A question was raised on Face Book about the Sunnybrae Country Club, for those that don’t know this was located in Yardville on South Broad Street where now you find Dover Manor Homes, Dover Apartments, Sunnybrae Gardens Apartments and the Dover Manor Shopping Center. This prompted a little research;
The Sunnybrae Country Club opened in the 1920's as The Mercer County Golf Cub, in March of 1933 the name was changed and in April, 1933 it reopened as the Sunnybrae County Club. Among the many amenities advertised there were a Club House, a Restaurant & Bar and Beach Swimming. On July 16, 1948 a large fire consumed a barn full of hay belonging to the Totten Hay Company of Yardville, and equipment belonging to the Club was destroyed, this was adjacent to the Club House. The fire was fought by the White Horse, Groveville, DeCou, and Rusling Hose Fire Companies. In March 1952 it was announced the Club and the 271 acres of golf course had been sold and would be closing. Three days later they announced they had gotten the OK to start building, in 1956 they began to sell homes. I can pick out two guys in this photo, Jim Donnell and Eddie Klink.
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As a boy I would cross this golf course, around 4 AM to check my traps I set in Gropp's Lake for muskrat, before going to school. In summer, I would hunt golf balls, clean and shine them and sell to golfers. In winter the sixteenth hole was a great sledding hill and we could glide across the pond at the bottom of the hill when it was frozen. I lived on Broad Street, almost directly across from the sixteenth green. I was sad when they sold it to build so many houses.
I don't know if this blog is still active or not but wanted to comment that my grandparents, Harry and Emma Basch, managed the bar/restaurant at Sunnybrae and were there when the fired happened. Would love any other details/info if possible about Sunnybrae!
My family bought a house next to the old clubhouse. The fire company burnt the last of it dawn about 1961. My friends and I learned to play golf on what was left of the fairways. The greens were all sand, the traps were still there along with the ponds. The fairways were planted with soybeans and let to go to seed. But it was our own golf course.
I believe it's original name was Sleepy Valley Golf Club. I have pictures of a 1930 scorecard.
My Aunt and Uncle , Doris and Ernie Mitrosky , had their wedding reception here in 1956. Years later my husband and I bought our first home on Elton Ave.in that same area.
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