Rockaway Hunting Club

In 1877, a group of young men from Bayswater in Far Rockaway took part in a Chase between Lawrence and Valley Stream. They organized a club in Bayswater in 1878, but in 1884, residential development forced a move to the present location in Lawrence. There the members built a clubhouse considered the largest, most luxurious on Long Island. It overlooked Reynolds Channel, Long Beach, a polo field and a four-mile steeplechase course. Rockaway's initial fame came from polo, creating a bitter rivalry with Meadow Brook Hunt. By 1888, the two clubs were so superior to all others that a handicap system was created. The Rockaway team won national championships in 1901 and 1902. The world-champion Rockaway team was headed by Foxhall Keene, who was rated the best all-around polo player in America for eight years in a row and is certainly the greatest athlete in the club's history.