’Tis good to go to Boston

’Tis sweet to stop at Rye.

But I would go to Pinehurst

Where all the golf balls fly.

Conceived over 100 years ago as a winter getaway, Pinehurst has seen its share of business legends, celebrities, authors, politicians and, of course, some of golf’s greatest players.

Edward Everett Hale, author of "The Man Without a Country," was the Village Chapel’s first pastor. Edgar A. Guest found poetic inspiration while relaxing in Pinehurst’s serene surroundings.

The usual society crowd — the Rockefellers, DuPonts and Morgans — discovered Pinehurst in its first decade. The 1905 Pinehurst Outlook reported that John D. Rockefeller returned home after "a visit to Pinehurst of many weeks." It was his second season at Pinehurst, and he planned on returning for a third, according to the Outlook. Rockefeller was an early golf enthusiast who became a familiar figure on the Pinehurst greens.

Annie Oakley, star of "Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show," and husband, Frank Butler, came to Pinehurst in 1916 during World War I. Annie gave shooting exhibitions and lessons. During her stay, she reportedly taught some 15,000 men and women to shoot.

John Philip Sousa enjoyed Pinehurst trapshooting, while Will Rogers preferred to participate in polo matches.

Pinehurst’s serene surroundings attracted some of Hollywood’s biggest names. Bing Crosby enjoyed an active stay filled with hunting and golf, while Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks opted for rest and relaxation.

Amelia Earhart landed her plane on the Pinehurst airstrip.

Army Chief of Staff General George C. Marshall purchased the Liscombe Lodge in the Village of Pinehurst as his winter home in 1944. Harry Truman was known to visit Marshall, who authored the Marshall Plan for most of post-war European recovery and who won a Nobel Peace Prize. It is rumored that much of the Marshall Plan was written while he was here.

Bobby Jones described Pinehurst as "the St. Andrews of United States golf." Pinehurst courses have challenged golf legends and amateurs alike.

Arnold Palmer, Ben Hogan, Sam Snead, Jack Nicklaus, Johnny Miller and Tom Watson — a veritable "Who’s Who" of golf — all played regularly at Pinehurst, many before turning pro.

As part of the Heritage Foundation meeting held at Pinehurst in June 1986, several noted figures were in attendance. Among them were Claire Booth Luce, former Secretary of State Alexander Haig and Elizabeth Dole, secretary of transportation and wife of Kansas Sen. Bob Dole.

Howard Cosell, Gloria Swanson, Billy Graham, Gerald Ford, Yogi Berra, Edgar Bergen and Michael Jordan all have one important thing in common: Pinehurst.