As stated in this website’s Home Page, the initial focus of the Foundation when it was established in 2004 was the research, documentation, and preservation of Army Navy Country Club’s rich history. “Hand in glove” with this mission was the education of the membership in the Club’s history.
The initial iteration of the Foundation left behind no discernable accomplishments other than a $8,000 debt to the Club (subsequently forgiven). By 2008 the Foundation was “moribund” but was resurrected in 2012 when Club Chairman, Rear Admiral Joe Barth and the Executive Committee appointed Mr. Kent Maxfield as the Foundation president. Mr. Maxfield recruited a Board of Directors, several of whom remained with the Foundation for more than a decade.
The newly reconstituted Foundation Board of Directors set out to do what the earlier iteration of the Board did not, i.e., leave a legacy of accomplishment. Those accomplishments are described below.
Eisenhower Golf Club Display
On May 12, 2015, the Foundation unveiled a display of President Eisenhower’s golf clubs in the Eisenhower Lounge of the Arlington clubhouse. The clubs were donated to the Foundation by long-time ANCC Head Golf Professional Steve Tobash.
Fort Richardson
The most visible historic artifact on the Arlington campus is the remnant of Fort Richardson, one of the sixty-eight forts that protected Washington DC during the Civil War. The FY 2015 budget included $35,000 for the preservation and beautification of the Fort. When Foundation leadership learned of the plan, it appealed to Club leadership to let the Foundation lead the planning effort. The Club agreed, moving the funding to the following year. The Foundation brought in David Shockley, the Resource Manager of the National Park Service’s Petersburg Battlefield Park and a recognized expert on the preservation of earthen forts. Mr. Shockley visited ANCC three times and, working with the ANCC Superintendent, Bob Wilber, developed a preservation plan for the Fort.
Shockley’s plan called for the removal of all the trees from the parapets and the grassing of the parapets. In the end, this effort only included the side of the Fort along Memorial Drive. Work on the parapets commenced in September 14, 2015.
After completion of the Fort’s preservation project, the Foundation turned its attention to the development of an “interpretive display” aimed at educating the membership about the Fort. The ANCC Executive Board approved the display concept and location on July 17, 2018. With this blessing in hand, the Foundation commenced the design of the display that was based upon the display Arlington County constructed at Fort Ethan Allen. To do so the Foundation engaged the same artist who created the Fort Ethan Allen bronze model and the same historian/graphic artist who developed the same at Ethan Allen. After nearly three years research, design, and fund raising, construction began in April 2021 with the interpretive display being “unveiled” May 26, 2021.
“Lots of forts have golf courses. We may have the only golf course with a fort.”
Robert Trent Jones Society Recognition
In 2013 it was brought to the attention of the Foundation that the Robert Trent Jones Society did not recognize ANCC Fairfax as a RTJ design. The successful “Quest” to achieve this recognition is described in the “Did You Know?” edition of November 2018 and November 2024.
Cylke Prints
On May 14, 2014, ANCC Member Mr. Steven Cylke along with his wife Georgia presented a collection of Civil War prints to the ANCC Foundation. Mr. Kent Maxfield, the Foundation’s President, accepted this first major gift presented to the Foundation. These prints depict a variety of important Civil War scenes assembled by Steven’s father, Mr. Charles Wilbur Cylke, an American and Civil War history enthusiast.
The prints were subsequently displayed for a brief time in both the Arlington and Fairfax Clubhouses. Unfortunately, the Club was not interested in permanent display. Accordingly, after a few years of storage, the Foundation offered to return the prints to the Cylke family who subsequently donated them to Patrick Henry Community College’s history department.
Golf Course Drawing Preservation/Digitization
When research of the evolution of the two golf courses commenced, the Club provided the Foundation access to its drawing archives (located in the Facility Maintenance Building after being moved out of the third floor of the old Clubhouse). No inventory was available. Building and golf course drawing were intermixed, and many of the drawings were in poor condition (torn, wrinkled, and damaged). The Foundation spent over two years going through the drawings, separating the golf course drawings (the primary focus at the time), developing an inventory and index, and repairing damaged drawings (more than 100 feet in archival tape was used). After completion of this phase, the Club generously funded the digitization of over 200 golf course drawings and the procurement of drawing storage cabinets.
Deeds Archives
In the course of researching the history of the two properties, it became obvious that the Club deeds archive was incomplete. The Foundation set out to rectify this situation. Starting with those deeds available, Foundation personnel made eight trips to the Arlington County Courthouse that yielded a significant number of the missing deeds (some deeds of release have not been found). A similar effort was made with the County of Fairfax. Copies of these deeds in both paper and digital format were provided to the Club and became part of the Foundation’s historical archives.
Newspaper/Magazine Articles Archives
In the course of research into ANCC’s history, the Foundation has accumulated an archive of several hundred newspaper and magazine articles that are related to the Army Navy Country Club. These articles extend from the founding of ANCC to the present.
“State Champion” Trees
the course of surveying the Arlington campus to facilitate planning for the new clubhouse in 2010, it came to light that there were two “state champion” trees on the property. A “state champion” tree is defined as the largest of its species in the state. The first of these two trees was the pin oak to the right of the White #6 fairway and left of the Blue #5 green. The second is a blackjack oak left and forward of the White #9 tee (between the 18th Street entrance road and the cart path). Working with the Arlington County’s Urban Forester, the Foundation designed and installed a small display for each tree, both of which were unveiled on September 25, 2018. Unfortunately, the pin oak subsequently developed an incurable canker that necessitated its removal in 2023.
Medal of Honor Library
On Veteran’s Day (November 11) 2023, the Foundation held a ribbon cutting ceremony for a Medal of Honor Library to honor the eight ANCC members who received the nation’s highest military award. The festivities included a speech by MoH recipient Kyle J. White.
Centennial History Presentations
In May 2016 the Foundation provided a presentation on the history of the Arlington golf course. This was followed in 2017 with presentations on the history of the Fairfax golf course (given twice, once at Arlington and once at Fairfax). As part of the ANCC Centennial the Foundation provided the following four ANCC history presentations:
September 14, 2023: ANCC Property History
February 22, 2024: ANCC Golf, Youth & Fitness History
May 2, 2024: Arlington Golf Course History
September 26, 2024: Fairfax Golf Course History
Recordings of these presentations and the accompanying PowerPoint slides are made available on this website’s “Centennial History” page.
Centennial History
As part of ANCC Centennial celebration, the ANCC Foundation has produced a Centennial History which can be accessed via a tab on this website’s “Home Page” banner.
This “living history” will be maintained on the Foundation’s website so that it may be updated as new historical information and analysis becomes available.
“Did You Know?”
Commencing in November 2015, the Foundation provided an ANCC History “Did You Know?” article for the monthly ANCC Newsletter. For access to these articles, which are to be found in the History Information section of this website, Click Here.
Potential Projects
Ideas for future Foundation initiatives are constantly being generated. Some are both popular and realistic and, therefore, have a chance of implementation. Others only meet one (or none) of those criteria. The following list, which is constantly in flux, contains projects from all of these categories:
- Civil War Artifacts Display (Arlington). This project would involve the display of the many Civil War artifacts found on the Arlington Campus. A similar display was a fixture in the old Clubhouse.
- Robert Trent Jones, Senior Plaque at Fairfax. The proposal is for a raised letter bronze plaque commemorating RTJ’s design of the original Fairfax golf course (Fairfax Country Club).
- Camp Convalescent Reproduction. This project would involve the construction of a Camp Convalescent “Head Quarters” facade for the restroom/storm shelter facility that lies between the Blue #5 green and the White#6 fairway. This location lies close to the actual site of the “Head Quarters”.
- Fraser Cemetery Plaque. This project would install a raised letter bronze plaque near the cemetery explaining its significance.
- Artillery Piece for the Fort Richardson Interpretive Display.
- Restoration of two Fort Richardson gun platforms.