Summerlea Disaster
The golfing season of 1949 began on a high note. Membership stood at a satisfactory number of 405 golfers following a successful recruitment campaign. The season carried on with the usual number of tournaments at home and with other Clubs.
Early in the morning of September 13th, disaster struck. After a barbecue party the night before, at 6 a.m. Club employees discovered the fire in a coal bin. They were unable to keep it under control until the arrival of the Lachine Fire Department. Before a hose could be installed on the fire hydrant 1,000 feet away, the fire had spread to all sections of the three-story wooden structure. Within minutes the building was completely ablaze with flames 35 feet high. Around 7:30 a.m., the walls collapsed leaving only three chimneys, a small steel and cement vault and the archway over the main entrance. The fire had completely destroyed the clubhouse and its contents.
Twenty-two members of the staff, who were asleep in the building at the time, managed to flee to safety but lost all their personal effects. No one was injured. Loss was estimated at $250,000 not including 250 sets of golf clubs and other personal property.
Summerlea members swung into action immediately. The next evening, the Board of Directors met at the home of the President, Dr. Leonard Kent, who by a stroke of luck had taken the Minute Book home with him. Immediate needs were to keep the Club running while making long-range plans to rebuild. A small tent provided temporary quarters for the rest of the season where some food and drink were available. Pro Walter Lilley was able to get 60 new sets of clubs from Toronto. The staff were paid until the end of September plus expenses for boarding in Lachine. Insurance coverage included $100,000 for the building and $22,500 for the contents.
Like the Phoenix that was consumed by fire and rose renewed from the ashes, Summerlea members were determined to carry on. By the end of the year, plans for rebuilding were well under way. Fire losses had been paid, decisions made regarding the new building and tenders requested for the job of reconstruction.
The four-ball competition of the Quebec Golf Association had been scheduled to be played at Summerlea on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. When news of the fire became known, Grovehill Golf and Country Club, across the road from Summerlea, immediately offered their clubhouse and course where the event was successfully played.
Marion Dunn