Minneapolis Golf Clubs Go To War
One more bit of information about the oldest golf courses in Minneapolis, then I’ll move on.
I found this item in The American Golfer, June 1917:
“Four private golf clubs in Minneapolis are going to utilize a portion of their grounds for raising foodstuffs this summer. At the University Club more than 25 acres will be plowed up. The Minneapolis Club has set aside 4 acres for potatoes, and Interlachen and Minikahda will devote all available spaces to small garden truck. One hunderd caddies of the Town and Country Club have organized a military company.”
The actions were in response to the United States entry into the “Great War” in April 1917.
The golf course at the University of Minnesota and the first public golf course in Minneapolis—at Glenwood Park, now Theodore Wirth Park—had only opened in 1916. Both courses were nine holes at that time.
After the Minneapolis Board of Park Commissioners opened the Glenwood golf course in June, 1916, The American Golfer noted that only Oakland and Portland among “western” cities did not have municipal golf courses.
David C. Smith
Minneapolis Park History 
Dave, as it is a miserable rainy day, my google research informed me that Westwood Hills was a proprietary course not BPC managed and platted and developed in the late 50’s. They used it for parking during the 59 PGA at Mpls. Golf Club. still like your site. I played park board football and bse, ball at Folwell, Farview, Shingle Creek, Bohanan, dwnhl and X-C skiied at Wirth, and played HS football at Parade. I used to belong to the Wirth men’s club. Great Blog!!! JimK
Thanks for the note, Jim. Not being a golfer myself, I’m not familiar with Westwood Hills, but Meadowbrook is a different course located on Excelsior Boulevard. The Minneapolis park board initiated the deal to secure that land in 1924 and finally opened the course for play in 1926. Your note on the Mpls. Golf Club using Westwood Hills for parking for the ’59 PGA is interesting, because I believe Interlachen used some Meadowbrook facilities in a similar way during the Women’s US Open there in 2008. When you get a moment send me an e-mail about what you remember of playing park board football and baseball — and Parade Stadium. I think a lot of people miss that place.
David C. Smith minneapolisparkhistory[at]q.com