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Rolling Rock Club

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Rolling Rock Club is a private country club located on 10,000 acres (4,000 ha) along U.S. Route 30 about 50 miles (80 km) SE of Pittsburgh, in Pennsylvania's Ligonier Valley.

History

Rolling Rock Club was originally 12,000 acres (4,900 ha) of land owned by Judge Thomas Mellon, who left it to his son Richard Beatty Mellon, brother of Andrew Mellon and onetime president of Mellon Bank. Richard Beatty Mellon turned Rolling Rock into a rural retreat for his friends and family to hunt, fish, and ride. From this it steadily developed into an establishment that, in addition to the usual country club necessities - swimming pool and golf course - also boasted stocked trout streams, duck ponds, game birds and shooting ranges. The Club also kept up one of the best United States packs of English fox hounds, raising pheasants, and running the Gold Cup Steeplechase (from 1933 until 1983). R.B. Mellon left the estate to his son, Richard King Mellon, when he died in 1933. In the middle years of the twentieth century, Rolling Rock Club hunted over 75,000 acres (30,000 ha), mostly owned by 240 farmers whose acres surround the Mellon 18,000 acres.

Golf course

The golf course at Rolling Rock Club in Laughlintown, Pennsylvania was designed by Donald Ross and was built in 1917. The course features 5,243 yards from the forward tees. The club opened nine new holes in May 1997. With only two water hazards in the form of environmentally sensitive areas, there are plenty of sand bunkers. The greens are very undulating, and the fairways are tree lined. This course is not long until players get to the greens and is a true Donald Ross design where you cannot see the bunkers until you are in them. Guests must be accompanied by a member in order to play this course.

The Hunt Stables

The Hunt Stables were designed by noted Pittsburgh architect Benno Janssen and originally built in 1921 to house 28 stalls, a tack room, veterinarian's area, grooms' quarters, food storage, equipment rooms and a great round room where trophies and ribbons were displayed. With an intent to preserve the landmark of its heritage, the facility was converted into private condominiums, preserving as much of the existing architecture as possible. Every unit has its own entrance, individual identity and is totally autonomous with respect to neighboring units. Vestibules and fenestrated entrance hall additions were designed to increase area to an average of 2,400 square feet (220 m2) per unit. The private resort also features overnight accommodations and is known for exquisite cuisine, fine dining and numerous social events. Rolling Rock Club is considered a sportsman's paradise with golf, fishing, hunting, shooting, tennis and swimming.

References

  • Rolling Rock Row, in Time, April 12, 1937.
  • Sports Illustrated, October 8, 1956
  • Thrill of the Chase by Paul Pierce in Pittsburgh Tribune Review, October 5, 2003
  • www.golfcoursesguide.com
  • www.golf.com
  • MacLachlan, Cornelius & Filoni Architects, Inc.; www.mcfarchitects.com
  • http://biography.yourdictionary.com/richard-king-mellon
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