[Joe Bausch]

The LOC search engine has been fun.  This is from August 11, 1907 of the New York Tribune where a new course is being introduced.  I believe this course is now Cherry Valley Golf Club.

[Jim_Kennedy]

Joe,

http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9D02E1DF1F3FE233A25752C1A96F9C946796D6CF

.and this:  "No sooner did the Island Golf Links open to the public in 1897 than it became a hit. It was a nine-hole setup built as an inducement to get people to move to the new community of Garden City, or at least to stay at the Garden City Hotel. But it was so successful that it was expanded to 18 holes in 1898 and went private a year later as the Garden City Golf Club.
         In its place, Salisbury Links, another public course, was built in 1907. A greens fee was $1. Sure enough, it got so packed that by 1916, regular players decided to make it private. They named it after the street that ran through it: Cherry Valley.
          Finally, Garden City Hotel proprietor Joseph J. Lannin struck a blow for public-course golfers by buying a huge parcel off Stewart Avenue. Lannin had a nose for the sporting business, having owned the Boston Red Sox, bought a kid lefty pitcher named Babe Ruth, won two World Series, and sold the club for such a high price that the new owner was a little strapped for cash. Lannin opened a new Salisbury Links in 1918 and, by the mid-1920s, developed it into a five-course complex that was called "the Sports Center of America." The place still is going strong in the satellite age, when "SportsCenter" is a ubiquitous TV show. Salisbury has evolved into a busy three-course layout known as Eisenhower Park. It is not far from a thriving Cherry Valley, or from Garden City Golf Club, which still is considered one of America's best courses."

.....and: 
Excerpts from “Parkland by the Parkways” by Dr. William Quirin
"In the early years of this century, the Garden City Company came to realize the need for a golf course available to the guests of the Garden City Hotel, which they owned, and other residents who were not members of the Garden City Golf Clubs.  So they commissioned Walter Travis to design an 18-hole golf course on a tract of land south of the hotel whose terrain resembled that of the Golf Club to the north.  The course, called the Salisbury Links, opened for play in 1907 as a public subscription facility, available to all approved players, male and female.  To quote Travis, the 5838 yards course offered “a good game for all classes of players from the very top-notcher to the veriest duffer”.
           Located within a ten minute walk of the hotel and railroad station, the new club proved very popular.  Too popular, in fact, and by 1915 the course had become heavily congested.  In May of 1916, the Garden City Company decided to re-organize it as a private club, which it called the Cherry Valley Golf Club, after the road which ran through the course.  In fact, a group of golfers using the name “Cherry Valley Golf Club” had been playing at the Salisbury for years.  To replace  the public facility, a new course was built on 1916 at the foot of Stewart Ave, just to the east of Garden City in what is now called Eisenhower Park.  It opened in 1917.
         Aside from its present three clubs, Garden City’s past included the Midland Golf Club, an informal neighborhood club organized in 1899.  The club’s 45 members (men and women) maintained their own clubhouse and 9-hole golf course.  The latter was situated just a few blocks east of Cherry Valley, between Franklin and Hilton Avenues, south of Fourth Street.  It occupied prime real estate in Garden City, and was used on “free lease” from the Garden City Company.  After their course fell victim to real estate development, the Midland Club members played at the Salisbury Links, but in 1912 they decided to build their own course in East Williston.  Although some backed out, the majority proceeded to found the Wheatley Hills Golf Club, which opened its doors in 1913.  Those who stayed behind, continued on at Salisbury until 1920, when they helped form the Hempstead Golf Club."

[Joe Bausch]

Jim, that is good stuff!  Many thanks.

Joe
-------------

[Ed Homsey]

Whether Walter Travis designed Salisbury Links in 1907 has been debated for a long time amongst those of us who are trying to establish a complete record of Travis's work.  A Sept. 3, 1907 NY Times article was headlined "W.J. Travis Opens New Public Links".  The article goes on to state, "There was a big turnout of golfers to try out the new course which Devereaux Emmet has laid out....".  This article referred to the new course at the Salisbury Public Links.  There is a member of Cherry Valley Club, and a respected Garden City historian (I hesitate to mention his name here), who insists that Emmet designed their course.  The Travis Society long ago dropped Salisbury Links or Cherry Valley Club, as it's currently known, from the list of Travis courses.  If anyone has evidence, other than the "Golf Clubs of the MGA", or similar publications, that the current Cherry Valley Club's course---formerly Salisbury Links--was designed by Walter Travis, I would welcome it.

Ed Homsey
Archivist, Travis Society

[Ed Homsey]

re-reading Kennedy's post, I note that he quotes Quirin as saying that a new course was built at the "foot of Stewart Ave" in 1916.  I'm not sure that Garden City Country Club would be described as "at the foot of Stewart AVe", but it is on Stewart Ave and opened in 1916 with a course designed by Walter Travis.

[Jim_Kennedy]

Ed,
I could be wrong, but I don't think Dr. Quirin was saying that GCGC was built at the foot of Stewart Ave. 

[Ed Homsey]

Jim--In the Quirin article, Quirin refers to a "new course" was built in 1916 at the "foot of Stewart Ave" and then indicates that it is part of Eisenhower Park.   The only course I know of that was built in 1916 along Stewart Ave was Garden City Country Club, not GCGC.  I was just wondering if GCCC was the course Quirin referred to as being built "at the foot of Stewart Ave".

Ed

[Jim_Kennedy]

Ed,
Sorry, I don't know.

[Doug Braunsdorf]

Jim--In the Quirin article, Quirin refers to a "new course" was built in 1916 at the "foot of Stewart Ave" and then indicates that it is part of Eisenhower Park.   The only course I know of that was built in 1916 along Stewart Ave was Garden City Country Club, not GCGC.  I was just wondering if GCCC was the course Quirin referred to as being built "at the foot of Stewart Ave".

Ed

Ed-

  I believe Quirin is referring to what is known today as Eisenhower Park.  At the time, it was known as Salisbury Park.  Moving east from Garden City, Stewart Avenue continues through "downtown" Garden City and, about a mile and a half away, ends briefly at the intersection with Merrick Avenue, an entrance to Eisenhower Park. 
  I am working currently from America's Linksland, and from the information presented here; in the book, pages 150-162 are most relevant.

Garden City CC is mentioned on page 156 as being founded by residents of Garden City after Cherry Valley CC went private.  He also talks about the club being founded mainly by residents from the western side of Garden City.  I understand how the "...foot of Stewart Ave..." could be a misleading reference, but, in my mind, the next few words, "...just to the east of Garden City..." seem to indicate he is talking about the land occupied by Eisenhower Park. 

Edit-Just for some clarification for the board; Stewart Ave runs West-East from Garden City Park at an intersection with Covert Ave through Garden City, and ends at Merrick Ave. in Garden City or East Meadow.  The distance is about 5 miles total.  Stewart Ave runs directly through the center of Garden City.  When one drives on Stewart Ave. east (away from NYC), one will pass GC Country Club on the south side of the road, GCGC on the north side of the road a little further down, (Cherry Valley CC, discussed in this article, is about a half-mile south of GCGC) and continue through Garden City.  Afterwards, the road continues east until it terminates at the park entrance. 

The area referenced as occupied by the Midland club and surrendered to housing and development is on the eastern side of Cherry Valley Avenue, a few blocks south of Stewart Ave.  (Cherry Valley Ave makes up the western border of CVCC).

[Ed Homsey]

Doug--

Thanks for that clarification. 

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