We have thousands of photos of camp, mostly placed in dog-eared albums or piled willy-nilly in boxes in various locations. There is no way we will ever organize them into a coherent history of Kingswood. But, what we can do, and endeavor to continue this time, is to gradually tell the story of our camp, from the time the Wipflers started operating in 1985 until the present.
Last May, we offered two installments, that featured interesting personalities and special occasions. Good stuff, to be certain. Click here to see the reports.
Today, our inspiration is an old album entitled “The Early Years.” We hope you enjoy a look at Kingswood in 1985, the initial year of Wipfler stewardship.
Here is the Dining Hall in 1985. On hot sunny days, I often think of those trees that provided shade. We had inherited a leaking roof (with a huge blue tarp over nearly all of it) and you can see our first upgrade in the form of a new galvanized roof.The access area to Mother Tarleton included this lifeguard chair, which, to be honest with you, no one really used at all. We got rid of it by the second summer of our tenure.Originally, the sliding board raft was to the right of the main docks. Some folks think it should go back to this spot. Those docks were green, narrow, and most rotten in places. I vividly recall introducing myself to a new member of the staff; the docks were on the beach, waiting to be placed in the water. While reaching out to shake my hand, he stepped on the dock, and his foot went right through it! We had so much to do!I cannot refer to the old Main Lodge without using the adjective “spongy” to describe it. Lots of people, including daughter, Sara, believed the upstairs area was haunted. One time, the maintenance man, Wayne, missed an entire day. Finally, Lori, the cook, reluctantly agreed to go upstairs to see if he was still alive!Many have heard me say how “woodsy” the campus was in those early years. Honestly, I cannot figure out if his view is up or down the main road. “Find the Camper/Counselor” games were lots more challenging in those days.This is my favorite photo of this report: It shows the woods outside the gym building we called Smith Hall. This boy is sitting right about where the “Theater in the Pines” stage is located; the woods in the background are where Pines Field is today. Amazing, eh?I had completely forgotten what the old basketball hoop looked like. Again, woods everywhere!Archery was up next to the Little League field. Note the “snow fence” where boys often deposited used chewing gum up atop the spokes.The old rifle range was located exactly on the site of today’s Guide Lodge. That’s Dave “Dewey” Gordon before he learned to love camp. One time, several years later as a counselor, he ate a luna moth on a dare. The next day he felt awful; the camp doctor happened to be visiting so Dewey told him how sick to the stomach he was. “What did you eat?” asked the doctor. “A luna moth,” said the green-faced youngster. The medical diagnosis was brief, to the point, and made me roll with laughter. Replied the doc, “Yeah, well, don’t do that again!”One of Mr. Wiff’s first decisions as director was to move the council fire from the deep woods up by Route 25C down to its permanent place near the lake. Note the canoe rack blocking the view! This photo was taken on the last night of the summer. On the table are candles(on wood blocks) that we set drifting on Lake Tarleton. That tradition did not last; maybe it should have.
