I wiil say one other thing to some of Pat's rants. There really wasn't a 7 month gap in the process. Things just take longer than most people think. If TePaul was in real estate, he could probably confirm that buying the Dallas Estate, or putting together 3 way contracts (HDC/Lloyd/MCC) etc. all take weeks, if not months. And, without email and Fed Ex to speed along documents, etc. it could have taken longer in those days, as would surveying 338 acres for topo of the entire development. Throw in the Xmas season, other businesses, and all that and I think MCC came together about as quickly as it could from inception in June to construction the next April.
Jeff,
I don't even see an issue with this, either, and think it's more misdirection and blown smoke.
As of June, 1910, when Connell first brought Barker down, and then Griscom brought M&W over, all HDC owned outright was the 140 acre Johnson Farm. They had option on "about 300 acres" total, but that did not include the Dallas Estate.
We know that the Site Committee's report in July 1910 recommended that the board move forward. At the time, we also know that the Site Committee reported "it is probable that nearly 120 acres would be required for our purposes" which might be just coincidental, but the northeastern and southern portions of the Johnson Farm measured out at 119 acres.
In any case, it wasn't until October that the purchase of the Dallas Estate took place, and not until early November that Connell and his partner could even formally offer the total package that now included the 21-acre Dallas Estate to Merion.
At that time, they sent a formal offer letter to Merion asking for a decision by early December.
Merion acted by sending out the bond solicitation to membership, telling them they had secured 117 acres, and including the now infamous "Land Plan" that showed the proposed boundary between real estate and golf.
This is interesting because if they were looking at 119 acres of the Johnson Farm in June, the addition of the Dallas Estate would take them to 140 acres, or much more than they needed or desired for the golf course, especially given the real estate component.
It is written in the MCC minutes that Lloyd worked solely with Connell during this time to negotiate terms, and it is almost certain that they deducted the over-acreage gained from the aquisition of the Dallas Estate from the northwestern boundary of the Johnson Farm, in the form of a loose, working-boundary, drawn on the Land Plan as an "Approximate Road".
During the month of December, Cuyler recommended to Lloyd to take title of the eintire 161 acres of the Johnson Farm and Dallas Estate, as the boundaries of the golf course were not yet "definite"ly defined. Lloyd promptly did as Cuyler suggested.
Earlier in January, Hugh Wilson's committee was appointed and plans began to be drawn and by February 1st were sent to Piper & Oakley.
The committee worked on any number of plans, and in the second week of March went to NGLA. Upon their return they drew up "five different plans".
On April 6th, Macdonald and Whigham came down and helped them to select the best plan.
On April 19th, The Merion Board approved that recommendation and construction work commenced.
And there you have it...
It's over.
Thanks Jeff.