From its inception in 1886, the Jekyll Island Club included in its elite membership the nation\'s wealthiest families, among them the Rockefellers, Pulitzers, Vanderbilts, and Morgans.
On the day after Christmas in 1900, the country\'s fascination with technology could no long.
The seclusion that Jekyll Island offered was not impenetrable.
The hub of the island\'s social life, however, was the clubhouse, where members gathered in formal attire to converse, while drinking fine wine and dining on freshly caught game and local delicacies.
By 1919, however, the game committee had dwindled to one member, and prime hunting grounds had been cleared for golf courses and tennis courts.
Hunting was also for a time a favorite activity and the Island was regularly stocked with imported wildlife--pheasant, quail, turkey, and bucks.
In the 1890s they organized bicycling clubs and held races on the beach.
During their stays, members amused themselves in a variety of pursuits.
Morgan lounging by the pool
Victor Astor\'s "patented beach boat" and the Goulds\' private indoor tennis court; the Vanderbilts\' yacht anchored offshore and the imposing "cottages" built by individual members.
P.
Capturing the lives and amusements of the very wealthy, this evocative photographic history presents descriptions of elaborate costume balls and playful outdoor parties; the Rockefeller clan gathering at water\'s edge and J.
From the time of the club\'s opening, members came to Jekyll Island each winter to seek elegant leisure, arriving on yachts or in private train cars from New York, Boston, Chicago, and Philadelphia.
Bringing together more than 240 fascinating photographs, Barton and June Mc Cash trace the sixty-two-year history of this exclusive retreat whose members at one time were reputed to represent one-seventh of the nation\'s wealth.
Far from the hectic northern cities where the members tended their fortunes, this private Island refuge off Georgia\'s coast offered the wealthy a tranquil change of pace.
From its inception in 1886, the Jekyll Island Club included in its elite membership the nation\'s wealthiest families, among them the Rockefellers, Pulitzers, Vanderbilts, and Morgans
