Looking Back From the William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History accessible at www.djnfoundation.org 62 | DECEMBER 1 • 2022 Camp: A 100-Year-Old Summer Tradition T his is the JN’s “Camp Guide” issue. Time to start thinking about enrolling the kids at your favor- ite camp and, perhaps, antici- pating a bit of a break for mom and dad? Well, check out the ads in this issue for Tamarack Camps and Camp Tanuga, two of the oldest in Michigan, as well as such camps as Roeper, Tamakwa, Young Judaea, Walden and Lawrence Tech. The first summer camps in America — almost all for boys — appeared in the 1870s and 1880s. The first Jewish camp was founded in 1893 during the mass migration of Jews to America. Most of the Jewish immigrants settled in major urban areas, in particular, New York City. Detroit’s Jewish pop- ulation also rapidly expanded in the early 20th century. The mission of early Jewish camps was to provide youth with an escape from crowded, often poor, urban living spac- es. The camps were meant to be “fresh-air refuges. ” They were also intended to make immigrant Jewish youth more American rather than to rein- force Jewish values and culture. Camps began to change their ethos in the 1940s. No longer was Americanization the main purpose of camps. Jewish religious sectors such as Conservative and Reform Judaism organized some camps, others were organized around Zionism, Yiddish, Hebrew and other Jewish-centered learning themes. According to recent sta- tistics, in 2018, there were more than 160 camps that hosted about 80,000 Jewish campers every year. Now, with COVID on the wane, 2023 should be a good year for summer camps. I decided to explore the history of summer camps in the William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History. It took a bit of reading: 3,878 pages were generated just by searching for the generic term “Summer Camp. ” In short, a long history of summer camps can be found in the Archive. The earliest mentions of summer camps were found in the Detroit Jewish Chronicle in 1917. Jewish youth going to and returning from camp were named in the “Society” column. The first advertisement that I found for a particular camp was in 1922, an ad in the Chronicle for Camp Grand Sable for Jewish boys. The camp would be “run on Boy Scout principles and ideas, with wholesome dis- cipline” (June 9, 1922). I must admit, this sounds a bit like boot camp to me. An early article about a camp, one for Jewish boys, appeared in the April 15, 1927, Chronicle. Camp Walden in Maine was “Distinctly an Educational Institution. ” Its director, Morris Waldman, declared that “I can safely say that all intelligent parents approve of summer camps. ” The 1930s witnessed a grow- ing number of ads for Michigan camps. In the May 19, 1933, Chronicle, Camp Nahelu on Perry Lake announced that it would open on “Decoration Day [now Memorial Day]. ” Soon after, the Fresh Air Camp (Tamarack’s ancestor), Camps Mehia and Hiawatha, and the Riseman Camp appeared in stories and ads, to name just a few. By the 1950s, the JN began to publish a “Camp Directory” (see the May 5, 1959, JN for one example). To say the least, summer camps have shaped the identi- ties of Jewish youth for the past century. They have instilled memories that last a lifetime. Indeed, one often hears the question — what camp did you attend? Want to learn more? Go to the DJN Foundation archives, available for free at www.djnfoundation.org. Mike Smith Alene and Graham Landau Archivist Chair the William Davidson Digital History. It took a bit of reading: 3,878 pages were generated just term “Summer Camp. ” In short, a long history of summer camps named in the “Society” column. found for a particular camp was be “run on Boy Scout principles Soon after, the Fresh Air term “Summer Camp. ” In short,