Nick wasn’t looking to recover a piece of Pacific Northwest golf history while shopping at Corvallis Community Thrift downtown. All he did was spot some vintage golf clubs and had the thought that his dad might like them.
The decision set off a search reaching back more than a century, connecting the thrift store purchase with the granddaughter of a man who helped establish professional golf in the Northwest.
When Nick’s father, James, received the clubs, they caught his attention almost immediately. The clubs had a name on them, Fred Henwood, and some research showed they belonged to an early Seattle golf professional and a founding officer of the Pacific Northwest PGA.
(Photo: Fred Henwood’s Clubs found at Corvallis Community Thrift)
James wanted to locate Henwood’s family. “There was one thing we wanted to do before anything else. Find his family and make sure these clubs had the opportunity to return home,” he said.
James began reaching out to people in the local golf community. With help from several golf professionals, including Garth Mattson, the search reached Jared Clark, who identified himself as Henwood’s great-grandson.
According to James’s written account, Jared spoke with his mother, Ellen Mary Henwood Clark, and reported back that she was in tears when she heard about the discovery.
(Photo: Fred Henwood’s Clubs found at Corvallis Community Thrift)
James connected with Ellen by phone. “My grandfather made his own clubs,” Ellen said. “He was the sweetest Papa and loved teasing me by calling me Mary Ellen.”
Her memories had little to do with his historic presence in the golfing community. She remembered holding his hand while beachcombing at Seahurst Park along Puget Sound, then returning to his house for grilled cheese sandwiches.
The Pacific Northwest PGA’s historical account identifies Fred Henwood as the secretary-treasurer elected when the association formed in March of 1922. Henwood later served as section president in 1930 and again in 1934.
(Photo: Fred Henwood, circled, at the PGA’s 1934 annual meeting in Chicago. Burke and Koretke, published in Golfdom, January 1935, courtesy of Michigan State University Libraries’ Turfgrass Information Center.)
His granddaughter’s account traces his golf career to a boyhood spent caddying in England. In 1912, he took his savings to a steamship office with Australia as his goal. The money he saved would only take him as far as Vancouver, British Columbia, so that became his destination.
James said their conversation also included a family story about Henwood nearly boarding the Titanic.
James last said the clubs were being prepared for shipment to Santa Barbara, California, where they would be reunited with Henwood’s family.
Sometimes, a willingness to follow a few clues is all it takes to turn an ordinary thing into a story worth telling.
Corvallis Community Thrift Shop gives donated items a second chance, all while supporting local scholarships and nonprofits.
This article was written by Brian Lindensmith, a contributor to The Corvallis Inquirer. Feel free to send us your stories or articles to publish at: editor@corvallisnow.com
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