[Mark_Fine]

Sometimes it is just one photo or one aerial or one set of drawings or one article that can make all the difference in a restoration or renovation project! 


A hand drawn routing map found in an old local library along with some old postcards with hole photos kept Copake CC from likely becoming a housing development.  A 1926 bound course documentary found on E-Bay confirmed Suneagles was an iconic Tillinghast design forming the basis for our master plan.  An original Robert Hunter sketch/early aerial lead to the restoration of Berkeley CC.  One 1937 aerial we discovered in the National Archives helped save Cherry Hills from becoming a Rees Jones or Tom Fazio makeover.  The list I have from my own experiences goes on and on.  Can anyone else share that one unique finding they made all the difference in a project?


Note:  This site has some of the best researchers on the planet.  Don’t underestimate how valuable you all have been to classic golf course architecture.  Thank you!

[Jeff_Brauer]

Mark,


Nothing really historic like that, but on  a recent study of a non-descript muni, we looked at Historic Aerials. com and found the wet areas they were dealing with now were wet areas farmers in the 1930's were dealing with.  On another project, we were able to piece together various re-routings over the years that no one really understood.  Sometimes, aerials will pick up flood events and comparing historic, Google, Bing and other aerials helps with drainage design when you happen to be designing in a dry year!

[Thomas Dai]

Has anyone delved into the archive of pre-WWII Luftwaffe aerial photos of the U.K.? I believe it’s quite extensive although apparently requiring some level of payment to access.
Atb

[Niall C]

Has anyone delved into the archive of pre-WWII Luftwaffe aerial photos of the U.K.? I believe it’s quite extensive although apparently requiring some level of payment to access.
Atb

Clearly Martin Ebert and Tom MacKenzie have !!

[Craig Disher]

Has anyone delved into the archive of pre-WWII Luftwaffe aerial photos of the U.K.? I believe it’s quite extensive although apparently requiring some level of payment to access.
Atb

Yes. I have photographic copies of a few of them which I obtained from the Nat'l Archives. I don't know if they are originals but assumed so. The German government markings were on them which suggests they were captured after the war. No cost involved, just time and patience. I don't know if a parallel collection exists in the UK but I'd be surprised if it didn't.

[Ally Mcintosh]

Has anyone delved into the archive of pre-WWII Luftwaffe aerial photos of the U.K.? I believe it’s quite extensive although apparently requiring some level of payment to access.
Atb

Before I had done any work in GCA, I discovered old Irish Air Force overheads of some golf courses in the national library.


The coolest thing was seeing the old cross bunker on the now 18th at  Ballybunion. Tom Simpson described it as the greatest hazard he’d ever seen.


I thought about trying to persuade the club to restore it as my first job under my own name. Never did get round to it and now I see someone has done a job on it, making it a little cookie cutter. I wonder if they ever saw the original before undergoing the work...

[Joshua Pettit]

I've found some fairly critical materials, but the coolest discovery, biggest jaw-dropping moment of my research career, was finding Dr. MacKenzie's maps for Augusta National, and in particular the map for the Approach & Putt Course.  Of course, they haven't been relevant to any project, and it's hard to imagine Augusta would ever do away with Cliff Roberts' par 3 course, but you never know.

[Jon Heise]

I did not find it - but discovering Langford & Moreau's original routing map for Marquette Golf Club makes me incredibly happy.  There's a few snaps of it here:


http://drivingrangeheroes.com/marquette-golf-club-the-heritage-course/

[Mark_Fine]

Great finds/stories!  Many of you are being very modest.  I personally have been helped by dozens of people on this site over the years with findings whether it be an old photo, an aerial, a lost article, a routing map, … or even a connection to another contact.  Each contribution has had a significant impact on projects that I have worked on.  Some here will remember how they helped at Lawrenceville, Colonial, Brookside, Tumble Brook, Waynesborough, Bucknell GC, Irem Temple, Oyster Harbors,… Guys like Mike Cirba, Craig Disher, Swen Nilsen, Joe Bausch, Wayne Morrison, Bret Lawrence, Ian Mackenzie, Joshua Pettit, Tom Paul,…the list goes on.  Lots of incredible researchers!  I was working one time on an old Emil Loeffler design and got connected to a distant nephew of Emil who just so happened to have all kinds of articles and information about him.  I learned things they didn’t even have a clue about at Oakmont.  It was really cool!

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