Figure 1.--These American Scouts all wear the short pants uniform that most American Scout camps required, even though many Scouts did not wear the short pants uniform until the 1970s. Note the short hair cuts the boys wear. This dates the photograph to the 1950s or early 60s.

Camping was at the beginning of the Scout movement the most popular activity. Scouting was a first organized around camping. The camps were at first makeshift affairs held in rural areas with the permission of local landowners. Gradually as the movement gained momentum, local Scout groups purchased land and built permanent facilities for camping. Perhaps the best known American camp is the Philmont Scout ranch, but many Scout Councils now operate camps throughout the country. Most camps had regulations about the uniforms to be worn. As the major season for caming was the summer after school was out, many camps selected the short pants uniform. American Scouts, especially Scouts in the northern states, did not wear shorts until the 1970s. This often meant that the boys had to buy a special uniform for the camp.

Chronology

Scots began caming from the earliest days of Scouting. In fact there was Scouting by predecessor groups even before the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) were fonded (1909). A vast trasure of photographs exist from these camps. They illustrae activities and the uniforms worn at these camps over time. The image here shows American Scouts at camp about 1960. The letters from the boys are another fascinating source of information from the camps over time. They are alwatys facinating to read. One HBC reader describes his letters home in 1972. They are an amusing read. One tells about their activities at camp, including cave exploring ("we saw bats and everything imaginable"), hiking ("I have 9 blisters"), and "scinnydipen", and end with "Hurry with the money. PLEASE." The other one tell about hiking "15 miles to the highest waterfall west of the Appellachens" and ends with "I spent 4 dollars on something you will see when I get home. I need 6 more dollars. P.S. Send Fast."

Development

Camping was at the beginning of the Scout movement the most popular activity. Scouting was a first organized around camping. The camps were at first makeshift affairs held in rural areas with the permission of local landowners. Gradually as the movement gained momentum, local Scout groups purchased land and built permanent facilities for camping.

States

Perhaps the best known American camp is the Philmont Scout ranch, but many Scout Councils now operate camps throughout the country. There are now Scout camps established in every state of the union. Most are known only to local Scouts. The Boy Scouts opersate one of the most extensive summer camp programs in the World. The Young Pioneers in the Soviet Unioin had a larger system involving more children. But with the disappearance of the Soviet Union, the American system is now the largest in the world. Along with the YMCA it is the major operator of American summer camps.

Uniforms

Many camps had regulations about the uniforms to be worn. Early ad hoc camps show the boys wearing a wide variety of uniforms. Gradually as the camps became more established, uniform standards developed. One notable development was that boys at camp began wearing short pants. This is notable because the standard Scout uniform for American Scouts at the time was knickers. The United States was one of the few countries that did not adopt a short pants uniform for regular wear. Yet at the camps boys mostly wore short pants. Presumably the camp organizers began to require boys to wear short pants. I am not sure just when this developed and to what extent it was a centrally organized policy. The camp shown here clearly had a uniform policy. American Scouts, especially Scouts in the northern states, did not wear shorts until the 1970s. This often meant that the boys had to buy a special uniform for the camp. Thus wearing shorts at camp meant purchasing special garments just for the camp. <>br>

Seasonality

As the major season for caming was the summer after school was out, many camps selected the short pants uniform.

Activities

There were many stanndard activities at camp including hiking and camp craft. Here Daniel Carter Beard inspired countless ideas about camp craft of varying practicality. Another standard actibity at camp was water activities, including swiming and boating. Gradually a host of new activities were added to the camp experiences, depending in part on the facilities at the camp and the capabilities of the staff. One of the features of Scouting has bee the tendency to add techonolgical innovations to the activities program. Thus radio became popular in the 1930s and each susscessive generation updated the program to include merit badges with the latest technology. Scout camps, however, tended to stress the essential basics of Scouting. While facilities have changed sinificantly over time, the basic activities have retained their popularity.