"The Club", as it is known locally, has been a fixture in this area for as long as most of the residents of this area have been alive. With over 35,000 acres, it represents over 40% of the total land area in the Township. The HSC land contains approximately six miles of Lake Michigan Shoreline, most of the shoreline of Millecoquin's Lake, all of the lower Millecoquin's River, and numerous other lakes and streams.
With the exception of the residential areas, access to the interior of the Club is through locked gates. The residential areas where Club members may construct homes or cabins include: East Beach Road, Middle Beach Road, West Beach Road, West River Road, Middle River Road, East River Road, Riverview Road, and Millecoquin's Lake Road. Both seasonal and year round residences are located in these areas. While small cabins sites are historical to the Club, over the past 20 years the most common construction is of 1000 to 3000 sq ft homes capable of being year round residences. The HSC is the largest private sportsman's club in the eastern U.P and one of the largest in the State.
The Club was established during the 1920s when Dr. William McNamara embarked on a quest to fulfill a dream. That dream was the creation of a place where sportsmen could go and enjoy the outdoors while in a reasonably private setting. Dr. McNamara's dream would eventually lead to the founding of the Hiawatha Sportsman's Club.
That founding began in 1927 with the formation of the Lansing Hiawatha Development Company. At that time, the Hiawatha Sportsman's Club actually owned no
land. However, Dr. McNamara himself and the LHDC were acquiring land, buying up small parcels through purchase or option. The larger parcels were bought on land contract. The Fibom Land Company owned the largest parcel (29,000 acres), which makes up the majority of the present day HSC.
In 1930, the HSC bought its first 160 acres. The following year, it purchased an additional 1280 acres. And in the following years, additional purchases followed. Creation of buildings and facilities also began. Shortly after its first land purchase, construction began on a grand scale. With over 500 memberships already sold, the future of the HSC was already looking bright. Among other things, a clubhouse was planned and built. Construction of 25 rental cabins began with plans to eventually have 100. (They currently have 42 rental cabins.) An airport was built. Creeks were dammed. A trout pond was built. A saw mill was built and operated. And, a store in Engadine was bought and moved to Millecoquin' s Lake and used as a commissary. Also, a golf course and tennis courts were built and opened to use by members along with other recreational accommodations. By the end of the 1930s most of the recreational facilities we see today were in place and
operational.
At its conception and founding, the idea was to have 5,000 memberships owned by 5,000 members. However, on April 17th of 1976, the Board of the HSC voted to close the membership at 1763 memberships owned by 1439 members. The 1,439 members decided that there were enough memberships and further enrollment of new members would be extremely limited. Today, memberships are given out only with the sale or transfer of property from current members. And then, only upon the approval of the membership committee of the HSC. At this time, there are currently 1721 memberships owned by 1170 members.
However, 40 years after the closing of its membership, the HSC is still alive and well. In 2002, "The Club" celebrated its 75th Anniversary with a grand celebration. This celebration made great note of the history of the HSC. However, it also made an even bigger note of the fact that the HSC is also looking forward to a long and prosperous future as it plans to continue to be one of the States largest and finest private sportsman's clubs.
