Vanderbilt Cup Races

-The location of the Mystery Foto and orientation of the photographer

Oh boy, A bit of a challenge here. Looking in the distance from the direction from which they came, they made a sharp right hand curve. It appears they are about to go into a left hand curve. In the plains area of the Parkway traveling East, there is no right turn, straightaway, and then left turn without seeing a bridge somewhere, (bridge to the photographer’s back?) so this is a bit confusing. Traveling West, and flipping the turns around also does not make sense either. The smaller roads on the left side also are a bit of a mystery as well. If not for the left they are about to go into, I would have said somewhere in the grandstands area looking West, (which it still may well be) but this photo is deceptively tricky as there is no place the Parkway has that combination of turns. Another busy weekend, but I’ll keep searching. The resolution isn’t the greatest, so the tree line (or possible Ladenburg windmill) in the distance isn’t helping much….

-The manufacturer, model and year of the automobile

1908 Locomobile 40

-The driver

Looks like A.L. Riker once again, and possibly wearing the same suit and tie he wore for the mystery photo 2 weeks ago!

-Significance of the license plate

I believe that to be a Connecticut Locomobile manufacturer plate. I happened to spot a modern photo of a Loco sporting a manufacturer plate as well…

-Approximate date of the Mystery Foto. Provide a rationale.

LIMP looks to be just about finished, construction hut still standing, so maybe Sept/Oct 1908

I think I have identified the location. This is the ‘snake turn’ near Bloomingdale Rd looking southeast.  The photo below appears to be a match.
https://www.vanderbiltcupraces.com/blog/article/garden_city_archives_the_snake_turn_of_the_1908_1910_courses_of_the_vanderb

Just for fun:

A.L. Riker Jr, an accomplished individual himself, loved keeping his father’s legacy alive. Here’s his personal Christmas card to Peter Helck showing him and his wife Eleanor in their unrestored, green 1917 Locomobile Gunboat in 1969.

*Location & Orientation:  Hempstead Plains & viewing west on the LIMP. Very near the Grandstand area.

*Driver & Automobile:  Looks like Louis Chevrolet at the wheel. Guess the car is a type of Buick since Louis drove cars for that corporation prior to his establishment of Chevrolet.

*License Plate: pretty sure it’s considered a manufacturers type plate, rather than the plate being issued by NY at the time.

*Date: 1908, before October and any type races. No barriers or fencing is seen in this location yet.

This amazing photo most likely taken in the flat Hempstead Plains (Levittown today); photo is definitely looking East (Check out the shadow by the front wheel casting towards the north). Troublesome photo. Don’t know exact location in Levittown but that small guardrail structure on the right side of Motor Pkwy (on its southside) could be a culvert crossing mini-bridge? The vehicle with license plates places it at 1910 or after, when license plates were first distributed. The vehicle is approaching a curve heading towards the south. This could be the location of the Motor Pkwy just west of the future Levittown Grand Stand in Levittown (1908 - 1910), and curving south -  to then parallel with today’s Carnation Rd. The driver could be Louis Chevrolet behind the wheel. Great historic photo of early Long Island joined with early Motor Pkwy in post 1910 Levittown, Long Island. Looking forward to this week’s answers. I think I’m correct with my assumptions. Amazing open fields of early Long Island back then, just 110 +- years ago!

I think we’re on the LIMP looking southeast in the vicinity of Bloomingdale Road in the Hempstead Plains. The car could be a 1908 Locomobile Model 40 being driven by Andrew L. Riker, an engineer for Locomobile. The license plate is a manufacturer’s plate. According to the caption on Page 44 of “The Long Island Motor Parkway” by two well-known Long Island authors, the date is September, 1908.

Not sure if I answered earlier but here goes another try. Hempstead plains in Levittown I believe looking east, front tire is casting a shadow towards the north. Auto is heading west towards a southwest bound curve. Driver could be Louis Chevrolet. License plate indicates photo is 1910 or later. Photo could have been taken after the demolition of the Levittown Grandstand (1908-1910), but unlikely. I don’t see any earth movement in the background. That could be the original Farmedge Rd on the left but the Bloomingdale Rd bridge is missing in the background. That small structure on the right could be one of many sump culverts in Levittown, however it’s not the culvert behind 173 Orchid Rd (photo below from Mystery #68, May 19, 2014). This one is a real head scratcher, looking forward to the impossible answer

Had to be early 1908 because the Bloomingdale Rd bridge wasn’t built yet in the photo. Did not know CT had plates in 1908 before NY’s 1910. Learning something new everyday. Great stuff!

Thanks Howard, but I wasn’t right at all. Both Frank and I thought that was Louis Chevrolet. Always thought that the road construction image was viewed west towards Newbridge Rd. Needed to flip the map below and so everything would be clear to me.

Yes Brian, a tricky one indeed. Everywhere I relocated the Motor Pkwy in the Levittown area didn’t make any sense. Another great stumper photo by Howard! Hope all is well with you and family.

Steve - Sep 1908? You’re likely correct but Howard, Al, and Steve; is there any information when the Bloomingdale Rd bridge was finally constructed in 1908? If the date is correct, these early road builders were working at lightning speed compared to today’s pace.

Frank, regarding the so-called Bloomingdale Rd. bridge.  Bloomingdale Ave. at the time, never made it that close to the Parkway, only reaching to around Farmedge Rd. I don’t think the bridge was built in connection with Bloomingdale Ave. But why did the Parkway build a bridge there at all. The acreage in the area was controlled by the Stewart heirs, the same who sold the Parkway ROW to Vanderbilt so I’m guessing the bridge was a condition of the sale. I’m inclined to think the bridge was built for an unnamed road that starts at the intersection of Central Ave. and Broadway that heads in south west direction toward the Parkway and continues as a dotted line over the Parkway and the LIRR ending at Hempstead Tpke. We know the road was never built, probably because of the cost of bridging the LIRR. The unnamed road made it only to the east-west section of Farmedge Rd. I believe the north-south section of today’s Farmedge Rd. is the bed of that unnamed road shown in both the 1906 and 1914 atlases Both yourself and Brian have good shots of that area on the north side pf the Parkway.