Garner—Long-time members and friends of the historic Meadowbrook Country Club and Golf Course gathered Thursday, Nov. 19, to celebrate its 50th anniversary. Meadowbrook, now owned by Saint Augustine's College, was the first black-owned golf club in the country.

Meadowbrook was founded in 1959 by 45 black men who were prominent members of society. Barred from membership at segregated clubs in the area, the men worked together to build Meadowbrook so their families would have a place for recreational and social activities.

"They thumbed their noses at the segregated society in which they found themselves," said Dianne Boardley Suber, president of Saint Augustine's College. "They said, ‘We don't have to beg; we can create our own.'"

Joseph M. Sansom, whose father, James Joseph Sansom Jr., was one of Meadowbrook's founding members, said the idea of having something that the black community could have ownership of was one of central reasons the founders built Meadowbrook.

"If you don't own it, you can't control it," Sansom said. "Ownership is the key to anything."

Sansom said his father invested a lot of his own money into Meadowbrook. That was the kind of thing the original members did—they put their time and resources into making the country club something they could all be proud of.

It was Meadowbrook members who built the clubhouse and other buildings on the grounds. Often, families would load their lawnmowers onto their cars and go cut the grass out at Meadowbrook, Sansom said. It was a family environment.

"We swam in the lake. It had chiggers and red bugs, but we didn't care because we owned this land," Sansom said.

Saint Augustine's College bought Meadowbrook in 2007. Original members wanted to ensure that its legacy as a traditionally black country club was preserved. Suber said the College plans to continue the legacy started by the 45 charter members through the students who now benefit from their investment.

"(Buying the golf course) was not just an investment in property, but an investment in the future," Suber said.

Meadowbrook was recently added to the National Register of Historic Places.

Related Links

1. http://www.st-aug.edu
2. http://www.historicmeadowbrookgolf.com