Last updated: August 11, 2023
Place
Aloha Camp
Photograph by Liz Pritchett, courtesy of the Vermont State Historic Preservation Office
Quick Facts
Location:
2039 Lake Morey Road, Fairlee, Vermont
Significance:
Architecture, Education, Entertainment/Recreation
Designation:
Listed in the National Register - Reference number 03000892
MANAGED BY:
Aloha Camp in Fairlee, Vermont was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2003. The camp is significant for its status as an early girls' camp, as well as its demonstration of the architectural development of the children's camping movement.
The cottage that would later become Aloha Camp was purchased by Harriet Marie Farnsworth and Edward Leeds Gulick in 1897. Both Farnsworth and Gulick came from families of missionaries - Farnsworth's parents in Turkey, and the Gulick family in Hawai'i, which served as inspiration for the Hawai'ian names of the property's buildings.
In 1905, the Gulicks founded Aloha Camp, which was one of the earliest girls' camps founded in New England. While summer camps for boys had existed since the 1870s, camps emphasizing the outdoors were far rarer for girls. The camp's mission was to blend the merriment of outdoor recreation with the value of industrious activity, in order to develop young girls into confident, accomplished young women. Campers learned how to swim, horseback ride, play tennis, create baskets, bind books, and even participate in what were considered male activities, like baseball, basketball, and carpentry.
Summer camps exploded in popularity from the founding of Aloha Camp through World War I. While there were still far fewer camps for girls than there were for boys, Aloha Camp was joined by several other girls camps in New England beginning in the 1920s. Summer camps for girls became more popular as women across the country, with their newly-earned suffrage and a sense of optimism about the future of womens' place in American society, increasingly began to enjoy the outdoors in that decade.
The camp continued to adjust to the needs of young women throughout the rest of the 20th century, including serving as surrogate parents during World War II when many fathers were serving overseas and mothers were working outside the home. In the postwar era, camps like Aloha Camp prospered as they became a status symbol for middle class families, and provided childcare for single parent families and families with two working parents. Aloha Camp continues to operate today, with programs for girls, boys, and families.
The cottage that would later become Aloha Camp was purchased by Harriet Marie Farnsworth and Edward Leeds Gulick in 1897. Both Farnsworth and Gulick came from families of missionaries - Farnsworth's parents in Turkey, and the Gulick family in Hawai'i, which served as inspiration for the Hawai'ian names of the property's buildings.
In 1905, the Gulicks founded Aloha Camp, which was one of the earliest girls' camps founded in New England. While summer camps for boys had existed since the 1870s, camps emphasizing the outdoors were far rarer for girls. The camp's mission was to blend the merriment of outdoor recreation with the value of industrious activity, in order to develop young girls into confident, accomplished young women. Campers learned how to swim, horseback ride, play tennis, create baskets, bind books, and even participate in what were considered male activities, like baseball, basketball, and carpentry.
Summer camps exploded in popularity from the founding of Aloha Camp through World War I. While there were still far fewer camps for girls than there were for boys, Aloha Camp was joined by several other girls camps in New England beginning in the 1920s. Summer camps for girls became more popular as women across the country, with their newly-earned suffrage and a sense of optimism about the future of womens' place in American society, increasingly began to enjoy the outdoors in that decade.
The camp continued to adjust to the needs of young women throughout the rest of the 20th century, including serving as surrogate parents during World War II when many fathers were serving overseas and mothers were working outside the home. In the postwar era, camps like Aloha Camp prospered as they became a status symbol for middle class families, and provided childcare for single parent families and families with two working parents. Aloha Camp continues to operate today, with programs for girls, boys, and families.