Forsgate Country Club
Aerial view of Forsgate Country Club
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| Club information | |
|---|---|
| Location | Monroe, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Established | 1931 |
| Owned by | RDC Golf Group |
| Operated by | RDC Golf Group |
| Total holes | 36 |
| Tournaments hosted | Forsgate Foundation Charity Classic |
| Website | http://www.forsgatecc.com |
| Banks Course | |
| Designed by | Charles Banks |
| Par | 71 |
| Length | 6,844 yards |
| Course rating | 72.4 |
| Palmer Course | |
| Designed by | Hal Purdy |
| Par | 72 |
| Length | 6,584 yards |
| Course rating | 69.8 |
Forsgate Country Club is a country club located in Monroe Township, New Jersey, and has been a local landmark for many years. The club boasts two distinctively different eighteen hole golf courses, an historic clubhouse with two dining facilities, tennis court, a pool and fitness center. The club is private for golf and dining, but is available to non-members for meetings, catering, and golf outings.
In 1896, John Forster, a penniless Scottish immigrant, founded the insurance company of Crum and Forster. As his wealth grew, so did his longing to build a self-sufficient community for his employees, away from the hustle and bustle of the city. In 1913, he eyed 50 acres (200,000 m2) of land in Monroe Township, west of the original 1831 Camden-Amboy railroad.
Here he decided to build a town, experiment with different types of agricultures and provide entertainment for his friends and relatives. While construction was in progress on the Farm, Forster and his wife and their daughter Edith would commute from Hackensack on weekends for site inspections. Since there were no facilities for meals or accommodations, the chauffeur-driven Packard would head down the road to the Railroad House at Prospect Plains.
When the Farm was complete, Forster dubbed it Forsgate, honoring his wife’s family name of Applegate. His horse-breeding, dairy farm, chicken farm, greenhouse and apple orchards started the tradition of fine quality food that continues at Forsgate more than 80 years later.
With quality living and fine food uppermost on Forster’s mind, he decided, despite the crash of 1929, to build an elegant country club and golf course. Forster, not one to spare expense on the quality he sought, hired noted architect Clifford Wendehack to design the magnificent colonial clubhouse. The quality of the golf course was equally important, so he hired the famed Charles “Steamshovel” Banks to build it. In the design, Banks reproduced many of the golf holes that were handpicked by John Forster from his European golfing tours. The Country Club was finished in 1931, but Forster did not live long to enjoy it, leaving his dreams of building a church, a hospital and a school unfulfilled.
Forster’s daughter Edith and her husband, John Howard Abeel, took over managing the Farm and Club after Forster’s death. Although Abeel enjoyed playing golf more than he liked farming, he did encourage Edith to carry on her father’s plans. A 1931 a Daily News article remarked “Forsgate Farm food products are famous throughout this part of New Jersey because of its home-cooked and strictly fresh at all times.” It was this outstanding quality that helped the Farm carry on successfully through the Depression years.
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