The opening of the Washtenaw Country Club in August 1899 was an event for “social leaders”

I. Newton Swift was the winner of the first tournament held at Washtenaw Golf Club (then Washtenaw Country Club) in August 1899.

The tournament was held as part of the club’s grand opening, according to an article in the Ann Arbor Daily Times from August 29, 1899. Putting and long drive competitions were also on the agenda, followed by dinner and dancing.

It is clear from the enthusiasm in the article that Washtenaw Country Club – even as it opened – was envisioned as a community center: “destined to serve an important function in creating a more cordial feeling between the social leaders of Ypsilanti and Ann Arbor.”

In our current turbulent and disjointed – yet all too connected – society, I find it strange that a community would have recognized local ‘social leaders’ whose ‘heartfelt feelings’ mattered. Of course we have “influencers” on social media, but they seem to me to be different creatures. Influencers have millions of followers, only a handful of whom have personally observed their behavior. Social media influencers are creators of their own for-profit fiction.

It strikes me that around the turn of the century, “social leaders” were people you would regularly see in a community, especially in small towns (Ann Arbor had a population of 14,000 in 1900; Ypsilanti’s had 7,000). Some undoubtedly hid things behind a fancier facade. Others may have constructed fictions to maintain their status. However, they were not disconnected. They were known and present and their presence seemed to matter.

Newspapers of the time published lists of supposedly notable people and their comings and goings. For example: Mr. and Mrs. Edward Ryan are visiting friends in Detroit. Mrs. RS Greenwood was in Detroit yesterday visiting friends. Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Donnelly received word from a grandson in Chicago. And on and on.

Why did people need to know that Miss Annie Day Robinson was visiting friends in Cleveland? Maybe it’s because in those small towns the absence of a social leader would have been noticed and discussed.

I also find it remarkable that the community of the “Twin Cities” (Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti) had coalesced around golf so quickly, when the sport was relatively unknown in the area. It wasn’t until last fall that Cora Henry and I. Newton Swift had returned to Ypsilanti from a summer vacation at Martha’s Vinyard, with enthusiasm for a “beautiful game” they had discovered. Together with friend Daniel L. Quirk, Jr. they convinced a farmer to let them sink three tomato cans in a hay field so they could continue playing.

Less than a year later, those three looks in a hayfield led to the founding of the Washtenaw Country Club. Washtenaw was incorporated on July 18, 1899. The grand opening of the club and clubhouse was on August 26, 1899.

An article in the August 7, 1899 Free press tells a story of a Chicago man who saw a sign advertising golf in a sporting goods store in Ann Arbor. The Chicago golfer wondered, “Where are the links?” The clerk replied, “We’ll have them in tomorrow with our full inventory. You see, we just ordered a lot for the Washtenaw Country Golf Club.”

From that conversation, it seems likely that the sporting goods clerk was unfamiliar with golf terminology and mistook “links” for “clubs.”

I don’t know what the original clubhouse looked like, but I have several postcards and photos in my collection from 1913 that show the above. The original clubhouse is likely part of that structure.

In the official history of the Washtenaw Country Club, the clubhouse was built at a cost of $855 and included a “large central room with fireplace plus an attached kitchen and wood stove. Members brought their own lunches or cooked their meals on site. Locker rooms were located in the basement.”

The club history also says that in 1912 there were “many improvements to the clubhouse including a dining room, a heating system, cellar lockers and showers, larger kitchen facilities, verandas and an outside pro shop.”

Still, the clubhouse opening and celebration was a promising start for a golf club that is now more than 125 years old and still going strong.

The full text of the article follows:

IN Swift won in golf

Opening of the Washtenaw Country Club

There were 150 attendees from the twin cities

The opening of the Washteanw Country Club house on Saturday was a social event long to be remembered by the 150 attendees from the Twin Cities, and the new organization is destined to serve an important function and create a more cordial feeling between the social leaders of Ypsilanti and Ann Arbor.

The afternoon was spent in the excitement of a golf tournament and the finals, which were contested by I. Newton Swift, of Ypsilanti, and Dr. Arnell, of Ann Arbor, were won by the former. However, the man from Ann Arbor was satisfied by winning the putting competition. Jesse Millard of Ypsilanti won the driving award.

Dinner was served to the guests at 6:00 PM and the rest of the evening was spent dancing.

The fact that the club will become increasingly popular is best reflected in the genuine enthusiasm with which the club started. The handsome clubhouse will be the scene of many a social occasion this winter, and the already large membership will have no reason to regret perfecting such an organization.

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