The oldest continuously operating golf club west of the Mississippi — a two-hour trip from Des Moines — is celebrating its 130th anniversary this month.
The Fairfield Golf & Country Club, in southeast Iowa, was first organized in 1892 as Kahgahgee Golf Club, a Native American name derived from the nearby Crow Creek, according to a news release from the golf club.
A log cabin purchased in 1900 served as the initial clubhouse, and in 1914, members incorporated under the name Fairfield Golf Club. Today, the golf club offers recreational opportunities for members including golf, swimming and dining.
According to the club’s website, several other clubs and courses have made similar claims about being the oldest club or course west of the Mississippi. The Burlington Golf Club in Iowa, for example, was incorporated on June 7, 1899, and claims it’s the oldest “continually operated incorporated” club west of the Mississippi.
“If you care about ‘incorporation,’ Burlington’s claim may be valid,” Fairfield officials say. “But Fairfield Golf & Country Club has claimed to be the ‘Oldest Club West of the Mississippi.’ None of the other clubs we examined refute that claim.”
The Fairfield club will celebrate its landmark birthday on August 27 with live jazz on the clubhouse patio, golf games including putting and driving contests; food and drink stations and a live auction, according to the release.
Additionally, the event will highlight the launch of the Kahgahgee Historical Golf Foundation, which will raise resources to maintain the course so it can continue to provide recreational, economic, social and environmental benefits to the Fairfield and Jefferson County community.
“For 130 years, the Fairfield Golf & Country Club has been an integral part of the Fairfield community and an institution that is unique to our area,” said Lori Schaefer-Weaton, president of the golf club’s board of directors. “We are proud of our history and look forward to the next 130 years.”
Virginia Barreda is a trending and general assignment reporter for the Des Moines Register. She can be reached at vbarreda@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @vbarreda2.
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