Vanderbilt Cup Races

Also, could this be lodge keeper Sidney Jones’ home on the Right-of-Way?

From Interactive 1924 Aerial Survey of New York City and the Motor Parkway in Queens & Lake Success

Great find David Stephan! The horizontal line may well be the Hillside lodge. Amazingly, the same approximate location of the future Rocky Hill lodge. The rectangular patch could’ve been a clearing to prevent obstruction of the Motor Parkway entrance sign below. LOVE the LIMP!

http://www.vanderbiltcupraces.com/blog/article/mystery_friday_foto_6_can_you_identify_this_motor_parkway_location

From Interactive 1924 Aerial Survey of New York City and the Motor Parkway in Queens & Lake Success

Aerials on the library website are very clear, as good or better than the 1926 aerials of Nassau County LRV. Thinking the narrow white area on the parkway just w/o the farmway bridge is a temporary toll/kiosk, still enough room on each side for cars. Makes sense where it’s located ( before Rocky Hill Rd ). If a toll wasn’t collected here, they were sure to be stopped at the Great Neck Lodge. The area circled just w/o Rocky Hill Rd I’m not sure, maybe a ‘footprint’ showing the future extension of the LIMP : )

From Interactive 1924 Aerial Survey of New York City and the Motor Parkway in Queens & Lake Success

Very cool that you lived next door to Mr. Ericson, Bob; and how he relayed the history to you. The maps below are like a time line. The original property of the Lodge is obvious on the older images, the today image shows the original overlay. All courtesy of this website.

From The Motor Parkway Toll Collection Structures:#19 and #20 The Ronkonkoma Toll Gate & Ronkonkoma Lodge

Whee, we are really getting far afield from the MP [bottom of Two Lakes (very likely Twin Lakes), Alaska, eh?] but I LOVE it!  This blog site is truly world class!  Thanks as always, Howard!  Sam, III
_________________________________________

Howard Kroplick

Sam III, thanks! Howard I

From Mystery Foto #13 Solved: Willie K's Seaplane at Port Washington Marine Base in 1938 & Howard Hughes

Al V., that’s exactly as I remember it playing out - W/B in the AM and E/B PM.  Can’t document where I read that, though, but it was a LONG while back, well before MPPS.  Sam, III

From Motor Parkway Survey Bookmap C: The Western Terminus in Fresh Meadows, Queens

Two photos of a Sikorsky S-39B NC-888W and a registry of S-39 seaplanes have been posted.

From Mystery Foto #13 Solved: Willie K's Seaplane at Port Washington Marine Base in 1938 & Howard Hughes

Spec sheets and history of the Sikorsky S-39 have been posted.

From Mystery Foto #13 Solved: Willie K's Seaplane at Port Washington Marine Base in 1938 & Howard Hughes

Art/David,  Shortly after the Parkway was taken over by NYC wasn’t there some suggestions that the ROW be used for the coming World’s Fair ? I have a recollection that to help with the expected heavy traffic, the Parkway could be turned into a one way road, westbound in the morning and eastbound later in the day.

From Motor Parkway Survey Bookmap C: The Western Terminus in Fresh Meadows, Queens

Howard, that section of the unused original Parkway ROW, west of the new ROW was sold back to the Wigmore Co. in 1927.

From Motor Parkway Survey Bookmap C: The Western Terminus in Fresh Meadows, Queens

David, The info regarding the sale of properties for the new ROW an be found at Deed Libor 2692, page 379 and Libor 2696, page 255. I FORGOT TO WRITE THE DATES…..... I do know it was after July 29, 1924.

From Motor Parkway Survey Bookmap C: The Western Terminus in Fresh Meadows, Queens

David, Best I can do at this time is that the decision to purchase the new Parkway ROW properties was made sometime after July 29, 1924.

From Motor Parkway Survey Bookmap C: The Western Terminus in Fresh Meadows, Queens

David Stephan:

See Map 11C: I believe the slide shows a car that has just started eastbound on the Motor Pkwy. The dark rectangle below the white grid line.

You can clearly cars on Hillside Ave, and on the modern-day Braddock Ave (that forms a triangle with the modern-day Springfield Blvd.). Cars on Braddock enable me to match the scale of the dark rectangle.

From Interactive 1924 Aerial Survey of New York City and the Motor Parkway in Queens & Lake Success

David, thanks for the info.  Yes, I agree the RPA was tangled up in politics with Robert Moses as you note.  While reviewing the RPA material I often wonder where Moses fit in - guess we know where he eventually did (and what happened to the RPA proposal regarding the Central RR ROW).

From Motor Parkway Survey Bookmap C: The Western Terminus in Fresh Meadows, Queens

Art, throughout the 30s, the RPA advocated express highways (which it called “freeways” starting in 1936). This freeway proposal was an updated version of an earlier proposal that sought the “priceless chance” to use the LIMP ROW for a freeway,  even as that ROW was too narrow for a freeway. (In turn, that earlier proposal could be considered an adaptation of the 1930 “parkway” proposal mentioned in a earlier comment.)

My commentary: Using the Central RR ROW had its own complications, so this proposal was more about politics than a practical idea. The proposal reflected an emerging tension between the RPA and Robert Moses. Note the RPA’s list is is dated to 11/1937, one month before Moses’s revealed his plans. Not a coincidence, I suspect.

To return to the original post, RPA’s plans overlooked what was anticipated when the LIMP western terminus was extended in 1924-26: the importance of HHB on E-W through traffic to Long Island. Finishing Item #13 only enhanced that importance.

From Motor Parkway Survey Bookmap C: The Western Terminus in Fresh Meadows, Queens

The rest of the article

From Motor Parkway Survey Bookmap C: The Western Terminus in Fresh Meadows, Queens

David, Al - The Creedmoor Parkway (Freeway) was still being seen as an urgent need as noted in the attached Regional Planning Association’s update produced in 1938.  The update noted its use of the Stewart RR, the LIRR and the Motor Parkway.  Will be noted in a future post, but thought it might spark some comment’s now.

From Motor Parkway Survey Bookmap C: The Western Terminus in Fresh Meadows, Queens

I found a reference to Hugh Nutting with regard to Martin Tanner’s Class H sports cars. Looking for Hugh led me here. Hugh and I were neighbors as children, and met again in the late 50s in Midland, MI, before he went to Boulder. Our interests apparently still coincide, and it would be rewarding to renew our acquaintance.

From From the Hugh Nutting Collection: Insight into the Woodies of Huntington's J.T. Cantrell and Company

Re Queens street names and numbers, I forgot to add that the late Vince Seyfried, noted Queens and LIRR historian, once did a compendious study of all that.  In case anyone is interested, I assume the Queens Hist. Soc. or the Queens (Borough) Public Library would know more about it.  Sam, III

From Motor Parkway Survey Bookmap C: The Western Terminus in Fresh Meadows, Queens

Al V.-Borough of Queens proposed the Central RR ROW Creedmoor Parkway in 1930. In 12/1937, Robert Moses proposed his arterial highways project, revealing plans for the CIP, presented as the successor to the other parkway. As CIP construction started in 1939, references to a Creedmoor Pkwy can be dated to the 1930s.

Hillside Park is today’s Cunningham Park N of LIMP and S of 73rd Ave. Moses (again!) was trying to prevent development that would bisect his plan green belt of parks. When he finally acquired undeveloped land S of LIMP and E of FL Blvd and W of Hollis Hills Terrace, he could connect Hillside with Cunningham Parks and form one, very large park. Homes in Hollis Hills Terrace partially intrude on Moses’s park plan. [Later, the LIMP bicycle path to Alley (Pond) Park, was the final link in the interconnected green belt of parks.]

Harding’s proposal was from Queens Blvd to Lakeville Rd., but road was built in discontinuous parts.  Reusing 64th Ave (once Avenue B), which ended at FM Lane, allowed the part that included that stretch to be finished earlier.

The partial Belcher Hyde map in the 12/9/2009 post shows NB from NHT to Hollis Ct Blvd unbuilt, but NB parts east and west of that segment already built.

From Motor Parkway Survey Bookmap C: The Western Terminus in Fresh Meadows, Queens