8-1/2 in

5-1/4 in

The Goshorn Brothers At various intervals during the mid 1800's, James, John, Perry, Samuel, Hugh and Lewis Goshorn all settled in Allegan County. Four of the six brothers settled around the lake and local residents began referring to it as Goshorn Lake. Around 1873, Perry Goshorn sold a small parcel of land to Herman-Harris Lundgren.* The Lundgrens Brothers John and Herman-Harris Lundgren arrived on the scene about 1873 and settled on the south shore of Goshorn Lake. John farmed 28 acres west of 65th Street and Herman-Harris farmed 21 acres east of 65* Street bordering on Goshorn Lake.* According to Pauline Reiser, a subsequent owner of the land, "When Blue Star Highway was constructed in the mid 1930's, the Lundgren land was divided. Herman-Harris said he didn't want to have to get his cow back and forth across that busy road so he sold the land on the Goshorn Lake side of the road to Gus Reiser Sr. of Chicago."4 The Reisers Soon after obtaining the land, which also included what became in later years known as the "Annex," Gus Reiser Sr. built four cottages that would be rented out to their German friends looking to escape from Chicago for one week during the summer. It was at this time that he planted the line of Scotch pine trees that still can be seen today. Locally, the property became informally known as Reiser's Resort on Goshorn Lake. In the spring of 1940, his son, Gus Reiser Jr. opened Reiser's Service station on the property, a Texaco affiliate which closed in 1973 because of the long hours required to operate the business. Gus Jr. married Pauline in 1948 and he renovated one of the rental cottages to serve as their home for two years. The other cottages were also upgraded and a fifth, much larger cottage was constructed on the property. Over the next few years, recreational activities were added, including shuffleboard, basketball, tetherball, a new fishing dock and paddle boats. In 1968, Gus Jr. and Pauline made the decision to expand operations and after extensive renovations, re-opened in 1969 as West Wind Campground, named after the Mother West Wind series of books that Pauline had read as a child. She later wrote, "The campground had an area for tent camping and hook-ups for modern camping trailers and recreational vehicles. We turned the lengthy coop into a big recreation hall and brought in pool tables, ping pong tables and game equipment like shufleboard."4 The Zuidemas In 1979, West Wind Campground was sold to Tom and Betsy Zuidema (his first wife who died in the late '80's) for $550,000 via a Land Contract executed on 12/22/1979. Included in the sale price of West Wind Resort and Campground was $17,100 worth of equipment, furniture, bedding, and picnic tables. In addition to the purchase price, a stipulation was written into the agreement that the Reisers would be paid an additional $15,000 if they did not re-engage in the camping business for five years within a 40 mile radius of West Wind Campground. The sum was to be paid out in cash over a 5-year period beginning May 1, 1980 and ending April 1, 1985. After the purchase, the Zuidemas soon affiliated the campground with KOA, a national chain of independently owned campgrounds, and its name was modified to West Wind KOA. The gas station was converted into a camp store and the five original cottages were sold and removed. They then purchased Potawatomi Beach (in front of the Annex), which up to then was a public beach, from William Manifold, effectively closing Goshorn Lake to the local residents. According to Mr. Manifold, "Tom and Betsy Zuidema who later bought our beach, converted it into a primitive campground, catering to tents and pop-up campers. Later he added water hook-ups for the use of trailers." 4 An ad for the West Wind KOA (including the Annex) in the '80's promoted the campground as being "The Country Club of Campers" offering 150 sites on Goshorn Lake.* Campground amenities included rental cottages and trailers, boating, fishing, laundry, shuffle board, tennis, swimming, a recreational hall, church services and a convenience store. Many of the visitors to West Wind KOA are now residents of SRVR. On July 7, 1992, West Wind KOA officially began its transformation from a typical campground to a condominium when the developer filed Articles of Incorporation with the Michigan Department of Commerce. The first board of directors were Tom D. Zuidema, the developer; Patricia Zuidema, his new wife; and William K. Van't Hof, the developer's attorney, all of whom collectively constituted the board through 1997.