1921

The founders of BHCC include: Harry Stillson Hart, George E. Van Hagen, Sr., J.R. Cardwell, Spencer Otis, William J Klingenberg, and Herbert Bell.

While there were five others who invested in the original BHCC in 1921, it was Hart, Van Hagen, Cardwell, Otis, Klinsberg, and Bell who shouldered the lion's share of the burden of getting the Club off the ground. Drawn together by their common ties to the railroad and the tangential business that helped it flourish, the founders were industrious, entrepreneurial, and forward-thinking men. They brought as much verve to creating a space to recreate as they did to their business endeavors.

In 1921 they purchased the for the Club the 220-acre tract of land that had originally been part of the George Miller farm and now was part of the properties of Hart, Van Hagen, and Cardwell. They elected Van Hagen as the first president; then they fanned out and enlisted the financial support of the other charter Members (Herman Cushman, R.R. Hammond, John D. Hertz, W.I. Martin, and Frank C. Pundt). It was clear from the outset that the Club's founders intended Barrington Hills Country Club to be an endeavor that promoted friendships, families, and a sense of tight-knit community.