The College Park Neighborhood Association Dubsdread Golf Course

The College Park
Neighborhood Association
in conjunction with the celebration of the 80th· anniversary of
Dubsdread Golf Course
presents its
14th Annual Historic Homes Tour
November 21, 2004
S
«
«> AV
~ OGLES
«w~
Q
>
Legend
o Headquarters
(pro Shop)
~ Tour Houses
• Exterior Stops
[J Golf Cart Shuttle Stops
• 'Banquet Hall
«()Zii:
'"
l<:
I..JII
z
~
STYMI
E
ROC
WPRESTONST
This is your ticket-Keep
Dubsdread
it with you and show it at each home. Take the tour in any order.
is providing performances by the History Players Theatre Troupe from the Orange County
Regional History Center, golf cart shuttle service and printing services.
Dubsdread: The Beginning
It all began with Hanford Carl Dann
(1885-1940),an Orange County native recognized by the Daily Sentinel
in 1913 as one of the most active,
valuable and responsible real estate
men in town. An enthusiasticgolfer,
he was sure that northerners who
enjoyed golf course communities at
home would buy property where
they could play year round.
Dubsdread Golf Course and Country Club and Golfview and subsequent subdivisionswere the result.
The investors who joined Dann in
forming the Orlando Golfers Association (OGA) in June 1923decided
to call the course "Dubsdread",
dread of missing or "dubbing" a
shot, to reflect the challengesof the
Donald Ross-inspired
course.
There's a story that Dann and his
cronies helped layout the course by
hitting shots through the woods and
placing a sand trap wherever a ball
fell.
Although its history and much of its
original layout remain, the course
has changed somewhat over the
years. In the late 1930s, where the
pro shop is today, artist/builder Sam
Stoltz built Orlando's second swimming pool. A riding stable occupied
the current location of the 6th tee.
Both facilities were removed in
1950. In 1991, the first and eighth
holes were made more challenging.
When Dubsdread opened its first 9
holes in 1924, golfers and speculators had already bought lots in the
new development, created from a
1910 subdivision called Villa Farms.
From mid-1923 to early 1925,
Dann's company platted nearly 500
lots. Frank L. Anderson filed the
plat for Anderson Park, lots south of
Par, in January of 1924. OGA investors and other locals built homes
near the course, as did snowbirds
who retired here. The full 18 holes
were completed in 1926.
"Those were the days!" wrote Graham Barr, who grew up near the 12th
green. "Dubsdread was like a big
park. We knew everyone living on
the golf course." Dubsdread hosted
a number of events during the
1920s, including the 13th Annual
Amateur Golf Championship of the
Florida State Golfers Association in
1927. Competitions between members of the Orlando and Dubsdread
Country Clubs were held annually.
After a 1934fire, the first clubhouse,
Mediterranean Revival in style, was
rebuilt "better than ever", with assistance from Stoltz, Dann Sr.'s longtime colleague. The only survivors
of a 1991 remodeling are Stoltz's
banquet hall with its trademark fireplace and his bird frescoes now
stm:edin the basement of City Hall.
You can identify the Banquet Hall
by its stone chimney; visit the interior today before 1:30p.m.
During World War II, the clubhouse
was a second officers' club for the
100,000 servicemen stationed in the
area. Toward the end of the war,
Carl Dann, Jr. began to fear another
depression. In December 1944, he
sold Dubsdread to MalcolmDavenport of Greenville, S.c. As chairman of the greens committee,Dann
didn't like what he saw. The new
owner turned the clubhouse into a
nightclub and· seemed to have no
idea of how to run a golf course.
These glory days fell victim to the
"bust" and the Depression. A number of lots weren't built on and were
sold or taken back. Investors in the
course also had to sell. By late 1931
Dann was its sole owner. He gave
the course as a wedding present to
his son Carl Morris Dann (CarlJr.).
Five times Florida Amateur Champion, once Southern Amateur
Champion, and a charismatic host,
Carl Jr. kept the course going
through difficult years, helped by
growing enthusiasm for betting on
the games. During this period, pro
Ray Horan departed and the legendary Tom Cameytook his place.
Eventually, Simpson Penney and
Ray Ellars helped Dann repurchase
the course. Ellars later sold his
share to Mrs. Dann at a bargain
price, so that the Danns were the
majority owners when the City
bought the course in 1978. Famous
golfers who played at Dubsdread in
the 1940s and 1950s included Sam
Snead, Ben Hogan, ClaudeHarmon,
Jimmy Demaret, Babe Zaharias,
Louise Suggs and Patty Berg. The
Orlando Open, held in 1945through
1947, brought professionals to
Dubsdread.
built about 1927for Dann Sr.'s mentor and associate, Judge Thomas
Picton Warlow. Warlow came to
Orlando from England in 1884.
Two of his children were scratch
golfers. The Judge had lived on
America Street before moving to
"Azalea in the Wood"; the builder
may have been his downtown
neighbor Raymond C. Stevens. Ac-
701 Driver Avenue
Today's tour features 1920s and
1930s houses surrounding the old
clubhouse. Near the north end of
the course is the Mediterranean Revival house at 701 Driver Avenue,
701 Driver Avenue (continued)
cording to Warlow's granddaughter
, Gracia Andersen, the living room is
a copy of one designed by famous
English architect Christopher Wren.
Two of the outstanding exterior features are the steel casement windows
(rare for a building from this era)
and the green terra cotta tile roof.
Judge Warlow was a founder and
officer of the State Bank. When the
bank failed in the Depression, he
lost much of his property trying to
protect the depositors.
After several owners, nurse Oara
Tracy purchased the residence. She
built the wings and turned the house
first into a nursing home and then
into a group home for the elderly.
When Share-a-Home closed in 1996,
the house was threatened with
demolition.
The current owners, a landscape
contractor and an engineer, rescued
and restored the house and grounds.
They retained the wings, themselves
now historic, to house their large
family. "We can feel the spirit of the
original owners and of the artist/craftsmen who created the original house," says art owner. A local
artist uses the carriage house/garage
as a studio.
Fairway Lane
Warlow's third child. Grace, married
Leal G. Barr, son of CABCO partner Harry W. Barr. In 1924 they
moved to a new bungalow· at 3438
Fairway Lane with their year-old
twins, Graham and Gracia. They
too struggled during the Depression.
Graham sold sodas at the 14th tee.
Gracia QaterMrs. Martin Andersen)
recalled looking pitiful at Fosgate's
Market to help the family get credit,
and peddling Grace's cupcakes to
well-to-do snow birds. Grace Barr
later became the food and woman's
editor for the Orlando Sentinel.
The Albin Kupfer family, residents
from 1945 to about 1970, may have
been the owners who enlarged the
house by enclosing the veranda and
replicating it.
The current owners love the house
and its original features, including
the built-in hutch in the dining
room and the frreplace tile.
When the Barrs moved into 3438
Fairway, there was probably already
a house at 3426 Fairway Lane. The
residents may have been associates
of Judge Warlow. The frrst owner
listed at 3426 Fairway was Max Osbum, in 1936. For 40+ years, Lester,
an attorney, and Sarah Harris lived
here.
This Mission Revival house is typical
of the period with a small front
porch, simple parapets and Craftsman style wood windows.
Evanston Row (400 Block of West Par Street)
To the south, the 400 block of West
Par Street was nicknamed Evanston
Row, because many of the residents
came from that Chicago suburb.
The frrst building permits issued
there were in 1924, for the western
comer, to the ftrm of Fletcher &
Bulger. The George K. Gibson
family then bought the bungalow at
430 Par Street, which they usually
rented out; they owned the house on
the comer until 1968, residing there
until about 1959. Gibson was a
manager in the paper business.
In 1928 his neighbor at 408 Par
Avenue contractor T.M. Otrich,
enlarged the comer house and added
a garage apartment, and in 1936 con-
tractor M. Karlson built a two-story
addition.
The current owners
changed the address from 440 Par to
3315 Greens Avenue.
Owner James S. Wmn designed the
Mediterranean Revival house at 420
Par Street, now being faithfully restored. This house is a fine example
of the style with an arcaded entry,
wrought iron trim and a distinctive
bell tower.
The 1928 building permit for 420
Par Street called for a two-story
house with tile roof to cost $7,500
with a $500 garage; T.M. Otrich was
the contractor. Winn, a banker and
steel company owner, and wife Mary
lived there, first as snowbirds, until
about 1940. Their daughter married
the Gibsons' son and their son Warren lived at 3305 Greens.
Mrs. Winn's sister, Agnes B.
Watrous, hired noted Chicago archi- .
teet H. Ring Oauson to design the
Mediterranean Revival house at 400
Par Street It is pictured in the February 1941 issue of "Architecture
and Design".
Local
architect/builder Howard Kiehl pulled
the permit on August 15, 1930, for
this fine home and garage, to cost
$14,500. The front fa<;:adehas narrow arched windows and asymmetrical massing. The most highly decorated exterior walls faced the gar-
Evanston Row (continued)
dens, where Mrs. Watrous gave parties to benefit charity. She lived here
until 1949. The next owners, from
1950-68, were banker J. Carlton
Camp and his wife Virginia.
Next door, at 408 Par Street, Otrich
had taken out a permit March 5,
1927 for a Dutch Colonial Revival
house and a garage, to cost $6,000
and $200·respectively. The house is
unusual in that it has a full-width
front porch, a rare detail for the
style. Otrich lived there for about 3
years. A long-term resident was
Charles A. Meyer, a contractor and
secretary of the Orlando Golfers
Association. His family owned the
house from about 1942 to 1983,
when they sold to antiques dealer
Mike Tudor's family.
The Colonial Revival home at 412
Par Street also housed an OGA officer and salesman, Walter A. Dun,
who later moved to Ft. Pierce. His
family owned the property from
around 1928 to 1978. In 1936, Carl
Dann, Jr. was listed there. He later
lived on Greens Avenue and at 510
Par.
The house at 424 Par Street was the
home of salesman Lou Caine and
family for 20 some years. A 1927
building permit is for a garageon the
property. Radio personality John
McKee Dolan lived here from 1986
to 1992.
During their ownership of 420 Par,
the Winns bought additional property stretching from behind their
house over to Greens, for their son
Warren. Architect Maurice Kressly,
who designed Kaley School, St.
James School and many fme homes
including Casa Alameda (J22 Alameda Street),is believed to have designed the Wmn house at 3305
Greens Avenue. James Winn pulled
the permit in October 1936, with
AJ. Spinney, Inc. as builder, for a
house to cost $6,000. Later a smaller
well-built house nearby was moved
and connected, perhaps by Kressly.
This house may have been one built
in 1924 behind 430 Par. Warren
Winn sold to Tom Sawyerwho was
afftliated with WDBO Radio; the
station's north tower was in
Dubsdread. Later owners include
Joseph
Dyer (1948-63) and
Woodson P. Daniel, Jr. of Fairway
Market (1964-1981).
3206 Greens Avenue
At 3206 Greens Avenue is the
house Carl Dann had built in 1935,
after he subdivided Dann's Ranch
from part of Anderson Park. Sam
Stoltz designed the house in the
rustic style of his work at the clubhouse after the1934 fire. The current owner, Dann's grandson, says
the original residence is intact, except for loss of the copper roof- a
comer of which is visible from the
study, once a porte cochere.
Stoltz's signaturechimneysand fireplaces are prominent features. The
originalgarage burned in 1939,with
2 roadsters inside, but was soon
replaced. As Orlando homeowners
were requested to do, the familyin
the early 1940's added a third bedroom for billeting officers. About
1963, the current owners built a 2story rear addition.
Tressa Holdeman, whose family
owned the house for almost 60 years.
They made a serviceman'sapartment
out of the second story. The current
owners are in the midst of rehabbing
this specialbungalow.
He said his house had hard cypress
siding. He bought severalacres from
Carl Dann, building stables, a tack
room and a corral for his two horses.
They rode on the many dirt streets in
the area. Young Charles Witherington learned to play golf on Dann
property to the west. His familyremained at 385 Dubsdread Circleuntil about 1946. The longest-term
owners were William T. and Mary
Beth Rankin (1958-1991).
Dubsdread Circle
East of the golf course early owners
of Villa Farms, Harold and Charlton
Bourne, joined James and Nannie
Giles in selling lot 48, block C of
Golfview (now 380 Dubsdread Circle) to Charles and Jennie Scholey,a
Connecticut couple who came here
to participatein the real estate boom.
The bungalow may have existed before the 1925 sale as the farmhouse
for the groves. In the early 1940's,
the Scholey family sold to Ken and
The Colonial Revival house at 385
Dubsdread Circle was built in 1937
for Thomas W. Witherington, who
came to Orlando to expand the business of a Georgia lumber company.
Sources: Residents and former residents, particularly Sandy Dann, Bob Gibson and Graham Barr, Gty Directories, Building Permit
5 UnJry of theCommittee
Historic An:hiteauraL
of Orange Coun!y,
History
of Orange
County.at
Records,
County and
records,
newspapers,
History compiled
written
by CPNA Historical
Co-chair Resources
Grace Hagedorn,
assisted Blackman's
by Tana Porter,
research
librarian
the Orange County Regional His tory Center, and Tim Forbes, general manager of Dubsdread Golf Course. Architectural descriptions
and brochure design by CPNAHC Co-chair Jodi Rubin.
(