By Jere Dennison, Club Historian

Your historian had the occasion recently to contemplate the swift passage of time, when, serendipitously, he received a parcel of old photos from member Evelyn Turner through member John Koedel. Among many club scenes worth preserving, there were several pictures of the interior of the old clubhouse, images of which have been notably absent from our archives.

Then it struck me that we still talk effusively about our ‘new’ clubhouse. Really…it has been an incredible 15 years since our old clubhouse came down to make way for the ‘new’ clubhouse in 2002. And many post-2002 members and certainly junior members through their teenage years have no recollection of our original clubhouse that served us so faithfully for over half a century.  So the ‘new’ clubhouse ain’t so new anymore, and perhaps it’s time to reminisce ‘historically’ about the old one using Evelyn’s pictures as illustrations.

 

The first photo shows members hunkering down after a cold weather event. There is a roaring wood fire in the fireplace, the only source of heat in the clubhouse, and the pass-through kitchen in the background illustrates the modest but efficient food preparation area then available to members.

 

The second photo captures a warm weather party scene inside the clubhouse. If one looks closely near the top of the large opening to the screen porch overlooking Fishing Bay, one will see the large door, or rather a wall section on hinges deployed with a block and tackle system, that could be dropped to ingeniously seal out cold drafts. This-End-Up furniture punctuated the interior décor of the clubhouse.

 

The third photo depicts the screened back porch overlooking the water that served as the primary dining area for the clubhouse, supplemented by picnic tables on the lawn.

It is interesting to note that the first floor of the current clubhouse incorporates the three primary design elements that made the 1949 version so functional, albeit on a grander scale: a central seating area with a fireplace for warmth during cold weather events, doors to close off the seating area from the porch during inclement weather, a large screen porch with a spectacular water view for dining, and a kitchen with pass-through access to the interior (and now directly to the porch). 

It is evident that “the more things changed, the more they remained the same!”

 

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