Wisconsin Aerial Photographs - 1937 to 1940

[Sven Nilsen]

Ladysmith CC (Ladysmith)

1939 Aerial -



Located in Rusk County in the Northwest part of the State, Ladysmith CC was one of many small town courses launched when golf was gaining its highest popularity.

May 15, 1921 Leader-Telegram -



June 24, 1921 Ladysmith News-Budget -

[Matthew Rose]

Janesville Municipal GC a/k/a Riverside Municipal GC (Janesville)

Starting with a 6 hole course in 1924 that was being played on 2 weeks after construction began, the course was expanded to 9 holes in 1926. 

I've seen reports of Robert Bruce Harris being involved here, but my guess is that this was at a much later date when the course was expanded to 18 holes.

RBH did the 18 hole expansion in 1945. The course is still more or less the same today as it was then, save for the hole sequencing which changed once in the 1970s and then again altered more drastically in the mid-1980s. I believe most of the greens are original. Looking at the 9 hole aerial I'm trying to make sense of which holes got recycled; I'll need to take a better look.

Janesville CC is also essentially unchanged, except of course for tree growth. The small pond in front of the third green is quite a bit larger and there is also a smaller one in the driving zone of the 15th fairway; both of these were added in the early 90s.

[Sven Nilsen]

Lake Delton CC a/k/a Dell View GC a/k/a Dawn Manor GC (Lake Delton)

1937 Aerial -



Lake Delton was created in the 1920's as one of the first manmade lakes in the state.  A 9 hole course was built at that time, and expanded to 18 holes around 1932.

June 24, 1926 Wisconsin State Journal -



Aug. 5, 1928 Wisconsin State Journal -



May 25, 1932 The Capital Times -



Scorecard -

[Sven Nilsen]

Lake Geneva CC (Lake Geneva)

1937 Aerial -



Organized in 1895 with the course built in 1896, Lake Geneva dates as one of the oldest courses in the state.

Jan. 24, 1896 Lake Geneva Herald -



June 19, 1896 Lake Geneva Herald -



1900 Harpers -



1901 Golfers Green Book -





1915 Spalding Official Golf Guide -

[Sven Nilsen]

Lake Hallie GC (Chippewa Falls)

1938 Aerial -



Noted above under the Hillcrest in Eau Claire listing, Lake Hallie was one of the original sites for the course that was eventually built for that club.  Harold Anderson laid out this course, and when it was decided to operate it as a public course he stayed on Golf Instructor and Manager.

April 14, 1926 Leader-Telegram -



May 29, 1927 Leader-Telegram -

[Sven Nilsen]

Lake Lawn GC (Delavan)



Although there was an earlier course by this name, the course that appears in the aerial was built in 1925 by the Commonwealth Edison company for the use of its employees who vacationed at the private resort.  The 1929 article below suggests 9 holes were to be added to the existing 9 hole course, but the 1938 Aerial suggests this plan did not go through.

Tom Bendelow is credited with the work here, although I haven't seen anything to confirm his involvement.

May 12, 1925 The Capital Times -



Sept. 26, 1925 Belvidere Daily Republican -



March 18, 1929 Belvidere Daily Republican -



1936 Postcard -

[Sven Nilsen]

Lake Ripley CC (Cambridge)

1937 Aerial -



Opened in 1915 with 5 holes, the course was expanded to 7 and then 9 before being rearranged in 1924.  Finally, Lake Ripley purchased enough additional land to add 9 more holes in 1929.

July 31, 1922 The Capital Times -



Oct. 3, 1924 The Capital Times -



June 15, 1929 The Capital Times -

[Sven Nilsen]

Lake Wisconsin CC (Prairie du Sac)

1937 Aerial -



A course built for the residents of Prairie du Sac and Sauk City by Albert Mayo, the professional at the Nakoma CC.

Oct. 27, 1925 The Capital Times -



Nov. 19, 1925 Wisconsin State Journal -



Postcard -

[Sven Nilsen]

Lakeside CC a/k/a Manitowoc GC (Manitowoc)

1938 Aerial -



Launched in 1910 with Tom Bendelow as the architect, the club would move to new grounds in the 1950's and became Branch River CC.

April 14, 1910 Oshkosh Northwestern -



April 20, 1910 Green Bay Semi-Weekly Gazette -

[Sven Nilsen]

Lakeside GC (Pewaukee)

1937 Aerial -




I don't have any information on this course other than the aerial above of a course on the north shore of Pewaukee Lake and an attribution to Bendelow on the ASGCA List of his work (which erroneously notes this is now being Branch River, which is in Manitowoc).

[Sven Nilsen]

Lancaster CC (Lancaster)

1940 Aerial -



Another fairly modest course.  Take what you will from the 1928 article below.

April 16, 1926 Wisconsin State Journal -



Aug. 15, 1928 Platteville Journal and Grant County News -



April 19, 1931 The Capital Times -

[Sven Nilsen]

Lauderdale CC (Elkhorn)

1937 Aerial -



A 9 hole course attached to the Sterlingworth Hotel.

June 9, 1920 Kenosha Evening News -



May 12, 1925 The Capital Times -

[PCCraig]

Great stuff Sven. Great to see the history of courses many of us from the North Country have played! Hope you can do a similar dissertation for Minnesota.

Agreed! (Although I know how much work these threads can be, it would be much appreciated).

[Sven Nilsen]

Lawsonia GC (Green Lake)

1937 Aerial -



This Langford & Moreau classic has been covered extensively on this site.

April 26, 1930 News-Record -



May 1, 1930 Oshkosh Northwestern -



May 15, 1930 Oshkosh Daily Northwestern -



July 1930 The National Greenskeeper -

[Sven Nilsen]

Lawsonia GC First Course (Green Lake)

1937 Aerial -



Before the construction of the "Links" course, a 9 hole course existed on the Victor Lawson Estate.  Plans were to convert this course, located to the south and west of the Links course, into 18 holes.

Aug. 21, 1925 The Post-Crescent -



Brochure -

[Sven Nilsen]

Ledgeview GC (Fond du Lac)

1937 Aerial -



The 1937 Aerial above clearly depicts a 9 hole course on the site of what today is the Whispering Springs GC, whose history notes the existence of Ledgeview here.  I can find little information on Ledgeview, and have a suspicion that it might have been a later iteration of Fond du Lac's Town and Country Club.  Any information on the connection between Town and Country and Ledgeview would be appreciated.

Town and Country Club's 9 holes are credited to Bendelow.

April 3, 1919 Chicago Daily Tribune -



April 10, 1919 Oshkosh Daily Northwestern -



Jan. 14, 1920 Wisconsin State Journal -

[Sven Nilsen]

Lincoln Fields GC n/k/a Meadow Links GC (Manitowoc)

1938 Aerial -



In 1927 Robert Bruce Harris visited the city and suggested the construction of a public golf course.  Two years later an 18 hole course was in the works under the direction of Ralph Wymer (only 9 holes would be built). 

The course is now known as Meadow Links and is erroneously credited to Bendelow.

Oct. 19, 1927 Manitowoc Herald-Times -



Aug. 24, 1929 Manitowoc Herald-Times -

[Sven Nilsen]

Little River CC (Marinette)

1938 Aerial -



This was Marinette's only golf course and noted as the only 18 hole course north of Green Bay.

April 5, 1927 The Journal Times -

[Sven Nilsen]

Luck GC (Luck)

1938 Aerial -



Once home to the factory that made the Yo-Yo, Luck is located on the shores of Butternut Lake where the course was built in 1938.

May 11, 1938 Dunn County News -

[Sven Nilsen]

The Lynx Club (Milwaukee)

1937 Aerial -



An 18 hole course built in Milwaukee in the early 1920's.  I haven't much on this one so any additional information would be appreciated.

June 6, 1924 Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle -

[Sven Nilsen]

Maple Bluff GC (Madison)

1937 Aerial -



Golf started here in 1897, with the club being formally organized in 1899 with a 6 hole course at a new location.  In 1900 Herbert Tweedie was brought in to build 9 new holes.

In 1916, the club formalized plans to expand to 18 holes with the new course opening in 1917.

The reference to "Conservative Madison" in the first article has not been repeated in a long time.

Aug. 27, 1897 Portage Daily Democrat -



June 3, 1899 Wisconsin State Journal -



Feb. 9, 1900 Chicago Daily Tribune -



May 3, 1900 Wisconsin State Journal -



April 27, 1901 Wisconsin State Journal -



Nov. 1, 1909 Wisconsin State Journal -



Sept. 2, 1917 Wisconsin State Journal -




1957 Photo -

[Sven Nilsen]

Maple Crest CC (Kenosha)

1937 Aerial -



Modern Aerial -



A 1927 Leonard Macumber 18 hole course in Kenosha.

May 19, 1927 Kenosha News -



June 10, 1927 Kenosha Evening News -



July 13, 1927 Kenosha Evening News -



Feb. 19, 1930 Kenosha Evening News -

[Sven Nilsen]

Marshfield CC (Marshfield)

1938 Aerial -



A George Hansen design, who is noted here as being associated with Spalding.

July 21, 1922 Marshfield News-Herald -



July 26, 1922 Marshfield News-Herald -

[Sven Nilsen]

Mary Jewell Municipal GC a/k/a Oshkosh Municipal GC a/k/a Lakeshore GC (Oshkosh)

1937 Aerial -



The Algoma GC was located on land leased from Edgar Sawyer.  When Algoma moved to new property and became Oshkosh CC, Sawyer offered the land to the city to be used as a park.  It was to be named after his late wife Mary Jewell Sawyer.

Nine holes were eventually built in Mary Jewell Park on the same land that Algoma had occupied, with an additional nine added in 1936.

The course was home to the Lake Shore Women's Golf Club, and would become known as Lakeshore GC in its later years before being shut down.

March 31, 1912 Oshkosh Northwestern -



June 10, 1935 Oshkosh Northwestern -



May 28, 1936 Oshkosh Northwestern -

[Sven Nilsen]

Mascoutin GC (Berlin)

1937 Aerial -



The course would move to a new location south of town where there are now 27 holes.

Feb. 14, 1931 Oshkosh Northwestern -