first turned up at the Museum and I knows what I knows!  :·)  Sam, III

From Bringatrailor.com: Kobus Talks Torpedos with the Tuckers at Manhasset Concours

[Had to back into this thread; no comment section on opening.]  What a kick to see dear John Burns; what a dynamo he was!  Mayhap the Preservation Society should make it a goal to (help) restore any missing markers; I never realized there were so many.  How about one for the Aviation CC and its hangar roof and a pair, one at each end of Harned Road (the Commack Spur)?  Ditto for the backing at I. U. Willets Road and especially at Deadman’s Curve at the south end of North Hermann Avenue.  Way to go, Howard; one great thread after another; thanks as always!  Sam, III

From Kleiner's Kolumn:Update-Historical Markers for the Long Island Motor Parkway & Vanderbilt Cup Races

West of Newbridge Rd (106). Currently the site of a LIPA substation. Not sure why it was purchased, but maybe they were considering on constructing a railroad station.

From Mystery Foto #44 Solved: One-Acre Property Purchased by the Motor Parkway for a Borrow Pit

The information continues to grow with the history of the LIMP and Bethpage.  We thank you for that.  Central Park Historical Society

From Kleiner's Kolumn: Removal of the Central Avenue/LIRR Motor Parkway Bridge

  Where was this property located?

The property on the south side of the current Salisbury Park Drive, a little west from the intersection with the renamed Newbridge Road.

  Why did the Motor Parkway purchase this property? Provide a rationale.

The engineering drawing has a penciled in comment “Borrow pit.” From Wikipedia “In construction and civil engineering, a borrow pit, also known as a sand box, is an area where material (usually soil, gravel or sand) has been dug for use at another location.[1] Borrow pits can be found close to many major construction projects. For example, soil might be excavated to fill an embankment for a highway, clay might be excavated for use in brick-making, gravel to be used for making concrete, etc.”

There were two LIMP bridges in this immediate area. The New Bridge Road bridge was situated just a few feet from the path from the pit to New Bridge. A short way west was the Westbury Road bridge. Both of these bridges were raised over the existing roads and thus required fill material to build up the embankments to the bridge deck.

  What is currently on this property?

Currently a PSE&G transformer farm resides in this area. I just drove by the area and there are no indications of there being a “pit” here as the farm is all level ground. Where the material from the embankments went would be speculation on my part, though I would add the nearby Wantagh parkway does a slight dip under Salisbury Park Drive, so at one time there was plenty of nearby material to use to level this area.

I sized the drawing to approximately match a Google Map of the area and pasted the drawing in.

From Mystery Foto #44 Solved: One-Acre Property Purchased by the Motor Parkway for a Borrow Pit