Willie Park Jr (Course Listings) and (Photo tours)

[Mungo Park]

I had hoped to attach my current list, which has benefited from the research carried out by many of you, Cowan, Macpherson, Pioppi, Nilsen, Bausch, Cirba, Lawrence et al. Sadly it is not accepted - no doubt I am doing something wrong. I have tried as a .doc and a .pdf - if anyone has any tips, i am happy to post it.

The list started with a 'flyer' that we came from the family archive; it was prepared in about 1922, and re-published (p 130) by John Adams in The Parks of Musselburgh, which I constantly refer to for its excellent refs and bibliography. There are one or two errors, and things have moved on in terms of understanding what WP jnr was up to and when. I hope that I shall be able to publish something soon. Unfortunately the 'day job' gets in the way, although I contribute fairly regularly to Through The Green. I hope in time to redress (as impartially as I am able) the imbalance between St Andrews and Musselburgh which has continued (mistakenly) for so long. There was so much more happening in Musselburgh around the 1850 to 1910 era. Unlike St A, it didn't have anywhere to expand, and so decline was inevitable. As a result many Musseburgh clubmakers and designers took the game from Musselburgh to the rest of the world. Argentina, New Zealand, South Africa, Japan, as well as Europe, the USA and Canada all benefited from that emigration, with Musselburgh golfers among their earliest pioneers. Royal County Down is a good example - first 9 holes by George Baillie (Musselburgh). Second nine by T Morris Snr (St Andrews), who generously praised Baillie's work. It is possible that Bailie worked there with Walter Dunn Day(Musselburgh), whose son became the first pro there and who had worked with him as designer of the first Royal Belfast.

. . . . any thoughts on how to attach the list gratefully received!

Best regards,

Mungo Park

[BCowan]

Mungo,

   You can always email me the PDF and I would be happy to re-type the text or you can copy and paste it into an email.  Good to hear from you.  I sent you an email as well.  Just received this list, I'll get working on it tonight. 

Happy New Year,

Ben

[Mungo Park]

Thanks Ben - e-mail sent, with list if you wouldn't mind posting it.

Mungo

[BCowan]

Updated to page 9

[Mungo Park]

I have just heard back from Mike Morrison, who has written a great book (The Links on the Hills) on golf at Gog Magog, and includes in his research the University golf club. He is fairly sure that Willie was referring to Gog Magog which he visited in 1902. He says, "To date, I have found no references to Willie Park undertaking any work at Coldham Common (1876-1901) or Whitwell Hill (1901-1914), the two past university courses in Cambridge."

So that's one steaming emoji eliminated!

Mungo

[Niall C]

Ben


Re Glasgow Golf Club and courses called Gailes down in Ayrshire. Glasgow GC has two courses, one in Glasgow called Killermont and another down in Ayrshire called Glasgow Gailes. Park redesigned Glasgow Gailes along with the greenkeeper Tulloch in 1912. He also consulted at Western Gailes which is a separate club that is situated adjacent to the Glasgow Gailes course.


Niall

[Mungo Park]

Niall,
My confusion - thanks for clarifying. I hope that with everyone's combined research power, it will be possible to pin these down and agree a definitive (?) list. I know WP's involvement is a matter of degree in many cases. My personal criterion for inclusion is to find out if WP had any involvement with a course, as my interest is in the scope and breadth of his career. I recognise that others might want to know more about design and construction details, and their development, but the 'long' list should be a good start point, with many GCA contributors providing the more specific detail and articles that they seem to ferret out so ably, particularly in the USA.

FYI it is 130 years this year since WP designed his first course, Innerleithen. 9 holes in the borders between Peebles and Selkirk - Sunningdale not quite his first inland course. . .

Mungo

[MCirba]

I think I may have come upon another one, a private course Park Jr. laid out for John Jacob Astor in 1895 at Rhinecliff, NY.   Apologies if this has been previously identified under a different name.

[Sven Nilsen]

Mike:


Astor's course was noted in post #102, but I had a different article on it.


What's the citation for the article you posted?


Sven

[MCirba]

Sven,

Sorry, didn't see your prior mention.  The article I posted is from the NY Sun, May 23rd 1895.

I also came across the article you mentioned re: Newport on July 14th of that year.   The salient part re: architectural matters is reproduced below;

[MCirba]

Mungo mentioned the important of Musselburgh in the development of the game but it also seems to have a direct impact on the inception and growth of the game in America, particularly the connection of Robert Lockhart to both Willie Park Sr. and Jr. as the following article from the Hastings on Hudson News points out;

[Mungo Park]

Mike, Sven
Great additions - John Adams mentions Lockhart (p47) and the Astor connection. He says that "Willie stayed a week with J J Astor and his wife at Rhyncliffe, played over their private course and gave lessons to them." but your Hastings on Hudson News piece makes it pretty clear that 'he laid out the links', and seems to have taken some pride in the work, which would then have been fairly rudimentary routing and pegging, I imagine. He did the same for the Webbs  (Mrs Webb was a Vanderbilt). Adams also says that "on the 20th February he set out for America at the invitation of Mr Harry Talmadge, and stayed there until the end of July". Apparently the Lockhart connection was that he had been a customer, and Willie contacted him on arrival. "Lockhart, an old Dunfermline man, who had two sons at Loretto School in Musselburgh, and had several sets of clubs brought to America by the boys." (Adams) He seems to have been passed round the wealthy of New York as a celebrity, and not to have been over-awed. He seems to have had great self belief at that time - I suspect Huntercombe dented that belief considerably, which makes his 1916 - 1923 reinvention and the quality of his US work even more remarkable.

Thanks for such an energetic and interesting initiation to the wealth of GCA knowledge.

[Bret Lawrence]

Mungo,


I see you had a question mark next to Highland Golf and Country Club in Indianapolis, Indiana. 
This article discusses the new course at Miami (noted by Sven earlier), but also mentions Willie Park Jr. having just completed a course for Highand Golf and C.C. in Indianapolis.



Willie Park Jr. also listed this course in one of his advertisement from the 20's.


Bret

[Bret Lawrence]

Here is an article from 1896 that notes Willie Park had just arrived in America. The article mentions that one of Park's engagements in this country is to look over the new course to be laid out for St. Andrew's Golf Club at Mount Hope. 

Here is a link to the article:
http://tinyurl.com/z964k84

[Bret Lawrence]

This article is very difficult to read, but it discusses Pine Lake club hiring Willie Park to construct a second nine at the end of 1922.

[Anthony Gholz]

Bret:


This is a clearer article from the Detroit Free Press regarding the added nine November 29, 1922 and the original Park nine June 8, 1919


Tony

[Sven Nilsen]

Perhaps Mungo can confirm something that has been pestering me about Park's timeline, namely exactly when he was working in the US.


We know he was here in the mid-1890's.  We also know he came over in 1916 pretty much staying into 1924 before returning to Scotland where he passed away. 


There are a few courses attributed to him from right after the turn of the century.  One of those, CC of New Bedford, had its first 9 holes built in 1902.  One source notes Park didn't do work here until 1923, but does this make any sense with Ross coming in a year later to add 9 holes?

[Sven Nilsen]

Following up on my last post, I'm going to add in a basic timeline of his work in the U.S. (hopefully this also helps Mungo clean up his list).

To start, here's his work from prior to 1900.

-New York Sun July 14, 1895



1895

John Jacob Astor Private Course (Rhinebeck, NY)

-The Sun May 23, 1895



-Los Angeles Herald Aug. 12, 1895




Knollwood CC (White Plains, NY)

-The Sun June 21, 1895



-The Sun Feb. 2, 1896



-Harpers 1900 Golf Guide notes course was laid out by Willie Park in May, 1894.


Agawam Hunt Club (East Providence, RI)

-This was the original version of Agawam Hunt Club (first course built in 1895), prior to the club purchasing the old course of Metacomet in 1917.


Misquamicut GC (Westerly, RI)

-Glasgow Evening Times July 19, 1895



-The Sun Aug. 19, 1895



-New York Times March 3, 1896



-Harpers 1901 Golf Guide notes first nine was laid out in Willie Park in 1895.
   
Shelburne Farms Links (Shelburne, VT)

-St. Johnsbury Caledonian Sept. 12, 1900



   
1897

St. Louis Amateur Athletic Association aka Triple A CC (St. Louis, MO)

- I'd like to see a source for this attribution.

[Sven Nilsen]

1900-1910

-For all of these courses I'm pretty sure the work came after his return to the US in 1916.


1902

New Bedford (CC of) (New Bedford, MA)

Grand Rapids CC (Grand Rapids, MI)

-Pretty sure this is the same as Cascade Hills from 1919.


1909

Madison CC (Madison, CT)

New Canaan (CC of) (New Canaan, CT)

[Sven Nilsen]

1910-1919

-Golf Magazine April 1916



-Golf Illustrated May 1916



-Schenectady Gazette July 18, 1916



-The Sun Dec. 6, 1917



-An Ad from the June 1916 edition of Golfers Magazine noting his arrival in the US.



-Ads from May and August of 1917 (Golf Illustrated) - note how Minneapolis doesn't appear on the August list.

     

1916

Shuttle Meadow CC (New Britain, CT)

-See the July 18, 1916 Schenectady Gazette article copied above.

-See the Nov. 19, 1916 Asheville Citizen Sun article copied below.


Milton-Hoosic Club, The (Canton, MA)

-See the July 18, 1916 Schenectady Gazette article copied above.


Meadowbrook CC (Northville, MI)

-See the July 18, 1916 Schenectady Gazette article copied above.

-The Daily Courier Sept. 12, 1916



-See the Dec. 6, 1917 The Sun article copied above.


Minneapolis GC (Minneapolis, MN) - Per Rick Shefchick, initial plans done by Park and course completed by W. Clark.

-See the Nov. 19, 1916 Asheville Citizen Sun article copied below.


Happy Valley CC (Asheville, NC) - Initial plans called for course to be laid out by Donald Ross.

-Asheville Citizen-Times Oct. 10, 1916



-Asheville Citizen-Times Oct. 15, 1916



-Asheville Citizen Sun Nov. 1916




North Jersey CC aka Paterson GC (Paterson, NJ) - Alterations

-See the July 18, 1916 Schenectady Gazette article copied above.


Grant Hugh Brown Private Course (Goshen, NY) - No evidence this course was ever completed.

-Middletown Daily Times-Press May 11, 1916



-Middletown Daily Times-Press June 1, 1916




St. Albans CC (St. Albans, NY)


Sylvania CC (Sylvania, OH)

-See the Dec. 6, 1917 The Sun article copied above.

-March 1918 American Golfer notes Park as architect and that clearing operations began in 1917 and course ready to play this summer. 
   

1917


Flint GC (Flint, MI)

-See the Dec. 6, 1917 The Sun article copied above.


Pine Lake CC aka Automobile Club of Detroit (Orchard Lake, MI)

-See the Dec. 6, 1917 The Sun article copied above.


Red Run GC (Royal Oak, MI) - Reconstruction

-See the Dec. 6, 1917 The Sun article copied above.

-Detroit Free Press Dec. 23, 1917

     


Toledo CC (Toledo, OH)

-See the Dec. 6, 1917 The Sun article copied above.

   
1918

Woodway CC (Darien, CT)

New York Tribune June 4, 1918 -



-New York Herald Dec. 1, 1918



-Noted in a 1923 Park Advertisement.


Glen Ridge CC (Glen Ridge, NJ)

-New York Evening Post Jan. 30, 1918




Moon Brook CC (Jamestown, NY)


Berkshire CC (Reading, PA)


1919

Olympia Fields CC (South or #1) (Olympia Fields, IL)

-Chicago Daily Tribune April 15, 1919



-American Golfer May 1919



   
Olympia Fields CC (#2) (Olympia Fields, IL)

-See the two articles for OFCC #1 above.

   
Olympia Fields CC (#3) (Olympia Fields, IL)

-See the two articles for OFCC #1 above.


Baltimore CC (Roland Park) (Baltimore, MD)

-Golf Illustrated Nov. 1919




Battle Creek CC (Battle Creek, MI)

-First 9 was completed in 1920, second 9 in 1922.

-Noted in a 1923 Park Advertisement.


Cascade Hills CC aka Lakeview CC (Grand Rapids, MI)

-1920 Annual Guide notes W. Park and J. Daray working on a new course.


Chartiers CC aka Chartiers Heights CC (Pittsburgh, PA)


Green Valley CC (Roxborough, PA)


Indiana CC (Indiana, PA)


Metacomet GC (East Providence, RI)

-New York Times Sept. 14, 1919




Princess Anne CC (Virginia Beach, VA)

Virginian-Pilot June 16, 1921

[Sven Nilsen]

1920-1924

-1921 and 1923 Ads

     

1920

Hot Springs CC (Majestic) (Hot Springs, AR)


New Haven CC (Hamden, CT)

-Golf Illustrated Jan. 1921



-The American Contractor April 2, 1921



-Noted in a 1923 Park Advertisement.


Highland G&CC (Indianapolis, IN)

-Park routed the course, which was completed by W. Diddel.

-See the Feb. 8, 1920 The Sun and The New York Herald article copied below.

-Noted in a 1923 Park Advertisement.


Rolling Road GC (Catonsville, MD)

-See Nov. 19, 1916 Asheville Citizen article copied in the previous post which notes Park working on a course in Baltimore. 


Canoe Brook (North) (Milburn, NJ)

-Most likely all Park did was advise on the suitability of the location of the new course or provide a preliminary routing.


Willowdale CC (Buffalo, NY)

-Buffalo Courier April 7, 1921




East Liverpool CC (East Liverpool, OH)


Abington Club aka Old York Road CC (Jenkintown, PA)
 
-March 19, 1920 Evening Public Ledger notes Park went over the course and 3 holes will be made longer and others will be made anew.


1921

Castine GC (Castine, ME)

John H. Cain GC aka Newport GC (Newport, NH)

Atlantic City CC (Northfield, NJ)

-Bridgeport Times and Evening Farmer May 24, 1919



-Philadelphia Inquirer July 25, 1920



 
Marion CC (Marion, OH)

Penn State University GC (Blue) (State College, PA)


Penn State University GC (Nittany) (State College, PA)


Schuykill CC (Pottsville, PA)

-Mount Carmel Item Nov. 13, 1916



-See Nov. 19, 1916 Asheville Citizen noting Park had laid out a course in "Pottsville."  Work was done by Park in 1916 but course didn't open until 1921.


1922

Shorehaven GC (East Norwalk, CT)

-The Norwalk Hour Dec. 25, 1923

     


Miami Beach GC (Bay Shore) aka Alton Beach GC (Miami Beach, FL)

-The Miami News Feb. 6, 1920



-The Sun and The New York Herald Feb. 8, 1920



-Golfers Magazine March 1920



-Golf Illustrated March 1920



Miami Beach GC (Flamingo) (Miami Beach, FL)

-See the March 1920 Golf Illustrated and Golfers Magazine articles above.


Olympia Fields CC (North or #4) - Private in (Olympia Fields, IL)

-Course initially to have been designed by Donald Ross.

-See the May 1919 American Golfer article posted above.

-Noted in a 1923 Park Advertisement.


Bellefonte CC (Ashland, KY)


Mill Creek GC (North/Blue) (Youngstown, OH)

-American Golfer April 8, 1922




Youghiogheny CC (McKeesport, PA)



1923

Greate Bay GC aka Ocean City CC aka Somers Point GC (Somers Point, NJ)

-Golf Illustrated May 1923



-Ocean City Sentinel Ledger August 20, 1926



Maidstone Club (East Hampton, NY)

-See the May 1923 Golf Illustrated article above.


Ashland GC (Ashland, OH)

-Noted in a 1923 Park Advertisement.


Ashbourne CC (Cheltenham, PA)


Philmont CC (North) (Huntingdon Valley, PA)

-Philadelphia Inquirer March 20, 1921



-See the May 1923 Golf Illustrated article above.

-Philadelphia Public Ledger Nov. 11, 1923




Pittsburgh Field Club (Pittsburgh, PA)

-See the May 1923 Golf Illustrated article above.

-Park drew up plans to rework the back nine, the plans were rejected.


St. Johnsbury CC (Saint Johnsbury, VT)

   

1924

Tumble Brook CC (Red Nine) (Bloomfield, CT)

-See the May 1923 Golf Illustrated article above which refers to the course as "Pemberbrook."


Congress Lake Club (Hartville, OH)

-May 1924 Park Advertisement notes he laid out the course.


Pawtucket GC (Pawtucket, RI)


Boonsboro CC (Lynchburg, VA)

-See the May 1923 Golf Illustrated article above.

-Park was paid for an early layout, but the design was completed and the course was built by Fred Findlay.

[Sven Nilsen]

Additional US Courses


Newport GC (Newport, RI)


- Possibly made suggestions on changes in 1895.


Grove Park Inn (Asheville, NC)

- No work by Park at Grove Park Inn confirmed, possibly a mistaken reference to Happy Valley CC in Asheville.


Unnamed Course in "Reidsville"

-See the Nov. 19, 1916 Asheville Citizen Sun article copied two posts above.


Unnamed Course in "Meridian"

-See the Nov. 19, 1916 Asheville Citizen Sun article copied two posts above.

[MCirba]

I've never been able to find anything contemporaneous regarding Park at Glen Ridge, NJ despite some fairly extensive searching.    Have others?

[Sven Nilsen]

Mike:


I haven't seen anything confirming Park at Glen Ridge.  I'm guess if Joe had you would know about it.  Perhaps Jim has come across something.


I'm going to add in more articles and notes later on today (including additional items other folks have posted in this thread), and welcome any additions.


Sven

[Joe Bausch]

Mike:


I haven't seen anything confirming Park at Glen Ridge.  I'm guess if Joe had you would know about it.  Perhaps Jim has come across something.

Jan 30, 1918 edition of the NY Evening Post: