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Sven Nilsen

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GCAofTD - #2 - Arthur Fenn
« on: August 27, 2012, 01:19:46 PM »
Unlike Willie Davis who was one of the first Scots to ply his trade in the U.S., Arthur Fenn was a homegrown product born in Waterbury, CT.

Fenn's first courses came during the 1896 - 1900 era, a time when hundred's of golf courses were being laid out, often by what we would consider "name" architects, but often by a landowner or a club committee.  Cornish & Whitten note Fenn as one of the "professional" architects of that era, leading one to ask how he stumbled into this line of work.

Here's a most likely incomplete list of his work:

Waterbury (1895)
Poland Spring (1896)
Allston (1896)
Portsmouth Naval Yard (1896)
Bristol (RI) (1896)
Oquossoc (1899)
Fall River (1899)
Profile (1899)
Crawford House (1899)
Twin Mountain House (1899)
Fabyan House (1899)
Bryn Mawr (1899)
Waumbeck (unk)
Abenaqui (NH) (unk) (Harper's attributes this course to Alex Findlay in 1899)
CC of Farmington (CT) (unk)
Palmetto (unk) (it has been proposed that Fenn did some work on the original course)

If anyone has any other attributions to Fenn or any other information about his life, I'd greatly appreciate hearing about it.  Quick searches on this site and on Google provide some basic insight, with this old thread perhaps being the most comprehensive:

http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,18938.0.html
« Last Edit: August 27, 2012, 02:19:24 PM by Sven Nilsen »
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"As much as we have learned about the history of golf architecture in the last ten plus years, I'm convinced we have only scratched the surface."  A GCA Poster

"There's the golf hole; play it any way you please." Donald Ross

Nigel Islam

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Re: GCAofTD - #2 - Arthur Fenn
« Reply #1 on: August 27, 2012, 02:11:07 PM »
This a good idea to help fill out your list.
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Matthew Runde

Re: GCAofTD - #2 - Arthur Fenn
« Reply #2 on: August 27, 2012, 05:27:29 PM »
I find this interesting for a different reason.  My mother's maiden name is Fenn.  It's not a common name, and her father came from Alabama.  As I understand it, my grandfather's ancestors came from Wales, but I could be mistaken.  I'll have to investigate it some more.  It could help explain a Fenn connection with golf.
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Sven Nilsen

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: GCAofTD - #2 - Arthur Fenn
« Reply #3 on: August 27, 2012, 05:38:00 PM »
Matt:

I'm pretty sure Fenn moved to Palm Beach, FL after his time in New England.  May want to check the records to see if there is a connection.  You could be American Golf Royalty.
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"As much as we have learned about the history of golf architecture in the last ten plus years, I'm convinced we have only scratched the surface."  A GCA Poster

"There's the golf hole; play it any way you please." Donald Ross

Matthew Runde

Re: GCAofTD - #2 - Arthur Fenn
« Reply #4 on: August 27, 2012, 05:56:26 PM »
Sven,

It could be tricky to find a Florida connection, as there are many Fenns in Florida.  My grandfather had seven children, and the family eventually settled in Florida.  I don't think there was any family connection that they knew about, though.  They just liked Florida.  Perhaps my mother will know more about it.

As for American golf royalty--I don't know how true it would be, but I'd certainly be willing to be treated like it!
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