(unindexed to date - please scroll away)
This is yet another page to cover additional information and photographs of this interesting old highway; see also my Automotive, Chrysler, Dudgeon (really!), Mercedes, and SS and JAGUAR car pages and other related pages.
A Motor Parkway Panel has been convened to keep the LIMP alive in situ and in minds and museums.
There is also a lot of automotive material on my ORDNANCE and HISTORY pages.
Also, if you like automotive history, see the links on the Automotive page.
RoW = Right-of-Way.
(Courtesy of Northport Public Library)
[Thumbnail image; click on picture for larger image.]
William K. Vanderbilt, Jr.
"Willie K."
LONG ISLAND MOTOR PARKWAY HISTORY - continued
History Page 4
- - - * - - -
Vanderbilt Cup Disclaimer.
Although the Vanderbilt Cup races are of great interest to any Long Island Motor Parkway aficionado, they are NOT the provenance of this site, except when they were run on or across the LIMP. However, a separate LIMP-Vanderbilt Cup Race Page has been created to cover the races as they related to the Motor Parkway (and material formerly here has been moved to that page).
Links will be provided to sites that do cover these extraordinary races in more depth, IF those so interested will kindly forward the URLs to me.
The Oldest Parkway?
- this material somehow
vanished from my site and has been recreated here.
(30 Nov 05)
There has long been a rumor of a limited-access parkway in Buenos Aires,
Argentina that pre-dates the Long Island Motor Parkway. I have written
to the civil authorities and the university History Department there without
response but am trying again.
There is (or was) also a parkway in Italy that is of the same vintage, but the
authorities there acknowledge the greater age of the LIMP (I will have to find
that information and repost it).
In addition, the Bronx River Parkway
(q.v.) pre-dates the LIMP in concept only (as preserved parkland) but as a
highway ca. 1917; it wasn't actually opened for traffic until 05 Nov 1925.
PHOTOGRAPHS - continued
Nassau County Police Dept.
Photos of the LIMP
(moved from LIMP History page 2 on 21 Nov 03)
Motor Parkway Panel member Ron Ridolph sent these old photographs from the
Nassau County Police Department files for all to enjoy (they were lost and are now
restored); the first three are from Homicide's records and are each followed by an
enlargement of the accident scene, itself, artificially enhanced to show the details
better (which was well-nigh impossible on the third):
The three Homicide crash photos are dated because fatalities occured. The
first is at Jericho Turnpike on 09 or 19 Dec 35, the second at Clinton Road sometime in
1935, and the third is at the Wantagh Avenue crossing on 21 May 35.
The next is of the site of the NCPD 8th Precinct; the photo is dated 09 Mar 59 and the
8th Precinct came on line in 1960:
The scene is at Hicksville Road (NY Route 107) looking west.
The last is more of a RR photo than of the LIMP! It appears to be LIRR G5
engine #31 and was taken in Central Park (now Bethpage) with the Central Avenue
LIMP overpass in the background but is undated:
(All NCPD photos and LIRR photo courtesy of R. Ridolph)
LIMPuzzle
Panelist Howard Kroplick poses this question for us. What crossroads
are depicted on these three 1908 Vanderbilt Cup Race photos?
(17 Nov 05)
(1908 VCR photos courtesy of H. Kroplick - all rights reserved)
[Thumbnailed images - click on pictures for larger images]
Photo A /
Photo B / Photo C
The search is limited in scope because the 1908 VCR ran on the LIMP RoW
only from Old Whaleneck Road (Merrick/Post Avenue, just N of today's Stewart
Avenue at Eisenhower Park) to Round Swamp Road (at today's Battle Row
Campground, just south of Old Bethpage Village Restoration). You
will note that in photo A, the Motor Parkway makes a sharp right turn
after running under the bridge toward the photographer,
whereas it turns right before the bridge in photo B and does the
same after running over the bridge in photo C.
Just where on that section of the 1908 LIMP RoW did these circumstances
pertain?
No guesses, please; we are quite adept at guessing, thank you. We'd
like reasoned answers, with documentation.
The prizes? Cheers and adulation of screaming crowds? Howard
and I will pat you on the back the next time we see you.
Widening the Parkway
As noted briefly on the main LIMP page, the parkway was originally only 16'
(10.4m) wide. Imagine two cars racing along in opposite directions at a
modest 60 mph (96 km/h); that's a 120 mph (192 km/h) closing
speed with only 8' (5.2m) in which to maneuver! After some serious
accidents, and probably about the same time as the overpaving with asphalt
was done, the Parkway was widened by adding a 3' (91.4 cm) strip of ordinary
concrete on each side; these strips still survive in many places BUT,
according to Al Velocci, the records only show that being done as far east as
Round Swamp Road! No wonder I couldn't find concrete strips in Suffolk
County!
Dave Keller's Photos of the LIMP -
Panel Associate Pat Masterson, who, with me, is a Long
Island Rail Road fan, asked LIRR historian and author
Dave Keller (whose website I host) if he had any pictures of the LIMP
(why didn't I think of this?) and received these two amazing
photos, which Dave was kind enough to allow us to reproduce here:
(ca. 1928 G. G. Ayling photo from the archives of D. Keller courtesy of
P. Masterson
reproduced by specific permission - all rights reserved)
The exact historical and other notes on the back of this photo, which are too faint to
scan well, are as follows:
LONG ISLAND
L. I. MOTOR PARKWAY WITH CAR NEAR WHEELER ROAD - CENTRAL ISLIP, NY- c. 1928
(VIEW LOOKING EAST)
~GEO. G. AYLING PHOTO
PHOTOGRAPH FROM THE ARCHIVES OF
DAVID KELLER
7256 HIAWASSEE OAK DRIVE
ORLANDO, FLORIDA 32818
NO REPRODUCTION WITHOUT PERMISSION
Text on sticker on back of photo:
From Dave Keller, Orlando, 12/2005:
I acquired the CI shot from the late George G.
Ayling, block operator at CI from 1910 until 1923
then agent/operator from 1923 until his retirement
in 1954. He photographed lots of stuff around
Brentwood and Central Islip.
(1945 W. J. Edwards photo from the archives of D. Keller courtesy of
P. Masterson
reproduced by specific permission - all rights reserved)
The exact historical and other notes on the back of this photo, which are too faint to
scan well, are as follows:
(12 Jan 06)
LONG ISLAND
L. I. MOTOR PKY BRIDGE OVER BROAD HOLLOW RD (RT 110) - MELVILLE, NY - 1945
(VIEW LOOKING N. CROSS ISLAND TROLLEY RIGHT-OF-WAY AT R. OF ROAD. CONNECTIONS VISIBLE IN
BRIDGE FOR TROLLEY WIRES)
~ W. J. EDWARDS PHOTO ~
PHOTOGRAPH FROM THE ARCHIVES OF
DAVID KELLER
7256 HIAWASSEE OAK DRIVE
ORLANDO, FLORIDA 32818
NO REPRODUCTION WITHOUT PERMISSION
Text on sticker on back of photo:
From Dave Keller, Orlando, 12/2005:
The shot of Broadhollow Road at the LIMP was taken
by an old railfan who once lived in New Jersey.
Dave
What we have here are a photo by the late George G. Ayling of a
not-too-terribly-impressive car on the LIMP ca. 1928, looking E somewhere around
Central Islip and another by W. J. Edwards of the Broad Hollow Road (today's Route
110) bridge looking N in 1945; this is the first photo of that bridge that any of us
cognoscenti has ever seen! On the right is the RoW of the Cross Island trolley
line that ran alongside BHR and you can see the fittings that held the trolley wire
under the bridge (not on this scan; I hope to get higher resolution copies posted
soon).
These photos may NOT be reproduced for any purpose
without specific prior written permission of David Keller.
Al Velocci, author of the book on the LIMP Toll Lodges,
sent a Christmas card for 2005
that is incredibly appropriate and delightful:
[Thumbnailed image - click on picture for larger image]
Ground Breaking Ceremony - 06 Jun 1907
(04 Mar 07)
Paul Osika in Michigan advised that he had "some photos taken by Spooner & Wells
which could be the ground breaking event" at Central Park (Bethpage); could they
EVER! What he sent me were high-quality xerocopies, all about 5" x 7¼"
except #28309, which measures 7¼" x 10". On that one and #28302
and #28310, LIMP V.P. Arthur R(ayner). Pardington is unmistakeable; however, who
might the others be? Here they are, one un-numbered photo and #s 28302,
28304 and 28305, 28309 and 28310:
Photo Unknown # / Photo #28302
(photos courtesy of P. Osika - all rights reserved)
[Thumbnailed images - click on pictures for larger images]
Photos #28304 / Photo #28305
(photos courtesy of P. Osika - all rights reserved)
[Thumbnailed images - click on pictures for larger images]
Photo #28309
(photo courtesy of P. Osika - all rights reserved)
[Thumbnailed image - click on picture for larger image]
Photo #28310
(photo courtesy of P. Osika - all rights reserved)
[Thumbnailed image - click on picture for larger image]
#28309 has been slightly lightened artificially and #28310 quite a bit. Some
damage to the original prints is evident but these are, nevertheless, fantastic records!
Remember that Pardington sat in for Willie K., who was away; one can't but wonder if
ARP was reading Willie's comments in #28310. It was 06 Jun 1907 and the
ladies are in summer outfits, with parasols open against the sun; the men, especially
those in full motoring costume, must have been sweltering!
Panelist Howard Kroplick confirms that Pardington was indeed reading Willie K's
address, reminding me that Willie could not attend because he was at the bedside of
his step-father, O. H. P. Belmont, who would die a few days' later:
(05 Mar 07)
{it was the ground breaking - NOT the opening, and the "l" in Vanderbilt
was overstruck by the "t" in the typed caption.}
(photo courtesy, and from the collection, of H. Kroplick - all rights reserved)
[Thumbnailed image - click on picture for larger image]
[Incidentally, "O. H. P." stood for "Oliver Hazard Perry", the naval hero of the
Battle of Lake Erie in 1813;
O. H. P. Belmont was a brother of L. I.'s August Belmont and an uncle of Augie, Jr..]
Because the Main Page overloaded, please visit Continuation Pages 1A, et seq.
THUMBS UP!
THUMBS UP! - Support your local police, fire, and emergency personnel!
S. Berliner, III
To contact S. Berliner, III, please click here.
of this series of Long Island Motor Parkway pages.
© Copyright S. Berliner, III -
2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006,
2007
- All rights reserved.
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