Skip to main content

Binghamton in 1951

As a former resident of the Binghamton, NY area (I lived in neighboring Johnson City for about a year and a half), I was curious to check out a 1951 film on YouTube from the New York State Archives that promoted the benefits of the New York State Thruway to Binghamton and Endicott. But wait a minute, you may say. The Thruway doesn't and never went to Binghamton. True, but this video touts the economic, industrial, agricultural and recreational opportunities that come with the construction of the Thruway. Plus, fans of old signs will enjoy some of the gems seen in this video.

I was also interested in seeing the Washington Street Bridge carrying vehicular traffic over the Susquehanna River, as this bridge is now a pedestrian bridge. You can check out the video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LA3XzrLAG-4. Thanks to area resident Dylan Lainhart for advising me to check out the video.

The New York State Archives is posting a number of videos on YouTube, and if you want to see more videos, you can go to http://www.youtube.com/user/nysarchives.

Also in 1951, the Vestal Parkway (now NY 434) was under construction in the Town of Vestal. I've had the following photo, courtesy of Chris Curley, in my queue to be added for quite a while, and this is a good chance to show the photo.



Chris had also sent me a description about the photo. "From Jensen Rd looking east towards Binghamton. The first building on the left is the Vestal Steak House. The road on the far left is Old Vestal Rd and you can see Vestal Hills Cemetery to the left of that. The field at the top right is where SUNY Binghamton is."

Vestal Parkway is now a hodgepodge of shopping centers and other businesses in the area where the photo was taken, and is one of the main commercial thoroughfares in Broome County.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Old River Lock & Control Structure (Lettsworth, LA)

  The Old River Control Structure (ORCS) and its connecting satellite facilities combine to form one of the most impressive flood control complexes in North America. Located along the west bank of the Mississippi River near the confluence with the Red River and Atchafalaya River nearby, this structure system was fundamentally made possible by the Flood Control Act of 1928 that was passed by the United States Congress in the aftermath of the Great Mississippi River Flood of 1927 however a second, less obvious motivation influenced the construction here. The Mississippi River’s channel has gradually elongated and meandered in the area over the centuries, creating new oxbows and sandbars that made navigation of the river challenging and time-consuming through the steamboat era of the 1800s. This treacherous area of the river known as “Turnbull’s Bend” was where the mouth of the Red River was located that the upriver end of the bend and the Atchafalaya River, then effectively an outflow

Interstate 10S and the original Interstate 110 in California

Interstate 10S is a short spur of Interstate 10 along San Bernardino Freeway in downtown Los Angeles.  Interstate 10S begins at the Santa Ana Freeway (US Route 101) and extends east to Interstate 5 where it merges into mainline Interstate 10.  Interstate 10S is one of the oldest freeway segments in Los Angeles having been part of US Routes 60, 70 and 99 when it was part of the corridor of the Ramona Expressway.  The current corridor of Interstate 10S was assigned as Chargeable Corridor H following the passage of the 1956 Federal Highway Aid Act.  Interstate 110 was a short-lived designation which comprised the segment San Bernardino Freeway from US Route 101 to Interstate 5 between 1964-1968.  The original Interstate 110 was dropped as a Chargeable Corridor during 1965 and consolidated as Interstate 10S during 1968.   The original Interstate 110 can be seen as the blog cover photo as it was featured on the 1964 Division of Highways Map.  Below the entire 0.65-mile length of Interstate

Vicksburg Bridge (Vicksburg, MS)

  Located a few hundred feet downriver from the Old Vicksburg Bridge, the Vicksburg Bridge, or the “New” Bridge, serves as the city’s vehicular crossing of the Mississippi River on the main highway connecting Vicksburg with northeastern Louisiana to the west and the state capital of Jackson to the east. The completion of the original Vicksburg Bridge in 1930 was seen as a huge success and the bridge proved to be a profitable entity for both road and railroad interests along the path of the Dixie Overland Highway and the subsequent US Highway 80 corridor. In the years after the creation of the National Interstate Highway System, planning commenced on a new bridge at the site that would relieve the congestion on the existing bridge while providing for a more modern crossing of the river that would be safe for all vehicles. The construction of the new bridge at Vicksburg was completed in 1973 and its design intentionally mimics that of its predecessor nearby. This was due in large part