Vanderbilt Cup Races

Louis Chevrolet Memorial at the entrance to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum.  Chevrolet participated in more Vanderbilt Cup Races than any other driver (1905, 1908, 1909 &1910;) as noted on Howard’s blog.  Also started at Indy in 1915, 1916, 1919 & 1920.  1920 was his best finish (3rd).

From Mystery Foto #71 Solved: A Bust of Louis Chevrolet at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Joe Tracy. Bust located in Bethpage on the Ground Breaking Ceremony site (June 6, 1908)

From Mystery Foto #71 Solved: A Bust of Louis Chevrolet at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

A toughie. Resta has a near identical nose but the chin dimple and different shaped head from most of his photos may eliminate him. But then, I believe the mystery image is a portrait painting and not a photo leaving room for some error (unlikely). Every search attempt on this including Resta’s cousin Harry Yarnell has left my fuel tank empty.

From Mystery Foto #70 Still A Mystery: Is this Dario Resta?

I would say Louis Chevrolet

From Mystery Foto #71 Solved: A Bust of Louis Chevrolet at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

That looks like Louis Chevrolet watching all the racing fans as they enter the Speedway Museum at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

From Mystery Foto #71 Solved: A Bust of Louis Chevrolet at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

This past week I received 3 phone calls from Motor Parkway buffs asking if I could contibute anything to the Vanderbilt-mistress-Bagatelle imbroglio. This is what I got. In June of 1909 the Long Island Motor Parkway purchased a 238 plus acre farm in the Half Hollow Hills section of Huntington Town from Charles M. Reve that stretched from the westside of Bagatelle Rd. to the eastside of Burr’s Lane.  The Parkway used only 11.718 acres of the Reve property for the Parkway’s R.O.W.. In 1910 the Parkway sold an 11 plus acre section of the Reve property , on both sides of Burr’s Lane, to a “D S Bronson”  The definitive “Country Homes and their Architects” published by SPLIA,  credits today’s Madonna Heights School to a” Mrs. D. Brownsard” and she called her home, Bagatelle.  c. 1910. Parkway enthusiasts know all to well that the William K. Vanderbilt Jr. name is often used inter-changeably with the Motor Parkway. Perhaps early on somebody decided to add a little spice to a mundane and routine real estate transaction. Al Velocci

From Was the "Bagatelle" Mansion in Half Hollow Hills Built by a Vanderbilt?

  Howard- Give me a break, will ya ha?

From Mystery Foto #71 Solved: A Bust of Louis Chevrolet at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

The bust is Louis Chevrolet in front the museum at Indy.

From Mystery Foto #71 Solved: A Bust of Louis Chevrolet at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

I forgot to thank Babylon Town Clerk, Carol Quirk, and her fine staff for cooperating so well with me this morning in providing the Babylon Town Board Minutes: 1909-1915.

From Mystery Foto #69 Solved: The Long Island Motor Parkway Bridge over Colonial Springs Road

According to Babylon Town Board Minutes: Volume 3: 1909-1915, page 23 in the Babylon Town Clerk’s Office in North Lindenhurst, the Babylon Town Board agreed to allow LI Motor Parkway officials to build two overpass bridges in Babylon on April 14, 1910. “Mr Pardington came before the board on behalf of the Motor Parkway and stated that he would build (the bridges) as requested by the board. The minutes indicate that the bridges would cross Half Hollow Hills Road (today Colonial Springs Road) and East Neck Road (today Little East Neck Road). The April 18, 1910 issue of the South Side Signal (Babylon) reported that: “A.R. Pardington, second vice-president of the Motor Parkway, was again before the board with a petition asking town authorities for permission to place bridge supports twenty-four feet apart on two highways in the northern portion of the town. The parkway is to pass through the section of the town near Wyandanch and Mr. Pardington is willing to bridge the highways but does not wish to span the throughfares their entire width. Source: South Side Signal, April 16, 1910: 3. The bridges stood from 1910 until they were demolished by the Babylon Town Highway Department in the early 1960s.

From Mystery Foto #69 Solved: The Long Island Motor Parkway Bridge over Colonial Springs Road

Howard- I say again, have a great time, good luck, and have a safe trip

From Los Angeles Times: "At Indy course, vintage race cars take you on a roll down memory lane"

I’m still going with Joe Stafford. Ya know when you get that feeling you stick with it, your usually right.

From Mystery Foto #70 Still A Mystery: Is this Dario Resta?

Dario Resta had a dimple on his chin, so maybe it could be Race car driver Johny Seymour?

From Mystery Foto #70 Still A Mystery: Is this Dario Resta?

From Ed:

I have a booklet with photos from the 1911 Vanderbilt Cup Races, run in Savannah, GA.  The “mystery gentleman” looks somewhat like the mechanic, Billy Chandler, who served Ralph Mulford, who won the 1911 event in a Lozier.  The poses are very different, of course, with Chandler and Mulford in full racing gear in my booklet.  Mulford gave great credit to Chandler’s strategy for the win.

From Mystery Foto #70 Still A Mystery: Is this Dario Resta?

I work at SCO Family of Services, which operates the programs on the Madonna Heights campus. If you’re looking for more information or current photos, I’m sure my colleague Sharman Stein would be able to provide interested parties with the info and photos they seek and/or could put them in touch with someone who could answer additional questions. You can contact her at (718) 797-3068 ext. 316 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
Hope this helps!

From Was the "Bagatelle" Mansion in Half Hollow Hills Built by a Vanderbilt?

I remember this photo being shown a while ago as part of Barney Oldfield’s legacy. Unknown then, maybe id-ed in the meanwhile. As I couldn’t find anybody in racing circles looking like him, I decided to use some phantasy and some logic. Barney (Berna E.) Oldfield was only child but had one cousin: Harry Yarnell, the son of his mother’s brother.  Born in 1887 (and also only child) he was 9 years younger than Barney. He was a boy in the time of Barney’s successes and probably one of his greatest fans. He would die already in 1917 (which raises the question if he may have enlisted in the U.S. army to fight in WW1?). Whatever the reason he died at such a young age, wouldn’t it be logic that Barney would keep his photo with him all his life?
Maybe this story is incorrect, but the research was fun!

From Mystery Foto #70 Still A Mystery: Is this Dario Resta?

Howard- When the photos are sent, I’ll have a little trivia for you from the Westbury Gardens car show, something that I know you will be interested in and enjoy. As you can see, it’s being used by the people, even though it’s not finished yet. The sides have to be cleaned up and some loose branches have to be cut, doesn’t look too safe to me. Photos were taken on 5/31

From Pilot Section of the Motor Parkway Trail Is Under Construction in East Meadow(Updated:June 17, 2014)

Just a wild guess, but could it be Lewis Strang?

From Mystery Foto #70 Still A Mystery: Is this Dario Resta?

Thanks very much for posting the page from Dyson’s book on Deer Park and Wyandanch (1957). If the truth be told Dyson’s claim that Dr. Baruch bought Bagatelle from William K. Vanderbilt is what has mislead most students of this question fior all these years. As a youngster growing up, I also heard loose talk about Vanderbilt constructing the mansion off the LIMP as a hideaway. It will be interesting to check if Dyson’s 1926 sale date is also inaccurate. Many thanks for linking us to Claudia S. Fortunato’s fine articles on Baruch and Bagatelle. Another point. It was Dyson who claimed, without any evidence, that FDR had visited Herman Baruch and Bagatelle during World War II. Ms Fortunato mentioned this claim but wisely said it was undocumented.

From Was the "Bagatelle" Mansion in Half Hollow Hills Built by a Vanderbilt?

I have just finished speaking with renowned author and researcher, Raymond E. Spinzia of New Hope, PA. Ray and Judith Spinzia have published several authoritative book on Long Island’s Prominent Families and Their Estates and Country Homes. He tells me that the Vanderbilts had nothing to do with the Bagatelle estate and mansion in Half Hollow Hills. His researches indicate that the mansion was built by a Mrs. D Brownsard ca 1910! The question you have posted on your blog has correctly brought into question the mistaken received wisdom of many, many decades that the Vanderbilts built the mansion and developed the estate. Obviously, they did not. I would still like to know more about Mrs. Brownsard and when Dr. Herman Benjamin Baruch bought the estate. Thanks again for your wonderful blog and for helping us to better understand this historical question.
________________________________

From Howard Kroplick.

Excellent detective work. Note Verne Dyson’s book is available online.

From Was the "Bagatelle" Mansion in Half Hollow Hills Built by a Vanderbilt?