The Skeet House is not in its original location, but stands as a symbol of the core philosophy that the Jekyll Island Club was founded upon - outdoor recreation.
The Skeet House, along with the Skeet and Trap Range, was constructed in the 1950's. This however, was not the introduction of shooting sports on the island. From the beginning, the Club was intended to "...raise livestock, birds and game; to hunt, fish and yacht..." The hunting opportunities on the island were favorite daily activities by many members - men and women alike - for the first two decades.
By the 1910s hunting began to wane in popularity but trap shooting from "galleries over the marsh" were a growing favorite pastime during the Club's season.
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Preservation on the Move
This historic building was disassembled and moved from its original location in 2014 with funding from the Jekyll Island Foundation.
Jekyll Island has a policy that classifies land as either develop or undeveloped. The Skeet House was in a area that was not used since the early 1970's and had grown back to its original wooded condition. Because of this, the area was classified as undeveloped. With this designation, the building could have been restored in place; however it could not have been opened to the public.
Moving the building allowed for its preservation and made it - and the story - available and accessible to the guests of Jekyll Island.
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