Beechwood Golf

This is the history of Chernek family, like so many other American familes.

The older siblings of the Chernek family first came to Canada and then moved to Detroit. From Detroit they moved to Pittsburgh where they worked and saved to bring the entire family from Poland. In 1913 the entire family immigrated to the United States from Poland to Pittsburgh. After spending several years in Pittsburgh they decided to find a farm similar to the farm that they left in Poland.

In 1919, they purchased a dairy farm which was located on Sterrettania Road in Erie County.

The youngest sibling remembers making the trip from Pittsburgh to Erie in a horse drawn wagon which took several days.

The Chernek farm was purchased for the price of $19,000 in 1919, which was a large sum of money at that time. Then the depression came and it took another 25 years for it to regain its original value.

The patriarch of the family, Andrew, was a blacksmith and farmer. So he naturally wanted a farm similar to what he left in Poland. The farm on Sterrettania Road was his choice and this is where the family settled.

As most farms at that time in the area, dairy farming was the main source of income with pigs, chickens, fruits and vegetables in abundance.

Horses were used to work the farm until tractors were affordable. The original farm house was lost in a fire so a temporary house was built until the main farm house could be reconstructed. The temporary house was later changed to a chicken coup. For many years the farm remained the same, standing still with time. The kitchen stove was fueled with wood and coal; two families lived in the house until 1953.

Then in 1954 indoor plumbing was installed and the out house was retired. There was a little remodeling done to bring the farm house current with the time and the heating in the house was changed from a coal furnace to natural gas heat in the 60’s. In the 50’s the Interstate Highway was constructed, this was a major event that would change the farm and the rural lifestyle. The highway cut the farm in half and brought new business to the area.

During this period small dairy farms were disappearing very rapidly. The Chernek farm continued to operate as a dairy farm until the summer of 1966, life was changing in America and farming on a small scale was no longer the main occupation. For the next 10 years the farm was used to grow crops and beef cattle were raised. Then in 1975 one of the grandchildren had an idea. The idea was spurred from a friend who signed his high school year book with the following thought, “you should build a golf course on the farm some day”.

This thought inspired the idea in Frank Chernek to change the direction of the land which had been a farm for so many years. He began to design the golf course using the farm property as the part of the design. Additional property was purchased to enlarge the area in the 70’s. Finally some construction of lakes and clearing of trees was started with limited funds in 1980. Work continued on the design of the golf course trying to blend the design into the natural setting without changing the topography.

Full scale construction was actually started in 1987, when more financing became available. The name Beechwood was chosen for the large magnificent Beechwood trees on the property. The first phase was to construct the front nine holes, but an unexpected event occurred in 1993 and Frank was sent to work in Hong Kong. His sister Christine and her husband, Dennis Roberts finished the construction of the front nine holes and this was opened in September of 1994. During this time, his brother, Mark Chernek, assisted with the care of the grounds.

The second phase was to finish building the second nine holes which started in 1997 and was opened in 2000. The third phase was to open the bar and grill which was started in 2000 and was completed in 2001. The fourth phase was to build a full restaurant and banquet facility which was started in 2004 and was completed in 2005. Today the facility is surrounded by the golf course offering a pleasant, relaxing view of natural surroundings. There is a large deck for viewing the island green and it is available to serve food in the summer months.

The main dining room has a rustic fire place to warm and enhance your special evening or event in the winter months, with seating for over 100 persons.
The dining room offers a mixed cuisine of Authentic Italian, Mexican and American food. Many dishes are from old family recipes providing unique experiences for our guests. Once a dairy farm and now a facility that offers an enjoyable lifestyle to the friendly residents of the Erie area, the Chernek family welcomes you and your guests to Beechwood.

Sincerely,
Frank and Kathleen Chernek