Ed-I've often wondered about the evolution of Travis's ideas about the design of greens. His own writings pretty clearly point to his month-long golf outing in the UK where he often played 36 holes a day. Later, he spoke of his admiration for the manner in which their greens reflected the natural undulations of the land. Of course, his experience at Ekwanok preceded that UK trip, and none of the greens at Ekwanok have the sometimes wild undulations that you find at Cape Arundel, CC of Troy, and others. However, his full-blown golf design career did not get off the ground till 1916, following his retirement from amateur golf. Of the courses he designed in 1916, I have first-hand knowledge of just two: Poland Spring Resort and Orchard Park CC. There are some interesting greens at Poland Spring, but whether they reflect Travis or Ross is difficult to determine. With Orchard Park, I strongly suspect that undulations were removed from most of their greens. I have no definite proof of that, but am making the judgement based on many observations, and hints that there may have been more severe undulations than currentlty exist. Bruce Hepner spent some time there, so perhaps he would know. So, it isn't until 1917, and Travis redesign of Hollywood Golf Club that we see the kind of green surfaces we associate with Travis. In the same year, he designed Onondaga Golf and CC, and today, there are few, if any greens that reflect Travis's hand; maybe 18.
I'm not sure any of this helps in understanding the "evolution of Travis greens", but it is fun to speculate. In many instances, it is almost impossible to determine what, or who, might have intervened. At my course, Stafford CC, designed in 1921, we have original hole maps, and a history telling us about the levelling of greens.
One of the uncertainties about Ekwanok has to do with the relative influences of John Duncan Dunn and Walter Travis. There are many who would argue that it was Dunn who designed the course. On the other hand, it is also know that Travis stuck around during the construction of the course while Dunn went back to NYC.
On another matter: re Maxwell's layout of the Ekwanok course. There was some speculation that the revised layout was created because of a relocated clubhouse, following the 1936 fire that destroyed the original. I'm thinking that the revised layout might have come about because of the wish to have both nines end at the clubhouse, instead of having the 9th hole and 10th tee at the farthest reaches of the course, as they are now. I've reviewed the Ekwanok centennial book and find no reference to Maxwell, but there is mention of a revised layout that was later changed.