Ken Bausert's Nostalgic Museum

Hansen's Texaco Station - Richmond Hill - 1950s

2012-01-18T22:34:00.015-05:00

I found this old newspaper clipping while cleaning

out our family home after my brother died.

The gas station was on 94th Avenue

(where Atlantic Avenue curves south,

just west of 130th Street).

Although the photo shows an outdoor lift,

by 1961 – when I was driving –

there were two enclosed bays on

the left side of the main building.

(Click on any item below to enlarge)

Woody's Cars, Through The Years

2011-12-03T23:52:00.443-05:00

I became really interested in custom cars and hot rods by

1958, the year I bought my first Custom Cars magazine.

Around that time, I started seeing a particular car that

caught my attention as I walked down 129th Street,

in my neighborhood of Richmond Hill (borough of Queens,

New York). It was a '49 Mercury coupe, always parked in

front of the same house. Every time I saw it, however, it

had new and different modifications done to it but I never

saw anyone working on it.

One day, I finally lucked out and met the guy who

was customizing the car: Paul Wood.

It seems he was in the Navy but married to a girl

(Carol) who lived in the nearby house with her parents.

He only worked on the car while he was home on leave

and, because I was still in high school,

I kept missing him... until that day.

We eventually became close friends and Woody

(as he was called) helped me with some projects

on my own car after he got out of the Navy

and lived with Carol in the area.

Back in the 1950s, I had created a photo album

featuring pictures of many of my friends cars so Woody

gave me some of his old photos seen now on this blog.

(Click on any photo to enlarge it.)

Woody's first car was a '41 Chevy coupe which he mildly

customized with a partial dechroming, adding fender

skirts and a two tone black and red paint job.

The engine was a modified 6-cylinder.

(Original photo from Woody's personal collection.)

Next came a '50 Chevy convertible

which was basically stock.

(Original photo from Woody's personal collection;

photo restored by Ken.)

The '49 Merc Woody owned when I met him is seen

here outside a motel in New Jersey, while

Woody and Carol were on their honeymoon.

Although no other photos of the car exist – and

some modifications can't be seen here – the

car had extensive work done to it.

The headlights were tunneled, hood and deck

were shaved, the outside door handles were

removed and replaced by electric solenoids,

cruiser skirts were installed, and the car lowered.

The most impressive thing was that the coupe

was made into a hardtop by removing the

vertical posts on the doors and in front of the

rear side windows, and new glass cut to fit.

A '51 Cadillac engine and 4-speed automatic transmission

were installed in place of the old flathead Merc.

The Caddy mill ran with trips or dual-quads at various times.

(Original photo from Woody's personal collection.)

Woody's next project involved this '53 Ford convertible.

(Original photo from Woody's personal collection.)

The headlights were tunneled, scoops were moulded

into the rear quarter panels, skirts were added,

and the usual dechroming performed and doors shaved.

The rear fenders were extended and flanked the

Continental kit in the rear. A Carson top was

installed and the hood had louvers punched into it.

(Original photo from Woody's personal collection.)

Back in the day, Woody had no garage and often

worked on the car in the street; this was shot on

116th Street, just north of Liberty Avenue,

in Richmond Hill, around 1961.

Mutual friend Sal Consiglio (standing) and Woody.

(Photo © Ken Bausert.)

A 1955 Buick engine was installed (sorry, but no photo).

The hood was pancaked and Woody revamped the

front end by added canted quad headlights flowing

into a new grille cavity over a rolled front splash pan.

(Photo © Ken Bausert.)

After I got married, Woody and I lost contact with each

other for about 10 or 15 years before getting back in

touch again. By that time, he and Carol were living

in Farmingville, (Suffolk County, Long Island) and

Woody was still building cars in his shop at their home.

The '33 Ford Pick-up (above) was his

"every day run-around" vehicle.

(Photo © Ken Bausert.)

The channeled body featured full-fenders.

(Photo © Ken Bausert.)

Under the hood was a 350 Chevy with a B+M air-induction

mini-blower, and a 350 Turbo-Hydramatic transmission.

(Photo © Ken Bausert.)

Woody's show-car was this beautiful chopped

and channelled '32 Ford 3-window coupe.

As with all of his cars, Woody performed all

his own body, interior, and mechanical modifications;

all cars seen here were original steel

production models – not fiberglass reproductions!

(Photo © Ken Bausert.)

The engine was a Chevy 383 cubic-inch stroker

with a B+M 671 Blower at one point;

transmission was a beefed-up 350 Turbo-Hydro.

(Photo © Ken Bausert.)

The idea behind Woody's '39 Ford coupe was

to build a one-of-a-kind car that was also dependable

enough to take on a road trip and fairly easy

to repair, if necessary, during the trip.

Woody started by taking a 1979 Chevy Monte Carlo

chassis and drive train. He then grafted the

center section of the Ford chassis to the

front and rear sections of the Monte Carlo chassis.

The top was chopped two inches and extended

six inches to provide more room in the back seat area.

(Photo © Ken Bausert.)

Note the louvered hood and frenched headlight treatment.

(Photo © Ken Bausert.)

The custom grille was fabricated by Woody's son, Michael,

using 3/8-inch stainless steel

(Photo © Ken Bausert.)

Once again, Woody created a hardtop out of a coupe

by removing the door and rear window pillars;

custom-made skirts were added.

(Photo © Ken Bausert.)

The radio antenna was mounted in a recessed cavity by the rear deck.

(Photo © Ken Bausert.)

Ever-popular '59 Caddy tail-light lenses were

tunnelled into the rear fenders. Of course,

all fender seams were filled and front and rear pans rolled.

Note the notches in the rear pan for the dual exhausts.

(Photo © Ken Bausert.)

By utilizing the stock Monte Carlo 350 engine and driveline,

Woody was assured that parts to service the car

would be easy to obtain if needed during a road trip.

Likewise, the standard driveline and running gear,

including power-disc brakes, provided fine handling

and stopping power, while also being easy

to service with readily-available parts.

(Photo © Ken Bausert.)

Perhaps the only impractical aspect of the car

was its extremely low ground clearance;

not a problem on the highway but

certainly a concern on steep driveways.

(Photo © Ken Bausert.)

Before retiring to Florida in the late 1990s,

Woody sold the '33 pick-up and the '32 coupe.

The '39 coupe was driven for a while in Florida

before Woody built a customized golf cart to replace it

and the '39 was sold.

(Photo © Ken Bausert.)

Billy Squires (2/27/41 - 3/27/97) Memorial

2011-09-23T16:34:00.066-04:00

I have been trying to reconnect with some old friends over the past 10 to 20 years and, with the internet making the job so much easier, I've succeeded in many cases. However, one of the people I had been looking for, for a long time, was William H. Squires–known to everyone as Billy Squires–from Glendale, Queens. I always remember him as being a really great guy, very personable, always fun to be around, and always willing to help you when you needed it, especially when it came to cars–our common passion.

After all the years of searching for Billy, hoping to reconnect and relive some of the good times we had, I finally learned he had died. I usually don't make a habit of creating memorials to people on my blog, but I'm making an exception this time around. Maybe this tribute will serve as some kind of closure and keep Billy's memory alive a little longer.

I don't know how I acquired this photo

(from about 1961) but it was probably given

to me by one of the guys in the photo.

Left to right: Billy and his '34 Ford coupe;

Eugene "Gene" Ormandy; and Mike Conlon,

with his '53 Ford.

The '34 coupe was powered by a '53 Olds

engine with four carbs;

the '53 Ford had a '59 Buick engine.

(Click on any photo to enlarge it;
click on it a second time to further enlarge it.)

The first time I remember seeing Billy, I was getting out of Richmond Hill High School one afternoon around 1960 and he was driving his '34 Ford coupe down 114th Street, stopping to pick up a girl who was also attending my school. Billy was a couple years older than us and already had his senior driver's license by that time. Of course, I admired his car and eventually found out from some other friends who he was. Some time later– probably through Phil and Andy Turano–I met Billy and we all became close friends.

Billy stopped by my house in Richmond Hill one day,

in late 1963, driving this '55 Chevy two-door sedan.

(My red '54 Ford with a white racing stripe

is parked in front of it.)

In the 1960s, Billy had quite a few cars;

this early '60s photo of his '54 Merc was from

my friend Ken Szekretar. The car was

purchased as a wreck from a junk yard

and in the process of being rebuilt by Billy.

This color photo from my personal collection

shows the in-process paint job;

the car was lowered all around,

had traction bars, and 14-inch wheels

with '57 Plymouth wheel covers.

The 312 cubic inch engine had a Ford Interceptor

cam, three carbs, and dual exhausts.

Billy's dark green '55 Chevy, from May, 1964;

it is described in detail in my June 23, 2011

blog entry regarding '55-'57 Chevy's.

(This may have been the same '55 Chevy as in

the 1963 photo, shown in a finished state.)

These June, 1965, photos show Billy's '34 Ford

Roadster during its construction. The body was

channeled 11 inches and the frame "Z'd".

The engine was a '53 Olds, bored out to 324 cubes,

had a roller tappet cam, and six carbs.

The transmission was a '37 Caddy and

the rear end was from a '64 Ford.

When Ro and I got married in 1965,

Billy was in our wedding party.

(Guys: me, with Ro; next to me, Tony Nocerino;

Billy Squires; Andy Turano; Ken Szekretar.)

Billy is at far right in the above photo.

After getting married in '65, I moved to Elmont but still worked a regular job in Forest Hills, Queens, and a part time job in Richmond Hill. This had me back in the old neighborhood quite a bit so I kept in touch with many old friends. By 1973, we had two children and moved further east; I got a job closer to home and gave up the part-time job in Queens. As a result, I didn't have the time to get back to the old neighborhood much and slowly drifted apart from many friends–including Billy.

After posting the photos of '55-'57 Chevy's (including Billy's) in an earlier blog entry, I got a message from Carol Froreno, the daughter of one of my cousins, in North Carolina. It seems she and husband Steve had been enjoying my Nostalgic blogs for some time. She wrote to tell me that Steve was originally from Glendale and had once bought a motorcycle from Billy. They gave me the names of some other folks who were from Glendale and knew Billy quite well.

Tommy and Mickey Dillworth, and Mickey's sister, Terry, told me that Billy had gotten heavily into airplanes and moved to Florida. He even owned an airfield in Rockledge, Florida, and had been married and divorced. Sadly, I also learned that he had passed away in 1997. They also sent me some photos of Billy from the early years in Glendale as well as the later years in Florida (many thanks, guys!).

At Vinny Littman's house, late 1960s:

Mickey Dillworth with cigarette (left);

Mickey's sister, Terry (center);

and Vinny's girlfriend, Gayle.

Billy is at far right, behind the bar.

(Photo courtesy of Tommy & Mickey Dillworth.)

Billy and then-wife, Marcia, at the Dillworth's

home, in the 1980s.

(Photo courtesy of the Dillworths.)

Billy, with Tommy Dillworth, at

Tommy's house in Mastic, Long Island,

in the 1980s.

(Photo courtesy of the Dillworths.)

Billy moved to Florida and owned the

Rockledge Airpark, (also known as

Shawnee Airpark, or Rockledge Flypark),

located near the east coast, about

50 miles east/southeast of Orlando.

(Maps downloaded off the internet.)

The formal address of the airpark

–and that of Billy, while alive–

is/was 500 Barnes B'lvd. (Cty Rd. 502).

The entrance to the airpark is through

Flypark Drive.

Billy, talking with a woman in a car at the airpark,

late 1980s/early 1990s (?)

(Photo courtesy of the Dillworths.)

Billy, with some of the planes at his airpark

in the background.

(Photo courtesy of the Dillworths.)

According to FAA listings of registered aircraft

in Rockledge, Billy was the owner and pilot of a

1959 Piper PA-25, similar to the one above.

(Photo downloaded from an online site.)

Also according to the FAA, Billy owned and

piloted a 1963 Cessna 172E, similar to the one above.

(Photo downloaded from an online site.)

A friend of ours, John Rensing, currently living

in Rockledge, drove over to the airpark

recently and took a few photos

of the way the place looks in 2011.

Some of the buildings on the airpark property

that Billy used to own.

One of the current businesses operating out of

the airpark grounds; Aero Adventure builds

aircraft kits that people can buy

and assemble at home.

If anyone would like to post corrections about information contained within this blog, offer feedback, or contribute additional data and stories relating to Billy, I look forward to hearing from you. –Ken

Jake's Fabulous Fords

2011-07-05T22:55:00.008-04:00

Back in the 1990s, I worked as a shop foreman

for a Jaguar dealer in Hempstead, NY.

At the time, the owner (Jake)

had a couple of old Fords that he stored

in one of the buildings on premises.

Although they were in pretty good running

condition, he decided one day to restore them

in preparation of driving them on special occasions

or possibly selling them.

I was the lucky guy who got to oversee the work

and drive them from time to time.

Naturally, I found a nearby park one day and

took some photos for posterity.

Very little for me to comment on here; just look

and enjoy some classic Americana from Detroit.

(Click on images to enlarge a bit.)

This was a 1941 Ford convertible painted a dark blue,

probably an original Ford color.

The car was factory stock with the exception of the

white Carson Top (covering the rear/side quarter windows

and having a small glass to see behind while driving).

The '41 engine was a 221 cubic-inch flathead V8

rated at 90 horsepower.

The three-speed manual transmission gear shift

was on the column.

Jake's other fabulous Ford was this '49 convertible,

also painted a dark blue close to the original color.

Sorry I didn't get a photo of the engine but it was

similar to the 1941 engine,

a flathead V8, but increased to 239 cubic-inches,

and rated at 100 horsepower.

Ancestral Home in Hoechstadt an der Aisch

2011-06-24T22:33:00.003-04:00

In doing my genealogy research I had found my maternal grandmother came to America from Germany and was originally from somewhere in Bavaria. But, without knowing exactly which town in Bavaria, I could not begin to search further since records were traditionally kept in the Churches of the individual towns.

Last year, I located Peter, a distant cousin in Germany whose grandmother was a sister to mine. Not only did he tell me that the women were originally from Hoechstadt an der Aisch (on the Aisch River, in Bavaria) but he also traveled to the town to take some photographs to send me.

St. Georg Church, in Hoechstadt, where our grandmothers were baptized.

(Photo downloaded from an online site)

Peter took the above photo of the site where our grandmothers' childhood home stood.

While there, he met a woman who lived above the first floor store and told her why he was photographing the building. She told him she had an old photo of the previous building that occupied that location and gave him a copy (reproduced below).

(Click on photos to enlarge.)

Although the photo appears to be from the 1960's (judging by car in the driveway, and the miniskirt on the woman) the house was basically the same as it was in the 1800s.

On The Streets of Queens, NY, 1963-1964

2011-06-23T00:40:00.008-04:00

Sorry it's been so long between posts. Here's a sampling of some of the '55 & '56 Chevys running around on the streets of Queens during 1963 & 1964- all belonging to friends of mine (or friends of friends).

Accuracy in the spelling of names is not guaranteed but if someone knows the current whereabouts of anyone mentioned in my posts, please let me know... thanks!

(Click on any image to enlarge)

This beautiful, nearly stock-bodied '55 belonged to Billy Squires of Glendale. The hood & deck were partially shaved and it was painted emerald green.

The suspension was beefed up with heavy duty springs and shocks.

From the side, you can see the "plumbers' pipes" behind the front wheels (removing the caps allowed the exhaust to exit before the mufflers, when you went to the drag strip). Also quite obvious are the traction bars before the rear wheels, designed to keep the rear end from twisting during hard acceleration.

The engine in Billy's car was a 348 cu. in. Chevy, with three carbs, running through a 4-speed transmission. (Note the two electric fuel pumps that supplied the engine's needs on the far-side fender well in photo.)

Al Banome, of Richmond Hill, owned many hot cars during the late '50s and '60s. This teal blue '55 was parked in front of my parents' house when I shot the only photo I have of it in August, 1964. The body was extensively modified but still being worked on at this time. Note the dechroming, extended rear fenders with new tail lights, split rear bumper, and radiused rear wheel openings. Under the hood was a late model Buick engine.

A lot of guys hung out at the home of Frank Gesualdo, of Ozone Park, (otherwise known as "Alley Oop" to his friends). This '55, shot in Sept., 1963, was owned by one of his buddies (name unknown) and was called, "All Business." The body was partially dechromed and the rear wheel openings enlarged with a cutting torch (!) to make changing the rear slicks easier at the track.

The engine in "All Business" was a late model Chevy 409, featuring a Racer Brown flat tappet cam and a big four-barrel carb.

Another of Alley Oop's friends, Joey Cosanza, owned this '55 which was, again, partially dechromed and a "work-in-progress."

The engine in Joey's car was a late model Olds, featuring a Giovani high-lift cam (note the bulges on the valve covers to allow the rocker arms more room to travel) and a Bendix electric fuel pump supplying three carbs. Transmission was an Olds "hydro-stick"; car reportedly turned 105 mph in the quarter-mile.

Norm Schlosser, of Richmond Hill, owned this really clean, stock-bodied '55 painted red and white. Wheel covers were from a late-model Plymouth, a popular choice for many cars in the '60s, due to their simple and elegant style.

Under the hood was a '59 Chevy 283 engine and an Olds Hydro-stick transmission.

I met Chuck (from Flushing) at the White Castle on Atlantic Avenue, in Highland Park, Brooklyn, when I had my Mint Julep I. He liked the black scallops I had painted on my mint green Merc and discovered I also did pin-striping. As a result, he asked me to pin-stripe his fire-engine red '56 convertible in white. His car was nosed & decked, and featured a louvered hood, straight-bar grille, and spun aluminum wheel covers.

From the rear, custom tail lights and long chrome Lakes Pipes can be seen.

Rosenberg bei Danzig

2011-03-11T17:16:00.020-05:00

During my genealogy research, I found that my mother's father's family originally came from Rosenberg bei Danzig, and Langenau bei Danzig. Danzig (or Gdansk) was a German Free State on the coast of what is now Poland. "bei" means "near" (Rosenberg and Langenau were smaller towns to the south of Danzig).

For many years, I would look at several old photo albums my mother kept and wonder about all the people and places depicted in the photos; many had no names or descriptions and some had German writing I couldn't read. I recently located Peter, a German relative, who has helped me translate some of the writing on many old items, including the post card (from about 1915) shown here. (Click on any photo to enlarge)

Some introductions: my grandfather had 11 brothers & sisters; two of the women married brothers with the surname Gehrt and moved to America around the turn of the 20th century. One of his other sisters, Anna, stayed in Rosenberg and had a daughter, Alma (my grandfather's niece); Alma had three children including a girl, Kate. My grandmother's name was Franze and my mother's was Lena (diminutive name is Linchen).

The translation:

“Dear Uncle Otto. Herewith I’m sending to you your native city. This picture was taken from the church tower by Kate’s teacher. In front there is the school. The street goes to Langenau. Can you see anything on the street? That is mother, I, and the kids. We are going to the station.

Where I made a cross there is Gehrt’s tavern. It’s newly built. The old one you will remember. Otherwise we feel tolerably. We are all healthy. Last week (unclear name) Gehrt visited us. She tells almost nothing, you have to ask for everything.

Mother will write on Sunday.

Best wishes to aunt Franze and Linchen

and warm regards to you from your niece.

Alma and family.”

So, I had an actual photo of the town my grandfather came from, and one in which my relatives are visible on the road (granted, they're just tiny black dots) and, all along, I had no idea what it was.

The Last of Ken's Cool Cars - '47 Ford Coupe

2011-02-05T23:20:00.011-05:00

The last "cool" car I owned was this '47 Ford coupe, purchased around 1967 from a guy in Smithtown, Long Island. I had always liked this model and, when I saw it advertised in the Selling Post for $200, I had to buy it. (Click on any image to enlarge.)

It had been sitting for a long time but the body was in really nice shape. There was a gallon of water in the crankcase when I initially looked at it but I didn't care; that old flathead wasn't going to stay in there for very long.

I rented a tow hitch and towed it some 4o miles back to Elmont. I drained the water from the crankcase, put in a new battery, and the damn thing ran great for many months–until I decided what I was going to put under the hood.

My goal was to keep the car looking relatively stock but improve the driveline, suspension, and appointments so it would be a dependable, everyday driver, capable of going anywhere.

I left the body nearly stock, removing only the top hood ornament and filling the holes. I replaced several pieces of chrome and the gravel guards on the rear fenders with new old stock or replacement parts from Joblet Automotive (the Ford specialists), in Queens Village.

I had it painted a blueish-green; I think it was a GM color but can't remember the name. After these photos were taken, I had the hood louvered by Henny's Welding, in Jamaica, New York. When I drove over there and told them what I wanted, they had to move a ton of crap to get at their louver punching press; it had been a long time since anyone had asked for a louvered hood and it was buried!

I worked at a Chevy dealer at the time and acquired a 327 cubic inch block from a '67 Corvette; I then located heads, manifolds, and everything else I needed over a few months time, and assembled everything. I put a Turbo Hydromatic transmission behind it, and installed a '56 Chevy rear end assembly, including brakes, with matching leaf springs. When I initially built the engine, I installed a racing cam but found it was too hairy for street use with an automatic, so I swapped it out for a tamer cam with hydraulic lifters after a few months.

I installed a Ford Econoline front axle assembly, including brakes, with leaf springs and a steering damper like they have on Jeep Wranglers; 15 inch wheels were used all around. I rewired the car and converted it to 12 volts. The engine ran really well with just a four-barrel carb and a Stewart-Warner electric fuel pump mounted by the tank.

I used black leather bucket seats in front but can't remember what they came out of. The back seat and door panels were reupholstered with black vinyl, and a new black carpet installed with soundproofing under it. A nice stereo unit was added, and I fabricated an air-conditioning system using parts from a '65 Chevy and an aftermarket kit; the evaporator was mounted right behind the glove box door. I hand-made the ductwork that fit under the dash from sheet aluminum. That sucker got so cold, it spit ice-cubes out at times!

This was probably the car I owned the longest: about 5 or 6 years. After putting it up for sale, I sold it to the first guy who came to look at it, around 1973.

Ken's Green '55 Chevy 2-Door Sedan

2011-01-27T16:24:00.011-05:00

Sometime after I sold the white '58 Impala (see earlier post) around late 1964, early 1965, I got this green '55 2-door sedan. (I think I might have sold the Impala to the guy who owned this green 2-door and this car was part payment.) It was a six-cylinder, stick... a really basic car. (Click on any image to enlarge.)

It had been repainted mint-green by a previous owner, and the body was fairly straight, but suffered from some rust on the fenders over the headlights. I meant to do some body repairs and customizing on it so I took off the chrome from the hood and deck but never filled the holes. I removed all vertical bars from the grille except the center one (cheap & easy modification) and installed an extra set of headlights (wide-angle high beams, for night driving on rural country roads) behind the grille.

I installed '56 Buick tail light lenses in place of the originals and "baby moon" wheel covers.

One day, a friend of mine stopped by my house; Billy Squires worked for a wrecking yard part time. He had his tow truck outside with a '58 Olds engine hanging from the back of the truck. He said, "I brought you a present." He also brought along a set of heavy-duty front coil springs for my Chevy; I think they were from a station wagon.

I put the Olds engine and transmission (and the new coil springs) in place of the originals. Shortly after, I took this car on our honeymoon when I got married. We did "the clock" with it on a new highway that was just built up in the Poconos; it handled very well at that speed.

Interior was stock except for added gauges on either side of the radio (oil pressure, engine temperature, etc.) and a fire extinguisher mounted under the dash. Note the cheap upholstery and overspray by the door jamb. I sold the car before I even fixed the rust.

Some Local Boys' "Shoeboxes" ('49 - '51 Fords) from the 1960's

2010-12-05T22:41:00.032-05:00

Up until now I've posted lots of photos of my own cars on this blog (and there are more to come) but very few of those belonging to friends and acquaintances back in the day. So, let's look at some '49 - '51 Fords (commonly known as "shoeboxes) that tooled around the streets of Queens back in the 1960s. These cars were plentiful and cheap so a very popular vehicle for guys with low budgets to customize and soup up.

(As usual, click on any photo to enlarge it.)

My memory is getting worse as I get older but, for some reason, I remember this guy's name was Paul. I met him at the White Castle on Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn where we used to hang out .
Paul's '51 2-door hardtop (how rare is that?) was mildly customized and had the usual dechroming on the hood and deck. The center grille "peak" was removed and '50 Ford grille shell chrome surrounded what I think was an early 'Vette grille; '55 pontiac side trim was added to separate the black and mint green paint job.

In the rear, a continental kit, '59 Caddy tail light lenses, and fender skirts were added. After seeing my Mint Julep (see first post on this blog) Paul asked me to add some scalloping for him so we did mint green on the black and black on the mint green, naturally!

This '49 or '50 belonged to Billy Squire's brother, Sy, from Glendale. It featured a complete dechroming, tunneled headlights, and a DeSoto grille (a popular choice for these cars back then). I don't remember what was under the hood and I think this is the only photo I have of this car.

My friend Ken Szekretar, from Glendale, had quite a few nice cars during the '60s and this '51 was his second. Above is a scene from a typical Saturday when we would work on our cars in the front of my house in Richmond Hill.

Ken eventually dechromed the whole car, removed the outside door handles, and had louvers punched into the hood before rounding the corners over the grille opening. The grille was fabricated from '53 Chevy parts and the rear wheel openings radiused. Altering the front springs set the car on a rake. (Note my Mint Julep II parked behind Ken's Ford, down the block from the place where we worked in Glendale.)

While most of the photos on this blog are added from scanning original negatives, I couldn't find the one for the engine in Ken's '51; the scratches on the well-worn photo are evident. A near stock '56 Olds engine was shoehorned under the hood and mated to the ford three-speed trans. Note the external oil filter mounted on the firewall (to the left in photo) due to a lack of room under the car near the steering linkage. The electrical system was converted to 12 volts.

Ed Talerine of Richmond Hill owned this '51 2-door sedan. Featuring the usual dechroming and shaved doors, and a louvered hood with peak removed, Ed added '50 Ford grille mouldings surrounding another DeSoto Grille. Wheel covers were spun aluminum, another popular choice in the '60s.

In the rear, Ed took the chrome trim off the sides by the tail lights and placed it on top of the quarter panels, frenching in a set of '55 Ford tail lights.

This '49 convertible belonged to our paperboy, Bill Baggellar (?); while he was still in high school he worked on this car (just like I did, but I didn't have a paper route) a couple of blocks from my house . Once again, the usual dechroming and tunneled headlights are seen.

Obviously, a work in progress. (At the upper left,

in front of his car, my '55 Chevy convert can be seen.)

Bill replaced the 239 cubic-inch Ford engine with a Merc 255 c.i. flathead for a little more power (another easy and popular swap).

More cars to follow...

The Rest Of Ken's Cool Cars ('58 Impala)

2010-12-03T23:39:00.013-05:00

One of the guys in a local gas station loved my red '55 Chevy convertible and offered to trade me his '58 Impala so I took him up on his offer. I started by dechroming the hood and deck and repainting the car (white again) with the center of the side moulding deep red. (Click on any photo to enlarge.)

I made up red plexiglas tail light lenses in the rear and added shims under the rear coil springs to put the car on a slight rake. It had a 348 cubic-inch engine with a four-barrel carb and dual exhausts when I got it, and automatic transmission.

I removed the lower center section of the front bumper and replaced the grille with a single chrome bar to continue that "slim" look in front. The parking/directional lenses were replaced with frosted white plexiglas.

I believe I only had this car from mid 1964 to early 1965 but I can't remember who I sold it to. It was replaced with a green '55 Chevy two-door sedan (see future blog entry). Hey! Check out the 1964 NY "World's Fair" license plate in the photo below.

I don't exactly remember all that I did to the engine; I do remember driving into Brooklyn to pick up an engine block from someone, that I installed in this car, and I believe that was a 409 block. I remember the heads had been reworked; I think it had oversized valves and larger ports.

The Rest Of Ken's Cool Cars ('55 Chevy Convert)

2010-12-03T23:10:00.011-05:00

After the Mint Julep (my first car/see the first post on this blog) I had traded or bought several cars to simply drive or fix up to sell, including a '54 Ford and a '56 Olds. The first one I came across that I really wanted to keep for a while was this '55 Chevy BelAir convertible, previously owned by the minister of a local church. It was red and white with a 265 cubic-inch engine and powerglide transmission; a really sweet car. I owned this from about the spring of 1963 until mid 1964 when I traded it for a '58 Chevy Impala (see future blog entry).

(Click on any photo to enlarge.)

I nosed and decked it, removed the short vertical pieces of chrome on the rear quarter panels, the small "V8" emblems under the tail lights, and all of the vertical chrome bars in the grille except the center one. (The dark vertical lines on the door in the photo below are the shadows of utility wires above the driveway.)

I heated and molded new tail-light lenses from red plexiglas to replace the original tail & back-up lenses, and had it painted Garnet Mist, a red GM color. I moved the rear license plate from the trunk lid to the bumper and occasionally drove with some fancy Oldsmobile wheel covers.

I added dual exhausts with scavenger pipes out the rear, a Duntov 3/4 race cam with solid lifters to the engine, and an SW tach on the dash, leaving everything else stock.

Although it was no speed demon, it did manage to take a first place trophy at Islip's 1/8 mile drag strip in A K/S (Automatic "K" Stock class).

Trip Back To Richmond Hill, Aug. 25, 2010

2010-08-26T12:03:00.030-04:00

I was in the old neighborhood and had my camera with me so I took a few shots of some things you might remember if you grew up there. Sorry this may not be of much interest to you if you weren't from the area.

(Click on any photo to enlarge.)

The corner of 127th Street & 95th Avenue, with the Youngs' house on the corner.

A full view of Youngs' house with Mc Cauley's house to the right of it.

Youngs' house from the front.

My old house at 127-04 95th Avenue.

Hattie & Nettie's old "general store" has been renovated again;

looking really nice!

Hattie & Nettie's place with Walsh's old house on the left.

Jones' Candy Store is now a deli/bodega.

Smokey Oval Park is now officially

"Phil 'Scooter' Rizzuto Park" because

he played a few high school baseball games here (!?)

Looking along the walkway at the park,

looking west toward Jones' candy store corner at 125th Street & 95th Ave.

The basketball & handball courts.

We used to play stickball on this large flat area

in front of the park house; it's been planted over for many years.

The north side of the handball courts, looking toward the park house.

Looking at the ball field from the handball courts.

Chuck Johnson's old house stood on the corner of

127th Street & 94th Ave.

His address was 127-04 94th Ave.

even though it took up two lots and faced 127th Street.

(Above photo copied from Google Maps online,

which still has the view from about the late 1990s or early 2000s.)

These new homes have just recently been built on the site of the

Johnson property and are still unoccupied

(at the time of this post)

but the addresses are 94-01 through 94-11, 127th Street.

These two houses were built on the vacant lot

we use to play in next to Chuck's house, on 127th Street,

but they've been there for many years now.

There is another new house a little further up the street

on the right in this photo.

I don't know if it's on the site oif the old Dowd's place

of if the old Dowd's place is the house next to it, on the left.

Below is a video of the park, taken from the corner of 95th Ave. & 126th Street.

From The Vaults of the Museum

2010-08-17T22:20:00.012-04:00

I love old stuff, especially things I remember from my childhood or earlier. First of all, they're historic in their own way and, most often, much better made than things are today. Many items in my Nostalgic Museum are from the house I grew up in; other things I found at garage sales, flea markets or eBay. Sometimes, I receive gifts from people who know how much I enjoy these old objects.

Let's take a look at some of the stuff in the Museum's Vaults

(click on any photo to enlarge it):

An old friend and neighbor of mine had been a postal carrier (mail man) and came home one day, telling me about this great old stand-up radio that someone on his route was throwing away and had put it by the curb for trash pick-up. I asked him where it was, because I really wanted it, but he had anticipated that.

"I asked the homeowner to move it to the side of his house, in the driveway, because I knew you'd want to go and get it."

I was at a flea market in Pennsylvania many years ago when I spotted this item on somebody's table. "It's a tail light lens from an Oldsmobile," the guy said.

I replied, "No, it's from a '55 Buick... how much do you want for it?"

Later, when I met up with my wife, she looked at the lens and asked, "What did you buy THAT for?"

I replied, "For twenty-five cents!"

This Boraxo can was a recent gift from a friend who knows how much I appreciate this kind of stuff. He found it at an antique shop where he was doing some work and bought it for me. It brought back real memories; it's just like the can we used to keep on a shelf in our kitchen when I was growing up in the '50s & '60s.

Back in the days when you'd bring your shoes to the shoe-repair man in your neighborhood, he would use Cat's Paw heels to make them like new again.

I found this not TOO old stamp machine at a flea market in Cape Cod. The guy selling it wanted sixty bucks for it; there was no way I would have paid that much for it. Besides, all I had in my pocket was a twenty. Just before leaving the market, I went back and offered him the twenty for it.

"Make it forty and it's yours," he said.

"Nope," I replied, "twenty bucks is all I've got and all I'd pay for it even if I had more."

I guess he was tired of carting it back and forth to the flea market 'cause he finally said, "Take it away."

My older brother bought this TeleTone Model TV220 portable television sometime in the early 1950s; it was manufactured in 1949. It still worked into the 1960s and I managed to salvage it from my brother's house after he died. It makes a great conversation piece!

The top machine is an original Sony Betamax that my brother owned; it worked into the 1990s but, for some reason, won't play any more.

The machine beneath it is the first VHS machine I ever bought, probably in the 1970s; made by GE, it sold for $639 when new. At the time, blank VHS tapes cost $14 a piece!

This old piano stool was in my brother's house when he died. During the clean-up before selling the house, I had to throw out a lot of stuff; we utilized four thirty-cubic-yard dumpsters! One of the items I wanted to keep was this piano stool, which I remembered from my childhood, but I tossed it anyway.

About seven years later, I was at a flea market in Wallingford, Connecticut, and spotted a piano stool just like the one I threw in the dumpster. Upon closer inspection, I found the diagonal saw cut I had made in the seat while cutting a piece of wood, as a teenager. Of course, two stools might have had the same kind of cut in them. But this one also had the "K" I had carved in the wood surface many years before.

Of course, I bought the piano stool back for five dollars.

Sittin' On The Side Of The Road

2010-04-26T22:30:00.020-04:00

Many times when we visit our daughter in Wallingford, CT, I drive down Pent Highway as a shortcut around traffic to Route 5 (North Colony Road in that area). And, every time I do, I'm greeted by this view on the side of the road, of a bunch of vintage cars just rusting away. Most of them are from the 1940s or 1950s and have had work performed on them but most are in need of a lot more work before they could be put back on the road.

(Click on any photo to enlarge it)

After some snow hit the area this past winter, I happened to have my camera with me so I stopped to take some photos. I also met the owner of G & J Body Shop (whose name I've forgotten) who also owns all the cars. I asked him if any of them were for sale. He said, "They're ALL for sale; I'm looking to sell them so I can buy more property."

So, if anyone is interested in a project, you might call (203) 265-7066 and tell them you're interested in one of the old cars. The body shop is at 17 Pent Highway, between N. Plains Industrial Highway and Route 5; the cars are in a nearby yard by J & J Custom Cycles (next to the railroad tracks).

This '47 or '48 Ford convertible is in probably the best shape of the cars from that decade. It's got a chopped top, some dechroming, but not much else has been done to the body.

This looks like a '65 Ford Fairlane but I could be wrong; that's not one of the cars I consider myself and authority on. Actually looks like it's in the best shape of any of the cars.

Judging by the rear window in the first (overall) photo, this looks like a '50 Merc two-door sedan that has a chopped top and some radical headlight treatments that were never finished. The hood corners were also rounded but the trunk lid is missing and there's lots of work needed to put it on the road again.

Next to the Merc, you can see a '52 or '53 Ford two-door hardtop which I forgot to get a photo of. The body looks pretty good but I think it needs interior work.

I believe this is a '41 Ford Coupe and, if I were younger and had a little extra cash, I'd have bought this thing and taken it home already... I always wanted a '41 Ford coupe! It looks stock as far as I can tell.

The original engine is under the hood but needs some obvious work (including a carburator, which is missing).

In the back of the building are more old vehicles; judging by the fenders and grille shell, this looks like a '34 Ford truck to me (possibly a dump truck).

Judging by the parking lights, this is a '46 or early '47 Ford coupe in pretty much stock (and rough) condition.

And, again from the parking lights, this is a late '47 or '48 Ford coupe. If I remember correctly, this one had some damage to the right-rear quarter section.

This looks like an old Ford frame with a late-model Chevy engine; whatever it was, it looks like it caught fire at one time.

Also on the property are some garages that people rent from the body-shop owner. One of the renters owns this '55 or '57 Studebaker pick-up truck. (This one's used every day and NOT for sale.)

Oyster Bay Cruise Nights, 2009

2010-01-18T23:33:00.029-05:00

Many communities and towns have cruise nights where people bring their antique, hot rod, customized, or otherwise collectible vehicles on a particular evening and display them so other folks can appreciate them. The town of Oyster Bay, Long Island (New York) reserves Tuesday nights from May 5th to September 29 for their events. A stage is also set up and there's always some kind of entertainment going on for everyone's benefit. Admission is free for onlookers and participants pay $5 per vehicle to display.

Following are some of the rides I photographed on two separate nights this past summer and fall of 2009. I may add some comments but I'm not going to include a lot of data on each photo as I didn't take notes and don't want to post any incorrect information. Perhaps you'll be able to identify all the makes, models and years yourself; hope everyone enjoys.

If you enjoy any entries on my blogs, feel free to leave a comment.

As always, click on a photo to enlarge it.

There are also many cool cars in the surrounding parking lots

that are not part of the formal display. This 1951 Mercury was one such vehicle.

There are always plenty of stock (or nearly stock) vehicles on hand
like this this 1951 Ford...

and this 1953 Mercury two-door hardtop.

The engine from this old ice-cream truck is shown below.

This may look like just another mildly-customized Chevy
from the 1950s but the workmanship and paint on this one is superb!

This is a new car being custom-built in limited numbers
on a Corvette chassis called the Chevy 789;
it's got the front end appearance of a 1957 Chevy,
the side look of a 1958, and the rear of a 1959 Chevy.

Bausert European Roots (Update)

2009-09-16T21:44:00.010-04:00

The genealogy research on my ancestors that I completed in 2007 culminated with the publication of a booklet comprised of all of my findings to that date. Research can be an ongoing journey, however, so I’ve passed along updates to members of the families involved from time to time. The following information builds upon other data that I discovered previously.

The original Bausert family (my ancestors) that emigrated to the USA in 1866 was comprised of Johannes Joseph Bausert and wife Christine Barbara (nee: Schultz); they arrived in New York with six children (one having died during the voyage). According to German emigration papers and the ship’s registry, this family had lived in Wildbad.

Wildbad is located in the southwest corner of present day Germany in the Wüertternberg (or Baden-Württemberg) state. The town sits beside the Gr. Enz River, about 50 km (31 miles) west of Stuttgart, Germany, and 40 miles northeast of Strasbourg, France–just across the Rhine River (Rhein in German) which serves as the border between the two countries at that point. Wildbad Sprollenhaus is a few miles to the south, Wildbad Calmbach is a few miles to the north, and Neuenburg another 5 miles north of that. Freudenburg, Germany, is about 110-120 miles to the northwest of Wildbad in the Saarland state. At certain times, the entire Germany/Poland region was known as Prussia or Prussen.

All Bauserts (and Bausserts, where spelled differently but verified as the same families) I’ve researched that had a town affiliation in Germany were from the towns listed above; most others that only listed a region said they were from Baden, Wüertternberg, Saarland, or Prussen.

The only other Bauserts found outside of Germany in the 1700s were in France. Those families lived in Launstroff, Waldwiesse, Flastroff, or Creutzwald; all towns within the Lorraine province, in the northeastern Mosselle River Valley area. Creutzwald is about 45 miles north of Strasbourg; Flastroff is about 20 miles further north, Waldwiesse another 10 miles, and Launstroff an additional 5 miles.

(Click on map to enlarge it.)

The French towns where Bauserts lived are lined up
on the west side of the border with Germany.

The greatest distance between Bausert families living in the region of France and Germany/Prussia during the period of 1700 to 1900 was perhaps 110 miles as the crow flies (between Wildbad, Germany and Launstroff, France). However, it was only about 5 miles from the Bauserts in Launstroff, France, northeast across the Saar River (border) to Freudenburg, Germany, where other Bauserts lived.

(Click on map to enlarge it.)

The town of Wildbad (or Bad Wildbad) in Germany
(on right edge of map)
and Creutzwald, France (on the upper left edge)
about 120 miles apart.

The Alsace-Lorraine provinces have long been claimed–and fought over– by both Germany and France so it’s not hard to imagine all of the Bauserts within this immediate area being related. Unfortunately, it has been difficult finding the families that provide the crucial links to prove with certainty the relationships of all the French and German Bauserts.

Car Show at the Imperial Palace - Las Vegas

2009-08-04T14:02:00.034-04:00

We visited Las Vegas (Nevada) and Albuquerque (New Mexico) this past June (2009). I was surprised to find an ongoing car show at the Imperial Palace Hotel/Casino, featuring lots of old/Antique/Collectible and Custom cars, of all Makes and models. There was an admission charge but some free tickets were available so, if you're planning on going, l0ok online for them. Most of the vehicles were for sale; many had their hood open so a full-image photo really didn't do it justice. Following are a sample of what was on display.

(Click on any image to enlarge it.)

This 1951 MG TD was on display on the casino floor,
offering a taste of what was in the larger show upstairs.

1954 Nash Metropolitan.

My personal pick for "Best In Show" was this
nicely customized 1940 Pontiac Convertible
featuring a chopped top
(no easy feat on a convert).

The paint job was totally AWESOME; looked like it was an inch thick!

In case you're wondering, the tail lights are
frenched into the vertical bumper guards
(making the rear look clean but a very dangerous location for street use).

Alfa-Romeo "Bat" prototypes from the mid-1950s.

A 1933 Pierce-Arrow.

A very rare 1953 Ford two-door hardtop with half glass roof.

The origin of the term, "Woody," from Ford in 1937.

Stock 1954 Chevy two-door sedan, same colors as
the '54 four-door Ro's dad had when I met her.

This 1949 Ford was mildly customized on the outside
but featured an Impala dashboard from the late 1950's inside
and eye-catching paint job with restrained scallops.

The listing claims it's a "350 cu. in. engine with 2 four-barrel carbs
and a Turbo 400 transmission";
I believe it's a Chevy 350 Hemi conversion .

Twin antenni are recessed into the right-rear quarter panel
and the stock tail-light lenses are neatly frenched in.

The Marty Himes Museum

2009-08-03T22:11:00.016-04:00

Marty Himes began his career in 1955 as a stock car race driver at the now defunct Freeport Raceway on Long Island. He went on to become one of the most successful guys in the sport of racing, eventually winning 3rd place in the Formula Libre, at Lime Rock Race Course in Connecticut in 1989.

He began an unorthodox hands-on museum in 1975 containing any and everything related to auto racing as well as the toys and artifacts of his life. It’s open to anyone, for free, who gives him a call and makes an appointment; the photos from my recent visit represent only a fraction of what you can experience yourself.

(Click on any photo to enlarge it.)

Marty with a yard full of his old stock cars.

The original ticket booth from Freeport Raceway

has been transplanted to Marty's place in Bay Shore.

Dexter Park not only held stock car races
but hosted minor-league baseball games during
the early part of the twentieth century. It closed in the 1950's.

Marty, with a home-made scooter from his youth.

Marty drives his 1938 Plymouth regularly.

You won't find gas at these prices any more.

Islip Speedway hosted stock car races
as well as 1/8 mile drag races; it closed in the 1980's.

An Irish Mail, hanging in one of Marty's garages:

popular in the 1940's, you moved the handle back & forth
with your arms to make it go and steered with your feet.
(I had one of those!)

I had one of these, too; a plastic toy ice cream truck from the 1950s.

(For more about Marty, visit http://www.thehimesmuseum.vze.com/).

Old Richmond Hill, Revisited

2009-06-04T22:38:00.051-04:00

On a recent Monday in May, 2009, I had to judge a camera club competition in Manhattan at 7:30 PM. Rather than drive or take the train into the city during rush hours, I decided to make a day of it and pay another visit to the New York City Archives, on Chambers Street. The main attraction for me are the thousands of old file photos of buildings within the five boroughs, taken between 1939 and 1941, for property tax purposes and available to the public. (Please check out my earlier entry on this blog for more about the NYC Archives.)

I took the Long Island Rail Road out of Hicksville, then the "A" train to Chambers Street, a few blocks from the Surrogates Court Building where the archives are located. I planned on arriving in time for lunch so I ate a sandwich I had brought along while relaxing in the park across the street from the court building.

The last time I visited the archives, I had addresses from old homes in Brooklyn that various members of my family lived in during the early 1900s; luckily, I found most of what I was looking for. This time, I was searching for buildings and businesses I remember from the Richmond Hill, Queens, area that I remember from growing up there in the late 1940s and 1950s.

I figured if I could find a 1940 photo of a place that I remember from the 1950s, chances are it would look the same. I was fairly successful, although the quality of the photos is pretty poor to begin with and I had to print out a paper negative at the archives before turning it into a positive image on my computer. I thought about going back to Queens and photographing some of the sites the way they look today, to compare how certain scenes look compared to the 1940s. But, many of the buildings I sought to find are still standing; they're just not occupied by the former shops and proprietors so I didn't think it was worth the effort.

If you grew up in Richmond Hill, or the surrounding areas like Ozone Park or Jamaica, you'll probably recognize many of the following scenes. If you were not from the area, maybe you'll still appreciate a look back at the way Queens was in the early twentieth century.

Hattie & Nettie's "general store" was built at 127-10,
95th Avenue, before 1900 and
before any other houses were built on the block!
(Click on any photo to enlarge.)

Groulings (sp?) Bakery (on the left) was at the corner of 127th Street
& 101st Avenue (formerly Jerome Avenue and,
before that, Broadway!)
There was a barber shop next door around 1940 but
it moved a couple of doors to the right (east) and
became "Tony's" when I was growing up in that area
during the 1950's.

The Casino movie theater was located just west of
114th Street on Liberty Avenue under the "el."

The Lefferts movie theater was located at
122nd Street & Liberty Avenue.

The "Triple AAA Stores" auto store, circa 1940;
I worked in that store part time
from 1959 up to the late 1960s for the owner, Sid Ableson.

I remember a Times Square store on the corner of
Woodhaven & Rockaway B'lvds
but I don't think this is it (it's not on a corner).
If anyone remembers where this was, please let me know.

I also don't remember where Becklers candy store was
so, once again, if you remember it, let me know.

A couple of months earlier, I had paid a visit to the Queensborough Public Library Archives on Merrick Boulevard, in Jamaica, Queens. There, too, I was able to browse through old photos of Richmond Hill but the quality of most of them is much better since I was able to re-photograph the actual old prints with my camera. There are also old photos available there for viewing on computers but the quality of the prints resulting from those files is not nearly as good; there are also "copyright" notices watermarked across the images.

This is the Woodhaven Junction station
(Woodhaven B'lvd & Atlantic Avenue),
around 1900, when the LIRR tracks were still above ground.

The Clarenceville station, around 1900, at
111th Street & Atlantic Avenue.
(That part of present day Richmond Hill
was originally called Clarenceville.)

The Morris Park LIRR station,
at Lefferts B'lvd & Atlantic Avenue, 1900.
(Yes, that section was originally called Morris Park.)

A rare photo of a rare LIRR station: Dunton!
The part of present day Richmond Hill,
from 126th Street to Van Wyck B'lvd
(today, the Van Wyck Expressway)
was originally called Dunton.
This was at Atlantic Avenue & Van Wyck B'lvd, circa 1922.
(Please see my earlier blog entry
for more on Dunton, Morris Park & Clarenceville.)

Sheffield's Milk Company (Atlantic Ave., from 130th Street to
about 134th Street, in 1935- shortly after it was built

Another view of Sheffield's, this time looking east, in 1936.

The Parish House for St. Benedict Joseph, Labre,
Catholic church in 1938.

The "annex" for P.S. 57, at 101-23, 124th Street, in 1938.
The main school building can be seen
on the left edge of the photo.

On this portion of a 1900 map (above)
of the Dunton/Morris Park area,
you can see the engineer's blue lines at the top
outlining where the widened Atlantic Avenue would be
(drawn in around 1930, before the work was performed)
with its familiar "S" turn by 129th & 130th Street (Maure Ave.)
I've indicated in red type the current avenues,
drawn a large square around what became
Smokey Park, and a small rectangle around the block
which housed a body shop and the Atlantic Auto Parts store
during the 1950s. Wickes was to become 127th Street;
Villa, 126th; and Cochran, 125th Street.
I've drawn a thin black oval with an arrow pointing to
the location of Hattie & Netties store
(store seen in first photo, near top of this post).

One of the blocks that comprised Smokey Park,
also built in the 1930s, is enlarged below.
There were very few homes in the area at the time
as evidenced by the lack of yellow boxes on the lots.

(Map photographed from archival book
at Queensborough Library.)

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Westhampton Drag Strip, Yesterday & Today

2009-05-20T22:14:00.026-04:00

Billy Stein and Ed Talerine

in my '50 Merc at the entrance to

Westhampton Drag Strip, in 1961.

Back in the 1950s and 1960s, anyone with a

hot rod or custom car on Long Island

headed to a drag strip at Westhampton

most Sundays.

This was a 1/4 mile track where cars raced

in classes outlined by the

type and weight of the car, size of engine,

and extent of modifications overall.
Two cars at a time started from a

standing stop and those with the

lowest elapsed time won each "run".
By a process of elimination, one car in

each class would emerge the final winner.

I shot the following photos

during the early to mid 1960s.
(Click on any photo to enlarge it.)

The Dodge above ran with a

471 cubic inch engine and
turned 112 M.P.H. during its run

for "Street Eliminator" trophy.

The white '59 Chevy was a

constant winner at 'Hampton
as evidenced by the numerous

"kill" decals on the rear quarter glass.

'47 Ford convert (above)

had a late model Buick OHV 8 engine;
belonged to one of my friends

from the 116th Street garages.

1955 Ford from another of the guys

at 116th Street,
photographed on Sunrise Highway

along the way to the strip.

I recently ventured back to the site of the

Westhampton Drag Strip on a rainy weekday

and found that Timber Ridge Homes has

built a housing development on the site.

A gated community portal replaces

the old entrance to the drag strip.

The homes on the left are

about where the pit area and stands used to be;

the street in the middle is

about where the drag strip once was.

The area on the left being cleared

for more homes is about where the

spectators' parking lot and stands once stood;

the new road is about where the

drivers once returned after a race
on the "return road."

(Any comments on the old drag strip?
...Or its replacement?)

A Visit To The NYC Archives

2009-04-23T16:01:00.009-04:00

I’ve heard a lot about the New York City Archives (NYCA) from other people tracing their genealogy but never had the need to visit since much of what I was looking for was available on-line. Sites like Ancestry.com have much of the information that you would normally need to search for in the archives, like birth, marriage, and death records.

But I’ve always wondered about the old houses my deceased relatives lived in when they first came into this country, or in the years before I was born; I had no chance to see or visit some of the sites that no longer exist. I also have old photos of people, like my parents, grandparents, or great-grandparents, standing by certain old houses or buildings, and would really like to identify them so I’d know where the photos were taken and in what time frame.

I recently learned that the NYCA, located in the Surrogates’ Court building at 31 Chambers Street, in Manhattan, had hundreds of thousands of old photos on file. These were pictures that were taken of every property in the five boroughs for tax assessment purposes between 1939 and 1941. I finally decided to visit on Wednesday, January 14th, with Ro’s cousin, Anthony. He was curious to see if he could find photos in the archives of the building where he lived as a very young child, over a store in Brooklyn, to show his grandchildren. He was also searching for images of his uncle’s Italian Bakery and other scenes from the past.

Easily accessible by the Long Island Railroad into Penn Station, and the A,C,E, 1,2,3, or 4,5,6 trains to the Chambers Street or Brooklyn Bridge Stations, the old court building is a fascinating destination by itself. Quite imposing from the outside, with massive stone columns and façades, the inside is a treasure of marble and granite floors, walls and staircases. The woodwork and doors are all quite bold and ornate as well, and handmade mosaic tile designs adorn many of the hallways

Upon entering the structure, you must check in with two security guards at a table where you show photo identification, are photographed, and issued a self-adhesive photo ID badge that you must wear until you leave the building. From there, you pass through an airport screening-type area, complete with a conveyor belt x-ray machine to check for weapons or bombs, I suppose.

Fortunately, the archives are located on the first floor but we got a chance to check out other parts of the building, and the fourth floor, when we decided to visit the men’s room; that’s accessible with a key from the agency you’re dealing with (in this case, the archives), after leaving your original photo ID (driver’s license) and retrieving it upon your return. You can see that they’re quite paranoid about losing their key to the rest rooms.

Once inside the large Archives room, you can see dozens of computers and microfilm reading machines available to folks. There’s a charge to utilize the computers and databases for birth records and the like, and charges for copies of same. But, if you’re simply looking up old photos, there’s only a fifty-cent charge for each photo you decide to print through a computer printer beneath your station.

I didn’t look close at the reels but I think the images are “negatives” on film. In any case, the projected photos on the screen are “positives” although the photos I printed out were “negatives.” If you have a computer and scanner, these can easily be converted back into “positives” after returning home and scanning the images, then opening up the .jpg’s in PhotoShop Elements, and clicking on “Image>Adjustments>Invert.” At that point, you may also want to make a photo lighter, darker, or improve the contrast, as some of the old pictures in the Archives are pretty bad. Some are downright unusable due to deterioration over time and others may have been taken during adverse conditions (low light, harsh shadows, etc.)

Note: I've since discovered during a second visit that you can print out either a "positive" or "negative" image by selection the appropriate setting on the computer terminal at the archives. Whoever used that station before me during my first visit had it set to print out "negative" images and I think they give better detail than the "positive" image prints do.

If you’re looking for an old photo of a house your grandmother lived in, for example, you need the block and lot number to find it. Since most people don’t have that, you can go to an area of books in the room to look them up; there are four books on Brooklyn. The books are quite worn and contain what are probably copies of the original 1940’s maps, but they look to be very old and may be the same books in use for decades.

In my case, I took 84 Starr Street–where my mother and her parents lived around 1902–and found Starr Street in the index of book 2. I located number 84, and then was directed to page 76, which contained a map with several blocks of properties and their corresponding streets. After locating 84 Starr Street, I discovered the block number to be 3186 and lot number 47. Next, I had to go to a file cabinet, find the microfilm index roll that contained that block & lot, insert it into a machine and scan until I found that block number and lot number; I was then given the microfilm reel number (Q-4875) that contains the images of that block and lot. Then, I took the index reel out of the machine, went back to the file cabinet, found the proper reel number (Q-4875), brought it back to the machine and inserted it, and scanned that reel until I found the block and lot in question.

84 Starr Street (around 1940). Click on image to enlarge.

There’s only one little hitch: the block numbers are mixed and not in any order on the reel. For example, you might start with block 3124, which may have the images of the properties/homes on lot numbers 1 through 35, and then find a black space followed by block 6120, lots 20 through 45. After another black space, you could find block 251, lots 1 through 7; ironically, block 251, lots 8 through 30 could be on an entirely different reel . Granted, you would learn this when you searched the index but it gives you an idea how confusing it can be. The bottom line is, you may have to look through an entire reel before finding the one you’re looking for even when you have the correct reel.

If all you were looking for is one house, it’s really not a big deal; a little time-consuming, but pretty straightforward. In my case, I was looking for over a dozen old locations including 84 Starr Street (see above); 516 Central Avenue, where my mom and her parents lived after Starr Street (book 2, map on page 96, block 3389, lot 33, on reel M-3656); 494 Lincoln Avenue, where my father’s family lived until 1914 (book 2, map on page 114, block 4201, lot 33, on reel S-5658); and 738 Madison Street, where the Bauserts moved after Lincoln Avenue (book 1, map on page 180, block 1647, lot 25, on reel T-5953). The photo of 738 Madison was of really bad quality but, fortunately, this house is still standing and I’ve already visited it and photographed it (published in previous issues of my printed/paper version Ken Chronicles).

516 Central Avenue (around 1940). Click on image to enlarge.

494 Lincoln Avenue (around 1940). Click on image to enlarge.

2007 view of (driveway space) where 494 Lincoln Avenue used to be.
Click on image to enlarge.

I was also looking for 754 Bergan Street, where my father’s mother’s family lived around 1880 (book 1, map on page 114, block 1147) but, I couldn’t find a lot number. The lots on each map are only about a quarter-inch by one-half inch in size, and there’s so much writing on the page (lot numbers, dimensions, house numbers, distances from lots to streets, etc.) that it’s often hard to find the number you’re looking for. In addition, to save space, they start the house numbers on a block with 110, for example, and after that just list 12, 14, 16, etc., skipping every-other number; similarly, the lot numbers are sometimes alternately eliminated as well, so by one lot, you may find both an “8” and a “10” and have to figure which is which. Let’s just say it’s not the easiest task you’ll undertake.

When I tried to locate 254 and 262 Forbell Street, where the Bauserts moved after Madison Street, I was reminded that in 1940, it was called Forbell Avenue... no big deal, right? But while I found the block and lot with no problem, there was a blank space next to each on the index reel.

I asked the clerk at the desk about that and she replied, “Oh, that means no one knows for sure which reel those photos are on... they could be anywhere.” Once again, these houses still stand and I’ve already visited and photographed them so I wasn’t too upset.

It’s obvious to feel frustration when you run into problems during these searches but you have to keep things in proper perspective. The original photos were taken over the course of three years and their negatives and positives must have taken up a massive amount of space when originally produced. The mere fact that these hundreds of thousands of photos were scanned or catalogued at all, and exist in a searchable form after seventy years, is pretty amazing so some problems are bound to pop up and must be discounted.

I don’t imagine too many people will have a desire to go through what’s involved just to look at some old photos but, if you’ve got the urge, it can be a very enlightening experience. Besides, just seeing some of the old stores and cars depicted in many of the old photos can be lots of fun.

The Jamaica Swimming Pool

2009-01-23T22:27:00.005-05:00

In yet another example of how the “good ol’ days” really were better, allow me to present a page torn from an advertising booklet of some sort that I found in my parents’ papers after they passed away. It’s obviously from 1938, judging by the text of the 50¢ coupon, and depicts a very lively scene where the local residents enjoyed the pleasures of the Jamaica Swimming Pool (which was actually in Richmond Hill, formerly Dunton, as Jamaica begins on the eastern side of the Van Wyck Expressway–correctly pronounced Van Wyke).

(Click on image to enlarge)

My brother Harold used to frequent that pool and, from what I’d been told, won prizes there for his swimming and diving skills. I remember the pool still being at its location, at the southwest corner of 101st Avenue and the Van Wyck Expressway (formally Jerome Avenue and Van Wyck Boulevard, and before that, Broadway and Van Wyck Boulevard) when I was growing up there in the late 1940’s and throughout the 1950’s. It was closed and looked abandoned for most of the years that I lived in the area.

At some point in time when I wasn’t looking, they tore it all down and erected the building seen below (view of the southeast corner from the southbound service road of the Van Wyck; 101st Avenue is at the upper right).

I never really knew what it was used for; it was probably some light manufacturing business or maybe the home base for a construction company. Whatever it was, it isn’t that anymore and has become another boarded-up, graffiti-emblazoned eyesore. What someone should do is tear it all down and put up another swimming pool for the local residents to use!

In Search Of Dunton

2008-12-23T22:45:00.038-05:00

As a child, growing up in New York’s borough of Queens, I’ll admit I had it pretty good. It was not like living in the country, with farms and great wide-open spaces, but not as congested as being in Manhattan or Brooklyn. In spite of its relative suburban placement, we were still close to major transportation, shopping and recreation sources.

Most of the houses in my neighborhood could be considered "Archie Bunker-style" houses, fairly close-together on 25 x 90 foot lots, for the most part. There’d be an occasional smaller house and a few much larger ones, each style probably much older than the majority, remnants of farms or summer property that had been there before most of the others were built.

My mother and her parents moved into their new house in 1925; it had two stories plus a basement, and an attic for storage. The first-floor railroad-style rooms consisted of an enclosed front porch, a living room, dining room, and kitchen with a breakfast nook and walk-in pantry. Upstairs, there were three bedrooms and the only bathroom in the house; access to the attic was via a ladder in the center bedroom closet, so it was mainly used for storing Christmas decorations in boxes.

(ABOVE: My grandparents and mother
sit on the stoop of their house
when they bought it in 1925, and
BELOW: the same house in 2007)

The best part about the new area was its relative quietness and lack of congestion. It seemed more country-like than some more densely populated areas; there was a “general store” in the middle of my mom’s block of otherwise residential homes. Operated by two elderly ladies, Hattie and Nettie carried the kinds of things you’d probably find in a 7-11 today. But there were still quite a few vacant lots, barely-paved streets, and relatively few cars to be found on those streets.

(Tom, the ice cream man brought us treats back in 1954,
when this photo was taken.
In the background is Hattie & Nettie's "general store."
BELOW: The same street in 2007.)

I was born in 1943 and, by that time, the area had seen a steady escalation of home-building. Two blocks to the west, on a corner of two streets with more residential dwellings, was Jones’ Candy Store and a small carpenter’s shop next door. A block further west, again in the middle of blocks of houses, was Ruprecht’s delicatessen. There were more commercial areas, of course, all within walking distance to our house. Two blocks to the south ran 101st Avenue, where you’d find taverns, restaurants, gas stations, and small stores like a barber shop and a bakery. Going two blocks further to the south brought you to Liberty Avenue, where it was much busier and solidly lined with bigger businesses–clothing stores, movie theaters, banks, etc.

One really surprising fact is that, when my mother first moved into the neighborhood, diagonally across the street were four square blocks of homes. In the mid 1930’s, the homes were demolished and a huge playground with ball fields was erected; it opened in 1938. Atlantic Avenue bordered it on the north, 95th Avenue on the south side, 127th Street its east side and 125th Street its west side. This new complex became known as “Smokey Oval Park”, due to the abundance of smoke in the area from the Long Island Railroad’s coal-burning locomotives constantly going by on the other side of Atlantic Avenue.

(The northwest corner of

127th Street and 95th Avenue;
ABOVE: homes and stores around 1930
and BELOW: the park complex in 2007.)

From as early as I can remember I knew that we lived in Richmond Hill. But, from time to time, as I walked through the neighborhood, I saw hints of another name: Dunton. The most prominent sign was on a tavern on 101st Avenue called, “The Dunton Barn”. It was still operational when I was a young boy and I knew my parents frequented the place occasionally; it served food and had live music and dancing, along with the traditional drinks found at any bar.

To the west of my neighborhood was the Morris Park Long Island Railroad train maintenance yards. Just across Atlantic Avenue from the yards to the south, was a small park–a block long and maybe fifty feet wide–with trees and benches; I just always assumed that was Morris Park. There was also no pressing reason for me to investigate the question of Dunton or Morris Park either... until recently. You see, as I’ve been researching my family’s roots, I’ve come across so much extra information that answered questions that had lay dormant for most of my life.

I have a large post card collection and, years ago, came upon a post card of the Richmond Hill Railroad station; but it was much further north than where I lived. Then, I found a post card with the Morris Park Railroad station on it, at the intersection of Atlantic Avenue and Lefferts Boulevard; but they wouldn’t create a station just because that tiny park was there, would they? No, the park is actually on the site of the former railroad station!

Well, between the post cards I found, maps and the history of the Long Island Railroad, and information I uncovered while researching my family’s roots, I’ve finally solved another couple of puzzles.

As a boy, my family always referred to 101st Avenue as Jerome Avenue; indeed, there was even a Jerome movie theater on it, so I accepted the fact that street names often change. One of the first things I discovered was that all of the streets in my neighborhood originally had proper names that were converted to numbers; 95th Avenue had been Chichester Avenue, 127th Street had been Wickes Avenue, and 97th Avenue had been Beaufort Avenue.

Growing up, I attended P.S. 55 from Kindergarten through 6th grade. As I walked to our school at 131st Street and 97th Avenue I passed an old building at 130th Street that looked like it might have once been a small school. At the time I was growing up it was being used as offices for the Department of Sanitation. In recent years, while trying to look up old friends on Classmates.com, I found reference to Maure P.S. 55, and wondered where they got that name from; I never remembered it from my days as a student there. It turns out that the old building at 130th Street and 97th Avenue had been the original P.S. 55, and 130th Street had previously been Maure Avenue, so the newer school retains that name to this day.

I always knew Richmond Hill had two zip codes. Even before the post office initiated the five-digit zip, there was a Richmond Hill 18, and a Richmond Hill 19; today it’s 11418 and 11419. The reason for that is there was an original Richmond Hill and an extended Richmond Hill that we know today.

According to an online article I found from the Queens Borough Public Library, dated April, 1939, BULLETIN # 647 Page 20:
“Dunton was developed and named in the eighties (MLD notes that this refers to the 1880’s) by the late Frederick W. Dunton, a nephew of Austin Corbin, president of the Long Island Railroad. Mr. Dunton was the president of the "Bicycle Railroad" and became interested in the development of real estate on Long Island in 1883. He built good houses and sold them to desirable citizens on easy payments. The village of Dunton was made up of small farms prior to this time. Mr. George Maure, after whom Maure Avenue, now 130th Street, was named, was actively connected with the progressive enterprises of Queens County. He was commissioned by a New York syndicate to purchase large tracts of land on Long Island, and later became associated with Mr. Dunton. Together they invested a large amount of money in real estate in this section and laid out several towns, of which Dunton was one.”

“The early maps of the community indicate that Dunton proper extended from Atlantic Avenue to Jerome Avenue, or Broadway, as it was called in those days, and from Van Wyck Boulevard to 126th Street. The section between Jerome Avenue and Liberty Avenue, then called Centerville Avenue, was Dunton Park. If the library had been in existence at that time in its present location it would have been in a section called Liberty Hills.”

So, it looks like Dunton was a very small area, indeed, since it’s only eight blocks from 126th Street to the Van Wyck Boulevard (today, the Van Wyck Expressway), and three blocks from Atlantic Avenue to Jerome Avenue (for a total of 24 square blocks). If you include the so-called Dunton Park it would nearly double the acreage because, while there are fewer blocks in the Dunton Park area, most of them are larger than those in the Dunton proper area. Through that article I also found that 101st Avenue–which had also been called Jerome Avenue–had previously been called Broadway!

(Click on the map to enlarge it.
The dark magenta area on the above map was Dunton;
the lighter magenta area was Dunton Park.
A magenta dot by the railroad tracks
just north of Atlantic Avenue
is where the Long Island Railroad
Dunton block tower stands.
The small red square at 126th Street
is the site of Smokey Oval Park.)

Further online searches indicate that Morris Park was another community built by Mr. Dunton, although a book I found on Richmond hill claims that the community was developed by William Zielger. According to an online article:
“The place was so called because many years earlier it had been owned by a Mr. Morris. It had formerly been known as Morris Grove, originally a ten acre tract of woodland enclosed by a rail fence and with a crude frame structure which served as a shelter against rain. It was a favorite picnic ground for many years. The railroad established a station there and called it Morris Park.”

Morris Park seems to have run from the 126th Street western border of the community of Dunton to some number of blocks west of Lefferts Boulevard, and probably from Jerome/101st (or maybe even Liberty) Avenue to either Atlantic Avenue or possibly a few blocks further north. The church of St. Benedict Joseph Labre is located one block west of Lefferts, on 118th Street, and an historic marker at its site claims it was built originally in Morris Park, so we know the community extended at least that far west. There is a photo in the book I found about Richmond Hill showing the “Morris Park Hotel”, at the northeast corner of Atlantic Avenue and Lefferts Boulevard (opposite the Morris Park LIRR station).

An 1873 map in the Images Of America Book on Richmond Hill shows the original boundaries of that community to be from Jamaica Avenue on the south, to Park Lane South (the southern bordering road to Forest Park) in the north, Lefferts Boulevard to the east and 109th Street, to the west... a pretty small area by today’s standards. According to that map, Clarenceville was immediately to the south of Richmond Hill’s southern border of Jamaica Avenue and it presumedly went to at least Atlantic Avenue, where the Clarenceville LIRR station was located at 111th Street. Clarenceville was named after Clarence Miliken, the teenaged son of one of the original settlers; it extended east to border Morris Park.

According to an online article, “The original village of Richmond Hill was at one time a summer garden area with many wealthy denizens coming only for the summer. Many of the homes in that northern area had music rooms, libraries and domestic quarters in their homes.” The book on Richmond Hill also states, “The town was conceived when Albon Platt Man and Edward Richmond purchased the Lefferts farm on June 29, 1868. The earlier village of Clarenceville was established in January, 1853.”

It goes on to state that in 1895 the three hamlets of Richmond Hill, Clarenceville, and Morris Park incorporated into the Village of Richmond Hill... but it doesn’t say when Dunton was included into the fold. The Present day (approximate) boundaries for Richmond Hill seem to be: on the north- (still) Park Lane South; south- Liberty Avenue; west-Woodhaven Boulevard; east- the Van Wyck Expressway (even though the Jamaica Hospital is situated on the west side of the Van Wyck, just south of Jamaica Avenue). Jamaica is located just to the east.

A while back I came upon a Dunton Presbyterian Church as I searched the internet for connections to my old neighborhood, but it’s actually in South Ozone Park at 109-29, 135th Street. Ironically, my wife Ro’s grandfather lived near that church before his passing, many years ago. I stopped to photographed it on a recent trip home from Brooklyn. It’s about a half-mile from the Liberty Avenue border of the old community of Dunton, so I can only assume that the congregation may have originally been located somewhere else and moved to its present location–or the church is named for someone named Dunton.

(The Dunton Presbyterian Church.)

Recently, I drove into the Richmond Hill area to take some photos of the neighborhood I grew up in; to be more exact, I was trying to find whatever remained of the old community of Dunton. The one place that had always carried the name (the Dunton Barn) is now a laundromat, although the building itself has not changed too much. Nearly all of the original businesses I remembered from my childhood are gone and, in many cases, the buildings themselves have been renovated or replaced by newer ones.

(A laundromat occupies the site of the former Dunton Barn.)

There are probably very few people living in that part of present-day Richmond Hill that even know Dunton ever existed... unless you talk to someone that works for the Long Island Railroad. You see, back around 1898 to around the turn of the century–along with the Clarenceville and Morris Park stations–there was actually a Dunton station on the LIRR. I recently discovered an old map of the area–and the railroad–which places it at the intersection of what is today Atlantic Avenue and the Van Wyke Expressway. I thought that was odd since it's only a short distance from there to the current Jamaica railroad station. However, I've since learned that the original Jamaica train station was further east from its present location, making more sense when considering the distance between stations.

Railroad employees will immediately recognize the name Dunton because there’s still a block tower near 130th Street, where an employee oversees the operation of trains within a designated block of track; this includes managing the traffic and switching of trains around the nearby Morris Park Maintenance facility (which, since this article was originally written, has been demolished!). It’s a good thing I decided to take the time to photograph the block tower, with its original Dunton nameplate; it’s scheduled to be demolished soon and replaced by a series of computerized switches and relays in adjacent metal sheds marked “Dunton”. This is probably the last place in the area still bearing the namesake of the original community and–with the new switching sheds in place–will probably be the only site to carry on the name for posterity.

(The old block tower and modern metal sheds
are the only objects to retain the original Dunton nameplate,
as seen in these 2007 photos.)

As I drove west on Atlantic avenue from the old Dunton area, I stopped by the church I attended as a child, St. Benedict Joseph Labre (the only parish in the world under the patronage of that saint, according to an historic marker in the adjacent garden). The original wooden Gothic church was built in 1892; a school was opened in 1913 and a modern, brick church with cloister garden was finished in 1941.

A bit further west along Atlantic Avenue, I was surprised to find the S&S Speed Shop still in business–at the corner of 107th Street–looking very much like I remember it from 1959, when I used to hang out there with all the other custom car and hot rod enthusiasts of the area. I stopped to take a few photos and then decided to go inside to satisfy my curiosity.

Back in the “old days” the owner, John, ran the place with his young son, Richard, helping out behind the counter. I always loved his daily mode of transportation: a ‘49 Ford pickup truck with a supercharged Oldsmobile engine tucked under the hood. Of course, no one I knew drove a stock car back then; my first car was a fully customized ‘50 Mercury convertible with an Olds engine. Upon entering the store, a man behind the counter greeted me; I told him I was curious to check out the place as I’d been a customer nearly fifty years ago. He said, “Oh, you probably remember my father, then.”

(The original S&S Speed Shop,
at Atlantic Avenue and 107th Street, as seen in 2007,
and LEFT TO RIGHT:
Richard, Robert and John, Jr., the current owners.)

I was amazed to learn that I was talking to the original owner’s son, John (Jr.), and that his other sons, Richard and Robert–as well as Robert’s son, Rob, Jr.–were now running the place. The speed & parts store, as well as a full machine shop, were still in operation after sixty years and still in the same family. We talked about people who frequented the place over the years and many familiar named popped up. We also discussed the neighborhood and how it changed over the years. We all remembered Maybee’s “Chicken In The Basket”, which was just across the street from the speed shop; my wife and I ate there often. Sadly, it–and so many other places I remembered–are just memories now. After reminiscing with the guys for a while, I promised to return one day with my photo albums of old cars and the guys from the neighborhood who owned them.

A particularly interesting event I remembered from growing up in Richmond Hill was the construction of the Van Wyck Expressway, named after the first mayor of the unified New York City, Robert C. Van Wyck (properly pronounced “van-WIKE” and rhyming with "like"). The southern section, from the Belt Parkway to Idlewile Airport (now JFK) was completed in 1950. The section from the Belt Parkway to Kew Gardens, passing near the area where I grew up, was completed two years later; so, I was seven to nine years-old while that section was being built.

What I remember most was that a large apartment building (between 97th and 101st Avenues) originally in the center of the current expressway path, had to be moved about the length of a football field to the west. I’d told that story so many times over the years that I recently wondered to myself, “Did that really happen?” By googling the “Van Wyck Expressway”, you can access a website at http://www.nycroads.com/roads/van-wyck/, and find a message from another former resident of the neighborhood who remembers the event well, confirming my story.

(ABOVE: The white apartment building in the center of this photo,

seen on the west side of the Van Wyke Expressway,
was at one time right in the middle of where the expressway now runs.
BELOW: The building's main entrance used to be on the north side-
right side in photo-but was changed to the opposite side after the move.)

The other thing I recall vividly was that the entrances and exits on the Van Wyck were so close together in a couple of places that they had to be torn apart during construction and rebuilt; there was simply no room for a car on the expressway to exit while another car was entering from an adjoining ramp. Even as I was driving home from this current trip into Richmond Hill, I entered the Van Wyck from the service road between Atlantic and 95th Avenues only to find that the exit to Liberty Avenue began even before I was fully merged with traffic on the expressway... still a dangerous design.

I remember sitting on one of the swings in the playground at Smokey Park, during the 1950’s, and watching the freight trains go by on the railroad, across Atlantic Avenue. Once, I counted over a hundred and forty cars on one freight train. They were curving around a track going northwest, probably en route to the freight yards on Lefferts Boulevard, just south of Jamaica Avenue, near the original Richmond Hill station that’s no longer in use. As a kid, we used to play in those freight cars after they were unloaded while they sat there waiting to be shipped somewhere else. Sometimes, we’d find stuff that had been left behind after they were unloaded; we often got chased by the railroad yard security guards.

The freight yards are gone now; in their place is a large parking lot for the big supermarket that was built there sometime in the 1960’s, I guess. I saw a freight train on my recent visit to the old park; I wonder where they unload them now. I’m sure there aren’t as many as there used to be, with tractor-trailers hauling most of this country’s freight nowadays.

The old neighborhood that I knew so well is not really gone but changed forever. Older homes are being maintained, renovated, or–in many cases–demolished to make way for newer structures, often multiple family homes. Many families have more than one car as well, causing the once peaceful, empty streets to be cluttered with vehicles; parking has become such a precious resource in Queens now that homes with driveways fetch much more than those without, and garages translate to even more thousands of dollars on the price of a house.

Like everywhere else in our country, increasing numbers of people and cars have become a negative force to the quality of life. Throughout the past 100 years or more, however, Dunton and Richmond Hill–like so many communities–have had to change with the times. And, as in other towns and cities all around the country, people will continue to change, as well, adapting to those times.

Updated information added August, 2011.)

Searchin' For My Roots: Family Reunion

2008-12-15T18:13:00.009-05:00

Memorial Day was celebrated on May 26th this year, nearly a full week before its original designation of the 30th. I usually don’t like to travel on that weekend due to the likelihood of heavy traffic but I had been looking forward to a particular trip this year and that seemed to be the ideal time frame. Ro had additional days off from school due to some “snow days” not being used this past winter so we were able to plan a trip whereby we wouldn’t have to leave or return home on the heaviest traffic days–the Friday and Monday.

As many regular readers of my Chronicles are aware, I’d recently finished my genealogy research, during which I located a cousin on my father’s side of the family, and another on my mother’s side, both of whom I’ve never met. I had written several times over the months leading up to Memorial Day weekend, proposing that Ro and I visit with them at their homes. John and Norma Jean Bausert live in York, Pennsylvania, and Warren and Ray Gehrt reside in Dover, Delaware–two locations that are relatively close. Both couples were excited about the idea so we packed up and logged the addresses into my Garmin GPS.

After arranging our itinerary, I called John Bausert, my close cousin who lives in New Jersey with his wife, Nancy, and asked if they'd like to meet another John Bausert. Of course, he had learned of the existence of the other cousin with the same name we had never met, and when I told him we were going to visit him, he planned to join us in York. He’d take his own car, however, since he was going to have to return home the following day. (Our cousin in York is related through his grandfather being my (and my other cousin John’s) great-grandfather’s brother.)

We met on the afternoon of the 22nd, and drove over to John and Norma Jean’s home. We had suggested going out to dinner somewhere together, after meeting and exchanging family-related stories and photos, but Norma Jean wanted to prepare dinner for us. We had brought wine and she set a beautiful table in their sunroom, overlooking a garden, and made a sumptuous meal and a couple of desserts. We learned a great deal about a branch of our family that we had not known much about previously.

Left to Right: Ken, John (from Jersey) and John (from York).

Ro and I left after breakfast on Friday and headed over toward Baltimore. Along the way, I found a couple of antique shops to browse through, and arrived in “Charm City” in the afternoon. We were staying at a Comfort Inn & Suites near the airport, so it took about five or ten minutes to get into town from our hotel.

Our friends, Kenny & Mona, have a daughter who married and moved to Edgewater, MD, near Annapolis; Nancy had told us about some good restaurants in Canton and Fells Point, the areas just north of Baltimore’s city center. With the help of my GPS, we were able to find the places with no problem; parking, it seems, is another story. The area is heavily residential and there’s not much space available for people trying to drive into the area and go to the restaurants.
On our first night in town, we visited Nacho Mama’s, a very noisy place with a long wait for a table and a very unique blend of Tex-Mex. It was worth the wait, however, as I enjoyed a great Philly Cheesesteak Cassadilla.

While we were seated at our table, a young woman was walking by our area on the way to the rest rooms. She stopped when she saw us and said, “Kenny and Ro!” It turned out to be one of Nancy’s friends who had moved to the area from New York before Nancy and Scott had followed suit. We had met her a few times over the years but I would certainly not have recognized her if I passed her on the street. The last time they talked, Nancy had told her we were going to be in Baltimore so I guess it was less of a surprise for her to find us in that place than it was for us to imagine someone actually recognizing us.

The following day, I visited Geppi’s Entertainment Museum and was quite impressed with the array of memorabilia on display. One room had numerous old toys that I remember from my childhood, another had old TV’s and radio’s, and everywhere you looked were old movie and advertising posters. On display were the largest collection of vintage comic books–many in exceptionally fine condition–that I’ve ever seen in one place, at one time.

Some of the hundreds of vintage comic books on display in Geppi's Museum, in Baltimore.

Comics are Steve’s forté, but I was really impressed with a special video booth he set up that had a couple of old comic books digitized and available for reading, by “turning the pages” at the press of a button. The very first Donald Duck comic from 1941, “Donald Duck Finds Pirate Gold” was one of the two stories available, and it’s quite possible many visitors to the museum would be viewing that rare book for the first time.

Ro and I also walked around Baltimore’s inner harbor area, revitalized as a tourist destination much the same way San Francisco, Boston, and New York’s South Street Seaport have attempted to do. The best part of that visit was finding a Barkers Frozen Custard stand, easilly as good as Ritter’s in Florida, overlooking the docks.

The next day, we drove over to Nancy and Scott’s in Edgewater; they fixed us all a nice lunch and then showed us around their area. A couple of blocks in one direction is a small, private beach; a few blocks in another direction brings you to a calm boat launching area. Their house looked smaller in the pictures they originally sent out after moving but I thought it was much larger inside than it appears from the outside. I think they found a really nice place in a fine location, since they love the water and boating so much.

The beach near Nancy and Scott's place, in Edgewater, MD.

On Sunday, we drove over to Delaware and checked into the Sheraton Dover. There are way more hotels in the area than I think necessary, since there doesn’t appear to be much in the way of tourist attractions. However, the Dover Raceway hosts a major NASCAR race every Memorial Day (fortunately for us, scheduled for the following weekend) and there is some gambling starting to bring people to the area. After scouting out the immediate area and finding nothing much of interest, I contacted my cousin and confirmed out visit with them for the following afternoon. By evening, Ro and I were in the mood for Chinese food so we found a good-looking place and bought take-out to bring back to our room.

The following afternoon, we drove a short distance to Warren and Ray’s place, where I met my cousin for the first time. Warren’s father, Rudy, and my mother were cousins (Rudy’s mother and my mom’s father were sister and brother, who came over to this country a few years apart, around 1900). One of Warren’s sons, Russ, had driven an hour to see us this day since he was especially impressed with the booklet I had made up to document our genealogy. He asked me to sign his copy, making me feel a bit like a celebrity. I had brought many old photos and papers relating to our families that Warren, Ray and their son really enjoyed seeing. They showed me many old pieces of furniture and other items that had been handed down though their family throughout the years, affording me with a glimpse into the past as well.

Left to Right: Ray, Russ and Warren Gehrt.

On Tuesday, Ro and I packed up and headed back to New York. By traveling after the weekend was over, we managed to avoid traffic and make good time getting home. We even found gas on the Jersey Turnpike selling for $3.74 a gallon when the price on Long Island was well over $4.00. As you might imagine, the lines at the gas stations along the Jersey Turnpike were filled with cars bearing New York plates.

In Search Of The Lembke Farm

2008-11-12T14:42:00.001-05:00

I've got a lot of old photo albums that were inherited from my family. In one book, there are photos of my mother at a place called The Lembke Farm, where she would vacation before (and around the time) she met my father (1924-1926). I have since found out that many farmers would rent out rooms to people from the city seeking an inexpensive week or two in the country, to help supplement their income; sounds like a bed & breakfast or dude ranch concept. Since I was a child, I'd been looking at these photos from the Lembke Farm and wondering where it was located. I never thought to ask my mom before she passed away in 1980.

A few years ago, while doing my genealogy research, and going through some old family papers, I discovered letters my mom wrote to my dad from the farm; they were postmarked "Leeds, NY." Leeds is a small town in the Catskill Mountains, upstate New York. I decided to try and find the Farm (or whatever was left of it).

For Father's Day weekend, 2004, my son, Ken, and I were camping in the Catskills and decided to look for the Lembke Farm. Armed with copies I made of the old photos, we drove to Leeds (near Catskill, off Route 23, just west of the NYS Thruway) and drove around looking for houses that looked like the one in the photos. We also asked people in town if they had ever heard of the place; some folks thought they knew where it was and directed us to what, inevitably, turned out to be wrong.

Stopping at one house we found that looked similar, however, we met a man who actually knew of the Lembke family; he went to school with the grandson of the original owner of the farm. In addition, he directed us to where that man now lived (in Catskill, about five miles away); we drove over and found the place. After knocking on his door and showing him my pictures of the old farm house, Ernie Lembke told us all about the old farm (he was born in that house) and gave us directions to find it. He told us his father had died just a few months earlier to our visit, at the age of 101, and undoubtedly would have remembered my mother.

"I'm sure he would have loved to see those photos and talk to you about the old days," he said.

We eventually came upon the place and met the current owner of the house, Mrs. Alma Veverka. She was amazed to hear of our search and filled us in on the history of the farm, showing us additional photos from her collection as well.

(The Lembke Farm, in 1925)

(The house in 2004)

(Side additions had been added to the house by the time of this 1926 photo; back to front & left to right: "Marie (another guest as the farm), Ernie (Sr.- the man who passed away shortly before my visit), Madeline (my mom), Mrs. Klopfer, Fred, Mrs. Curtin, Louise & Mr. K" as the writing on the back of the photo tells us.)

(My son, Ken, poses with the current owner of the house in this 2004 photo.)

(1925 side view of the main house & guest quarters.)

(2004 side view.)

All photos © 2004 by Ken Bausert.

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Hot Rods & Custom Cars from the 1960's

2008-11-10T14:43:00.012-05:00

The Mint Julep I - Owner: Ken Bausert

Location: Richmond Hill, New York

(One "new" photo added to this section Dec. 2, 2010. -Ken)

My first car was a 1950 Mercury convertible,
bought on May 11, 1959 at a cost of $125.
I was fifteen years-old and worked on it

after school and on weekends.

The earliest modifications included

shaving the hood & deck,
shortening the side trim,

making up a custom grille using pieces
of discarded side trim,

and lowering the tail lights two inches.

(Above, "new" b&w photo added.)

By the time I graduated high school,
the first incarnation of Mint Julep was complete.
The car was lowered two-inches in the rear,
custom accessory tail lights had been added,
'57 Merc Cruiser Skirts were installed with
'54 Merc chrome teeth and lowered side trim to match.
The car was painted mint green and I added
black scallops. The cat on the

deck lid was courtesy of the film, 101 Dalmatians.

The headlights were tunneled by molding in

'54 Merc rims and chrome bullets

replaced the original parking lights
which were relocated behind the grille.

1954 Buick portholes were set into the hood
and helped to cool the engine compartment.

The engine was a '51 Merc with Fenton finned aluminum
high-compression heads, a four barrel carb

on an Edelbrock manifold
and the intake & exhaust ports were enlarged.
An electric fuel pump and

duel-point ignition were also added.

The dashboard was covered with

padded rolled & pleated vinyl
and new uphostery was added.

The floor shift came from a '57 T-Bird.

The outside door handles were removed and

operated by hidden push buttons

and a keyed electric cut off switch.
This shot was taken on 69th Place,

in Glendale, near Ken Szekretar's house.

The full-length chrome Lakes pipes were
spliced into the exhaust system
and functional when the end caps were removed.
Note the old general store (Hattie & Nettie's)

on 95th Avenue,
between 127th & 129th Streets,

in Richmond Hill, in the left background.

Me (at 17 years of age) and the Mint Julep;
all modifications were performed by myself
with the exception of the mint green paint job,
the upholstery and new convertible top.
Plaque hanging under the rear

is from the 1320 Crusaders
(a car club I formed with some friends).
1,320 feet is the length of a

1/4 mile regulation drag strip.

Billy Stein (in the driver's seat)

and Eddie Talerine,
two friends from the neighborhood,
pose with my Merc outside the entrance to
Westhampton Drag Strip on Long Island

(circa 1961).
All photos are from my personal collection

to the front end, I began remodeling the car again.
Twin radio antenni were mounted in a two-inch deep
recessed oval on the right door.
The '57 Merc Cruiser skirts were

welded to the body & molded in; a radiused opening

to match the front wheel opening
was cut into the skirts to access the rear wheels.
A scoop was cut in the front edge of the skirts

and a slim piece of chrome moulding

extended into the opening of the scoop.

The rear of the Cruiser skirt was extended

and wrapped around into a rear grille cavity

on each side of the license plate.
1962 Pontiac Bonneville tail light assemblies
were installed in each rear cavity.
The gas filler cap was welded closed and

molded into the left rear quarter panel
(the new gas filler was installed in the trunk).

Me and the second incarnation of the Mint Julep,
photo taken on the north side of 95th Avenue,
between 127th & 129th Streets,
(there is no 128th Street at this location,
in case you're wondering).

Ah! I was finally able to afford color film.
The paint was hand-rubbed
metallic Neptune Green lacquer,

a GM color, I remember.
I think Sal Consiglio and I painted it in his garage.

(Two "new" color negatives were discovered

in an envelope in a cigar box

and added to this section Dec. 2, 2010. -Ken)

The car sat on a slight rake

(lower in the front/higher in the rear)
and two long chrome scavenger pipes
brought the exhaust out the rear.

(Above, one of the "new" pix.)

The hood corners were rounded,

and 1954 Buick headlight rims were
frenched into the front fenders in a canted fashion;
slim chrome bullets replaced

the original Buick parking lights.
A 1954 Oldsmobile grille was shortened

and installed with hand-cut frosted plexiglass lenses
to create the new parking/directional lights.

(Above, one of the "new"pix added.)

The front bumper was removed and the pan rolled

with a license plate housing created in the center.

Most creative welding and metal work

on this renovation project was performed

by my friend, Paul Wood (Woody).
All finish work was done by myself.
(Wow! I just realized how little tread

was on that right front tire!)

The Merc engine was replaced by a '54 Oldsmobile
(324 cu. in.) "Rocket" V8,
running nearly stock with

just an electric fuel pump added.
The car was completely rewired

and ran on 12 volts.
Transmission was standard '50 Merc for a while,
then the Merc trans with '39 Ford gears
(better low-end acceleration), then a

Cadillac LaSalle transmission for a short time
before switching back to a Merc.
All modifications, unless otherwise noted,

were done by myself.
All photos from

my personal collection and © by Ken Bausert.

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