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>and became dis onth. The e at least a return to is a five, •d in a te ha tefore eed! Jf lis d»sa ... _ . uL>. ) ON i AOL «W|I"WCHUI HHU -uwt> aucnyw «t«u | It s A Terrific DOCUMENTARY on Life in McHeniy over the past 100 years. The McHenry Plaindealer • 100 TEUS * CENTENNIAL «d*itwith bread and fats and oil; HI a wax the Aerial View Of Golf Course i SB Wl y pvv u; ISSUE a J >) aL 9 ii « vw t- tl lr* 100 YEARS • Histories of Schools, Churches, Organizations, Businesses, our War Veterans, Hospital, Library and much much more... m I I t$ $ § H 33 P3 s a s & m PVV x w la 8 MONTHS OF RESEARCH AND DEDICATED, HARD WORK BY THE PLAINDEALER STAFF WITH THE CO-OPERATION OF MANY LOCAL CITIZENS. -1< * te 11 t iaii ea o wj isi K* || isi 1 i m i a Ml H m m & % n & or Y£srERy ii m i* Si i -H ^ on the You may purchase Extra Copies at 50' each. If you wish to have a copy mailed to you or someone else the cost is *1°° per copy. \ ATTHE McHENRY PLAINDEALER 3812 W. ELM ST. McHENRY redu< owndec border tot ** ill Shown above is an aerial view of Country Club Estates subdivision in the foreground and the golf course of McHenry Country club In the upper portion of the photo. Sixty-Acre Purchase Start Of McHenry Country Club The McHenry Country club originated with the purchase of approximately 60 acres from Charles Owen in the fall of 1921. The first board of directors consisted of H.H. King, president; Richard B. Walsh, vice-president; A.H. Pouse, secretary; C.W. Goodell, treasurer; and directors, C.W. Stenger, Ben Stilling, A.H. Hannifin and W.F. Vogt. Construction of a 9-hole golf course began immediately. It was much simpler in those days as the course did not contain the contours around the tees and greens. The early greens consisted of a spot on the fairway where the grass was nrowed shorter. The tees were approximately six feet square and were made of red clay. A box was placed on each tee containing a pail of water and a Sidney Smith creator of the well known newspaper comic strip, "Andy Gump", drives off first ball from No. 1 tee at opening of McHenry Country club. 1 *\ Charles S. Owen and Charles Norton Owen were in the first foresome to tee off at the opening of the McHenry Country club. They were descendants of the city's earliest settlers. a. box of sand. This served as a ball washer, but also most people used sand and a little water to form a small mount to use for teeing off the red clay. In the Spring of 1922 the board of directors began a serious effort to attract a young greens keeper from Woodstock. An agreement was finally reached and in June of 1922 A1 Purvey became greenskeeper at the McHenry Country club, the position he held until his retirement as golf course superintendent in 1961. He is still active in assisting on the course. Early records indicate that two present , members were active on committees in 1922. George H. Johnson served on the Building committee, while Gerald J. Carey was a member of the Rules, Handicap and Tournament committee. The original clubhouse was located on the southwest part of what is now the east putting green. This structure was 14 by 30 feet and was built in one day by McHenry building con­ tractor John Weber and his crew -- three men. The original building contained a lunch counter and rest rooms. The golf course was laid out as follows: The first hole started from the old first tee and went to the location of the existing first green. Number two was generally in the same location as the present hole. In the old days there were no trees or houses along the out-of- bounds and some of the big hitters could "cut across" to the green. Number three was generally the same as now. Number 4 tee was in the current location, but the hole went east on the 11th fairway to a green located east of the present 11th green at a point at the edge of the club property. Number 5 was similar in yardage and direction to the 300 yard number 7. The sixth hole tee was south of the current 8th tee with the 6th green being in the location of the present 8th green. Number 7 tee was directly west of the current 8th green and ran south to the area of the present 10th green. The present 17th tee was then the 8th tee with the hole running north to an area about 100 yards short of the present 17th green. The 9th and final tee was north Yesterday And Today €» * roun Corn shocks on the former Owen farm as they appeared in 1918. Today the same view overlooks No I fairway of McHenry Country club, looking east. of the old 8th green in ap­ proximately the area of the present 17th green and with the hole running to the same location of the present 9th green. Some local playing rules from the early days of interest were as follows: Hole Number 1; ball on road at left of fairway is considered a hazard and must be played as such. Hole Number 17; any ball driven from the tee and stop­ ping in the creek crossing the fairway may be lifted without penalty. To all other players, the creek is a hazard and must be played as such. Hole Number 18; road is a hazard and must toe played as such. Harry Morris was the club's first golf professional. He came when the club opened in 1922. His first pro shop was in a tent located adjacent to the clubhouse. He remained until his death in 1936. The first fairway mowers were pulled by horses. The greens mowers were hand driven with the power being supplied by the man doing the pushing. The power driven greens mowers did not arrive until the late 30's. The club prospered and in the fall of 1925 an additional 50 acres was purchased to provide for the second 9 holes. The cost was $500 per acre. President King placed a stake where he thought the greens should be and A1 Purvey proceeded with the design. The greens were built with horse and slip scraper. The 18-hole course was ready for play in the fall of 1926. Things went well during the early years; but like everything else, the Depression took its toll. At one time an Equity Membership sold for as low as $37.50, which included one year's dues. Annual dues St this time were $25.00. The 1928 Games committee put out a booklet which might be the grandfather of the present club directory. In­ cluded in this publication was the admonition that "Ladies with high-heel shoes are not allowed on the greens or fairways." (The ladies were included in many of the weekly events.) and also "Stymies will be played in match play." According to early records, the first club championship was held in 1933 with Elmer Galitz being crowned champion. This popular event has continued annually with the exception of the war years of 1944 and 1945. Leo Stilling served as pro from 1937 through 1939, with Walter Carbury handling the job in 1940. Jimmy Smith was the 'professional from 1941 through 1943. The club was without a pro for several years, although Fred Doctor and others did handle the sale of golfing equipment. Julius Goffo served as pro from 1953 through 1961. The present pro, Vale Adams, has been with the club since 1962. Many improvements have been made through the years. The present clubhouse was completed in 1953. A large addition was completed in 1960, which included the men's lounge, locker room and pro shop. Among the changes on the golf course were included the lengthening of holes 14, 15, 17 and 7, in addition to planting trees, adding sand traps and rebuilding greens. The McHenry Country club has always enjoyed a reputation for being in excellent condition. The first watering system was installed in 1957 which supplied water to the greens, the approaches, the tees and the tops of the hills. This served well until 1968 when a need for watered fairways was satisfied with a new automatic watering system. This project was totally financed by member participation. In 1966 additional land, consisting of more than 50 acres, was purchased adjacent to the 6th fairway. This land now includes a practice area and will provide for additional expansion, if needed. Tennis courts were con­ structed in the summer of 1975. i Ai f