On 19 January 1914, the Elmhurst Golf and Country Club was founded by a group of 22 people who met at the Industrial Bureau in Winnipeg and decided to make plans for another golf course in the city. The T. Eaton Company had many employees who became shareholders and supported the club over the years. On 3 February 1914, the group applied to the Manitoba Legislature for a private act to incorporate the club, naming it the Elmhurst Golf Links.
A Board of Governors was elected at a meeting on 6 April 1914. The first President was William Henry Carter who was also the President of the Winnipeg Builders’ Exchange. The Vice President was George James Dodd and Secretary-Treasurer was James Brown Heatley. Other board members were W. J. Webster, Herbert Mason Tucker, John Hamilton Parkhill, F. J. Weed, F. R. Sproule, George W. Markle, James E. Robertson, Thomas F. Davidson, Frederick Pugh, and Samuel H. Reynolds. They secured golfing privileges at the Alcrest property located at Haney Street and Roblin Boulevard while they searched for a suitable property to develop.
In May 1914, a location on the northerly slope of Birds Hill Ridge in the Rural Municipality of Springfield was secured and leased from the property owner John Hooey Ferguson. They engaged Edward Legge to establish the layout for the golf course. Over the next four years, the club had two locations while the land was being developed into an 18-hole course. A clubhouse was built by the contracting firm of Hazelton and Wallin. The new clubhouse and course opened on 5 August 1918.
In 1919, a plan was made for a radical change and renowned golf course architect Donald Ross was hired to make some major design changes to the course which were complete by 1921. In 1943, the Elmhurst Holding Company Limited was incorporated and the name was changed from the Elmhurst Golf Links to Elmhurst Golf Club. In November 1960, the club’s name was changed to “The Elmhurst Golf and Country Club.”
Period
President
1914
William Henry Carter (1874-1962)
1915-1916
Herbert Mason Tucker (1875-1959)
1917-1918
William Gregory Chace (1875-1937)
1919-1920
F. J. Weed
1921-1922
W. H. Young
1923
Edwin Godfrey Parker (1876-1966)
1924-1926
Charles Edward Harvey (1881-1932)
1927-1928
Robert Jacob (1879-1944)
1929-1930
Arthur Forest Emery (1876-1946)
1931
Rupert Paris Halliday (1881-1941)
1932-1934
Frederick S. Archibald (1883-1958)
1935-1936
Neil Stevenson Dow (1876-1946)
1937
James Alexander Hurst Forster (1868-1942)
1938-1939
John L. Jackson
1940-1942
Wesley Brown “Wes” Pickard (1886-1969)
1943
Kit Grant
1944-1951
William Sillery “Bill” Bickell (1888-1969)
1952-1957
Alex Duncan
1958-1959
Howard George Jephson (1904-1978)
1960-1961
Alexander “Alex” Colonello (1920-2013)
1962-1963
Hugh Elliott Caldwell (1911-1987)
1964-1967
Hugh MacKay Ross (1912-1992)
1968-1969
William H. “Bill” Pearce (1921-2004)
1970-1973
Edward Kennings “Bud” Foster (1916-2012)
1974-1975
Victor Charles “Vic” Rose (1920-1997)
1976-1977
Frederick Alvin “Al” Macatavish (1940-2024)
1978-1979
John Baker (1917-1996)
1980-1981
Jerry Kruk (1940-2012)
1982-1983
Alexander “Alex” Smaluk (1920-2016)
1984-1985
James Gerrard Mark Scollan (1942-2024)
1986-1987
Kenneth George Lailey (1938-2010)
1988-1989
David Dubnicoff (1944-2019)
1990-1991
Warren Allford (1932-2020)
1992-1993
Rob MacDonald
1994
Alan Brownridge
1995-1996
Tom Martin
1997-1998
Vic Funk
1999-2000
Jim Bryce
2001-2002
Harold Stevenson Mawhinny (1938-2023)
2003-2004
Brian Elwood
2005-2006
Doug Sexsmith
2007-2008
Donna Ann Baldwinson Brownridge (1952-2020)
2009-2010
Vince Mariani
2011-2012
Brian Katchnoski
2013-2014
Wayne Skaritko
2015-2016
Jim Hunt
2017-2019
Tom Kloczko
2020-2022
Wayne Demke
2023-2026
Greg Sobie
See also:
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Elmhurst Golf and Country Club (RM of Springfield)
“W. H. Carter elected President of newly formed Elmhurst Golf,” Manitoba Free Press, 7 April 1914, page 36.
“Elmhurst Links opened yesterday,” Winnipeg Tribune, 26 May 1914, page 24.
“Elmhurst golfers select officers,” Manitoba Free Press, 2 December 1914, page 6.
“New quarters for Elmhurst Club in 1916,” Winnipeg Tribune, 8 December 1915, page 15.
“Elmwood Club elects officers,” Winnipeg Tribune, 7 December 1916, page 19.
“W.gG. Chase leads Elmhurst Golf Club,” Manitoba Free Press, 22 January 1918, page 28.
“Elmhurst Golf Club has ideal course at Birds Hill,” Manitoba Free Press, 23 March 1918, page 19.
“New Elmhurst golf course at Springfield has some interesting history,” Manitoba Free Press, 20 July 1918, page 12.
“Elmhurst Golfers Due for Glorious Season of Play” Winnipeg Free Press, 19 May 1919, page 15. “F.J. Weed is Pres” Winnipeg Free Press, 25 June 1920, page 17. “Annual Meeting of Elmhurst Golf Club” Winnipeg Free Press, 15 December 1921, page 20. “E.J. Parker to Lead Elmhurst Club” Winnipeg Free Press, 18 January 1923, page 4. “Harvey Again Heads Elmhurst Golf Club” Winnipeg Free Press, 12 December 1924, page 19. “Harvey Remains Elmhurst Head” Winnipeg Tribune, 8 December 1925, page 16. “Robert Jacob Heads Elmhurst” Winnipeg Free Press, 15 December 1926, page 23. “A.F. Emery Heads Elmhurst Club” Winnipeg Free Press, 15 December 1928, page 33. “R.P. Halliday is Golf President” Winnipeg Free Press, 9 December 1930, page 17. “Elmhurst Club Chooses Board” Winnipeg Tribune, 13 December 1932, page 13. “Elmhurst Golf Club Names N.S. Dow” Winnipeg Tribune, 13 December 1934, page 10. “Elmhurst Golf Club Organizes” Winnipeg Free Pres, 17 December 1935, page 15. “Neil Dow Named Elmhurst Prexy” Winnipeg Free Press, 16 December 1936, page 17. “Elmhurst Golfers Elect Officers” Winnipeg Free Press, 18 December 1937, page 27. “Jackson Heads Elmhurst Club” Winnipeg Tribune, 9 December 1938, page 18. “Elmhurst Golf Club Elects New Chairman” Winnipeg Tribune, 14 February 1940, page 15. “Elmhurst Links Had Fine Year” Winnipeg Tribune, 11 December 1940, page 14. “W.S. Bickell Heads Elmhurst Golfers” Winnipeg Free Press, 12 May, 1944, page 13. “Bill Bickell Heads Elmhurst Club” Winnipeg Free Press, 3 March 1945, page 16. “Bickell Again Heads Elmhurst” Winnipeg Tribune, 30 January 1947, page 27. “Al Duncan Again Heads Elmhurst” Winnipeg Free Press, 21 January 1953, page 20. “Elmhurst Golfers Elect Jephson” Winnipeg Free Press, 15 March 1958, page 42. “Alex Colonello New Elmhurst Golf Prexy” Winnipeg Tribune, 24 December 1959, page 17. “Elmhurst Golfers Re-Organize” Winnipeg Free Press, 6 December 1960, page 18. “Elmhurst Elects Hugh Ross” Winnipeg Free Press, 21 December 1963, page 47. “Big Season for Elmhurst” Winnipeg Tribune, 14 March 1964, page 31. “Elmhurst Celebrating Fiftieth Anniversary” Winnipeg Free Press, 4 April 1964, page 53. “Fifty Big Golf Years Out at the Hill” Winnipeg Tribune by Dallas Beck, 4 April 1964, page 42. “Ross Re-Elected Elmhurst Chief” Winnipeg Free Press, 12 January 1965, page 18. “Re-Elect Hugh Ross” Winnipeg Free Press, 10 December 1965, page 45. “Bud Heads Elmhurst” Winnipeg Free Press, 8 January 1973, page 22. “Rose Succeeds Bud Foster” Winnipeg Free Press, 1 January 1974, page 52. “Elmhurst Board Elects Rose” Winnipeg Free Press, 19 February 1975, page 59. “Macatavish President” Winnipeg Free Press, 3 January 1976, page 53. “Macatavish President” Winnipeg Free Press, 26 January 1977, page 68. “Elmhurst Drives into 2008” Winnipeg Free Press, 9 May 2008, page 36. “Elmhurst Going Back to the Future” Winnipeg Free Press, 18 September 2008, page 25. “Manitoba Links - A Kaleidoscopic History of Golf” by J. Alan Hackett. “The Home of Champions - A History of the Elmhurst Golf and Country Club” 1914-2014 by Donna Brownridge Elmhurst Golf and Country Club Website.
Obituary [George Allen], Winnipeg Tribune, 28 May 1962.
This page was prepared by Rick Mutton and Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 24 April 2025
