Early 20th century postcard of the Washtenaw Golf Club

I recently purchased another early 20th century postcard of the original clubhouse of the Washtenaw Golf Club in Ypsilanti, Michigan (two other Washtenaw postcards here and here).

There is no date, but I have seen other photos from 1889 – 1913 that show the same clubhouse and the landmark bridge over Paint Creek. The clothing the women wear is from around the turn of the century.

There’s also no information to identify the women, but I think it’s possible that co-founder DeLynn Whitmire is one, who I’ve seen posing near the bridge in other photos.

Of the ninety-nine charter members, eleven were women. That seems unusual to me for that period. But perhaps Ypsilanti and Ann Arbor were more progressive communities (in the early 20th century sense of the word) than some others. Without naming names, there are clubs in Michigan that didn’t admit female members until the 1970s or later.

The clubhouse was located near the railroad tracks that ran along what is now Packard Road. Early stories report that people drove from Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti over the railroad to play at the club, which was one of the stops.

In this postcard, Washtenaw Golf Club is identified as being in Ann Arbor, rather than Ypsilanti. I’m not sure where the Ypsilanti city limits were at the time, but I am certain the club was not within the Ann Arbor city limits.

Another postcard I found incorrectly identifies the course as the Ypsilanti Country Club.

I get the feeling that the printers who made these maps weren’t particularly committed to editorial accuracy.

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