Historical Society Of Plainfield Celebrates Golf History

PLAINFIELD, N.J. - July 31, 2015 - PRLog -- The Historical Society of Plainfield will celebrate the return of The Barclays to Plainfield Country Club with special evening hours at the Drake House Museum and a lecture, “Par for the Course – Leighton Calkins and Plainfield’s Contribution to Golf.” The lecture, given by Nancy Piwowar, president of the Historical Society of Plainfield, will be presented on Wednesday, August 26, 2015, at 7:30 p.m. The Drake House will be open from 7-9 p.m. from Tuesday, August 25 through Saturday, August 29, and from 2-4 p.m. (regular hours) on Sunday, August 30.

Leighton Calkins was the Mayor of Plainfield from 1915-1920. He is recognized as the creator of the handicap system used in golf today. Calkins designed the system in 1904 for Plainfield Country Club, where each hole still boasts a “Calkins tee.” Calkins was instrumental in building Plainfield’s City Hall. “We’re delighted to welcome The Barclays back to Plainfield Country Club and celebrate Plainfield’s special connection to golf,” said Nancy Piwowar, president of the Historical Society of Plainfield. “We extend a special invitation to the Drake House to tournament spectators and to everyone in the area who is interested in the history of golf, as well as the unique history of Plainfield.”

It was at the Drake House that George Washington consulted with his officers during and after the Battle of Short Hills fought over the entire Plainfield area on June 25-27, 1777. On permanent display at the Drake House Museum are three Colonial era rooms--the kitchen, the Queen Anne dining room, and the Washington bedroom. The parlor and the Harberger Library are interpreted as period Victorian rooms.

The Drake House Museum also displays two large paintings by noted Civil War painter Julian Scott, a Plainfield resident. A National and New Jersey Historic Site, the Drake House Museum is an exciting link to Plainfield’s Revolutionary War history. The Drake House Museum is located at 602 West Front Street, Plainfield, New Jersey. Onsite parking is available. For directions and more information about the Drake House and the Historical Society of Plainfield, visit www.drakehouseplainfieldnj.org.

The Historical Society of Plainfield received an operating support grant from the New Jersey Historical Commission, a division of the Department of State. Funding has been made possible in part by the New Jersey Historical Commission, a division of the Department of State through a grant administered by the Union County Office of Cultural and Heritage Affairs, Department of Parks and Recreation; the Garden State Historic Preservation Trust administered by the New Jersey Historic Trust/State of New Jersey; the Union County Open Space, Recreation and Historic Preservation Trust Fund; the City of Plainfield, the Plainfield Cultural and Heritage Commission; McCutchen Foundation; the Plainfield Foundation; the Union Foundation; EJ Grassmann Trust; the Pond Foundation; the 1772 Foundation in cooperation with the New Jersey Historic Trust; and the New Jersey Cultural Trust Fund.