Did you know that there used to be a golf course near the Eastham Salt Pond and Nauset Marsh? You can see the old cement roller for the greens in the grass by the marsh. (Click on blog link for other photo.)
I hadn’t seen it in a couple of years and presumed it had washed away, but it re-appeared a while ago covered in sea grass and barnacles.
The course was created by Quincy Adams Shaw in the 1920s and described by a Boston newspaper as “one of the finest natural layouts in the world.”
“Shaw was a Boston Brahman whose fortune came from Michigan copper mines. The Harvard graduate suffered a nervous breakdown in his 40s and after a long confinement, his doctors recommended he find something to occupy his time. He turned to building a golf course on family land. Using local laborers, a horse and an earth scoop, it took three years and in 1928, Cedar Bank was ready for play.” Cedar Bank was essentially an estate course for family outings and friends.
“The Eastham Historical Society has photographs and maps of the 18-hole design. The course played 6,490 yards to a par 70 and was in operation until the late 1940s. Among the best holes were the 140-yard par-3 11th over the pond. Players had to cross the hazard on a small barge with a rope and pulley. The 310-yard 17th around the inlet was memorable and the green reachable, but the challenge was how much of the marsh could be carried with a driver.”
Its always so much fun to learn about new things where you live and what it used to be like back in the day. I certainly learned a lot researching this cool golf course!
