H. Res. 526 

In the House of Representatives, U. S., 

February 22, 2010. 

Whereas the site for the historic Langston Golf Course was 

selected in 1929, following repeated demands from African-Americans who were excluded from all but one of the 

District’s public courses, the Lincoln Memorial; 

Whereas construction did not begin until the mid 1930s, and 

in 1938, African-American women from the Wake Robin 

Golf Club pressed for desegregation of the District of Columbia’s public courses by drafting and introducing a petition to Secretary of the Interior, Harold Ickes; 

Whereas the Langston Golf Course, officially opened in 1939, 

is the first and only course built by the United States 

Government for segregated purposes, and was built because African-Americans were denied equal access to the 

city’s golf courses; 

Whereas the Langston Golf Course was named for John Mercer Langston, a renowned Howard University educator, 

prominent political figure, and the first African-American 

Congressman from Virginia, elected in 1888; 

Whereas the Langston Golf Course is listed in the National 

Register of Historic Places and has been the home course 

of both the Royal Golf Club and the Wake Robin Golf 
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Club, respectively the Nation’s first clubs for AfricanAmerican men and women; 

Whereas over its 70-year existence, the Langston Golf Course 

has attracted many famous African-American golfers, 

such as Lee Elder, Ted Rhodes, Calvin Peete, and Jim 

Thorpe, who all made regular and annual stops on the 

circuit of African-American professionals when they were 

unable to play regularly on the then-racially restricted 

PGA Tour; 

Whereas other notable visitors to play golf there include 

heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis, Hall of Fame 

baseball player Maury Wills, Washington Senators baseball player Chuck Hinton, Washington Redskins players 

Darrell Green and Brian Mitchell, U.S. Secretary of the 

Interior Gale Norton, Missouri Congressman Lacy Clay, 

South Carolina Congressman James Clyburn, Wisconsin 

Senator Russ Feingold, actor and professor Al Freeman, 

Jr., and the musical superstars the O’Jays have all enjoyed the Langston course; 

Whereas in 2002, a partnership was formed with Howard 

University to open the Interpretive Education Center, 

and this program was integrated into the Langston community schools in 2003; 

Whereas for more than 15 years, three junior golf programs 

have made the Langston Golf Course their home, Masons 

Army, Langston Junior Boys and Girls, and the First 

Tee, DC; 

Whereas juniors from these programs are nationally and 

internationally known as The Jimmy Garvin All-Stars 

and are required to utilize the Education Center in order 

to learn golf and use the facilities; 
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Whereas these programs operate year round offering educational and golf instruction; 

Whereas the Langston Golf Course is known as the home of 

the internationally renowned Capital City Open Pro-Am 

Tournament and the Jimmy Garvin Legacy Scholarship 

Classic; 

Whereas the Langston Golf Course, Rock Creek Golf Course, 

and East Potomac Golf Course are owned by the National Park Service, and each has a long history of service to the general public as an integral part of the Nation’s capital, including services to local and regional residents, visitors, and tourists; and 

Whereas it is the policy of the National Park Service to 

maintain and upgrade its recreational sites: Now, therefore, be it 

Resolved, That the House of Representatives recognizes 

the historical and cultural significance of the Langston Golf 

Course and its contributions to racial equality. 

Attest: 

Clerk.