CityView Magazine

Dining out Lodge life History and home cooking at McKellar’s Lodge By Starr Oldorff “Fine, sir. We’ve wanted them for a long time.” This defining moment in the history P of the Special Forces was made at McKellar’s Pond in 1961. Almost 50 years later, the pond and lodge near its banks remains a beloved spot on Fort Bragg. McKellar’s Lodge has hosted everyone from presidents to simple picnickers. It includes a restaurant, rod and gun club and five picnic areas. It’s been an important part of military life for generations, but the lodge is open to civilians, too. McKellar’s began as a simple log cabin built in the 1920s when the sprawling military post we know today was still called Camp Bragg. Named after a Confederate soldier, Capt. John McKellar, the lodge was a place where officers could come and rest their resident John F. Kennedy asked, “How do you like the green beret?” And Gen. William Yarborough, with all eyes watching, replied, horses. It was a home to hunters and fishers. And it was the place where a one-star general named William P. Yarborough assembled his men and had them wearing the controversial green berets when President Kennedy came to visit. Though the Army banned the berets, Yarborough had convinced the president that Special Forces soldiers deserved recognition as an elite fighting force. Years later, Yarborough told the Fayetteville Observer, “I felt that if the president was with me, who could stand Left | Gen. William P. Yarborough and President John F. Kennedy at McKellar’s Pond in 1961. Above | These days, patrons enjoy a lodge with all the perks plus a few of the throwbacks: wood-burning fireplace, cold drinks served in Mason jars and a view of the water. 26|February/March • 2009

• Cover