VanderbiltCupRaces.com Exclusive: The Lost East Wing of the Long Island Aviation Country Club
As posted in the January 14, 2014 Mystery Foto, the west wing of the Long Island Aviation Country Club clubhouse was documented to have been moved from its original Hempstead Plains (now Levittown) location and become part of a house on Field Avenue in Hicksville. On Tuesday, my favorite co-author Al Velocci and I went exploring for the other sections of the clubhouse. Amazingly, we found the lost east wing!
Enjoy,
Howard Kroplick
The Clubhouse
The clubhouse consisted of five separate buildings including two wings of the identical size. The Motor Parkway was adjacent to the airfield south of the clubhouse.
The east wing and the clubhose. Photographed by Alfred Eisenstaedt in 1937 for Life.
The clubhouse and the west wing.
The hangar and the clubhouse.
Another view looking south west.
1950 Aerial (Source: MyNassauProperty.com)
As seen in this 1950 aerial, Levitt and Sons were building Levittown homes around and, eventually including, the Long Island Aviation Club property.
Sometime in 1950, the hangar and clubhouse were taken down. The five buildings were destroyed or moved to other locations on Long Island.
The roof for the hangar was relocated to a building in Bethpage.
Hicksville Illustrated News Circa 1960
A 1960s issue of Hicksville Illustrated News reported that sectons of the clubhouse had "been broken in parts and converted into several houses in Hicksville.,,and moved to its present location on Field Avenue in 1950."
The left side of the house was a match for west wing of the clubhouse.
The house's connection to the Long Island Aviation Country Club was further documented by Art Kleiner using MyNassauProperty.com information for the Hicksville home.
The archive on the website read "old Dwelling Hicksville Aviation Club".
This May 2, 1950 note read: "N.O.H. -If occupied at all most of building is boarded up, interior visible thru window is a mess of bld. materials & rubbish."
Yesterday, Al and I decided to search for the lost sections of the clubhouse in Hicksville.
We first looked at this current aerial view of the home on Field Avenue courtesy of MyNassauProperty.com. I noted the L-shape configuration of the building.
Al noticed that the unusual roof line indicating that there were two distinct sections of the home.
A check of the right side of the house confirmed that another section of the clubhouse was right in front of us all the time- the lost east wing.
Wings of the Clubhouse: Then & Now
Then: Circa 1940
Now: 2017
Comments
Nice work Howard & Al. Any idea if the current owner knows the history of the structure?
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Howard Kroplick
I am going to send the owner documentation and images of the Long Island Aviation Country Club.
East and West wings makes up for most of this home, very cool. 2 Ranch Style Homes connected together. Wonder if the current owners realize the back story of the home?
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Howard Kroplick
Great minds think alike!
Fantastic detective work.
Fantastic! For those who might be interested, I documented the hangar roof (at what is now Best Market HQ) on the north side of the LIRR at 1 Revere Avenue in Bethpage, where Lexington Avenue and Schneider Lane meet at the west end of Revere. Of course, now I can’t find my coverage anywhere, but you can easily see the roof on Google Maps Street View at that address by looking west from Revere. Sam, III
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Howard Kroplick
MyNassauProperty.com links:
https://lrv.nassaucountyny.gov/map/?s=46&b=E&l=726
https://lrv.nassaucountyny.gov/info/46++E++07260/
Very interesting ....
Howard,
Something tells me that you should have been a detective. You and Al did an incredible job discovering those buildings. Nice work!!!
Rog
Hi Howard!
All very interesting! I remember seeing the flying clubs on our many trips from Farmingdale to Hempstead on the Hempstead Tpk. in the 1940’s. This was just another landmark on our ride. Now to realize the roof is on the building just down the block from where we live in Bethpage. That building too has had a lot of history. We were always told the building came from Mitchel Field. Thanks for you and your group to pursue this bit of history. Ann
Made me smile with enjoyment. Thanks for posting this and for the determined & successful detective work complete with photos.