Mill Valley Golf Club

Timeline

94 dates from the Lost Acreage to the course among the houses. Each links to its newspaper source and to the chapter of the history that tells the story.

1880s1910s1920s1930s1940s1950s1960s1970s
  1. Chapter IA Cow Pasture in Warner Canyon1880–1919
  2. 1882 March 15

    Cushing patents part of the Lost Acreage

    Dr. Sidney B. Cushing receives a federal patent for 162.01 acres of the government wedge between two ranchos, part of which later lay under the golf links.

  3. 1884

    Dr. Alexander Warner acquires Warner Canyon

    The San Francisco dentist takes possession of the canyon above the future course, which keeps his name.

  4. 1910

    Ball game at Boyle Park

    A photograph shows a crowd at the ball field beside the road to Warner Canyon, with the future golf ground behind.

  5. 1914 June

    Alysse Warner marries Ben Upham

    Dr. Warner's daughter marries Benjamin P. Upham, a future club director and president.

  6. 1916 April 15

    Town and Country Club prospectus published

    A plan for a family club with a clubhouse and golf grounds, funded by $100 trustees' notes, appears in the Record.

  7. 1916 April 28

    First Town and Country Club meeting

    About seventy-five people meet with F. F. Bostwick in the chair, according to the club's 1939 history.

  8. 1916 June 17

    Town and Country Club incorporated

    The club incorporates as a non-profit voluntary association, with Bostwick as president and more than eighty members.

  9. 1917

    War puts the club on hold

    The Town and Country Club stops all activity when the United States enters the war.

  10. 1919 April 15

    Meeting to turn club into golf club

    The dormant country club meets at the Bank of Mill Valley and looks into leasing grounds for golf links.

  11. 1919 April 27

    Golf picnic at Boyle Park

    The town is invited to a basket picnic in Warner Canyon to hear the plans and view the proposed site.

  12. 1919 June 19

    J. H. Clark building nine holes

    The papers report that 100 charter members expect to open a nine-hole course being completed by John H. Clark within six weeks.

  13. 1919 Aug.

    Greens sown

    Clark's greens are sown in August, so opening is pushed back to the fall.

  14. 1919 Sept. 20

    Board organizes; Eacret president

    Godfrey Eacret becomes president, Roy C. Ward vice-president and J. F. Forbes secretary-treasurer.

  15. 1919 Oct. 18

    Clubhouse foundations begun

    Work starts on Walter H. Ratcliff's clubhouse, and members practice with temporary cups beside the greens.

  16. 1919 Nov. 1

    "Golf is now a reality"

    The Record declares the roughly 2,500-yard nine-hole links in Boyle Canyon complete, with all but two greens playable.

  17. 1919 Nov. 22

    First membership roster printed

    The Record prints the club's first membership list, close to a hundred names.

  18. 1919 Nov. 29

    Bob Clark engaged as professional

    Bob Clark is engaged permanently as professional and greenkeeper, and the clubhouse roof is finished.

  19. Chapter IIThe Club Years1920–1929
  20. 1920 Feb. 8

    First club tournament: Frank Walsh wins

    Frank Walsh wins the club's first tournament, a blind-handicap event, with a 95 on a course that had been a cow pasture six months before.

  21. 1920 April 17

    Mill Valley beats Belvedere 29 to 4

    In its first inter-club match, played at home, the new club routs the Belvedere Golf and Country Club.

  22. 1920 April 25

    Black brothers play the Clark brothers

    John and Bob Black play an exhibition foursome for a club purse against Harold Clark of Marin and Bob Clark of Mill Valley.

  23. 1920 June 8

    First annual meeting caps membership at 150

    The first annual meeting limits the club to 150 members and abolishes summer memberships; by December there is a long waiting list.

  24. 1920 Aug.

    Frank Ankers makes the first eagle

    Frank Ankers holes a mashie second shot on the ninth, the first eagle on the course.

  25. 1921 Jan. 1

    Completed clubhouse formally opened

    About seventy-five members attend a New Year's dinner-dance in Ratcliff's completed clubhouse, marked by an address for the club's formal opening.

  26. 1921 Feb.

    Boyle family deeds 15.97 acres

    Hugh A. Boyle and others deed 15.97 acres of the Boyle Tract to trustees Eacret and Forbes, with the right to buy more.

  27. 1921 Nov. 27

    First home-and-home win over Marin

    In a driving rain, Mill Valley beats the Marin Golf and Country Club 11 to 8, its first home-and-home win over the older club.

  28. 1922 May 6

    Boyle road surveyed opposite the Golf Grounds

    Mrs. Hugh A. Boyle prepares to sell her estate, and the Record reports a new road to be put through the land opposite the Golf Grounds.

  29. 1922 June

    First barbecue in the redwood grove

    The club holds its first barbecue in the redwood grove on the golf grounds, cooked on a grill designed by Ben Upham.

  30. 1922 July 23

    Mill Valley wins Marin County championship

    Mill Valley wins the inter-club championship of Marin County, with Marin fifteen strokes behind; the team later receives gold medals.

  31. 1922 Sept. 15

    Bob Clark's hole-in-one on the 4th

    Professional Bob Clark makes the first hole-in-one on the links, at the fourth, in a round of 29; he resigns a month later.

  32. 1923 Jan. 6

    J. Martin Watson rebuilds 6th and 9th greens

    New professional J. Martin Watson and member Leslie Symmes are engaged to rebuild the 6th and 9th greens.

  33. 1924 Dec. 25

    Christmas Day 1924 in the Mills album

    A. D. Mills photographs members on the course on Christmas Day, "and not a caddy to be had," for his album of the club.

  34. 1925 Jan. 10

    Mountain lion seen near the 4th green

    A mountain lion interrupts a match of Walsh, Eacret and Upham near the fourth green, and A. D. Mills chases it with his tripod.

  35. 1925 Feb. 11

    Great storm; ninth green repaired

    A great storm strikes Mill Valley; A. D. Mills photographs the damage, including the repair of the ninth green, and sells prints for the street fund.

  36. 1927 June 14

    Forbes steps down as secretary-treasurer

    John F. Forbes, the club's financial father, retires as secretary-treasurer of a club of low dues and no assessments; Dr. McChesney is president.

  37. 1928 April 28

    Harold Bunn sets course record of 68

    Harold Bunn shoots 68, two over a par of 66, the lowest amateur score since the club began.

  38. 1928 Aug. 10

    Country Club Manor tract goes on sale

    Country Club Manor, a restricted residential tract adjoining the club, goes on sale from the end of the Buena Vista pavement at Boyle Park.

  39. 1928 Sept. 30

    Haka on the fourth fairway

    At the annual dinner Harold Bunn and a dozen members stage a Maori haka by firelight on the redwood-ringed fourth fairway.

  40. Chapter IIIHard Times and a Public Course1930–1939
  41. 1930 May 2

    Mill Valley wins Marin Cup opening round

    On the home course the Mill Valley eight beat Marin, Belvedere and Meadow, admitting 'an advantage of knowing their barrancas.'

  42. 1930 June 10

    John F. Forbes elected club president

    The annual meeting made the club's longtime treasurer its president, with Sedg Jory as secretary.

  43. 1930 June 15

    Archie Treat struck on the 3rd green

    A drive from the 4th tee fractured Treat's skull; in 1936 a judge awarded him $10,000 against Taylor Merriman.

  44. 1931

    Bermuda grass planted on the fairways

    The club planted Bermuda grass for year-round turf, and in 1932 added larger greens, bridges and a new seventh green.

  45. 1933 Feb. 17

    Junior memberships open to all

    Facing falling membership, the club offered $1 and $2 monthly junior memberships with no initiation fee.

  46. 1933 May 21

    County quadrangular title, first in 11 years

    Mill Valley won the Marin County quadrangular championship, beating Belvedere 11½ to ½.

  47. 1937 Dec. 17

    City purchase talks made public

    The Record revealed that the club's 'precarious financial position' had led to private talks with the city.

  48. 1938 Jan. 5

    Club offers everything for $25,000

    The directors offered course, clubhouse and all holdings to the city for $25,000.

  49. 1938 April 12

    First bond election falls short

    The bonds won 844 to 512, a majority but short of the two-thirds required.

  50. 1938 May

    New option keeps the club alive

    Members approved a new city option with six $350 monthly warrants to keep up the turf and no restrictions on use.

  51. 1939 Jan. 17

    Voters approve the golf bonds

    A special election carried the $25,000 bonds by nearly three to one (820 to 327 per the Record).

  52. 1939 March 3

    Municipal course opens

    The city recorded deeds to nine parcels, 42 acres, and opened the Mill Valley Municipal Golf Course that day.

  53. 1939 April

    New men's Mill Valley Golf Club

    Golfers formed a men's club for the municipal links under president Wynant Van Zandt, with $4 annual dues.

  54. 1939 April 9

    First Easter egg hunt on the course

    The city hid 1,440 eggs on the new golf park; parked cars stretched a quarter mile.

  55. 1939 June 4

    Mayor Bagshaw dedicates course and park

    The Tamalpais High drum and bugle corps drilled on the fairway as the mayor dedicated the new city park.

  56. 1939 June 25

    Donaldson wins first municipal championship

    Cyril Donaldson beat George Ryan 7 and 6 over 36 holes in the dedication tournament final.

  57. 1939 Sept. 12

    Play more than triples since March

    Manager Frank Assin reported 4,339 rounds since March, about 80% by players from outside the city.

  58. Chapter IVThe City's Nine Holes1940–1949
  59. 1940 Feb. 1

    Boyle walks out on bypass road deal

    Ida M. Boyle quits talks over a 40-foot road strip meant to end Ben Upham's right-of-way through the fairways.

  60. 1940 June 21

    Road widening tears out clubhouse steps

    Widening of Buena Vista Avenue and the parking area adds 20 feet in front of the clubhouse, partly tearing out the old concrete steps.

  61. 1940 July 3

    Councilman raises closing the course

    G. V. Griffitts reminds the council that voters were promised a self-sustaining course; a full financial report is ordered.

  62. 1940 Aug. 2

    NYA Tamalpais sign points to links

    A green wooden sign shaped like Mt. Tamalpais goes up on Buena Vista Avenue pointing to the municipal course.

  63. 1940 Oct. 30

    Women's golf club organized

    Twenty-three women form the women's division of the Mill Valley Golf Club under Mrs. W. L. Smith.

  64. 1940 Nov. 6

    $610 voted for new clubhouse steps

    The council funds new steps and a retaining wall, foundation repairs and a grassed first tee.

  65. 1941 Jan. 10

    Blue-rock wall and steps under way

    Rain halts work on the new blue-rock steps and retaining wall; the men's club has grown from 15 to 140 members.

  66. 1941 May

    Scott agrees to Buena Vista extension

    J. H. Scott agrees to deed a road along the northwest side of the park so Upham can release his right-of-way.

  67. 1942 Jan. 12

    Course annexed into city limits

    The supervisors unanimously bring the municipal golf course and park inside Mill Valley's limits.

  68. 1942 Jan. 16

    Blackout closes clubhouse; holes renumbered

    Night rentals end for lack of blackout shutters, and the holes are renumbered with only 1, 2 and 9 unchanged.

  69. 1942 March

    Half-price golf for servicemen

    New rates give noncommissioned servicemen a half-price concession that lasts through the war.

  70. 1944 Sept.

    Helen Hanna wins North Bay title

    Mill Valley's captain wins the North Bay women's championship and becomes the association's first Mill Valley president.

  71. 1945 Nov.

    West-side road graded and oiled

    Half a mile of new road along the west side of the course is graded, rolled and oiled.

  72. 1946 July

    Weekend starting times imposed

    With the course taxed to capacity on weekends, the new Golf Commission sets starting times.

  73. 1948 Jan. 19

    Road annexed; mid-course right-of-way ends

    The supervisors annex the golf course road, ending the need for a right-of-way down the middle of the course.

  74. 1948 May

    Colburn pro, Meteer greenkeeper

    After Ed Patten resigns, the city splits his job between greenkeeper L. G. Meteer and pro Neil Colburn.

  75. 1948 Aug.

    Course declared self-supporting

    City Manager Adsit reports $12,680 in golf proceeds; the course pays its way, though the clubhouse does not.

  76. 1948 Dec. 9

    State strikes golf course from sign

    The state requires 'Municipal Golf Course' to be deleted from the Highway 101 gateway sign.

  77. 1948 Dec. 20

    Boyle sues for road across course

    Sydney Boyle sues for a way of necessity across the course near the seventh hole.

  78. 1949 Oct. 23

    Blennerhassett wins club championship

    Earle Blennerhassett beats Bill Mason 8 and 7, making 10 threes in 11 afternoon holes.

  79. Chapter VThe Course Among the Houses1950–1965
  80. 1950 Nov. 23

    Boyle sues for road across course

    Sydney F. Boyle's suit for a right-of-way across the course to reach 17 acres north and east of the seventh hole is taken off the calendar pending a compromise.

  81. 1951 Feb. 22

    Plan to move 1st and 9th

    The new park and recreation commission studies shifting the 1st and 9th holes east so balls stop landing on the road.

  82. 1951 Aug. 2

    First tee and ninth green moved

    Work begins moving the tee and green away from cars on the road to the picnic grounds; the fill cut from the hill makes a 50-car parking lot.

  83. 1951 Nov. 23

    First Lions junior tournament

    More than 50 youngsters play the Lions Club junior tournament, which pro Bud Fisher had suggested.

  84. 1952 Jan. 29

    Scott Highlands subdivision announced

    James H. Scott lays out 54 lots at the mouth of Warner Canyon beside the north end of the course.

  85. 1952 March 6

    City manager proposes selling course

    Alex Almcrants suggests selling the 43-acre nine for houses and building 18 holes near the Alto intersection; nothing comes of it.

  86. 1952 May 8

    Boyle road dispute settled

    The city grants Boyle a right-of-way across a corner of the course, and his family's land is annexed to the city in return.

  87. 1952 Sept. 11

    Golfers' fence plan rejected

    Golfers wanted an eight-foot fence along Buena Vista instead, but the clubs agree to let the tee-and-green move go on.

  88. 1954 April 4

    New dogleg ninth hole opens

    The new ninth green and the first grass tee, at No. 1, open for the Director's Cup in a driving rain.

  89. 1954 Sept. 30

    Malcolm Brown named golf pro

    Malcolm E. Brown, a Class A PGA professional from King City, replaces Bud Fisher.

  90. 1955 July 21

    City Championship gets perpetual cup

    The city provides a perpetual cup for the Mill Valley City Golf Championship.

  91. 1956 June 14

    Free fill from Kramer homesites

    Stephen Kramer's grading above the third tee gives the city 18,000 cubic yards of free fill for the course.

  92. 1956 July 26

    Pro shop move down the hill

    Pro Malcolm Brown asks to move his shop from the top of the clubhouse stairs down to the first tee.

  93. 1956 Nov. 29

    New pro shop opens at first tee

    The redwood pro shop opens at the first tee, across the road from the clubhouse.

  94. 1958 June 5

    New sprinkler system starts

    City crews under Joseph Penders start up the first unit of the new sprinkler system.

  95. 1958 Dec. 11

    City manager proposes selling clubhouse

    Almcrants suggests selling the money-losing clubhouse; the parks commission takes no action.

  96. 1958 Dec. 31

    Barefoot kicker versus golf pro

    Gordon Tovani, kicking a football barefoot, is set to play a medal match against pro Malcolm Brown.

  97. 1963 Sept. 18

    Penders demoted to greenskeeper

    The council upholds the demotion of Parks Superintendent Joseph Penders after a stormy meeting.

  98. 1965 July 14

    Rotary leaves the clubhouse

    Rotary votes 33 to 9 to leave the clubhouse, which the women's club calls filthy.

  99. 1975 Nov. 12

    Fire inside the clubhouse

    Fire damages the clubhouse interior; the library's record says arson was suspected.