HomeMy WebLinkAbout1945 Sun Progress EditionSun Progress Edition Riviera Beach (get issued) Mummer 1945
Sun Press
The ghost of Sir Harry Oakes who was done in by a mystery murderer in Nassau
must have chortled a bit when he read the Sun papers recently because in our
special section on the opening of the NPB C.C. we said the club was founded by
Sir Barr: to avenge a snubbing from other swank clubs in this area. That's net
exactly 2-1ht, aceorireg. to C.A. 'Branch who should know. He is probably better
verted than anyone ee lie history. Lake Park' known as Kelsey before great
depression bankrupted City Promoters and new ownership moved in the the citys
name was chan4ed. K.C, was incorporated in 1923 by C.F.C. of Branch in 1026
became V.P. and Gen Mgr. Development moved rather slowly but the city did erect
&rid they still stand two stucco pillars at the city's ori;inal entrance on what
is now Old Dixie Highway near the present K.. Landscaping office. Came the
depressiol and E.C.F.C. went broke. There then appeared Tesdem, Inc. An
Oakes Corp. to buy up what was left of E.G.F.C. Oakes soon acquired some 80%
of K.C. He was a rouch sort, not the type to be accepted by Palm Beach society.
But his wife was a social climber and she had Sir Ha rry build a saddle track
so she could show off the Oakes table of thorou0bred horses. Sixklilimx
In 1q2c-25 Kelsey built e second o1f course. Now NPB C.C. pumping sand up
from Lake Worth to build a dominant site for the clubhouse which still stands.
That course was known as P.B. Winter club. H.K. founded K.C. in 1923 and owned
the lands of Prosperity Earms area. As K.C. developed, tracts of Prosperity Farms
were sold and K.C. Golf course was completed....a 9 hole course on both sides of
the Earman River were laid out by Mr. Langford, Ghicago Architect. U.S. 1 was
the only road along the Florida East Coast. and was located west of the FEC
R alroad.
In 192 Paris Singer was competing the Blue Heron Hotel, the only hid: -4 on
Sin);er Island. and Sin;er proposed to Kelsey that an 18 hold Golf Course be
constructed just south o the present Intracoastal canal so that a thirds
golf course could be built between .the K.C. Golf Course and this new course
which was to he celled P.B. Winter (1111). When (he two ..;olft courses were
completed, liner proposed, the construction of a large hotel, east of where
the Bev Smith sales rooms are now. In 1q2c the Fla. State Hiway Dept surveyed
a new line for US 1 which would have run across x number 1 fairways of both
courses so Kelsey an.d sinker reached an areement with the State to donate the
right tof way from K.C. to the canal and constrict the hi way or a new Toce'ior
While the wie-te C1111) way, corstructed in 192-26, the only access was by
the Prosperity Farm lload at first. Then via Lake Worth where a channel was
dredged and a boat slip constructed with docks with the excess excavation
being used to fill in the west lawn of the winter club house. U.S 1 was
completed from K.C. to the so side of the canal early in 1027 by the Langstrom
Construction Co. of Orlando, b&itractors for Kelsey and Siner and became the
main entry to the 4olf course and club house. In order that the winter club
could he built, Kelsey repurchased some of the Prosperity Farm acreage that he
previously had sold Hired a “)lf architect who died while the course was under
construction and was replaced by another nationally known architect, so that
the course was finally recognized as the work of 2 great designers. The clubhouse
was completed by Kelsey's buildine; organization and the landscepine; was perforned
by S.J. Blakely. Many of the trees and shrubs being bar;ed across Lake Worth from
Munyons Island, then owned by Kelsey. The fairwa s were top dressed with Ojus
Mari brought in. In Jan. 1927, the Palm Beach \vinter club was open to the
public with Wally Stensel, winter 1-(1) in chare of the 4olfcourse an Mise Ve'bel
7aleorer in charge of the dining room. He was the summer pro of Winetka, Ill
and she will be remembered for her coffee shop in K.L.. Later the summer pro
was Geo Hmffmmx of K.C. The opening of the course•was noted for the many 11.B
residents
I
quRTH PALM BEACH PUBLIC LIBRARY
who attended. Messrs. Vanderbilt, Phipps, pache and Woodworth with some of
their uest from Italy and France. It is still amusing to remember Mr. K.
explaining to an Italian princess that they train worms to eat holes
in a ccrtain way to create pecky cypress. Thd 1928 hurricane did extensive
damage to the Clubhouse, hut it toether with the course were reopPned for
•the wir.ter season. One of Branches fondest memories was listen tp Al Jolson
entertainin a few friends and iuests sin-4ing in the downstairs locker room
after a round of gold. I was sorry when a call from ?aim Reach requested that
I remind him he was bcoked to sinat a Palm Beach Benefit that night.
These things happened before Sir Harry Oakes ever heard of Kelsey City and
I sorrow when I think back to the time when the Kelsey City Golf Course
was written up as being the sportiest 9 hole course in Amefica by the red book
of the N.G.A. and the palm Beach Winter Club was written up in the following
years' red book as the best desimed and built courses.
When Kelsey lost his holdin;f4 this national prestige was also lost, for
new owners dismantled the K.C. golfcourse and the P.B. Winter Club layout
has twice been changed to make way for residential properties.
--Bessie DuBois