When did summer camps begin? According to Eleanor Eells, author of History of Organized Camping: The First 100 Years, “Many writers refer to camping as old as man himself.” Spending time in nature, adopting a simpler lifestyle, experiencing educational opportunities of the outdoors – people have been more or less “camping” for centuries. Organized camping, on the other hand, is a more recent adoption, dating back to the late 1800s. Families moving to more rural areas, spending increased time in mountains, on lakes, at the seashore – the desire for recreational and educational opportunities in these settings quickly grew in popularity.
In the text American Camping Association, organized camping is defined as a “sustained experience which provides a creative, recreational, and educational opportunity in group living in the out-of-doors. It utilizes trained leadership and the resources of natural surroundings to contribute to each camper’s mental, physical, social, and spiritual growth”(8). This is summer camp as we know it today, starting with The Gunnery Camp.
