LIRR History (Valley Stream) and Surrounding areas.

[Dave Keller]

OK. One mo' time.

The original station location, if you look at the pink map on Art's site, was located in the southwest quadrant of the crossing of Rockaway Avenue.


Remember that maps are usually drawn with North being straight up at the top of the page.

The station location is indicated on the map as a rectangular structure and identified as "depot."

It WAS at grade back then.

It WAS east of today's Valley Stream station.

[EdM]

well, the station platform just about goes over the hicks street underpass,actually past it, as there was car parking inder it west of Hicks, and that has been true since 32/33. from the west end of the Valley station one could see (b4 early 50's) the central ave crossing with its gates, and maybe further west even the ??Terrace Place?? grade crossing... I have to check a map for the name of the street,....... when Curtis Field was three runways shaped like an "A", that grade crossing gave access to it (and Sunrise)and Beckmans Tackle shop was right there before it moved towards Lynbrook a few miles..I drove a car on those runways as late as 53 or so, and we flew model airplanes there, but the runways had trenches across them to scare away landing air traffic...for Green Acres, read Curtis Field....I worked in the early sixties in the Hangers, made low freq acq antennas and wr2100 waveguide DEW Line stuff. BTW, check your email... Ed

[SR4501]

Hello. I have lived in Valley Stream for 39 years. Although I do not have memories of the old Valley Stream Station, I know of friends friends that belong to the VS historical society, and usually hang around the Pagan Flethcer museum. I do remember back in the 70's seeing long coal trains going past valley tower on there way to Island Park? I belive and I could here those alcos working that train from my elementary school on Horton Avenue. I also have memories of being up in Valley Tower when my grandfather was alive since he worked for the Pennsy and the LIRR. It is cool to see the history of what the area use to look like. Nowadays, when I can, I just take a walk along the tracks (path along Sunrise Hwy) and head to the bandshell. It is amazing how much Valley Stream has changed even after working at my parents deli (K&K) for 15 years and I graduated Valley Stream South in 1989. The VS historical society is a great place to start for information.

[feisner]

Hi Ed,
So the train was actually accessible from all of the grade crossings? It must have been a very, very long train. I don't imagine that it stopped 3 times in Valley Stream. Am I correct?

I envy you your model plane flying in what used to be Curtiss Airfield. When I was a kid growing up in V.S. in the 50s and 60s I saw those old runways but at the time I had no interest in what they were. That's pretty astounding, given my current level of interest in V.S. and history in general. I used to think that V.S. was just a boring bedroom community, and not a very attractive one, at that. Go figure...!

Fran from Valley Stream

[feisner]

Those of us who are still living here should organize a Valley Stream LIRR walk. I'm sure this has been done many times before but as you all know, I am new here.

Fran from Valley Stream

[EdM]

[quote="feisner"]Hi Ed,
So the train was actually accessible from all of the grade crossings? It must have been a very, very long train. I don't imagine that it stopped 3 times in Valley Stream. Am I correct?

not really.... the key words were: "from the west end of the station... Elsie Kay

[feisner]

Can't you see why I may have thought the grade crossings provided access? You said:

when Curtis Field was three runways shaped like an "A", that grade crossing gave access to it.

But perhaps the grade crossing was used as an extension of one of the runways. If so...that must have been quite a sight...! But now I'm kidding; you probably meant that someone could drive or walk across the tracks there, to the airport. Right?

Fran from Valley Stream

[EdM]

I could have been more clear I guess... That grade crossing gave access to Sunrise from north of the tracks..It was just another crossing, with gates and a little man, a small hut, and a small coal fired potbelly stove with a pile of coal outside,. As I mentioned before, the two gateman were connected by a buzzer to alert each other of an approaching train... if you continued south on that road, across sunrise, you found yourself on Curtis Field, though there were other access points to Curtis... I believe that the tracks went back elevated again as they ran west to Rosedale.... Elsie Kay

[Jazz]

Amazing, i found this by chance, using google and seaching VS history.

The topics trace my footsteps growing up in VS, living on Avondale st and feeling the vibrations as the LIRR trains pass along cochrane pl.
my Family moved there in 1962.

a few comments from this trail, as i walked VS and had the same questions in my mind then.

Just east & north of the Roosevelt ave LIRR trestle was a Bohacks supermarket my mother and i would walk too as a kid, it bacame a bakery then a private office. Just east and south was the old Colony bar, then Rockys, them Il Begato resturant. I spent many happy hour's in there, i worked on Rockaway ave across the street in my late teens.
Between Rocky's and the trestle was an abandoned bldg since the 60"s. I always wondered what was there and never heard.

I commuted from the VS LIRR station to NYC in my 20's. I would stand on the platform & recall walking to the VS Pool after getting my "Junior" pass with friends. We'd walk past Hoppels, down the creek, wondering about the old pump house in the VS village green next to Sunrise hwy/LIRR. the Stepen King "IT" novel fit those feelings looking at the mysterious creek feeding to the tumnel.
Exiting the LIRR from NYC i would go to the Railroad inn under the tracks, The vibrating beer glasses as trains passed overhead was unique.

Oh, and i recall my mother asking me to walk to the Third Base on Roosevelt ave, and tell my Dad that dinner was ready, and come home.
The candy store on the opposite end of that bldg was called Jacks, i believe. i would see commuters stoppoing in walking home for the LIRR station.

Many questions were answered by a frieds mom who used to visit the area as a kid. She explained the lake behind the VS Pool was a sandy beach with swimming once.
The section from Avondale st - Farifield was called "Old Gibson" after the Walter Gibson the developer who build it in the 1920's. I suspect its Old Gibson, as newer "Gibson" developments claimed that name in the 50's.

I could type much more, anyways, if anyone see's this, i hope it rings familiar.

Jim
VS South 79

[EdM]

Yes,can confirm Bohacks, which may have become Safeway (not sure), bakery, Third Base, hardware store across Rockaway where Roosevelt dead ends, Friend of mine (Bergdahl) worked there in the fifties, he just passsed on last year [2010].. Wifes' father owned hardware store/tydol station in triangle Cochran Place & DuBoise in fifties.. Nuns from St Marys used to con him out of Benj Moores paint.. VSCHS'55

[MADDOG]

Yes,can confirm Bohacks, which may have become Safeway (not sure), bakery, Third Base, hardware store across Rockaway where Roosevelt dead ends, Friend of mine (Bergdahl) worked there in the fifties, he just passsed on last year [2010].. Wifes' father owned hardware store/tydol station in triangle Cochran Place & DuBoise in fifties.. Nuns from St Marys used to con him out of Benj Moores paint.. VSCHS'55

If you are referring to the Hardware store in Gibson by the traffic circle, that was owned until it closed by Harry-Harrys hardware was right next door to Gibson Deli-Ziggys place. The corner has been an Italian restaurant, Goldys for as long as I can remember.
Most of the stores on Rockaway ave where the other hardweare store mentioned have been knocked down from Sunrise hwy-south.
Still miss the burgers at Wetsons, where McDonalds is today, the hotdogs too when it was Nathans.
MADDOG

[Sir Ray]

Yes,can confirm Bohacks, which may have become Safeway (not sure), bakery, Third Base, hardware store across Rockaway where Roosevelt dead ends, Friend of mine (Bergdahl) worked there in the fifties, he just passsed on last year [2010].. Wifes' father owned hardware store/tydol station in triangle Cochran Place & DuBoise in fifties.. Nuns from St Marys used to con him out of Benj Moores paint.. VSCHS'55

If you are referring to the Hardware store in Gibson by the traffic circle, that was owned until it closed by Harry-Harrys hardware was right next door to Gibson Deli-Ziggys place. The corner has been an Italian restaurant, Goldys for as long as I can remember.
Most of the stores on Rockaway ave where the other hardweare store mentioned have been knocked down from Sunrise hwy-south.
Still miss the burgers at Wetsons, where McDonalds is today, the hotdogs too when it was Nathans.
MADDOG

Wetsons?!? I'd be happy if Roy Rogers was still there. When Roys closed most of their franchises, they sold out to mostly McDonalds (like there weren't enough freaking McDonalds on Long Island), giving us for a while the odd phenomenon of two McDonald's within easy sight range of each other (the other McDonalds, a McDonald's express, is where the Chicken BBQ is now). Rockaway Avenue's more or less a joke now, 4 or 5 nail salons, some beauty palors, 99c stores, don't recall if any Gold buying places have popped up on Rockaway yet, but there are at least 2 nearby - oh, and more than a few empty storefronts - whee! At least Morris Discount still lives, more useful stuff than the 99c stores, and more hard to find items than Target/WalMart*.
I wonder if they cooked up that Retail/Residental complex plan (mentioned in passing by MADDOG) just to get rid of the "Adult" oriented store (which never bothered me). Heck, I'm not sure if anyone even lives at Hawthorne Court, overlooking the beautiful West Hempstead branch - still not quite sure about why Inflight Newspapers closed, but then again neither was the Newsday nor the Herald certain either.
Hey, they're selling the car-wash on Rockaway & Sunrise - Read the Realtor Ad, but don't tell the employees, its a surprise! (Seriously - from the ad Do not approach - employees do not know about the possible sale.. Maybe some railroad.netter can buy it and remodel it to resemble the original Rum Junction station.
However, progress is being made in Valley Stream! After about a year and a half, the West Valley Stream Blvd bridge spanning the east-most stream flowing south thru the Village Green (it's name was probably mentioned in some previous post in this thread) has been reopened - after a year and a half of construction I expected something to rival the Robert Moses Causeway, but instead its a glorified culvert...
Finally, Home Depot has claimed another one - Central Hardware is going out of business, if they haven't closed already it will be soon.

[EdM]

The hardware store at the end of Roosevelt on Rockaway was Browns, it took overnight for that name to bubble up. .. I haven't been even thru VS in years. I thought, matter of fact, I am almost positive, that Wetsons' demise was caused sometime in the sixties by reports of their using horse meat in their burgers. In fact I think it only took them about two years to die, tho they were all over. This was well before McD rose to fame. There is still an ex-Wetsons in Bay Shore just east of the dialasys place which became a used car lot then a car rental place.. I know nothing of a cement wall around/on the lake and remember well when the entire southern 1/2 of the lake was surrounded with all white beach sand and the constant smell of the chlorine @ Franklin & Fairview in summer..

[EdM]

No, the one by the circle east of the LIRR was the other one..My fathr in law told me of a guy walking past his hardware store, across the tracks to the other one, seems the guy had run up a tab with my father-in-law... Some things never change.. My father-in-law owned the hardware store/Tydol (pumps) on the west side of the LIRR crossing at the corner of Cochran.. There was a small triangle there, and the wife had to cross to it to pump gas.. (50's) he repaired cars in the back... His name was Konchulski, but he had to change it when his brother, who knew how to spell it, died. Also in the 30's, when Adolph was doing his thing, I have been told of a sign at the entrance to Gibson, "No jews allowed". My aunt and uncle were members of the VS KKK in the thirties, most of the south shore from VS to Seaford was of primarily German origin and did not begin the change over to Italian until in the late forties.. I also remember the moving of houses in the late forties to provide parking lots behind the stores (mostly east) of Rockaway avenue, especially between Fairview and Mineola, in a hopeless attempt to "save" Rockaway Avnue stores from the evil thing which became Green Acres...GBG.. My friends father, worked at the post office and lived on Elmwood (and Third Base) and bought me more than one drink at Third Base, he liked Meadowbrook booze er sumpin like that.... Somehow, when the phone rang at Third Base, no one was ever there...

[EdM]

Maybe some railroad.netter can buy it and remodel it to resemble the original Rum Junction station.
OR:Maybe someone can buy it and reopen the Green Hotel, improve the recreational areas of VS and continue its reputation as a bedroom community...