Ravisloe Country Club
Ravisloe Country Club | |
| Location | 18231 Park Ave, Homewood, Illinois |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 41°33′42.55″N 87°40′23.27″W / 41.5618194°N 87.6731306°W |
| Built | 1901 |
| Architect | George Nimmons |
| Architectural style | Spanish Mission |
| NRHP reference No. | SG100006865 |
| Added to NRHP | 2021-09-01 |
Ravisloe Country Club is a public golf course and wedding venue located in Homewood, Illinois.[1]
History[edit]
20th century[edit]
The country club was established in 1901 by mostly Jewish members of Chicago’s Standard Club, on the site of the Briggs farm, only after the first property choice belonging to a Dutchman named Ravisloot. The membership decided on Ravislow, eventually settling on the name Ravisloe.[2][3]
The original golf course, designed by James Foulis and Theodore Moreau in 1901, as a 9-hole course.[3][4] An additional 55 acres were purchased and 9 more holes were designed and overseen by William Watson from 1910 to 1913. Donald Ross supervised a renovation, carried out from over the span of years 1917–19. Updates continued until 1924.[2]
In 1917, the Spanish Mission styled clubhouse was designed by George Nimmons, the same architect behind Olympia Fields’ clubhouse.[3]
Ravisloe operated as a Jewish private country club in the early 20th century. Illinois had the second-highest number of Jewish country clubs, mostly in the Chicago metropolitan era.[5] Due to antisemitism, many Jewish people were locked out of cultural institutions like country clubs so they created their own.[6][7] Early members of Ravisloe tended to be German Jews.[8]
21st century[edit]
In 2001, club membership commissioned David Esler to restore the course features in the same style as Donald Ross.
In late 2008, Ravisloe closed due to financial concerns and declining membership.[3][9] In February 2009, the club was sold to Dr. Claude Gendreau, a veterinary surgeon, who reopened it to the public.[2][3][9]
The club was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 1, 2021.[10]
Notable golfers[edit]
One of the early pioneers in women's golf was Elaine Rosenthal, who played at Ravisloe.[11][12][8] She has a trophy named after her, which is presented to winners of the Illinois Women's Open.[13] She was inducted to the Illinois Golf Hall Of Fame in 1995.[8]
In 1913, Harry Vardon and Edward Ray won a match 3 and 2 against Chick Evans and Warren Wood.[3]
In 1916, Chick Evans won the US Open and the US Amateur; he won the US Amateur again in 1920.[3] On June 8, 1918, Evans and Wood teamed up again to play Jerome Travers and John Anderson in a four ball match for the Red Cross at Ravisloe.[3]
Other notable members include:[8]
- Julius Rosenwald, head of Sears Roebuck
- Max Adler
- Judge Julian W. Mack
- Salmon O. Levinson
- Morris Fishbein
- Milton Reynolds, inventor of the ballpoint pen
- Philip M. Klutznick
References[edit]
- ^ "Homewood, IL - Ravisloe Country Club - Golf Chicagoland". Ravisloe Country Club. Retrieved 2012-08-13.
- ^ a b c "History". www.ravisloe.com. Retrieved 2023-09-24.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Lis, Walter (2023-04-21). "Ravisloe Country Club - a Chicago Golf Classic". Chicago Golf Report. Retrieved 2023-09-24.
- ^ Kotlarek, Neal. "Ravisloe: The Modern Throwback Course" (PDF). Golf Chicago Magazine. Retrieved 2023-09-24.
- ^ Levine, Peter (1995). "The "American Hebrew" Looks at "Our Crowd": The Jewish Country Club in the 1920s". American Jewish History. 83 (1): 27–49. ISSN 0164-0178.
- ^ Higham, John (1957). "Social Discrimination Against Jews in America, 1830-1930". Publications of the American Jewish Historical Society. 47 (1): 1–33. ISSN 0146-5511.
- ^ Epstein, Joseph (2009-01-09). "Bernie Madoff and the Jews". Newsweek. Retrieved 2023-09-24.
- ^ a b c d ""Eminent Ravislovians": A Report on Peter Eckstein's Recent Program at Ravisloe Country Club" (PDF). The Chicago Jewish Historical Society. 34 (2): 11–13. Spring 2010.
- ^ a b Russell, Geoff (2009-03-23). "The Man Who Saved Ravisloe". Golf Digest. Retrieved 2023-09-24.
- ^ "Weekly listing". National Park Service.
- ^ Chandler, T.; Magdalinski, T. (2005). With God on their Side: Sport in the Service of Religion. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9781134511662. Retrieved 2015-09-08.
- ^ Norwood, S.H.; Pollack, E.G. (2008). Encyclopedia of American Jewish History. Vol. 1. ABC-CLIO. p. 526. ISBN 9781851096381. Retrieved 2015-09-08.
- ^ Gorn, E.J. (2008). Sports in Chicago. University of Illinois Press. p. 70. ISBN 9780252075230. Retrieved 2015-09-08.