The McKellar Golf Course - Part Four (The Hall of Fame)

This is part four of a five part series on the history of the McKellar Golf Club/Course. 
Part one (McKellar Park, club beginnings and the general history) can be read: HERE
Part two (The course layout and club boundaries) can be read: HERE
Part three (The Clubhouse and other buildings) can be read: HERE

Another reminder, for anyone reading this, if you have any old photos, artifacts or anecdotes about the McKellar Golf Course, I would love to hear from you. Please email me at daveallston@rogers.com. Thank you!

* * *

This fourth part I've called the "Hall of Fame", and is mostly a spot to list all the key figures and champions from McKellar's history, that I was able to piece together. The focus here is on the club pros, the course record holder, the annual men's and women's championship winners, other trophy winners, the full list of hole-in-ones on the course, and a list of all the greenskeepers.

* * *

The full list of Club Professionals at McKellar

1927: Alfred “Freddie” Rogers was the first club pro. He was the former assistant pro at Rivermead. It is unknown where he moved to after his year at McKellar.

1928-1930: Rube Mullen. Formerly with the Hull City Golf Club. Moved to the Gatineau Golf & Country Club.

1931-1933: Ernie Wakelam. Formerly of the Brockville Country Club. His brother Cyril also acted as club pro with him in at least 1931. Moved to Gatineau Country Club in 1934.

Canadian Golfer Magazine, Dec 1930

1934-June 1934: Jimmy Sim. Formerly of the Chaudiere Golf Club. Appears to have resigned suddenly mid-season for reasons unknown. Later appeared as the pro at the Chelsea Club.

June 1934-1935: Bob Ferns. Formerly of the Mississippi Club at Carleton Place.

1936-1937: Frank Mann. Formerly of the Toronto Willowdale Club. He left for the Tecumseh Golf Club after the 1937 season. He had an assistant pro Lionel Brown in 1937.

1938-1940: Earl Stimpson. Formerly of the club at Summerside PEI. His brother Alex Stimpson was also shared pro duties in 1938 at least, and filled in as pro in the fall of 1940 while Earl had an appendectomy. Earl moved to the Chaudiere Golf Club in December of 1940.

1941 (April to July 17, resigned): Tom Dennis. Formerly of the Murray Bay Golf Club in Quebec. In mid-summer he decided to return back to Windsor where he had lived and worked previously.

1941 (after July 17): none?

1942-1943: I can't find this information!

1944-1948:  Ben Kerr (with assistant pro, his son, Alastair Kerr for all/most of the time)

1949: George O’Donoghue (was at Cutten Field Club at Guelph)

1950-1952: Ben Kerr and Alastair Kerr returned. (Alastair may have only been there in 1950, unsure)

Below are a couple of clippings about Wakelam and Mann. The first is a bit of an update provided by Wakelam to Canadian Golfer Magazine after he first moved to McKellar in 1931. In it, Wakelam speaks positively about the course.

Canadian Golfer Magazine, May, 1931.

Ottawa Citizen, October 31, 1972

Ottawa Citizen, May 6, 1955

* * *

The McKellar Course Record 

The course record was set on Thursday July 18th, 1935, when local pro Bobby Alston shot an impressive 64 (six under par).

Ottawa Journal. July 19, 1935.

Alston (no relation to the author) was probably Ottawa's top golfer in the 30s, 40s and 50s. After his death in March of 1973, Eddie MacCabe of the Journal wrote a great story in honour of Alston's Ottawa golfing career:

Ottawa Journal, March 26, 1973

* * *

Club Champions

John Raper Trophy/Cup (Men's Class "A" championship)

Donated by John Raper. Awarded through a championship: "Qualifying Round for club champion in A and B classes. The 16 players with the lowest gross scores to qualify in each class; elimination by match play over 18 holes, except in finals which shall be over 36 holes." First awarded in 1928.

1928 William "Smiling Bill" Smith
1929 William "Smiling Bill" Smith
1930 Rube W.H. Mullen
1931 Roy A. MacDonell (def Bill Williams)
1932 J. E. Caldwell (def Dr. V. H. Craig)
1933 A. A. MacDonald (def. J.R. Claughton)
1934 Claude Boucher
1935 Cliff Wood (def. Sam Gale)
1936 George Carson Jr.
1937 Syd Anderson
1938 John Boles (def Frank Jansen Jr.)
1939 John Boles (def Harley Benson)
1940 J. A. Bergin
1941 Romeo Guenette
1942 unknown or no winner (none on trophy)
1943 unknown or no winner (none on trophy)
1944 S. Bruce Robins*
1945 unknown or no winner (none on trophy)
1946 W. R. Snow
1947 Norman D. Blais (def W. R. Snow)
1948 Norman D. Blais (def G. Cook)
1949 C. O. Duncan
1950 J. A. Marshall
1951 J. A. Murray (def J. McConnell)
1952 Bob McClure (def Vic McConnell)

(*= in 1944, A.L. Turner was added to the Raper Trophy as the champion, but he had won the Sun Life Trophy for the handicap championship. His name must have been added to the Raper Trophy in error)

Bob McClure in 2008 (Flagstick Magazine)
Bob was the final club champion in 1952 and thus kept
the John Raper Cup. He passed away in 2014 at age 81.

Bob McClure's son Dave McClure kindly passed along some great photos of the trophy, as well as the individual trophy made for Bob to keep after his win in 1952:

John Raper Trophy
(courtesy of Dave McClure)

(courtesy of Dave McClure)

(Courtesy of Dave McClure)

1952 McKellar Club Championship trophy
given to Bob McClure
(Courtesy of Dave McClure)

W. H. Dwyer Trophy/Cup (Women's championship)

Donated by President W.H. Dwyer (though Dwyer's name seems to have disappeared from the championship around 1942). First awarded in 1927. It appears you had a leg up if your name was Dorothy.

1927 Uncertain. (E. Hooper, M. Lyon, A.E. Scarfe, M. Edgar were semi-finalists)
1928 Miss Dorothy Harris (Misses Dickson, Riordan, Fitzsimmons in semi-finals)
1929 Miss Dorothy Harris (def Mrs Ray Johnstone)
1930 Miss Dorothy Fitzsimmons (def Miss H. Ferguson)
1931 Miss Dorothy Fitzsimmons (def Miss Edith Day)
1932 Miss Dorothy Fitzsimmons
1933 Mrs G Caulfield (def Miss Dorothy Simmons)
1934 Miss Myrtle Jeans
1935 to 1937 unknown
1938 Miss Dorothy Jansen (def Mrs H F Boyce)
1939 Miss Dorothy Jansen
1940 Miss Dorothy Jansen (def Mrs J F Boyce)
1941 Miss Dorothy Dickson (def Mrs H L Beer)
1942 to 1945 unknown
1946 Mrs George D Foote (def Miss B. Roger)
1947 Miss M. Taylor (def Mrs. M Condie)
1948 Miss M. Taylor (def Mrs. F McKeowan)
1949 unknown
1950 Mrs Eva Howard (def Mrs Muriel Condie)
1951 Dorothy Greene (def Dorothy Cloutier)
1952 unknown

Ottawa Journal
September 2, 1929

Ottawa Citizen, August 24, 1940.

These were the two main trophies given out over the years at McKellar. Others included:

* The T. Bert Cole Trophy: Given for the men's handicap championship (for golfers with a handicap of 18 strokes or more). First awarded in 1928. Winners include J. E. Shepherd (1932), J. N. Salter (1934), F. C. Elford (1941), and J. A. Murray (1951).

* The G. F. Hodgins Trophy: Given for the ladies' handicap championship (for golfers with a handicap of 22 strokes or more). First awarded in 1928. Winners include Miss R. LeRoy (1932), Miss Myrtle Jeans (1934), and Audrey Boyce (1951).

* The George Carson Trophy (aka the Carson Cup): Given to the ladies' two-ball champion in 1929, appears to have been changed to the ladies' two-ball foursome champions by 1931. First awarded in 1929. Winners include Misses D. Argue and E. Hearnden (1932) and Misses H. Younghusband and N. Pelton (1934).

* The Ahearn Cup: Given to the ladies' two-ball foursome in 1929, then to the mixed two-ball foursome champions 1931-1934, and then men's two-ball foursome by 1935. First awarded 1929.
Winners include Miss J. M. Campion and A. A. MacDonald (1932), Miss H. Younghusband and G. P. Connell (1934), Mrs. D. McKeowan and G. Graham (1948), and Eva Howard and R. Hyde (1951).

* The Cochrane Shield: An award for an "approaching and putting" competition. Awarded from 1931 to at least 1934. Winners included Mrs M. Ferguson (1934).

* The Queale Shield: An award for a "driving competition". Awarded from 1931 to at least 1934. Winners include Miss N. Pelton (1934).

* The Sun Life Trophy: Originally given to the 72-hole champion, later was given to a handicap division champion. First awarded in 1934. Winners include George Leafloor (1934), A. Turner (1944), W. R. Snow (1946) and N. Blais (1948).

* The McKechnie Cup: 72-hole championship trophy. First awarded in 1939. Winners include R. Corrigan (1941) and D. M. McKeown (1951).

* Reid Trophy: Another handicap tournament with playdowns. First awarded 1939. Winners include R. Corrigan (1941).

There were other trophies/shields that popped up over time, but those were the ones that seem to have lasted the longest. I wonder where all these trophies and shields have ended up??

Photo of original McKellar Golf Club
trophy awarded in 1930 to the "Mixed 2 ball
foursome" winners Miss N. Pelton and
Edwin Swimmings.
(Courtesy of Catherine Swimmings)

* * *

The Hole-in-One Club

By my count there was a total of 13 hole-in-ones achieved at McKellar Park over the course's 26 years of operation. The newspaper would always report on local aces, as they are obviously quite rare.

So here is the list of those who accomplished the feat, and any details I could find. A couple of the stories are pretty ironic/cool:

* Thursday July 12, 1928 – The confirmed first hole-in-one at McKellar – John R. Cook (of 88 Eccles Street) at the par three 16th hole, 118 yards “a mashie shot from the tee. The ball bounded high in the air, dropped a few feet from the cup and rolled in.”

* Monday July 7, 1930 – John Edgar, at the 12th hole. Edgar was 79 years old. “Using a mashie, Mr. Edgar dropped his ball dead to the pin and it went down.”

* Wednesday July 14, 1937 – Frank Mann, the club pro, at the 211-yard 3rd hole. “drove to the edge of the green with a No. 2 iron and his ball rolled in to the cup...without touching the pin”, noted the Citizen. He was playing with Frank Jansen Sr., W.G. Smith and Frank Jansen Jr. Interestingly, the scores on the hole were 1,2,3, and 4 for the foursome. It was Mann’s first ace of his career.

* Date unknown in 1940 – Amby Kiefl hit a hole in one on the 12th. (His sister Ruth would get one in 1942)

* Monday September 22, 1941 – Mrs. W. H. Harrington hit a hole in one at the 12th hole. She had been playing golf only since the start of the 1941 season.

* Thursday July 2, 1942 – Mrs. T. MacClure Fraser of 72 Clarendon Avenue, at the 12th hole. “She drove 130 yards using a No. 5 iron.”

* Friday July 24, 1942 – Ted Hurley at the 12th hole. 130 yards using a nine iron. “Just a few days ago Hurley came within inches of achieving the feat. Yesterday his ball hit the green a few feet in front and trickled into the cup.” His first ace in three years.

* Wednesday September 2, 1942 – Ruth Kiefl, her first hold in one, on the 12th. It was also her first year playing golf. She used a two iron. She was also the sister of Amby Kiel. McKellar hole-in-one hitter from 1940. Wrote the newspaper: “They say that lightning never strikes twice in the same place but the same can not be said for the Kiefl family. Two years ago brother Amby, well known Ottawa athlete, sank an ace on the same hole”

* Tuesday July 11, 1944 – Cpl. J. Bolander hit a hole-in-one on the 130 yard 12th hole with a 5 iron. Bolander was stationed in Ottawa with the Canadian Army.

* Monday June 24, 1946 – 15-year old Ronald Going, a caddie at the Royal Ottawa golf Club, hit a hole-in-one at the 12th hole, while playing with two other caddies and a Journal reporter. He was using a 7 iron. He hit a 97 for his full 18-hole round. Going lived at 236 Breezehill Avenue, and was a student at St. Malachy's School in Hintonburg.

Photo and Headline from
the Ottawa Journal
June 25, 1946

* First week of July 1949 – Jack Beauchamp hit the first ace in several years – at the 206 yard, par 3 sixth hole using a four iron. He had also hit a hole-in-one the previous year at the Restigouche Club in Campbellton, NB.

* Saturday May 5, 1951 – Andy Anka, well known local merchant, and the father of Paul Anka, sank his tee shot on the 130-yard 12th hole using a five iron to get the first hole-in-one of his life (and perhaps his only one?)

Ottawa Citizen, May 7, 1951

* Tuesday July 10, 1951 – Jack Twerden used a 7 iron at the 12th hole to get a hole in one, seemingly the final hole-in-one in McKellar's history

* * *

The list of Greenskeepers at McKellar Golf Club

1927 to 1928: Some evidence points to Samuel Bourgeau being possibly the first greenskeeper at McKellar. He was employed by the club in 1928 and 1929 in some regard, and may have been tended to the greens in the early years before the club brought in Unsworth.

1929 to 1938: Tom Unsworth. Possibly Unsworth was there prior to 1929, but there is no record of it. One source noted that Unsworth had built McKellar course, so it is possible, but all records of him living on the course and confirmed working there begin in mid-late 1929.

1939: William R. Sharkey

1940 to 1946: A. John Mohns

1947 to 1952: Frank H. Brooks


* * *

Thanks for reading part four!

Next up is the final part, Part Five - the sale of the golf course property (including lots of "what ifs" of what it nearly became) and the transition to the residential subdivision that we know today.

(To close, below is a random clipping, from the Citizen May 2, 1940, showing a full list of a season's events at McKellar Golf Course during one of its peak years):

The McKellar Golf Course - Part Three (The clubhouse and other buildings)

This is part three of a five part series on the history of the McKellar Golf Club/Course. 
Part one (McKellar Park, club beginnings and the general history) can be read: HERE
Part two (The course layout and club boundaries) can be read: HERE

Another reminder, for anyone reading this, if you have any old photos, artifacts or anecdotes about the McKellar Golf Course, I would love to hear from you. Please email me at daveallston@rogers.com. Thank you!

* * *

This third part is specifically related to the clubhouse itself. I left this part out of Part One intentionally, in part to make part one a little shorter, but also because the building had an interesting history of its own. So this section will look at the history of the clubhouse, and a couple of the other buildings that existed on the course.

The McKellar Golf Clubhouse

Planning

A clubhouse for a golf course is of course, a necessity. At bare minimum, it is where golfers check in, obtain their tee time, and/or pay their green fees. Typically a locker room and washroom facilities will be located here as well, so that members can store their equipment, clothes and shoes, or so daily or one-time players can change. Most clubhouses also are sure to include a canteen or bar, so that golfers can enjoy a drink or two before or after their round. McKellar had all of these features, and more. The clubhouse built between Wavell and Gainsborough Avenues was quite large, and had many of the amenities of a country club. Members attended McKellar to play golf, but there was also a larger social element to the club, involving dinners, dances, meetings and other social events.

When McKellar Golf Club first opened in the spring of 1927, a big clubhouse was only planned for. Thus the directors of the club found a nearby house to rent, and use as a temporary clubhouse. As mentioned in part one, this house was located at the corner of Westminster and Crossfield, at what is now 541 Westminster Avenue.

The first glimpse the public had of the permanent clubhouse came before the first golf was even played at McKellar. The directors released an architectural drawing of the proposed building, which ran in the newspaper on March 24th, 1927. The plans were prepared by the firm of Richards and Abra (who had also designed Broadview School, Nepean High School, and several other prominent buildings in the area).

Ottawa Journal, March 24, 1927

As mentioned in the caption, the building was to be completed "early in the summer" (they would be off by about a year on that), and that it would be a 50' x 65' building, constructed of cinder block and stucco, and "equipped with large verandahs and balconies", and "two large club rooms, which may be used for dining, or other purposes."

It appears original plans called for the clubhouse to be built on Windermere (Fourth Avenue), but that was later changed. Windermere would have been a tricky location for it, as it would have had to be built essentially right next to the Swimmings houses one way or another. I wonder if way back when the Swimmings discussed the issue with the club, and convinced them to build a block over.

The directors met at the temporary clubhouse on June 10th, 1927, where they viewed (and approved) the final plans for construction. The estimate for the building was now up to $20,000.


Construction

Construction took time, and the builders worked on it throughout 1927, likely took some or most of the winter off, and kept going well into 1928.

The photo below is a slightly different view from photos I included in part one, which shows the clubhouse in March or April of 1928.

Spring 1928 photo of the clubhouse (white building
in center) under final construction. 

In February of 1928, the Club ran large ads in the local papers showing an illustration of the clubhouse (updated from the one ran in 1927, with some modifications to the design), using the new clubhouse as a promotional tool to bring in new members.

Ottawa Citizen, February 18, 1928

On Saturday April 28th, 1928, the McKellar Golf Club took out a full page ad in the Ottawa Citizen to announce the opening of the new clubhouse, and to promote the local businesses who had contributed to its construction. They took out a similar one a week later in the Ottawa Journal. Both are shown below:

Ottawa Citizen, April 28, 1928

Ottawa Journal, May 5, 1928

The new clubhouse opened in late April, with workmen continuing to put on the final touches throughout May. The interior was essentially complete at opening, it was some exterior work that was completed during the summer.

Much of the material and labour for the project was sourced locally. Beginning with Richards & Abra the architects, of course. Lumber and finishing trim was supplied by M. N. Cummings of Westboro. Painting was completed by A. J. Liddiard of Highland Park. The electrical work and appliances were provided by Paul Sanders of 114 Richmond in Westboro. Plumbing and heating systems were installed by D.J. Currie of Highland Avenue in Westboro. Even the Standard Bread Company on Hilson Avenue advertised that “Of Course! Standard Bread and Rolls will be served at the new McKellar Golf Club”.

One other detail pulled from these ads was that it appears a Mason & Risch piano was acquired from the John Raper Piano Company on Sparks Street. An article that ran later that season also noted that the Club had acquired an electric Orthophonic Victrola, which, according to Wikipedia, "first demonstrated publicly in 1925, was the first consumer phonograph designed specifically to play electrically recorded phonograph records."

The write-up noted that the final building was a “lofty building" 62' by 42' (scaled back slightly from the originally proposed 65' by 50'), with a ground floor featuring "a large living room, with fireplace; large dining room, with fireplace; reception hall; cloak room; office and kitchen. From the dining room looking north opens a spacious balcony.”

“The view from the spacious dining room to the Laurentian Mountains is unsurpassed”, wrote other copy, and “the locker room with showers on the second floor allows sunshine and exhilarating air in abundance. A large southern balcony facing Carling Avenue, also one on the north overlooking the Ottawa, and one on the east viewing No. 1 tee, will admit of leisure.”

“The 15th, 16th, 17th and 18th holes, laid out at the west side, are ideal, and the natural beauty of this particular part of the field is the only mental hazard to encounter.”

The clubhouse was “situated on a bluff opposite Fifth avenue…offering an excellent view of the Ottawa river and the Gatineau Hills in the distance.”  The clubhouse faced the 18th green.

“The most desirable spot was chosen for the building, having in mind the great conveniences of using the street carline, and the decision was made for Fifth Avenue. The consensus of opinion is that no more advantageous spot could be found.”

The Clubhouse remained virtually the same over the years, experiencing an occasional renovation, including a fairly significant one in 1950, which was a little odd as the club at the time was rumoured to be sold for development any day.


The Final Years & Demolition

When golf was officially cancelled in the spring of 1953 with the sale of the property (more on that in part five!), the clubhouse sat unused.

In November 1954, it was announced the City of Ottawa had made a deal with the developer who purchased the golf course land, to sell the clubhouse to the City, who would then convert it into a west end library branch. The developer offered the site as a 100'x100' lot at $1 per year for ten years with an option to purchase after the ten years. Mayor Charlotte Whitton had championed the idea.

It was said the clubhouse was too big for the current library needs, but that the rest of the space could be used for an adult art class.

Ottawa Citizen, November 30, 1954

At the 1955 budget review in April, the city approved $11,400 for the opening of the library in the clubhouse. The library would be set to open in July.

However in May of 1955, the Ottawa Public Library Board rejected the proposal that the new branch be located in the clubhouse. The Board would have had to pay for operating costs including heating and janitorial services. It said operations costs could be not be repaid by the service it would render. “In addition to being difficult to reach, the proposed branch was in an area of only some 3,500 residents. Such a branch should be in a locality where it could serve 25,000 to 35,000 persons”. Mayor Whitton’s idea was scratched, and the building continued to sit unused.

Two years later Carlingwood mall would open, and the west end branch would be located in the mall (the Carlingwood library building which still is in use today, would not come until 1966).

When a large enticing building like a golf clubhouse sits for years at a time, vacant and unmaintained, in a fully developed neighbourhood, it was inevitable that local kids would begin to explore it.

Sure enough, by the spring of 1958, it had become a big problem in the neighbourhood. Residents had been complaining for years about the situation, and the complaints of the community association finally reached Ottawa's Board of Control and Mayor George H. Nelms.

Mayor Nelms visited the site and spoke to residents, and reported back that some of the “teenage goings-on” in the building were “disgraceful”.

The Journal reported: “The mayor said that even though the building was boarded up, teenagers were breaking in and lights, probably candles, could be seen at night. The building was definitely contributing to juvenile delinquency, he added, and the morality squad of the Police Department would be notified.”

The City was discussing with the lawyer on how the developers who bought the golf course and clubhouse could be made to tear it down immediately.

On April 9th, 1958 they ran a photo of the clubhouse, with the hilarious headline “Scene of orgies by candlelight?”.

Ottawa Citizen, April 9, 1958

If the City of Ottawa Archives were open, I would have access to an original negative of this photo, however, due to Coronavirus measures, I'm not able to obtain it. However this would definitely be the best quality photo of the old clubhouse (even though it came when the building was at its worst!)

The Board of Control planned to send a “fairly strong letter” written complaint to the owners that it was causing “aggravation” to the neighbourhood. However they were advised by the city lawyer that the premises were neither a menace to health, nor a fire hazard, so neither the city’s medical officer of health nor the Ontario fire marshal could do anything. And since it was not a 'dwelling', the housing standards bylaw did not apply. It was a bit of a political pickle.

Interestingly, in another newspaper interview, Ottawa Police Chief Duncan MacDonell said that though the building was “a distasteful eyesore”, he felt it was more of a playground for children, disputing the mayor's claims that it was a “rendezvous for teenagers”. He said residents were more concerned with the safety of youngsters than “immoral practices” of teenagers.

The Board of Control did eventually send a letter later in April, which the developers ignored. In early May, the City decided to seek more legal options. The city’s works director was told by Mayor Nelms to call Toronto, reversing the charges, to notify the developers that they city was going to take legal steps to have them repair or demolish the clubhouse. The Journal wrote that “residents have complained that the ramshackle building has become the scene of nefarious activities by groups of juveniles of both sexes”

The City also considered the idea of withholding building permits in the area until the clubhouse was dealt with, however this was a no-go, as the developer itself was not building houses, they were selling lots to local builders, who were taking out the permits.

In the end, Mayor Nelms announced on May 14th, that the developers had agreed to demolish the clubhouse. The clubhouse was torn down sometime that summer. The beautiful old building would only have been 30 years old at the time.

Exact Location

The exact location of the clubhouse was where 614 and 618 Gainsborough Avenue now stand, and a little bit into the backyards of 613 and 617 Wavell Avenue.

This aerial below from 1953 shows Wavell at the top, Gainsborough through the center and Windermere at the bottom, with Keenan running top to bottom along the right. The houses have begun to fill in around the golf course property. The clubhouse is the larger structure in the very center of the photo, where Gainsborough basically ends as a paved street.

October 1953 aerial

Here is a view from 1958, and the clubhouse property is literally the last two lots not built on, leaving just a vacant square. This aerial photo must have been taken within weeks of the demolition. Some of the old foundation can still be seen:

Fall 1958 aerial

Here are the two houses on that property today, 618 and 614 Gainsborough Avenue:

618 and 614 Gainsborough Avenue in 2019

In 2013, Lost Ottawa featured a photo taken by Kent Peddie showing foundations revealed next to a house on Gainsborough Avenue. The post did not list a specific address, but I would believe that was likely the old clubhouse foundations

https://www.facebook.com/LostOttawa/photos/a.380380215394542/456128901153006/?type=3&theater

Gainsborough Avenue - old foundations discovered
(Source: Lost Ottawa, Kent Peddie, July 2013)

Additional photographs

Finding a photo of the clubhouse has always proven difficult. For years this was one of my primary local history photo pursuits. As you can see, the above photos have bits of it, but not a nice clear photo of it. One day I will obtain the 1958 photo at the Archives. Fortunately Joe McLean in his Flagstick article a few years ago found a former member with a handful of photos with the clubhouse in the background. Two of these are shown below. I am not aware of the names of the people photographed, unfortunately.

McKellar Park Golf Clubhouse
(Source: Joe McLean, Flagstick Magazine)

McKellar Park Golf Clubhouse
(Source: Joe McLean, Flagstick Magazine)

And finally, here is a photo of another house (Stafford Salmon's home) at 608 Windermere Avenue, a few lots to the north of the Swimmings, by the entrance to the course, with the clubhouse visible in behind.

608 Windermere Avenue, winter of 1941-42
(Courtesy of Catherine Swimmings)

The Pro Shop

In 1929, the golf course opened its first pro shop. It was opened for then-pro Rube Mullen as a location to buy and sell equipment, balls, clubs, etc., but also as an office for the club pro. Each year a pro (or occasionally two) were hired by the golf club to give lessons, provide expert advice to golfers, and keep an eye on the design and maintenance of the course. In part four I'll provide a full list of all of the club pros in McKellar's history.

The first shop was located by the first hole tee. It was later rebuilt, or very likely relocated.  It first appeared at about where 629 Windermere now stands.

It was (partially) captured in its earliest existence by the Swimmings family, who took a photo of young Edwin in 1929, on the sidewalk of Windermere, just north of Dovercourt (looking north). The pro shop can be seen in behind. The sidewalks by the way, came in during prior to 1920, and only on Windermere did they go as far south as Tillbury (I can't explain why). Most streets had no sidewalks at all.

Windermere Avenue, 1929
Courtesy of Catherine Swimmings

At some point in the 1930s or 1940s, the pro shop moved, and was located just by the clubhouse. Again, I'm not sure if it was rebuilt, or just picked up and moved. The new location was where 609 Gainsborough Avenue stands today. It shows up on the 1948 fire insurance plan on this spot:

Clipping from the 1948 fire insurance plan, showing the
pro shop very close to the clubhouse, just on the other
side of Gainsborough. 

The front of the pro shop was captured in two photos that Joe McLean acquired. Again, not sure who the pictured golfers are, but it provides a rare view of the pro shop, from the 1940s!

McKellar Golf Course pro shop, 1940s
(Source: Joe McLean, Flagstick Magazine)

McKellar Golf Course pro shop, 1940s
(Source: Joe McLean, Flagstick Magazine)

The Hot Dog stand

The hot dog stand was located on the course at the half-way point, by the 10th tee. It was located adjacent to the Thomas Curtis house at 650 Windermere, by the 10th tee. In Joe McLean's Flagstick Magazine article, he interviewed former caddy Ken Robertson, who noted in the interview that "most golfers bought their caddies a coke and a hot dog at the hot dog stand, located by the tenth tee."

I have no photos or really any other stories about the stand!


The Greenskeeper's House

This is another point of contention for many. Along with the many rumours of people's houses being the McKellar golf clubhouse, I've heard several reports of people claiming their home was the former greenskeeper's house.

As described in detail in part two, when the McKellar Park directors decided to open the golf course, a few houses within the boundaries of the course were marooned inside. One other such house was a little house on the east side of Fraser, just on the south side of Dovercourt.

It was a small house, just 1-storey high and wood-framed, constructed in 1923 by Thomas L. Brown, a car cleaner with Canadian National Railways. He and his wife Lola and their two young children resided in the home, until the golf course opened. This house was at where 651 Fraser Avenue stands today.

In 1929, the McKellar Golf Course directors bought the house from Brown, and offered it to their greenskeepers for their family. It was a smart strategy, to ensure their greenskeeper would always be around, and would be able to keep an eye on the property over the winter.

The house fell directly between the 1st and 3rd hole greens.

Thomas Unsworth and his wife Ethel were the first to move in, as Unsworth was the greenskeeper from about 1929 until 1938. The final groundskeeper, was Frank H. Brooks from 1947 to 1952, and he too remained in the house at this time.

I have no photo of the greenskeeper's house from the golf course era. Below is a photo of the house that stands on the site of 651 Fraser Avenue today. I am highly skeptical that this house is the same that stood on the golf course. The roof is pitched the opposite way (east/west, instead of north/south as it used to be, from aerial photos), and even by 1948, it was still shown on the fire insurance plan as a 1-storey house. It certainly is possible that the original house was kept and added on to, to become the house it is today, and if anyone has any evidence towards that, I would love to be able to share it.

651 Fraser Avenue in 2019 - the site of the Greenskeeper's house

Thus, it appears no original buildings directly associated with the golf course still exist today. Again, if there is evidence out there to the contrary, that a structure was moved or significantly added on to, I would love to hear it so as to correct this history.

* * *

Thanks for reading part three!

Next up Part Four - the hall of fame - key names/characters/trophy winners

Rare found video footage of Wellington Village/Hintonburg from 1953!

(The remaining parts of the McKellar Golf Course series are coming very soon!)

I just stumbled across this tonight while looking for something else, but I had to share. It's only about two minutes long in total, but it is some very rare long-lost footage of the neighbourhood, in colour, from 1953.

Streetcars on Wellington, the Carleton Tavern, Thyme & Again's building (Higman's Hardware), Victoria Theatre, and more.

Filmed by Crawley Films in 1953 for the National Film Board. These clips are taken from the NFB film "The Frustrating Fours and the Fascinating Fives" (full video at https://www.nfb.ca/film/frustrating-fours-and-the-fascinating-fives/).

I pulled out the clips that are filmed in Kitchissippi and put them in one short Youtube video.

CLICK HERE for the video!

I included the details in the Youtube video, but here they are as well, with time references for as you're watching:

0:01 This is a view from Parkdale Avenue just south of Wellington Street, looking north. The streetcars are travelling down Wellington in both directions. That's Malham's Smoke Shop (http://kitchissippimuseum.blogspot.com/2016/10/hintonburgs-legendary-19th-century.html) on the right.
0:05 The kids are standing in front of the gas station which used to exist on the southwest corner of Parkdale/Wellington.
0:21 for half a frame, as the bus pulls away, what is now the World of Maps building at 1191 Wellington is shown.
0:25 the boy and his Mom walk away from the Victoria Theatre on Wellington Street, and walk in front of Higman's Hardware, at the corner of Huron Avenue North (now Thyme & Again). (I spent years trying to find even a photo of the Victoria Theatre, so seeing a bit of video footage of it is pretty cool, even if it is only part of the front of the building)
0:33 the boy plays in front of the old Shell station next to what is still the Bank of Montreal, and Morris Home Hardware (in its original location).
0:43 the boy is looking in the window of Higman's
0:51 they approach the intersection of Parkdale and Wellington on foot, looking north up Parkdale. The Carleton Tavern can be seen off in the distance. There are no apartment buildings on the east side of Parkdale yet, and the Parkdale Market is closed for the winter on the west side. A tower from Sperry Gyroscope can be seen further in the skyline distance.
1:18 they are at the turntable at the roundhouse at Ottawa West station, unfortunately this clip is way too short
1:29 at an unknown bread-making plant
1:39 at an unknown dairy farm/factory
1:55 at an unknown housing development. I thought maybe the MQs at CFB Rockliffe, but I'm not sure.

On Wellington Street West at Huron Avenue, looking
east up Wellington, in front of Higman's Hardware
(now Thyme & Again)
(Courtesy National Film Board of Canada, Crawley Films)

The McKellar Golf Course - Part Two (The course layout and club boundaries)

This is part two of a five part series on the history of the McKellar Golf Club/Course. 
Part one (McKellar Park, club beginnings and the general history) can be read: HERE

Another reminder, for anyone reading this, if you have any old photos, artifacts or anecdotes about the McKellar Golf Course, I would love to hear from you. Please email me at daveallston@rogers.com. Thank you!

* * *

I wanted to dedicate an entire part of this series to essentially once and for all list and show exactly where the golf course boundaries were, and where each tee, fairway, green, hole and building were located, in relation to today's streets and houses.

I'll often speak to McKellar Park residents who believe their house is located in a particular spot, when it cannot be. I've had people living near Byron, or near Broadview, who claim their house was on the course. I've heard from several people who believe that their house was the clubhouse (when that just isn't possible, as it was demolished in 1958).

This article should help answer all questions and help you find your home, and determine where exactly it was located, and even give you an idea of roughly when it was built.

A few years ago, Joe McLean in Flagstick Magazine did an incredible job putting together a map of the course, with the aid of longtime McKellar club caddy Ken Robertson. The magazine article that ran on McKellar included an aerial photo view well labelled to show where each hole was located, and Ken described each hole as well. Those pages I am happy to re-run here as part of this article, because they are hard to beat for their detail.

However, I'm going to take it a step further, thanks to the Heritage Ottawa board member and Past President (and McKellar Park resident) David Jeanes, who took it upon himself to put together a complete list of the exact or nearest present-day addresses for each of the golf course tees and holes. He also in effect put together a walking tour where one could stroll the McKellar neighbourhood in almost the exact path that golfers would have done so nearly 70 years ago. It is an honour to have David collaborate on this article with me, and there is no one better to assemble a list of this kind.

In this article I'm also going to upload a detailed map of the neighbourhood, down to the individual addresses on each street to show the boundaries of the golf club property right down to the exact spot.

And, I'm also going to profile a few individual houses, cottages and lots which got "marooned" inside the golf course boundaries. More on that below!

Just a note that this website shows the photos in a standard size.  To enlarge it a little on your screen simply click on any photo and it should open a little larger. Some of the files though ought to be opened in a much larger size to get the full benefit. If you wish to really examine a photograph, I recommend you right-click on any photo, select to save to your computer, and then view it as a jpg file from your pc.

* * *

The Flagstick Magazine map and hole descriptions

To begin with, here are the original graphics from the Fall 2008 issue of Flagstick Magazine:

McKellar Golf Course layout - using 1933 aerial photo
(Courtesy of Joe McLean and Flagstick Magazine)
(Note Wavell is incorrectly labelled as Rowanwood)

McKellar Golf Course hole descriptions
(Flagstick Magazine Fall 2008 issue)

* * *

1933 aerial photo labelled

Here is the 1933 aerial photo used by Flagstick, and used by me many times in articles and public displays, as it is an amazing quality photo, taken in high resolution at low elevation, so the level of clear detail is incredible. I ran this in part one as well, but it belongs here too, to help show labelled evidence of streets and landmarks, for reference. (Again right-click and save to your pc for best viewing results).

* * *

McKellar Park Golf Club scorecard

Here is a scan of an original McKellar Golf Course scorecard I own. It has details on the lengths and par of each hole, as well as interesting club rules and golf etiquette. It dates from the final years of the club (circa 1950-1952):

* * *

Fire Insurance Maps from 1951

Here are snippets from Goad's Fire Insurance Plan of Ottawa from 1948 (revised to 1951) showing some of the golf course and surrounding streets of McKellar Park. I love these old fire plans as they show each individual house, its shape, construction/finishing material, its number of storeys, and the location of any garages, outbuildings, etc.

Yellow indicates wood frame, pink is brick, blue is stone/concrete block, grey are small sheds/outbuildings. Blue circles indicate fire hydrants. "D" denotes dwelling, "R.C." is rough cast stucco, "Asb Cl" is asbestos clad, "P" indicates patent, or tar & gravel roof, while an "X" is wooden shingles or board roof. The number inside the house shows the number of storeys. The number alongside the house on the street indicate the civic address at the time and/or a previous number if it has been struck.

These are the streets east of Westminster:

These are the streets west of Westminster:

* * *



***

The McKellar Golf Course - in 2020

A few weeks back, I was emailing Heritage Ottawa Past-President (and long-time McKellar Park resident) David Jeanes on another subject, but I shared that I was nearly completed a long-running research project of mine on the history of the McKellar Golf Course. David had been doing a little research of his own on the golf course as well, and had been working on trying to locate where the original golf course tees and greens would be in relation to today's streets and houses of McKellar Park.

He kindly put together a list and accompanying map tool that identified the precise civic addresses today to match up with the tees and greens of the original 18-holes of McKellar Golf Course. Additionally he adds in the directions for walking on-street between them, including distances. In effect, this list becomes a potential walking or bicycling tour of the original golf course, just as the golfers would have done between 1927-1952!

I thank David again for this invaluable contribution to the story of McKellar Golf Course!

--

Total on-street walking distance from 1st tee to 18th green = 7.6 km. Average walking distance per hole = 423 metres. Most streets are traversed once in each direction.

Most streets are quiet, without sidewalks; Dovercourt and Fraser are busier, with sidewalk, and Fraser with speed bumps; Sherbourne is busy with sidewalk and bike lanes both sides; Carling is very busy with narrow sidewalk (for 350 metres).

1st to 9th hole (east of Windermere) 3.7 km; 10th to 18th hole, (west of Windermere), 3.9 km.

1st tee, 9th and 18th greens and hot dog stand site are within a block of Windermere & Dovercourt, (Route 51 bus stops).

Start: Dovercourt/Windermere, south on Windermere to
     
1.     Tee 615 Windermere: north to Keenan, east to Fraser, south to 637 Fraser (514 metres)
2.    Tee 546 Dovercourt, SE corner, (Greens Keeper's house site), west to Westminster, south to behind 672 Westminster (311 metres)
3.     Tee front of 680 Westminster, south to Tillbury, east to Fraser, north to 663 Fraser (360 metres)
4.     Tee behind 671 Fraser, south to 739 Fraser (294 metres), north to
5.     Tee 719 Fraser, south to Sherbourne, east to Carling, west to 1893 Carling (384 metres)
6.     Tee 1927 Carling, west to McKellar, north to Bromley, east to Lauder 1900 Lauder, at corner with Bromley (300 metres), east to
7.     Tee 1858 Bromley, east to Sherbourne, north to Tillbury Park, north through park to 687 Mansfield (508 metres), south to Tillbury, west to
8.     Tee behind 591 Tillbury, south along west to edge of park to Sherbourne, west to Windermere, south to Wembley, east to 1865 Bromley (601 metres), west to
9.     Tee 1881 Lauder, south to Bromley, east to Wembley, north to Windermere, north to 687 Windermere (437 metres).

Break at site of hot dog stand, 650 Windermere, mid-point (3.7 km) at Dovercourt/Windermere, south to
     
10.    Tee 672 Windermere, south to Wembley, west to Lauder, east to 1914 Lauder (518 metres), east to
11.    Tee behind 1901 Lauder, cross parking lot close to Church, south to McKellar, south to Carling, west to between 1951 and 1957 Carling (363 metres)
12.    Tee front of 1957 Carling, west to Bromley, north to 1969 Bromley (166 metres) east to church parking lot, cross to Lauder, west to
13.    Tee 1934 Lauder, west to Wembley, north to Windermere, north to Tillbury, west to 683 Gainsborough (881 metres)
14.    Tee behind 662 Tillbury, east to Windermere, south to Sherbourne, west to Courtenay, south to Lauder, east to 1946 Lauder (708 metres), west to
15.    Tee behind 1970 Lauder, east to Courtenay, north to  618 Sherbourne, on the corner of Courtenay (258 metres), west to
16.    Tee 618 Sherbourne: north on Courtenay to 632 Courtenay (326 metres), south to Dovercourt, east to Wavell, north to
17.    Tee 634 Wavell, south to 672 Tillbury (337 metres)
18.    Tee front of 679 Tillbury, east to Gainsborough, north to 626 Gainsborough (351 metres), south to Dovercourt, east to

End: Dovercourt/Windermere

This first image below shows the greens/holes in the red circles, and the tee/fairway as the dotted line towards it:

The second image below provides the walking/biking tour route, using today's street grid (and follows the hole-to-hole instructions listed above):

David provided a few additional comments related to the images and directions:

"My numbered circles were centred on the greens, as they appeared in the 1932 labelled aerial photo; not where the labels are placed. Unless otherwise stated, they are at the house itself or immediately in front. If I say "in front" it means on the street in front of the address. If I say "behind" it means in the back garden, in a couple of cases right at the back and extending onto the property behind. But these addresses are as close as one can get without trespassing.

I was reasonably happy about the street routing, with multiple repetitions only along the two short blocks from Tillbury to Wembley on Windermere. Even these are split between the two half-tours that I have described. The only unpleasant part of the walk is along Carling Avenue from McKellar to Bromley, where the hedge protrudes into the already narrow sidewalk, with fast traffic coming up behind you."

Enjoy! Those of you who take the tour and follow the course, I would love to hear about your travels! Please add a comment to this post if you would!

* * *

The Golf Course Boundary

I've created a map image using GeoOttawa which shows all of the houses/properties in McKellar Park today.

For the most part, the exact boundary of the golf course is a bit grey. In most cases there was never a 'fence' to identify the boundaries of the golf course. Some of the lots never had any golf played on it, and merely sat as vacant space adjoining the course. Trees, shrubs or adjoining properties formed a natural boundary at the time. It is best then to use the aerial photos and map tools provided above, as to determine the playing surface golf course boundary. The purpose of this map is just to show exactly what made up the golf course property in totality, to show just how large it was, and where it began/ended. I've also made notes of where each of the houses/lots not owned by the golf course were located (they are described in greater detail in a section down below).

Click this link to view the map: CLICK HERE

For best results to view it, you can download the image. (Click on the three dots above the photo, and select "download").


* * *

The houses inside the golf course boundary

For some lucky (or unlucky, depending on how they felt) residents, when the golf course scheme was cooked up in 1926-1927, they already owned property within the proposed boundaries. In a couple of cases, their house was already built. When the McKellar subdivision opened in 1911 and over the following 15 years, no one could have anticipated a golf course landing in on half of the property. Thus, during that period, lots were sold to a few individuals who must have liked the isolation well back from the streetcar line and Richmond Road, as they were well south of most other lot buyers. By 1927 though, the golf course had arrived, and they suddenly found themselves on the inside.

I'll quickly go over some of those houses, as some have a pretty neat story:

The Swimmings houses

The two most notable houses were the Swimmings family houses, which were located back-to-back at 622 Windermere and 621 Gainsborough. Amazingly, both houses still stand today, though both have been added-on to extensively.

621 Gainsborough was one of the first 28 houses built in McKellar Park during its first three years of existence. It was built sometime between 1913-1914. William Henry Swimmings had come over to Canada from England with his wife Clara and their children in 1912. Arriving in Quebec City that summer, they somehow arrived in McKellar Park in 1913 and the 54-year old carpenter built a small 2-storey, 4-room wood frame house on Fifth Avenue (Gainsborough) on what would have been a quiet, isolated lot well south of where everyone else was building at the time.

621 Gainsborough in the winter of 1941-42 looking west,
one of the original homes of McKellar Park (built 1913-14).
(Courtesy of Catherine Swimmings)

621 Gainsborough present day

McKellar pioneer William Henry Swimmings
(Courtesy of Catherine Swimmings)

In 1926, Edwin Arthur Swimmings, son of William and Clara, purchased the lot immediately in behind his parents. He had just married his wife Jessie in 1925, and clearly wanted a new home for his family. Right away the 40-year old bricklayer set about constructing 622 Windermere Avenue.

Thankfully the Swimmings family took and maintained a great archive of photos of their houses through the years, providing this amazing glimpse in to the earliest days of McKellar Park. I am very thankful to William Henry's great-granddaughter Catherine Swimmings (still a McKellar Park resident!) for sharing these fantastic photos. One set in particular was a goldmine. Catherine explained that her father, Edwin Arthur's son Edwin Kenneth Swimmings, as a teenager took his camera out one afternoon in the summer of 1942 and took photos all around the house. One of the photos was of the golf course (already shared in part one, one of the best neighbourhood history photo finds I'll ever come across), but these photos of the Swimmings' family houses are excellent too, not only capturing the houses nearly 80 years ago, but the vast openness of McKellar Park at the time!

622 Windermere circa 1930.
(Courtesy of Catherine Swimmings)

622 Windermere in the summer of 1942.
(Courtesy of Catherine Swimmings)

622 Windermere in present day, with a few additions.

This final photo below captures the two Swimmings houses in the mid-1930s, with the golf clubhouse in behind as well. It's amazing to think this photo was taken in what is now the heart of McKellar Park, on Windermere looking northwest. Not another house in sight.

622 Windermere with 621 Gainsborough in behind, and
the McKellar Golf clubhouse in back as well.
Circa mid-1930s. This photo shows well the open, flat area
the houses were built on. To the left of these houses was the
golf course. (Courtesy of Catherine Swimmings)

The Coates Browne home

In 1921, 41-year old carpenter and gardener Coates Browne and his wife Bessie acquired the lot at the southeast corner of Fourth and Balmoral (Windermere and Dovercourt). They built a small bungalow on the property for their small family, including their 3-year old son. The original house actually burned down a few days before Christmas of 1925, but the family rebuilt, and remained on the property into the 1950s. The Brownes had actually acquired the neighbouring 5 lots as well, so they for a long time owned 300 feet of frontage on Windermere, running south from Dovercourt.

Ottawa Journal, December 21, 1925

The house that stands on this spot now is 649 Windermere Avenue, and I believe the original 1926-rebuilt home remains part of the structure, but I'm not certain.

Site of the Browne family home - 649 Windermere

The Browne's property would have been just adjacent to (north of) the 2nd hole green. In fact if they hadn't acquired all six of those lots, the 2nd hole surely would have run a little more to the north, adding more length to several other holes to the south.

Upon his death in 1955, an article ran in the newspaper discussing Coates' life, and the headline referred to him as the "district historian", and noted that he was "known in the district for his knowledge of the history of the Capital and Carleton county."


The Thomas Curtis home

Across the street from the Brownes was another house on a wide property. 43-year old Thomas Curtis, a mechanical engineer, and his wife Eva Marjorie built their house in 1922 on a set of an incredible 12 lots they acquired (the six lots on each of the west side of Windermere and east side of Gainsborough running south from Dovercourt).

Site of the Curtis family home - 650 Windermere

I could find very little on the Curtis', and like the Browne house, am uncertain if the house they built at 650 Windermere is still the one standing today. I believe it is. Eva Curtis died in 1947, and Thomas died in 1953. Around 1947 the Curtis' began selling some of their lots, and certainly after Thomas passed, his heirs sold the remainder.

This house at 650 Windermere appears to have had a garden or hedge at the south end of the property back in the '30s. On the opposite side of the fence/hedge was the golf course, and in fact immediately on the other side was the infamous course hot dog stand which stood alongside the 9th green, where golfers could have a mid-game snack (or buy one for the caddies, as was the tradition).


The Blackwell and McLaughlin cottages

The most unique structures on the golf course have to be the random cottages that were built together way out at the far south end of old Wavell Avenue just north of Carling Avenue.

For reasons lost to history, two men built small cottages way out in the isolation of McKellar Park that ended up being located well out in the golf course.

In 1917, Thomas H. McLaughlin built a small cottage on lot 873 (about where 1934 Lauder Drive exists today), while George T. Blackwell built a small cottage next door on lot 874 (about where 1933 Bromley Road is today).

Clip from the 1933 aerial photo showing Carling at the bottom
and Windermere at right. The two cottages can be seen in the
centre, the Blackwell one shows a significant fence around
the property. All around the cottages are the 10th, 11th, and
 14th holes. 

In 1935, the golf course owners acquired McLaughlin's property and removed the cottage. In 1936, Blackwell's cottage, then owned by a relative, Frank Longhurst, was demolished. Longhurst was living in Winnipeg, and perhaps was asked by the golf course people to tear it down. Longhurst held on to the lot though until the 1950s, profiting from its sale then.

Not surprisingly. no photos seem to exist of these old cottages. The only trace of anything historical related to them (aside from the aerial photo above placing them right in the middle of the course), is this odd story from December of 1924, where a Westboro resident broke into Blackwell's cottage to steal a dogskin robe. How could he resist?

Ottawa Citizen, December 18, 1924

The Jean Courtenay House

This house at 626 Wavell, a little north of Dovercourt, was built in 1918 by Thomas Magee, a 48-year old salesman, who had a 7-person family. It started out as a small wood cottage, but was expanded on slowly over the next few years. It later belonged to the Bedford family for many years, and survived until 2008 when it was torn down and replaced with a large new build.

This house was located right in front of the 16th green and adjacent to the 17th tee.

626 Wavell Avenue in September 2007

Notably, in 1926, Jean Courtenay and her daughter Phyllis and son Reginald moved in to the home. Jean was a 63-year old widow, and former school teacher in Hawkesbury. The family would remain in this house until 1934. That year Phyllis married Orme Dunning and moved to Leonard, Ontario, and Jean went with them. Reginald married Nettie Ruth Dunning daughter of Albert Dunning, who built the castle house on Byron at Courtenay. (I can't imagine Orme Dunning wasn't a relative of the Dunnings as well but I can't place him; he was not a son to Albert Dunning at least). Reginald, who was a railway mail clerk with the Post Office Department, and Nettie Ruth occupied the castle house in the late 1930s and most of the 1940s (the only house which stood on the entirety of the west side of Courtenay until the late 1940s), and in 1944, Seventh Avenue of McKellar was renamed Courtenay to honour the family.


The Victor Benoit lot

The house did not come until the 1950s, but Victor Benoit owned lot 479 on the west side of Westminster (now the site of 618 Westminster) from March 1st 1919 until his death in 1943. Benoit was Ottawa born, but went on to a successful Hollywood silent-movie and Broadway career. For whatever reason, he acquired this single lot in 1919 (during the peak of his acting career), and did nothing with it for the remainder of his life. His heirs sold the lot in 1956 and it was finally built on then. The golf course went two lots to the north, and this lot would have been right in front of the 1st hole tee I believe.

Photo from 'The Devil's Daughter' (1915)
Victor Benoit, Doris Heywood, Paul Doucet, Jane Miller.

The King-Miller lot

The lot with little story to tell. Samuel Ernest King, grain merchant, purchased lot 410 on the east side of Third Avenue (Westminster) at the southwest corner of Dovercourt in January of 1919. He sold the vacant lot in 1923 to Harold Allen Miller, who did nothing with the lot until selling in 1956. 620 Dovercourt Avenue now stands on this lot. This would have been on the 2nd hole fairway.


The Eldridge-Downes house

637 Windermere on lot 558 at the northeast corner of Windermere and Dovercourt was a late entry within the golf course boundary. The lot was originally sold in 1926, just prior to the golf course being approved. Esther Emmeline Stewart acquired the lot, but did nothing with it. In 1946, her heirs sold the lot to Philip and Muriel Eldridge, who built the house in 1947. They sold a year later, to a couple who re-sold again in 1949 to Kenneth and Kathleen Downes. Dr. Kenneth Downes went on to become Chief of the Extractive Metallurgy Division of Energy, Mines and Resources. They remained in the house until the late 1980s.

The house would have been located in between the fairways of the 1st and 2nd holes. It must have been odd building it in the middle of the golf course, though by 1947, it was pretty much known that the golf course's days were numbered.

637 Windermere in 2019

* * *

History of Changes

The golf course underwent a few adjustments over the years. Though this is getting even further into the minutia, in the interests of providing all details on the history of the course, this may be pertinent to someone at some point, so here it is:

* In 1928, a few changes were made to the course, from how it appeared in 1927. “Along Carling Avenue No. 6 hole is now played down the hill and a new hole No. 12 provides a short sporty shot into the southwest corner of the field, from where the player takes a shaded walk to No. 13”. “The new No. 12 is played along Carling at the west corner. This change eliminates crowding and provides a sporty shot.” The arrangement of some bunkers was also changed in 1928. These changes allowed the course to change from a par 68 to a par 70 in 1928.

* July 1928 (as written about in part one) a tee that had been located on Balmoral Avenue (Dovercourt), meaning on the roadway itself (or at least would have qualified as a roadway at the time) was required to be changed due to complaints from local residents. I believe this would have been the 17th tee.

* For the 1929 season, “two new fairways were being cleared out continuing from No. 14, which would make the course championship length.” In the end, the holes on the “homeward nine” were revamped. Three new holes “will run their course through a woodland setting will add both beauty and playing interest to the links. The renovation will also serve to make the total length of the course several hundred yards greater.” Also “A number of new greens are under construction; sand traps have been placed about the majority of the putting surfaces and much terracing work done. A practice putting clock and driving area are already under fashioning at the rear of the clubhouse.”

* In the Spring of 1930 it was reported that improvements since 1929 included “Work on clearing the rough, commenced then (in late 1929), has been carried out, and there is little on the course to worry the ordinary golfer who stays within bounds. The short holes, particularly the twelfth, have been well cleared and at the same time retain their sportiness.”

* In the spring of 1934, plans were made to enlarge the course, and adjoining property considered for expansion. (No details found as to what changes were made, if any)

* In 1937, the western portion along Carling was cleared, to permit the 11th hole to be extended almost 100 yards. The 12th hole was extended easterly, “and considerable length added with a sporty green situated amongst the trees”.  A cedar fence was erected along Carling.

For most of the information in the Flagstick Magazine article, and the walking/biking tour done by David Jeanes, the 1933 aerial photo was used. It appears then that changes occurred after this time, extending 11 and 12, and possibly other holes as well. I would love to acquire a scorecard from the 1930s which would list the hole lengths individually, and could be compared against the 1950 vintage one I have above. But generally, the course did not change too much over its final 20 years.


* * *

Thanks for reading part two!

Next up Part Three - the history of the Clubhouse and other buildings on the course!