Bellingham Golf and Country Club

Bellingham Golf and Country Club traces its origins to 1912, when the club was formed, with a nine-hole course laid out by John Ball opening the following year. That original nine was expanded to a full 18 holes in 1925.

Golf in the Bellingham area dates back to the 1890s, when players used the open pastures around Fort Bellingham, built in 1856 on what is now Bancroft Street. Interest in this informal "pasture golf" faded, and five holes were later built on more suitable ground about half a mile to the east, an area that came to be known as the "Golf Grounds." When that site also proved insufficient, local golfers sought a better home. In 1911, Everett Deming, president of the Bellingham-based salmon packing company Pacific American Fisheries, saw a proper course and clubhouse while traveling in California, and that winter he brought together leading local families to discuss founding a club and building a course.