The nation’s oldest private clubs have begun hitting milestone anniversaries—marking 75, 100, 150 years of service, sports, and social gatherings. And as they do, clubs are re-telling and reflecting on treasured stories, memories and memorabilia of the families and famous (or infamous) members who’ve shared their lives at the club.
In celebrating their illustrious, multi-generational histories, the seeds of yesterday become planted in the today and tomorrows of private clubs rich in heritage and tradition.
“There are so many wonderful memories of the club that are interrelated. The early years are gone, and there are new generations of people,” says Peggy Swartchild, who is a legacy member of the Lakeshore Country Club in Glencoe, Ill., and is co-chairing the Centennial Committee with her husband Jim. “We hope to have everyone share in the knowledge of the club.”
These sometimes year-long anniversary celebrations take committees and leaders and countless hours of pre-planning to pull off fun, meaningful, seamless events. Someone must dig through archives, talk to members who remember, send out Save-the-Date cards, and plan the special touches, like menu items with prices the same as the year the club was founded. There are the books, the DVDs and the revues, the sporting matches sometimes requiring vintage regalia, and the black-tie galas topped in American fireworks fashion.
“We want to look back at history [and] look forward to the next 100,” explained Jim Swartchild.
Because such milestone recognitions are not accomplished in a weekend’s planning, many clubs carefully select the years marked by a big bash and the years that will pass with a gentle nod. This year, New York’s Union League Club has no celebration plans for 145 years, because the 150th will get the attention, said General Manager Duncan Burns. And while The Country Club in Chestnut Hill, Mass., celebrated the 125th in 2007, it’s not like the 150th, remarked General Manager David Chag.
Nonetheless, each milestone presents another opportunity to reflect on the club’s beginnings. “It’s a time to re-tell your story, to look at history,” said Ted Gillary, general manager of the Detroit Athletic Club. “People are looking for an anchor, a sense of place and tradition.”
Rumson Country Club – 100 years
Ethel Moran, a memory-keeper of sorts at Rumson Country Club in Rumson, N.J., certainly knows all about keeping a club’s sense of tradition, considering she has been collecting stories, photos and oral remembrances in preparation for this year’s centennial.
“The big celebration will feature the history of the club,” explained Moran, who is conveying a century’s worth of tales in a DVD and book. “It has been fun on my part. I’ve gone back to many members, some grandchildren and great grandchildren of members, to tell us what [the club] was like.”
Moran, a club member with her husband Patrick since 1975, retells the stories that shaped Rumson deftly and fondly, whether those stories are about Peeka (Susan) Bunnell Tildesley and Kathy Salmon Carter having lunch under a willow tree with a Fanta or Yoohoo from the machine in the Spar Shed in the 1960s or about the charm and elegance of the original 1908 clubhouse. One of her favorite historical tales is about the magnificent journey of long-time member Dick Scudder’s family home, which became Rumson’s current clubhouse, floating down the Shrewsbury River on 12’ by 12’ beams to its present location in the 1940s.
“During the 1920s, Rumson was the glamour spot on the New Jersey shore,” Moran said. “Then the depression hit, and they had to cut back. World War II came, and in 1945, the entire club burned. Mr. Scudder sold his home to the club for $3,000. They sawed it in half by hand and floated it down the river to the club. It is still the clubhouse today.”
But the stories are just one part of this almost year-long celebration, explained Centennial Celebration co-chair, Gina Dedick, who sites an amazing fusion of events designed to combine old and new.
There’s the hickory shaft tournament with old–fashioned golf clubs, the April Cabaret night with songs to carry the crowd through the eras, the family snapper-fishing tournament, the June 14 family day with potato sack races, karaoke and dinner at the pool house. And don’t forget the June 21 black-tie gala, featuring cocktails on the terrace, dinner under tents and a fireworks finale.
Dedick’s biggest challenge is making sure all the events are well-attended. She sent Save-the-Date notices out early and made sure the club newsletter regularly includes Moran’s Recalling Summer on the River stories to build interest.
“We priced the black-tie gala at $100 per person so more people would come, and we’ve been advertising all the family events,” she said. “We keep telling everyone: the Centennial is coming up.”
Lake Shore Country Club – 100 years
Lake Shore Country Club in Glencoe, Ill., is another club celebrating a centennial birthday in 2008.
It’s a grand old club, sitting high on a bluff overlooking Lake Michigan. “Part of our lakefront and golf course was designed by Frederick Law Olmstead, who designed Central Park,” said Jim Swartchild, a legacy member. “It’s been a family club for all its years, and it is thriving today with all age groups.”
It makes sense Peggy and Jim Swartchild are chairing the Centennial Committee: Both grew up at the club, and they got married at the club, as did their three daughters. “It is something we treasure,” Jim remarked.
But, putting together an elaborate celebration takes more than two people, and along with club president, Dia Weil, they carefully formed committees, making certain all ages of men and women were represented. This enthused group set forth in preparation, remembering even the smallest details like the double invitations from 1908 and 2008 and the Save-the-Date teasers.
The club will hold its traditional July 4th picnic, but this year’s will boast 1,200 or more members enjoying the biggest fireworks show yet on the clubhouse lawn. Also, the celebration weekend at the end of July is packed. There’s the book revue Thursday, a one-woman show with readings from their centennial book, and there’s a progressive Friday cocktail hour designed to move members to different club locations while sampling vintage hors d’oeuvres en route.
The centennial celebration’s most unique highlight might be the culminating drum circle. “It’s a unifying event where everybody participates with a leader,” explained Peggy.
Saturday night’s big gala will follow several day-time sporting tournaments, too. “And on Sunday morning there will be a brunch closing, a time capsule, and a dedication of a plaque commemorating 100 years,” Peggy said. “It’s a tribute to staff and members and for generations to come.”
Detroit Athletic Club – 120 years
Established in 1892, Detroit Athletic Club has seen plenty of different generations.
As Ted Gillary, general manager, noted, “The club was built before radio and television and still serves a dynamic role.”
At their 90th anniversary, the Detroit Athletic Club was propelled into the national spotlight.
“That year, the All-Star Game was coming here to Ford Field and Comerica Park,” explained Gillary. “We illuminated our exterior with the newest technology in LED lighting so if you were sitting in Comerica Park, the DAC was lit. About 900-plus people came, and when we moved a big switch, the lights came on.”
Not only did many major athletic clubs get their start at the DAC, most of Detroit’s automakers were—and many remain, such as generations of the Ford family—members. In the early 1900s, DAC members controlled 90 percent of the world’s automobile production, according to Gillary. And it is this rich history and the club’s entrenched ties to the city that highlight milestone celebrations.
“Clubs like ours have an uplifting role in the community. How many organizations hit 120 years?” he said. “Detroit is a challenged city, but there is a great history here and members realize the wonderful things they have in their club. Then, when you hit dire straits, loyalty becomes very important. It helps you survive in down times.”
The DAC recently went through a $43 million restoration that culminated in 2005, and their 120th anniversary celebration in 2007 was again about preserving the past and embracing the new.
“We re-installed flags at the front of the club and held a party in September,” said Gillary. “We went through the historical society and found an oil painting of the first president and presented that to the club. And we bought a new trophy case and had trophies from the 1800s placed inside. The more we have been doing the storytelling…it’s made a big difference. It’s important to give [members] a story.”
The Country Club – 125 years
At The Country Club in Chestnut Hill, Mass., which celebrated its 125th anniversary in 2007, one story stands out above all the rest.
From the time he was four, Francis Ouimet had a view of The Country Club’s 17th hole from his family home on Clyde Street. After years of collecting stray balls from the woods and weeds around the course, Francis was hired as a club caddie. His love of the game grew and so did his swing, as he’d sneak onto the course mornings before school to practice barefoot to protect the greens. In September 1913, this former caddie and golf amateur won the U.S. Open on this same course.
“A number of things that belong to Francis are at the club, like a small museum,” remarked General Manager David Chag, referring to a 125-year celebration display of the club’s historical artifacts. “The members had a great opportunity to see a part of history.”
While not as big as the anticipated 150-year celebration, Chag said they did many smaller things to promote the club’s most recent anniversary and used the 1887 theme to carry the 2007 events.
Menus had items for $18.87. The mailing meter logo recognized 125 years. A large mixed golf tournament featured golfers in period outfits. Sheep were grazing on the 15th fairway as they did back in the 19th century. And more than 900 members attended the gala night with themed food, service and music in different tents.
“There is a great deal of pride,” said Chag. “And we recognize it as a birthday just like we would for anyone.”
Kathleen Phalen Tomaselli is a freelance writer based in Washington, Pa.
10 Oldest Clubs of the World
1693 – White’s, London
1725 – Comino Club, Bologna
1735 – Beefsteak, London
1748 – Haagsche Club, Den Haag
1762 – Boodle’s, London
1764 – Brook’s Club, London
1769 – Old Colony Club, Plymouth
1769 – Royal Bachelors Club, Goteburg
1769 – Circolo Bellini, Palermo
1772 – Norske Selskab, Oslo
Source: Le Courrier du Jockey Club.
10 Oldest NCA Member Clubs
1794 – Savannah Golf Club, Savannah, Ga.
1836 – Union Club of the City of New York, New York City
1851 – Somerset Club, Boston
1852 – The Harmonie Club, New York
1852 – The Pacific-Union Club, San Francisco
1860 – The Olympic Club, San Francisco
1862 – Union League of Philadelphia, Philadelphia
1863 – Metropolitan Club of Washington, Washington, D.C.
1863 – Union League Club of New York, New York City
1865 – Concordia Argonaut, San Francisco
NCA Celebrates Member Club Anniversaries in 2007/2008
145 Years
– Union League Club, New York City, est. 1863
– Union League of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, est. 1962
125 Years
– Minneapolis Club, Minneapolis, est. 1883
– Pittsburgh Field Club, Pittsburgh, est. 1882
– The Country Club, Chestnut Hill, Mass., est. 1882
100 Years
– Rumson Country Club, Rumson, Ill., est. 1908
– The Field Club of Greenwich, Greenwich, Conn., est. 1908
– Harvard Club of Boston, Boston, est. 1908
– Houston Country Club, Houston, est. 1908
– National Golf Links of America, Southampton, N.Y., est. 1908
– Portland Yacht Club, Portland, Ore., est. 1908
– The Shore and Country Club, Norwalk, Conn., 1907
75 Years
– Jupiter Island Club, Hobe Sound, Fla., est. 1933
– Kinston Country Club, Kinston, N.C., est. 1933
– Coronado Yacht Club, Coronado, Calif., est. 1933
– Elkridge Club, Baltimore, Md., est. 1933
– Sulgrave Club, Washington, D.C., est. 1933
– Augusta National Golf Club, Augusta, Ga., est. 1933
– James River Country Club, Newport News, Va., est. 1933
50 Years
– Silver Lake Country Club, Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, est. 1958
– Fairmount Country Club, Chatham, N.J., est. 1958
– Pinehurst Country Club, Denver, Colo., est. 1958
– Brookhaven Country Club, Dallas, est. 1957
– Corral De Tierra Country Club, Salinas, Calif., est. 1957
– Candlewood Country Club, Whittier, Calif., est. 1957
– Eldorado Country Club, Indian Wells, Calif., est. 1957
– Tequesta Country Club, Tequesta, Fla., est. 1957
– The International, Boston, est. 1957
– Country Club of Darien, Darien, Conn., est. 1957
– San Luis Obispo Country Club, San Luis Obispo, Calif., est. 1957