Silver Bay Golf Course and Country Club OPENS! Private or Public?
After years of planning, designing and building, the golf course and clubhouse opened in June 1959. Play seemed to have begun without evidence of fanfare or a grand opening celebration. The first printed golf news found, to indicate that the course was open, was in the Silver Bay News issued on June 2, 1959, which reported the formation of the Silver Bay Women’s Golf Association and the election of officers for the women’s league, along with the schedule for women’s play.
Different viewpoints emerged on who the golf course was really for. Was it open for all or only the elite? Private or Public? When input was sought from the community in 1957, it appears the intention was for a public course.
“I know out at the golf course they had someone spread the story that only Reserve executives could go out there. Well, the one guy that lived in Beaver Bay, probably (the) guy on the lowest ranks at Reserve, he was out there playing golf all the time.”
“ . . There were a few people that wouldn’t sign up (for a tee time) . . . Because they were of the higher echelon in the company, they (thought they) should just be put ahead of those people that had made the effort to sign up. “
“There was a caste system. But some of us didn’t pay any attention to that. We went and joined the country club, and that was just like a gift. “
“. . We weren’t employees of Reserve, . . . we belonged to the country club, and we did whatever. There was no, ‘You can’t be here.’”
“. . . When my husband became a foreman, I got a whole series of phone calls. People would say ‘Well your husband’s a foreman. You have to join the country club. You have to do this.’ And I kept saying ‘ No, I don’t ‘.”
“It was a place of some stature.” … there certainly seemed to be kind of a caste system in a way in terms of the golf course. Most of the people that played golf were the upper echelon of the people that worked in the plant…it always appeared to me that the top leaders …managers… always held a vertical respected spot in the country club.”
“. . and it was a country club with the aura of an echeloning, definitely, of people who could go.”
“. . .there were a lot of guys from that plant that were workers in the plant that were members.”
And from other sources-
The Reserve Mining Company built the Silver Bay GC to provide its blue-collar workers with recreation after long hours extracting taconite pellets from the ground. “Golfdom Aug 2003 “Volunteers Stand Ready”
In 1983 a newspaper article stated that the city began taking steps to develop itself as a tourism and recreational area. . . .marketing of a nine-hole private golf course for public use.
Even though the course, along with other amenities, was intended for those employed at the Reserve Mining Company and Silver Bay residents, it was perceived by the town to cater to the upper echelon. The course, when opened in 1959, was designated as Private with membership required.
From the current golf Superintendent, Norma O’Leary: The golf course did not open to the public until May of 1983. That is when Reserve Mining Company filed for bankruptcy, and the membership bought the equipment for $1. The membership was allowed to operate the golf course while it was in bankruptcy. They opened to the public to help generate enough funds to pay all of the bills. When Cyprus Mining Company bought the mining company, the Golf Course came with it. Cyprus Mining eventually sold it to the City in 1997.
Interesting fact:
In the early days the clubhouse catered to the upper echelons who had a designated round table in the corner for their use. Other guests would wait until those at the round table got up to dance, only then would they start to dance. The round table also had access to a button on the wall they would use to call for service.
FORE! Watch for more SB golf course history coming soon.
Please reach out to SB Historical Society with any corrections or historical information to add, including photos.
Our email address is: bayareahistoricalsociety@gmail.com
