The Mill Reef Club is a 1,500-acre members-only club that includes five miles of shoreline and three islands on the east coast of

Antigua Antigua ( ; ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the local population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the most populous island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua ...

. The Club was founded in 1947 by Connecticut architect Robertson 'Happy' Ward (1897–1988), with initial capital of $38,000. There were 45 founding members, each paying $7,500 for a plot for building a home. A clubhouse was constructed in 1949, and a 9-hole golf course in 1952. Today, there are 53 homes. The clubhouse and beach cottages can accommodate 100 guests. In 2013 the Club established the Mill Reef Yacht Club, which hosts international sailing regattas on Nonsuch Bay, Antigua. Early Club members included

Archibald MacLeish Archibald MacLeish (May 7, 1892 – April 20, 1982) was an American poet and writer, who was associated with the modernist school of poetry. MacLeish studied English at Yale University and law at Harvard University. He enlisted in and saw action ...

Dean Acheson Dean Gooderham Acheson ( ; April 11, 1893October 12, 1971) was an American politician and lawyer. As the 51st United States Secretary of State, U.S. Secretary of State, he set the foreign policy of the Harry S. Truman administration from 1949 to ...

and

Paul Mellon Paul Mellon (June 11, 1907 – February 2, 1999) was an American philanthropist and a horse breeding, breeder of thoroughbred horse racing, racehorses. He is one of only five people ever designated an "Exemplar of Racing" by the National Muse ...

, who later named his champion horse

Mill Reef Mill Reef (23 February 1968 – 2 February 1986) was an American-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In a three-year career from 1970 to 1972, he won twelve of fourteen races and finished second in the other two. The horse w ...

for the club. Early Club rules reflected a British style that required coats and ties at dinner and whites on the tennis and croquet courts. Ostentatious displays of wealth were discouraged by a $25,000 limit on home construction costs and a 2-bedroom limit to houses (no longer in force). Membership was by invitation only, either through existing members or by Ward encouraging travel agents to pass on the details of high-end clients who would contribute to his vision of "a Caribbean community of blue waters, white beaches and sweeping vistas dedicated to good fellowship." The Antiguan government welcomed its wealthy, publicity-shy guests, and when paparazzi attempted to photograph

Jacqueline Kennedy Jacqueline Lee Kennedy Onassis ( ; July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was an American writer, book editor, and socialite who served as the first lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963, as the wife of President John F. Kennedy. A popular f ...

from an adjacent public beach, they were arrested and deported. The Club and its residents were criticized in '' A Small Place'', a 1988 book by

Jamaica Kincaid Jamaica Kincaid (; born Elaine Cynthia Potter Richardson on May 25, 1949) is an Antiguan–American novelist, essayist, gardener, and gardening writer. Born in St. John's, the capital of Antigua and Barbuda, she now lives in North Bennington, ...

, which noted that ordinary Antiguans stood no chance of entry to the Club or accessing the beautiful beaches unless as staff. Since 1960 The Mill Reef Fund has distributed over US $9 million to worthy organizations in Antigua and Barbuda.

References

External links

* {{coord, 17.033333, N, 61.683333, W, source:wikidata, display=title Saint Philip, Antigua and Barbuda Buildings and structures in Antigua and Barbuda Tourism in Antigua and Barbuda 1947 establishments in Antigua and Barbuda