Vanderbilt Cup Races

Photographer on top of the LIRR bridge over Westbury Ave,  Today the North Service Road of the LIE.  About a quarter of a mile east of Willis Ave / Mineola Ave.  The race turned north on Mineola Ave after the car traveled under the bridge. 
-joe o

Location is Old Westbury rd (now south service rd of I495 or Powerhouse rd)
Orientation of photographer is facing east
Photographer climbed the LIRR trestle to secure his shot
Driver is Louis Wagner (winner). Mechanician is Louis Vivet
Date is October 6 1906

Identify the location of the Mystery Foto and the orientation of the photographer.

-Looking East down Old Westbury Road in Roslyn during the 1906 Vanderbilt Cup Race.

How did the photographer get this elevated shot?

-The photographer was standing on the Oyster Bay LIRR bridge over Old Westbury Road.

Howard; correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t this the exact same spot where the LIE currently goes under the LIRR just East of Willis Ave/Exit 37? Past and current photos in the spot and direction below.

Identify the racer, driver and mechanician.
-Louis Wagner’s #10 Darracq racer, winner of the 1906 Vanderbilt Cup Race, Mechanician: Louis Vivet

What is the date of the Mystery Foto?

October 6, 1906

Looking down at Old Westbury Road (now the north service road of the LIE)
The photographer was shooting from the top of the old Oyster Bay railroad bridge.
The race car was the #10 Darracq driven by Louis Wagner along with mechanician (I like that word) Louis Vivet on October 6, 1906.

I think we’re looking east on Power House Road (Old Westbury Road) in the Roslyn Heights area. The photographer was probably positioned on the LIRR bridge or abutment for the Oyster Bay branch. The car is the #10 Darracq driven by Louis Wagner who would become the eventual winner. Most sources have Louis Vivet as the mechanician but some claim it is actually Victor Demogeot. The race was held on October 6, 1906 so that’s probably the date of the photo although it could have been taken during a practice run a few days earlier.

Mystery Foto #10… The car is the 100hp Darracq which was the winner of the 1906 VCR with driver Louis Wagner and mechanician Louis Vivet.
The date was October 6, 1906.
As for how the photographer got this shot I want to say he had a camera drone but more likely he was up on a telephone pole.

I’m too late, but I would’ve said this is rough and hilly terrain, most likely closer to the north shore somewhere. I just don’t know where. Looking forward to all the guesses/answers

I wasn’t aware there were any RR bridges over roadways this early on Long Island. Thought all were at grade, except at extreme circumstances.

Frank, Your forgetting the railroad bridge over over East Shore Rd., Great Neck and over Manhasset Valley /Bayview Ave.

Speaking of railroad bridges over/under roadways, does anyone know why Ellison Avenue in Westbury was bridged? The terrain wasn’t an issue.

The train seen in the above 1906 photo is at the deadend of the RR siding that was utilized by Nassau County Power & Light. The siding was removed in 1956. How do I know this? Courtesy of the maps below.

Al - I searched a bit, but haven’t found yet why a bridge was built for Ellison Ave instead of a short tunnel due to the elevation. Below states a pedestrian overpass was first built in 1896. Bob Emery’s drawing shows bridge construction in 1907 ( a year prior to the 1908 VCR ), and again in 1947. Then we know the recent bridge work completed in 2016.

Thanks Brian, I also did some additional research to no avail. Still can’t figure out what was so unique about this crossing that warranted an overpass