History

Not far from the entrance to Rock Barn Country Club and Spa stands a once splendid, Pennsylvania style bank barn. Built in the early 1800’s, Squire Frederick Hoke fashioned this impressive structure from the stones of Lyle’s Creek. It became a community landmark and now is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Weathered and almost forgotten, the barn no longer serves as a place for communal congregation. But others had a grand vision for the bucolic land along Lyle’s Creek, taking it from fields to fairways. And, today, the Rock Barn story endures.

In 1966, not far from the old barn, Billie Younce purchased land to establish a golfing community. Bob Mathews joined him, and together they built The Rock Barn Club of Golf. A group of investors from Ohio bought Rock Barn in 1979. But in 1983, a local group, led by John Hemmings, took ownership of the golfing community. Over the next fourteen years, Rock Barn grew in size and stature.

Big changes occurred in 1997, when local businessman Don Beaver acquired Rock Barn. His dream was to create a premier golfing community and resort destination, with two championship courses and first-class amenities. In 2003, Rock Barn hosted its first PGA senior tournament. From 2003 to 2014, Champions Tour favorites did Battle at the Barn.

* Michael & Sharon Smith, Rock Barn: from Fields to Fairways.

In 2019, Rock Barn Country Club & Spa celebrated 50 years of history, honoring the past while moving forward towards a modern vision: a resort dedicated to providing hospitality; celebrating, creating, and supporting community; and offering a lifestyle where members, residents, and locals play, relax, dine, and live.