Monterey Country Club, built before 1885, is home to one of the oldest golf courses in the United States. The club sits just below the peaks of 1,720 Mt. Dunlap and 1,365 Monterey Peak in

Blue Ridge Summit, Pennsylvania Blue Ridge Summit is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Franklin County, Pennsylvania, United States, southwest of Gettysburg in the central part of the state, adjoining Pennsylvania's southern border with Maryland. It is ...

and is less than one mile (1.6 km) from the

Mason–Dixon line The Mason–Dixon line, also called the Mason and Dixon line or Mason's and Dixon's line, is a demarcation line separating four U.S. states, forming part of the borders of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and West Virginia (part of Virginia ...

and about away from

Camp David Camp David is the country retreat for the president of the United States of America. It is located in the wooded hills of Catoctin Mountain Park, in Frederick County, Maryland, near the towns of Thurmont and Emmitsburg, about north-northwe ...

. The club has served as a summer retreat for many Washingtonians, and has golf, tennis, swimming, dining and clubhouse facilities. American Presidents

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

Calvin Coolidge Calvin Coolidge (born John Calvin Coolidge Jr.; ; July 4, 1872January 5, 1933) was the 30th president of the United States from 1923 to 1929. Born in Vermont, Coolidge was a History of the Republican Party (United States), Republican lawyer ...

and

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

all played the Monterey Country Club course. In 1896

Wallis Simpson Wallis, Duchess of Windsor (born Bessie Wallis Warfield, later Simpson; June 19, 1896 – April 24, 1986), was an American socialite and wife of the former King Edward VIII. Their intention to marry and her status as a divorcée caused ...

was born in Square Cottage next to the old Monterey Inn directly across the road from first green.Weir, p. 328 She later married Prince Edward,

Duke of Windsor Duke of Windsor was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 8 March 1937 for the former monarch Edward VIII, following his abdication on 11 December 1936. The dukedom takes its name from the town where Windsor Castle, a ...

and became the

Duchess of Windsor Wallis, Duchess of Windsor (born Bessie Wallis Warfield, later Simpson; June 19, 1896 – April 24, 1986), was an American socialite and wife of the former King Edward VIII. Their intention to marry and her status as a divorcée caused a ...

. The Monterey Country Club sits upon that were once part of a mountain swamp that was the site of military action during the civil war. At the time of the Gettysburg Campaign of 1863, there were several cavalry skirmishes in and around the area - including

Emmitsburg, Maryland Emmitsburg is a town in Frederick County, Maryland, United States, south of the Mason-Dixon line separating Maryland from Pennsylvania. Founded in 1785, Emmitsburg is the home of Mount St. Mary's University. The town has two Catholic pilgrima ...

Fountain Dale, and

Monterey Pass Monterey Pass is a mountain pass located in Franklin County, southern Pennsylvania. Geography The saddle area lies near Happel's Meadow, between Monterey Peak (1,663 ft) and Clermont Crag (1627 ft), in the South Mountain Rang ...

where the club sits. On June 22 the first skirmish occurred along the Monterey Mountain pass near Blue Ridge Summit. An armed civilian militia encountered a detachment of Confederates under General Albert G. Jenkins. The militia was forced to retreat after a very brief skirmish. General Jenkins and his Confederate troops withdrew toward Hagerstown joining General

Richard S. Ewell Richard Stoddert Ewell (February 8, 1817 – January 25, 1872) was a career United States Army officer and a Confederate general during the American Civil War. He achieved fame as a senior commander under Stonewall Jackson and Robert E. L ...

, who was advancing with a larger force. Following the events at the

Battle of Gettysburg The Battle of Gettysburg () was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, by Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War. In the battle, Union Major General George Meade's Army of the Po ...

, the Confederate Army retreated via Emmitsburg. On July 5, General J. E. B. Stuart's soldiers were engaged in some small skirmishes with General

George Armstrong Custer George Armstrong Custer (December 5, 1839 – June 25, 1876) was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the American Indian Wars. Custer graduated from West Point in 1861 at the bottom of his class, b ...

's Federal soldiers as he made his way back to General Robert E. Lee's army. The mountain swamp at Monterey Pass bogged down Stuart and the

Army of Northern Virginia The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was also the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most oft ...

as they retreated.Monterey Pass:The Gateway of Agony
/ref> The Monterey Country Club sits upon that were once part of that swamp.

References

External links

* Buildings and structures in Franklin County, Pennsylvania Golf clubs and courses in Pennsylvania Tennis venues in Pennsylvania South Mountain Range (Maryland−Pennsylvania) Tourist attractions in Franklin County, Pennsylvania {{Pennsylvania-sports-venue-stub