Recent Comments

Dec 16 2018 `Howard Kroplick 12:19 PM

Anthony Guardino

Howard.  Thanks again for your great work in promoting the history of Long Island Motor Parkway.  Here are my responses to questions relating to Mystery Friday Foto #50. - Anthony Guardino
Mystery Foto questions:
• Identify the location and orientation of the photographer.
• The photo is of Brentwood looking north.
• What is the building complex in the Mystery Foto and when was it built?
• The building complex is the Pilgrim State Hospital, which began construction in 1929 and opened in 1931.
• What is located on the complex today and the property on the far right?
• Today, the New York State Office of Mental Health operates the Pilgrim Psychiatric Center from a small portion of the former State Hospital site, and a large portion has been sold to Gerald Wolkoff, who plans a major mixed-use development on it.  The property on the far right is now the Suffolk Community College, Michael J. Grant Campus.
• Identify the roads that are not the Motor Parkway,
• Crooked Hill Road, Commack Road and Wicks Road
• Where is the Motor Parkway?
• It is located at the far north end of the State Hospital complex.  The Commack Spur is also plainly visible at the top of the photograph.
• Where is the Long Island Railroad?
• The main line of the LIRR is located south of the photo, but a spur from the main line to the Pilgrim State Hospital station is visible along the right side of the photo.  A elevated portion of the rail spur is located in front of the power plant building at the southeast part of the complex.
• Kudos question: What is the date of the Mystery Foto? Provide a rationale.
• The photo was taken between 1931 and 1941.  Rationale: The State Hospital opened in 1931, but Buildings 81, 82 and 83 (three large buildings constructed some time prior to 1941 to the west of the circular feature in the center of the campus) are not shown in the photo.

From Update: Pilgrim State Hospital Complex and the Motor Parkway in 1938

Dec 16 2018 Al Velocci 11:41 AM

HI Bill, Regarding the sale of property to the golf course.  The Curtiss Aeroplane & Motor Co. on June 10, 1925, sold off the 110 acre parcel to the Intercollegiate Golf Club for $232,780 taking back a $200,000 mortgage. I’m assuming, based on the large mortgage, they had no plans to expand the airfield and the property was simply unneeded. On March 1, 1928 Intercollegiate sold the property to Golf Associates. On June 1, that same year they sold the golf course to the Old Westbury Golf Club. By the end of 1932, the club closed and the property was sold off to the Clearview Golf and Yacht Club. (They were looking for a new location as the City of New York purchased their club for $940,000) They never re-opened the golf course and in 1942 they sold the property to a Walter Haber. In 1950 the property was acquired by Webb & Knpp who already owned the 250 acre Roosevelt Field. Al.

From The Salvation Army Hotel Being Moved Down Clinton Road in Garden City in 1928

Dec 16 2018 Len Williams 9:16 AM

Pilgrim. State hospital ln the late 1920’s or early 1930’s. Photo was taken looking north east. I believe the Motor parkway is running northwest on the right side of the photo close to the power plant.

From Update: Pilgrim State Hospital Complex and the Motor Parkway in 1938

Dec 16 2018 eric shaffer 7:13 AM

This is the Pilgrim State Phycariatic Center in Brentwood circa 1940? The view is looking North in which the Motor Parkway is running from east to west in the top half of the photo. This is exactly where the LIE runs today. On the right will be Suffolk County Community College and the not built yet Sagtikcos Parkway. Most of these structures have been demolished but their remains still lie about with a few building still in use.I have tried to find remains of the Motor Parkway in the vicinity but the creation of the LIE cleared out anything to be seen.

From Update: Pilgrim State Hospital Complex and the Motor Parkway in 1938

Dec 16 2018 Art Kleiner 6:28 AM

Howard, is there anything we can do to support the efforts to get historical markers placed? 
___________________________________________________

Howard Kroplick

Art, will do. Right now they are in the early planning stages of the project.

From Updated: My Favorite Queens Motor Parkway Images for the New York City Parks Department

Dec 16 2018 Joseph DeBono 6:19 AM

What a great picture!

From Updated: Surveyor Clinton Robertson Photo Album: A Motor Parkway Survey Team in Lake Success in 1909

Dec 16 2018 Joseph DeBono 6:14 AM

Those are all great images Howard, of the Motor Parkway in Queens. Haven’t seen them in a while.Thanks for showing them.

From Updated: My Favorite Queens Motor Parkway Images for the New York City Parks Department

Dec 15 2018 Art Kleiner 6:34 PM

Identify the location and orientation of the photographer:
Brentwood, looking northeast

What is the building complex in the Mystery Foto and when was it built?
Pilgrim State Hospital built in 1929/1930, opened Oct. 1, 1931. 

What is located on the complex today and the property on the far right?
Pilgrim Psychiatric Center.  The eastern side of the property was sold and became the Western Campus of Suffolk Community College in 1974.

Identify the roads that are not the Motor Parkway:
Commack Road, Crooked Hill Road, Wicks Road (far right)

Where is the Motor Parkway?  Upper right portion of photo.

Where is the Long Island Railroad?  Traveling from the bottom of the photo on the right to half way up and curving to the right (where the passenger station was until 1978).  Another spur went left to right where the Power Plant is located, lower part of the picture. 

Kudos question: What is the date of the Mystery Foto? Provide a rationale.  1934 - Around the early years of operation but after the LIRR passenger station was first used in 1934 Also, lack of development.

From Update: Pilgrim State Hospital Complex and the Motor Parkway in 1938

Dec 15 2018 Howard Kroplick 11:54 AM

I am convinced by Brian, Greg and Frank, the survey team was in front of the Smith Farmway Bridge in Lake Success.

From Updated: Surveyor Clinton Robertson Photo Album: A Motor Parkway Survey Team in Lake Success in 1909

Dec 15 2018 Greg O. 10:19 AM

Where is the Long Island Railroad?

Coming up from the bottom right corner, tracks lead to a passenger train station that served the Pilgrim Psychiatric Center via the Pilgrim rail spur branching off of the Ronkonkoma branch. The station closed May 21, 1978 and currently sits abandoned in the thick brush.

From Update: Pilgrim State Hospital Complex and the Motor Parkway in 1938

Dec 14 2018 Greg O. 5:45 PM

-Identify the location and orientation of the photographer
Looking North over Deer Park/Brentwood

-What is the building complex in the Mystery Foto and when was it built?
Pilgrim State (Psychiatric) Hospital -opened on October 1, 1931

-What is located on the complex today and the property on the far right?
A much smaller Pilgrim Psychiatric Center still stands. The farm that was on the right was sold, the land developed, and it became the Suffolk County Community College in 1974.

-Identify the roads that are not the Motor Parkway,
The 2 standouts are Crooked Hill Rd, and Commack Rd.

-Where is the Motor Parkway?
Tough to describe without circles and arrows, but the section between Just before Commack Rd to just after Colonial Springs Rd can easily be seen.

-Kudos question: What is the date of the Mystery Foto? Provide a rationale.
1938-The buildings look freshly built, and there seem to be many aerials from that time period.

From Update: Pilgrim State Hospital Complex and the Motor Parkway in 1938

Dec 14 2018 frank femenias 9:45 AM

Amazing a 3-storied structure can be rolled away just like that, and then later moved again to Hempstead! Thanks for sharing these Bill.

From The Salvation Army Hotel Being Moved Down Clinton Road in Garden City in 1928

Dec 14 2018 Howard Kroplick 9:28 AM

Village Historian Bill Bellmer has added a photo of the former Salvation Army Hotel as it stands today as apartments in Hempstead.

From The Salvation Army Hotel Being Moved Down Clinton Road in Garden City in 1928

Dec 14 2018 Denis Byrne 12:45 AM

Pilgrim State Hospital. Circa perhaps 1931 to 1934. Motor Parkway is evident along northeastern edge of Pilgrim farmland just East of what appears to be Crooked Hill Road. Sand mining evident already at Crooked Hill Road, an area we used to ride dirt bike motorcycles in the mid 1970’s and called the “Commack Pits”. View is facing North. Massive Buildings 81, 82, and 83 construction still has not begun in the photo although 25 is complete. Original Commack Road is visible on west side, as is possibly old route known as Fish Path. This also means Edgewood hospital construction had not yet commmenced. No sign of Sagtikos Parkway construction yet (mid 1950’s) or LIE (early to mid 1960’s )

From Update: Pilgrim State Hospital Complex and the Motor Parkway in 1938

Dec 13 2018 frank femenias 9:37 PM

Brrr, ankles in snow. This could also be the second only photo of Smith farmway bridge. Check out the matching rails

http://www.vanderbiltcupraces.com/images/made/images/blog/12-02-2007-01-10-49-859_edited-1_1_620_392.jpg

From Updated: Surveyor Clinton Robertson Photo Album: A Motor Parkway Survey Team in Lake Success in 1909

Dec 13 2018 Brian D McCarthy 1:50 PM

These photos are amazing! Check out that Steam Roller, must have ran on firewood!

Field Party image brings the Smith Farmway Bridge to mind.

From Updated: Surveyor Clinton Robertson Photo Album: A Motor Parkway Survey Team in Lake Success in 1909

Dec 13 2018 Greg O. 1:35 AM

Also, forgot to add as per your link I shared, it’s stated;
“...Moreover, the wooden railings were typical for a farmway bridge.”

From Updated: Surveyor Clinton Robertson Photo Album: A Motor Parkway Survey Team in Lake Success in 1909

Dec 13 2018 Greg O. 1:29 AM

Hi Howard,
Looking closely at ‘the 1st bridge after Great Neck’ photo of the Smith Farmway Bridge, the tree line very much resembles that of the field party posing. Could this be the Smith bridge and not Old Courthouse?

http://www.vanderbiltcupraces.com/blog/article/long_island_motor_parkway_bridge_series15_the_smith_farmway_bridge_in_lake_

From Updated: Surveyor Clinton Robertson Photo Album: A Motor Parkway Survey Team in Lake Success in 1909

Dec 12 2018 Brian D McCarthy 8:26 PM

Excellent image and captures, Bill.

From The Salvation Army Hotel Being Moved Down Clinton Road in Garden City in 1928

Dec 12 2018 S. Berliner, III 5:45 PM

‘Tis I, again!  I just realized that the second Close-Up, “Curtiss Engineering headquarters and factories”, shows a small but substantial building just in front of the Engineering building, left (east) of the truck on Stewart.  When I worked in the NW corner of the Engrg. building ca. 1958, that was the LI Nat’l Bank (my first adult account), later Franklin, now Chase.  As a North-oriented person, I made up a ref. map to show this - <http://sbiii.com/histpix/curt_map.jpg>.  B=Bank, E=Engrg., F1=orig. factory (with pass-through), F2=later factory, P=power plant, plus (approx.) T=toll lodge and S=super’s bldg.  More fun; love this!  Sam,III

From Mystery Foto #49 Solved:Hazelhurst Field, Garden City Lodge,Curtiss Engineering & Camp Mills in 1918

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