If anyone on here is wondering who designed the original Whitemarsh Valley course in 1908 I suggest they simply refer to George Thomas' book "Golf Architecture in America." In the front of that book when he gives a rundown of his life and times with golf couse architecture and those who he worked with and influenced him and he gives this brief description of Whitemarsh Valley:
"I recall fine, old Sam Heebner, of Philadelphia, formerly Honorary Treasurer of the USGA, with whom I built Whitemarsh in Pennsylvania in 1908-----"
If anyone is now going to claim that Macdonald essentially designed the course because he came down and looked at it and pronounced it good, or that Thomas' participation in the design must be exaggerated or glorified somehow because some newspaper articles don't describe Thomas's participation well enough, well, then, I just completely give up on the analyses that emanate out of this website. That was precisely how those ridiculous Merion threads both began and carried on. One even constantly accused this region of carrying on this kind of glorification of local architects with what he coigned as the "Philadephia Syndrome."
Who was James Bray? You've got me; never heard that name but it wouldn't surprise me if the reporter probably was thinking of James Braid and just misspelled his name. It's interesting he didn't seem to know Macdonald's first name.
However, it would not surprise me if some ambitious golf architecture analysts from other states even claim that James Bray was the third best recognized architect of the time right behind Macdonald and H.H. Barker!