The Drummondville Golf Club
The Drummondville Golf Club is located in a picturesque setting along the St. Francis River, and its paths wind across what used to be the grounds of Grantham Hall, a heritage site whose history is not well known by the general public but which was inhabited by the early 19th century.
The grounds were originally part of an estate that was bought in 1908 by Montreal Notary Herbert Meredith Marler as a secondary residence for his family, and a place for them to spend their summer and other vacations with friends and relatives. The new owner added various new outbuildings, but he also built a nine-hole golf course in 1917 to entertain his many guests. Grantham Hall became a peaceful haven for the Marler Family until the manor house was destroyed by fire in 1922. Shortly after, the property was put up for sale.
The land was bought by a group of Drummondville businessmen who wanted to turn the previously private golf course into a commercial enterprise; it became the Drummondville Golf & Country Club in 1924. Existing buildings were converted to other uses: The coachman’s house became the men’s chalet, and the chicken barn was transformed into a chalet for the women’s use. The ground floor of the cottage that had been the gardener’s residence was turned into a storage space for equipment and tools, while the second floor became a living space for the golf pro and his assistant.
Aerial view of the Drummondville Golf and Curling Club, 1973.
Golf grew ever more popular through the 1930s and 1940s, so the Club began work to expand the course by 1953 with nine more holes. That same year, a new mixed clubhouse was inaugurated near the Black River. A few years later, in 1955, the clubhouse terrace was outfitted with two curling rinks. The Club eventually formalized its expanded mandate with a name change ten years later, becoming the Drummondville Golf & Curling Club Inc. — Le Club de Golf et Curling de Drummondville inc.
Jacques Letarte’s team, winners of the Mixed Invitation Curling Tournament at the Drummondville Golf and Curling Club, 1977.
Drummondville Golf and Curling Club grounds, 1975.
In the 1960s and 1970s, the Club was able to add an additional six holes by acquiring parcels of land between the St. Germain River and the Trans-Canada Highway. They upgraded the clubhouse in 1991 to include a beautiful dining hall featuring a panoramic view of the golf course’s ninth and eighteenth greens. Ongoing improvements were made over the following years, enhancing both the beauty and the quality of the golf course. This earned the Club many awards, including being named Golf Course of the Year in 2001 by the prestigious Golf International magazine. The Drummondville Golf Club has been owned by the Soprema company since 2019.
Larry Morin and Guy Bissonnette overseeing the start of development work at the Drummondville Golf and Curling Club, Drummondville, 1964.