Camp Eastman

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[edit] The Boy Scouts of Burlington

In 1917 the Boy Scouts of America Troop 1 came about in Burlington, Iowa, sponsored by the Burlington Rotary Club. The first council was founded that year and remained local until 1928 when the program decided to expand to include the counties of Des Moines, Lee, Henry, and Louisa Counties in Iowa, and a part of Henderson County in Illinois. It was then named the Southeast Iowa Council. Boy Scout Troop 1 was established on June 7, 1917, by Dr. Philip Jordan and chartered by the Rotary Club. Currently Jack A. Atteberry of Burlington, Iowa, is the Scoutmaster.

[edit] Predecessors to Eastman

In 1918 some land was purchased in East Burlington, now known as Gulfport. The scouts held their 1919-1920 summer camps there. The council desired to move the camp further from Burlington so the council located a spot near Augusta on the Skunk River, and named the camp, Nawakwa. Camp was held there from 1921-1924, from there the moved to a location they dubbed Snake Den in 1925.

[edit] The birth of Burro

The Rotary Club sought a more permanent site for a camp. So they appointed a camp site committee to find a site. A party of eleven Rotarians searched diligently, and on May 21st 1926 they came upon a spot 7½ miles south of Nauvoo, Illinois, at the mouth of Larry’s Creek. The committee unanimously agreed to acquire rights to the area by either lease or purchase. In 1926 the Rotary Club obtained a lease to camp and roam on 80 acres of land, which belonged to Mr. George R. Peak. They named the site Camp Burro, for the first three letters of Burlington and the first two of Rotary. The council bought a summer shelter on the property for $450 dollars. The shelter had belonged to a Mr. R. A. Pancake of Hamilton, Illinois. The Pancake House or Pancake Cabin served as the first mess hall for what was to be Camp Burro. The first cook was Charlie Slaughter. Later in the year the council built an addition for $200 dollars. In 1927 Mr. Pancake leased some more land from Mr. Peak for seven years and built another summer cottage there. Wanting more room for the camp, the Rotary Club bought the cottage, which they named “Rotary Lodge”, and the lease for $586. The building served as mess hall for the camp even after it was renamed Camp Eastman, but was moved in 1929. On February 13, 1930, Mr. Peak sold 12½ acres of his land to the Scouts for $1,000. The camp remained Camp Burro from 1926-1930.

[edit] Camp Eastman

Around 1930 Mille Smith Eastman became rather interested in scouting. Her interest in scouting continued to grow with each succeeding year, and in July of 1930 she bought an additional 15 acres for the camp from Mr. Roy W. Pilkington. All the other tracts of land composing the camp site have been conveyed by straight warranty deeds and carry no burden. A holding company composed of nine directors was incorporated under the laws of the State of Illinois, on the May 25, 1931, as a non-profit corporation for the purpose of holding the lands and properties of the camp. Said company to be known as the Boy Scout Camp Corporation with its Illinois headquarters located at Hamilton, Illinois. The Rotary Club, up to this point had invested $3,223.80 on land, buildings and equipment. All of this was transferred to the Boy Scouts of America on December 21, 1931, and the camp’s name was changed to in July of 1930. Mrs. Eastman continued to purchase and add additional tracts to the camp. On December 3, 1936, she bought a tract that gave the camp an unbroken shoreline of 7,250 feet (2,210 m) and a total of 137½ acres of land for the camp. In 1934 Mrs. Eastman began construction on a stone lodge in memory of her husband. She herself spread the mortar and laid the cornerstone in 1935. In 1942 construction took place for a home for the camp ranger. And In 1943 she provided a concrete block building; half to be used for recreation and a canteen and the other half for storage, nicknamed the Bee Hive. The Order of Eagles contributed $800.00 to build four sleeping cabins and later on in 1943, they gave an additional sum to re-roof and refit these buildings. The group of buildings was known as the "Eagles' Nest". The V.F.W. of Mt. Pleasant gave funds for a Troop cabin, which was used to house the summer Camp Staff.

[edit] Sources

  • The Camp Eastman Current, 7-21st-26th-2007
  • Colin John Parry