We took the slow route to Jeckyll island, Georgia today meandering around small villages and marshes to get the flavor of the land. We did take one side trip, to the smallest church in America. Our guide Meredith always chooses out of the way, quirky things for us to see.
Some of the people in our group practiced being the pastor. There is room for twelve participants as well as a bit of standing room in the back.
We arrived at the Jeckyll island Club Hotel and ate our lunch at Crane Cottage, one of the outbuildings of the hotel, our home for the next two days. Crane Cottage is the largest private residence built by the members of the club. The owner, Richard Crane, founded the Crane Company that built fluid control equipment and plumbing fixtures. It was the first to make colored bathroom fixtures. The “cottage” has 18 bathrooms, practically unheard of in the early 1800s.
We chose the fried green tomatoes accompanied by three small salads: chicken, shrimp, and tuna. The Key Lime Pie dessert was perfect.
After lunch we got a brief orientation walk around the hotel. The Jeckyll Island Club was originally a private, invitation-only hunting club established in the late 1800s so America’s tycoons could have the luxury of seclusion. Their exclusive club was described in the February 1904 issue of Mumsy’s magazine as “ the richest, most exclusive, most inaccessible club in the world.” Members included J.P. Morgan, William Rockefeller, Vincent Astor, Joseph Pulitzer and William Vanderbilt. Their exclusive club house was converted into a hotel and that is where we are staying. The club disbanded after W W II and the island became a part of the Georgia state parks system. We will learn more about its history tomorrow, when we do a lecture and tram tour.
Before checking into our room, we were given a tour of the marshland and Driftwood Beach.
Since this is an old hotel, the rooms are all different. We lucked out with a spacious room with a view of the front although the bathroom is a bit small. We are not complaining – being in a place which is a part of history here is worth it.
We had dinner on our own and we opted to indulge and eat in the fabulous main dining room. We wanted a light meal so we chose appetizers: escargots and French onion soup for me, and Oysters Rockefeller and specialty salad for my sister. We split a Baked Alaska. Well, maybe it wasn’t such a light meal as it turned out, but we are on vacation, after all..
Tomorrow we learn more about this fascinating place and will attend a Gullah Geechee ring shout performance in the evening. Google Gullah Grechee to find out more – or wait until my next post.