Summer Camps

Text by Candace Kanes

Images from Maine Historical Society, Camp Winnebago, Camp Runoia, Good Will-Hinkley Home, and Eliot Baha'i Archives

Wohelo, Kippewa, Mataponi, Runoia, Winnebago, Agawam, Kawanhee, Takajo, Mechuwana, and Indian Acres. Summer camps once appealed to urban youths for their exposure to nature and the simple life.

Soon, they focused instead on skills, sports, loyalty, and camp spirit. Summer-long camps and special purpose camps remain popular in Maine. Most go far beyond summer amusements for young people.

The images suggest how the camps -- and campers -- have changed throughout the twentieth century as well as how ideas about the purposes of the camps have developed.

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