Vanderbilt Cup Races

Howard - guess I was too late - my entry was going to be Sayville also based on Al’s photo of the Kensington Hotel.  But I spent too much time trying to find the yacht club flag shown in the picture.  I e-mailed you a NY Times article from Sept. 1905 showing the hotel and others and 4 routes of interest to motorists on LI - #4 being the Vanderbilt Cup Race route.

From Mystery Foto #34 Solved: The Sayville Automobile Club in Front of the Kensington Hotel in Sayville

Ken, the photo was donated by a person “whose grandfather was a member of the Sayville Automobile Club.” -

From Mystery Foto #34 Solved: The Sayville Automobile Club in Front of the Kensington Hotel in Sayville

Howard - I recently came across an article about a sport or game that Art Pardington conceived. It was like a scavenger hunt (but not really) for motorists traveling in the Queens area. Here is the link from my Web site. Have you heard of this?

http://firstsuperspeedway.com/articles/pardingtons-game

From VanderbiltCupRaces.com CQI #1: Comments, Questions, and Insights

Quite a puzzle. 
It also occurs to me :how do we know the group is a car club and if so what might the name and background of that club be?

From Mystery Foto #34 Solved: The Sayville Automobile Club in Front of the Kensington Hotel in Sayville

It must be a hotel out east,because the signs are, to New York and Brooklyn on one,St James on the other like I said before. Can’t make out the name,so can’t search for it to find out where it is

From Mystery Foto #34 Solved: The Sayville Automobile Club in Front of the Kensington Hotel in Sayville

They certainly are Roger

From Long Island Motor Parkway Bridge Series #37: Carman Avenue Highway Bridge in East Meadow

From Daniel S.:

I have been fascinated by the Motor Parkway since my childhood when I would walk the stretch in northeast Queens and listen to stories told my dad, who, as a child, experienced the thrill of driven on the road by a rich uncle and still had vivid memories many years later. (He would be 100 years old if he was alive today.)

From him, I first learned about deadman’s curve, although from your 2010 post, I realize that he was talking about the “second” curve. He, and other, older relatives with contemporary memories of the Motor Parkway vividly recalled that flat, unbacked curve that your reproductions of the 1909 postcard and the 1908 photo shows. To them,  that second curve was “the” deadman’s curve, so it is a puzzle to me how, over time, the other banked curve became known as that while the other curve was somewhat forgotten.

From Then & Now: Deadman's Curve in Bethpage (1908-2014) Updated: April 8, 2014

My wife and son went, and brought back some nice photos!  But I wish I could have gone myself!

From Smiles and Thumbs Ups from the Vanderbilt Museum

It’s neat to see it in such a different context.  We’re all used to old shots of it racing, new shots of it being shown off.  This is so different!

From Mystery Foto #33 Update: Three Possible Locations for this Rare Photo of "Old 16"

I notice the runway depicted for Lindbergh’s takeoff in the 1935 diagram is 3800 feet long and different from the longer runway (4700’) with the Byrd ramp. In some other books/publications, they refer to Lindbergh using a 5000 foot runway, the same one Byrd had built for the America. Do you know why there is a discrepancy?

From Historic Views of Roosevelt Field, the Motor Parkway and Lindbergh's Takeoff

In the late 50s that portion of the “curve” in Bethpage was nearly fully intact and not only walkable but able to literally serve its banked responsibility of sustaining our cruiser bikes at top speed! My grandfather’s house (which he built with my uncles and father) is just two blocks from the road right off Central. It has now been confirmed by relatives that he bought his small piece of property in Bethpage shortly after actually working on the roadway and the house he built became a sort of vacation home to replace the small house and land he sold that became part of the land zoned for LaGuardia Airport.

From Then & Now: Deadman's Curve in Bethpage (1908-2014) Updated: April 8, 2014

I believe the location of the photo is on the northeast corner of Montauk Highway (Main St.) and Railroad Avenue in Sayville, NY with the Kensington Hotel in the background. The sign to the left of the Motor Parkway sign looks like a yacht club pennant so I’ll take a wild guess and say Sayville Yacht Club. And maybe the club is the Sayville Automobile Club.

From Mystery Foto #34 Solved: The Sayville Automobile Club in Front of the Kensington Hotel in Sayville

GREAT PHOTO’S

From Long Island Motor Parkway Bridge Series #37: Carman Avenue Highway Bridge in East Meadow

Thanks to Al for cracking it wide open for me!

My best guess on the car club would be a chapter of the American Automobile Association (“AAA”/“Triple-A”) since I believe they were the most prominent club at the time.

The location is Sayville.
The club is standing in front of the Kensington Hotel on the Northeast corner of Main St (Montauk Hwy) & Railroad Ave. Prior to it being the Kensington (1900-1952) the hotel was known as Bedell Tavern (1837-1899).
Railroad Ave changes names a few times, but following it takes you directly to the LIMP almost on the Petit Trianons’ front steps, so that Motor Pkwy sign would be accurate.

I couldn’t concretely match the sign for the bonus question to anything, but it would appear to be a nautical flag/yacht club burgee maybe indicating a marina, club or ferry service nearby.

Additionally, I also found that the top photo of Al’s three clue pics was taken Nov. 17 1913. It’s the Vanderbilt Coach with Alfred Vanderbilt at the reins pulling up to the hotel. Text on the back of the photo reads “Venison Dinner Tuesday next 8PM”

From Mystery Foto #34 Solved: The Sayville Automobile Club in Front of the Kensington Hotel in Sayville

Wow. Thank you for clarifying Mr. Helck. This truly remains a mystery. The caption in the photo I think may also help solve the mystery

From Mystery Foto #33 Update: Three Possible Locations for this Rare Photo of "Old 16"

Don’t laugh,another one of my wild guesses,is it Krugs Corner?I i’m desperate aren’t I? I’ll try anything,won’t I?

From Mystery Foto #34 Solved: The Sayville Automobile Club in Front of the Kensington Hotel in Sayville

First off ,I think the pictures are too small and some of them are blurry and can’t make things out…not even with a magnifying glass. Right about virtually impossible question. The one sign is for New York and Brooklyn the other one an arrow pointing to St James,don’t know what that is on top of that,the other arrow I don’t know,I think it’s motor ? too blurred to tell. Best I can do right now. May be back on this later on tonight. Goodnite

From Mystery Foto #34 Solved: The Sayville Automobile Club in Front of the Kensington Hotel in Sayville

Judith: Sounds like the remains of the Carman Ave bridge. Now that would be interesting to see! If you have any photos of the playground, please post them.

From Then & Now: Deadman's Curve in Bethpage (1908-2014) Updated: April 8, 2014

Thanks for that bit of info on that Howard. I couldn’t see anything you saw at all,not even when I blew it up. Now to mystery 34

From Mystery Foto #33 Update: Three Possible Locations for this Rare Photo of "Old 16"

Ted: After some unsuccessful net searching, I think Ariejan has the best guess as it being a tire advertisement. I can see the ad now stating something about, “Run with the best tires”. I believe the white fence with the blurry writing in the center of the portrait may solve the mystery. This one is a toughie!

From Mystery Foto #33 Update: Three Possible Locations for this Rare Photo of "Old 16"