History

The Centennial 4-H Camp began on the shores of Canandaigua Lake in1925 and is celebrating 100 years of Camping Excellence in 2025.  Take a trip down memory lane as we recall the history of your 4-H Camp!

1920’s: The very foundation of 4-H Camping was laid in 1925, when Ontario County 4-H members gathered on the shores of Canandaigua Lake. Camp was very different in those days. For the first few years, we didn't own a camp property, but rather, rented space on either side of the lake. Initially at Onoka on Torrey Beach, near what is now Crystal Beach, then across the lake at Point Rochester (now Camp Ononda), and then back to Onoka Point, before acquiring our current property in Bristol in 1936. From 1925-1930, only Ontario County 4-H members in good standing were allowed to attend, and we ran separate weeks for boys and girls.

Our nation was enjoying the Roaring 20's, and 4-H members were typically working long hours on the farm. Creating a Summer Camp was seen largely as a respite from the grueling manual labor of mucking stalls, feeding the pigs, collecting the eggs, and so on. Campers focused on skills like first aid, nature study and basket weaving. Campers were expected to bring a cot from home (though campers could rent cots for $0.50/week) as well as a mess kit to eat from.

1930’s: Ontario County 4-H Camp was just the second 4-H Camp in New York, with the first opening a year earlier on Long Island.  With the Finger Lakes camp operating for a few successful years, the program began to gain attention from other Western New York 4-H Programs, and by 1931, the Camp became a regional program, open to 4-H members from several neighboring counties, including Ontario, Monroe, Livingston, Genesee, Wyoming, Allegany, and Erie.  About half of the campers were from Ontario, and the remaining half were from other counties in the Finger Lakes.

It soon became evident that 4-H Camp was going to need its own place, rather than renting lakefront property. 4-H Agent Art Woodard began looking for land, and made a connection with Marjorie Maxwell and Ogden Letchworth (Nephew of William Pryor Letchworth, who donated Letchworth State Park), and made an agreement to lease some 20 acres of their land in Bristol. In 1936, the agreement was sealed, and work began on building the infrastructure that would become 4-H Camp. The original cabins and dining hall, along with the first swimming pool (located in the ravine behind camp) were built by the Works Progress Administration. The lease continued of 3 years before Ontario County 4-H took ownership of the land. Camp opened the new property in July 1937, and was formally dedicated August 1.Ogden Letchworth, who was now in his 80’s, gave a speech to a large crowd that had assembled at camp, while seated in his car and speaking through a Public Address System (he passed away in1939).There have also been reports that Frist Lade Eleanor Roosevelt was a part of the dedication ceremony. At the same time, The Ontario County Fair Board had made arrangements with Maxwell and Letchworth to lease land for the County Fair. The County Fair was held on Kear Road, opposite from Camp, for 11 years, starting in 1937.

1940’s:  A new decade at camp brought a new beginning when Ed Cockram was hired as 4-H Agent. Ed, like his predecessor Art Woodard, oversaw not only the camp program, but the entire 4-H program. Ed would spend the rest of his career with Ontario County 4-H, working full time for 32 years, and then part time as a caretaker of camp, until his passing in September 1977.In these early years, 4-H Camp was known as 4-H Camp Letchworth, commemorating the contributions of Marjorie and Ogden Letchworth, and likely drew some additional attention with a name that mirrored the State Park. WWII was escalating in the early 1940’s and it’s impacts could be seen on Camp as well. Campers learned skills like advanced first aid, and how to respond to chemical warfare, should the need arise.4-H Clubs were leading workshops in the community about how to blackout your home, should the US see airstrikes from enemy troops. It was a difficult time, and families were looking for opportunities to let their children play away from the stress of the war. From 1942-1945, Camp was known as 4-H Victory Camp at Camp Letchworth, before reverting back to Ontario County 4-H Camp in 1946. Camp hired its first fulltime caretaker in 1948.

In 1940, a week of Camp cost $7, and by the end of the decade, the cost had risen to $11/week.

1950’s:  The 1950’s saw the continued expansion of the 4-H Camp Facilities. The Pond at camp was dug, and the original dirt basketball court was added in 1950 (blacktopped in 1958). A new building was built behind the dining hall to serve as a residence for the camp cooks.1952 saw the construction of the Nurses Cabin (we believe that cabin is known as Medicine Man now).Longhouse was built in 1953, and electric lighting throughout the villages were added the same year. The current Woodcraft building, originally built as a pavilion for Crafts classes, was added in 1954, and enclosed in 1956.The first bathroom was added in 1956 (girls village), as only outhouses had been used before that.

The New York State Department of Health began pressuring Camp to move on from it’s natural ravine swimming pool late in the 1950s, and Camp began researching construction of an actual swimming pool. By the end of 1959, the old pool was official condemned, forcing Camp to put plans into action. The campers of 1959 would be the last to swim in the icy cold waters of the ravine pool.

1960’s: With the original pool being condemned at the end of 1959, 1960 was full swing for the addition of a new swimming pool.  By the time camp started that summer, construction was nearing completion, but wasn’t ready quite yet. Camp bussed campers in to Kershaw Park in Canandaigua for swim lessons for the first weeks, but by the end of summer, the pool was complete, and campers were splashing around in our very own swimming pool.

1961 was the first year that Camp was open to non-4-H members, and enrollment was climbing. We were at capacity for our facilities at the time, so camp began adding cabins. In 1964, we added three cabins in the boys village, including (we believe) Big Chief, Canoga, and Red Jacket, as well as a second bath house. Also in 1964, Bristol Hills Music Camp opened as a standalone program for excelling musicians. This program continues to this day, making BHMC our longest standing rental group. BHMC operates each August, starting the day after our camp ends for the season.

Former 4-H Agent Art Woodard, who built his home on the Northern border of Camp, passed away in 1967, and Camp purchased his cottage and land. Camp added a second floor to the Woodard Lodge, and opened it in 1969 as a Teen Center for older campers. Sister 4-H Camp Wyomoco opened August 2, 1964 in Varysburg, Wyoming County.

1970’s: Camper enrollments peaked in the 1970’s.Specifically, our highest enrollment on record was 1750 campers over eight weeks in 1970.Shortly thereafter, the New York State Department of Health instituted capacity limits on cabins. Prior to that, camp continued accepting registrations up until the first day of camp, and if there were more campers than beds, late arrivals slept on the floors of the cabins.

Long time 4-H Agent Ed Cockram officially retired from full time work in 1972, but transitioned into a camp caretaker role, which he continued until his passing in 1977.The dining hall at Camp collapsed under high winds and heavy snows in March of 1978.4-H Agents Niles Brown and Sally Jo Crosiar spearheaded a massive fundraising campaign, and with the support of the Ontario County Board of Supervisors, the site of the dining hall was cleared and a brand new hall was constructed on the same site. Construction was completed the day before the first Campers arrived for the season. It was a herculean effort which continued for several years, but their efforts allowed camp to continue operating without missing a year. The new dining hall was named Cockram Lodge in memory of Ed Cockram.

1980’s:The “Decade of Decadence”, big hair, MTV, and compact discs brought an end to the cassette tape era.The 1980’s were known for the rise of consumerism and consumption (think Ronald Reagan and “Reaganomics”, trickle-down economics and so on).It was also the introduction of the internet, HIV and AIDS, the Space Shuttle Program, Oprah Winfrey, and the Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster.

For Camp, the 1980’s saw camp receive it’s first Accreditation from the American Camp Association.This accreditation means that Camp adheres to a strict set of camping industry standards that exceeds the minimum requirements established by the NYS Department of Health.ACA Accreditation is something we continue to maintain to this day, because it’s one way to assure our families that we are doing everything we can to provide the best possible experience for your child.

We also saw the construction of the first ropes course on Camp property in 1984.It was located on land west of Kear Road which we later sold off after the ice storm of 1991 destroyed the course.  Sprout camp, Adventure Camp and the Adirondack Tripping Camp for Teens all started in the mid 80’s, with Sprout and Adventure Camps continuing still.  The Tripping program continued until the early 2000’s when the cost of the guide service and insurance requirements made it impossible for us to continue.  Finally, a new Camp Infirmary was built in 1984, originally named Ontario Lodge.  The building housed not only the nurses station but also the Camp Director’s residence, as well as the cooking program.

1990’s:  Ice and snow opened the 1990’s at camp with a devastating winter storm in 1991 that destroyed that first ropes course.  The land later sold in 1997.Camp acquired an 85 acre parcel of land directly across Kear Road from the Woodard Lodge in 1997 after Dean DeAngelis passed away and gave the land to camp in his will.  This land was particularly meaningful because it was purchased in 1931 by Ogden and Marjorie Letchworth, who sold a parcel of their land to Camp in 1936.At the same time, they also leased another parcel to the Ontario County Fair Board who used the parcel to hold the County Fair from 1937-1948, so the connection with 4-H was already well established.  This parcel was sold in 1948 to the VonLombeck family who farmed it until 1957 when Dean purchased it, so in a sense, it was almost a sense of homecoming when the 4-H Camp was gifted with the property.

Also in the 90’s, Tim Davis was hired as the 4-H Program Leader in 1998, with direct responsibility for both the 4-H Camp and the 4-H Club programs.  Tim already had a proven track record with 16 years of service at 4-H Camp Overlook, under Cornell Cooperative Extension of St. Lawrence and Franklin Counties.  When hired, Camp was operating under the name of Camp Bristol Hills, but Tim quickly added the 4-H to the name, and went to work marketing our connections with the National 4-H Program and Cornell University.

2000’s: Seeing a need for Day Camp programs for older youth, Camp unveiled a new program called Progression Camp in 2000.This program allowed older campers to sign up for resident camp programs, but go home each afternoon.  This program catered to many families who wanted their child to attend camp, but weren’t ready to stay overnight. There were a variety of reasons for this, often coming down to conflicting schedules of busy teens, summer jobs, or simply youth who hadn’t yet experienced being away from home overnight yet.  Progression Camp continues to be one of our mainstay programs today.

In the mid 2000’s, we also saw a growing theme of connections with Cornell University bringing new and innovative programming to Camp.The STEM Camp program partnered with the Cornell University Nanobiotechnology program, and we also worked with the Food Science Program to develop a Food Science Camp.These programs continued for several years, and laid the foundation for other partnerships with the college over the next decade.

he first camp payments by credit card were received in 2009, opening the door for registration by email, and eventually online registration, which would be pivotal for our growth over the next decade.

2010's:  Social Media was the name of the game, starting in 2010.Camp opened it’s Facebook page that summer, and the Instagram followed several years later. Digital technology was having a significant impact on camp, and we created our first online registration form (a fillable PDF that could be saved and emailed to the Camp Office) in 2011.

A partnership with the Ontario County ARC grows to include a unique camp program for Teens with Autism. In this program, youth receiving services from the ARC are able to attend the Progression Camp program, while ARC recreation therapists provided additional support for their campers during the program. This has been a great partnership with benefits for both ARC and 4-H Camp campers and staff.

2014 also marked the first year of our partnership with the Disney Corporation. This funding allowed us to recruit 25 campers from NYC and Rochester (defined as “urban environments”) to attend camp at no cost to the families. This was a brand new program from Disney, and they partnered with just two overnight camps and two day camps across the country, and the other resident camp was our sister camp, 4-H Camp Wyomoco in Varysburg, NY. While the funding was intended to be for one year, the success of our programs grew to support 75 campers the following year, and this support continued for over five years. We were extremely grateful to Disney for this collaboration!

We also saw our connections with Cornell University continue to grow.  Research projects in youth development, health, and brain studies yielded a variety of projects that connected graduate students to campers to study the impact of creative writing as a coping mechanism for our Young Women’s Adventure Campers, as well as younger campers learning about parts of the brain and how our brain works within our bodies. We also partnered with the Simple Interactions program to connect Camp staff with a Cornell researcher who worked directly with staff and campers. The researchers documented (on videotape) those simple interactions within the Camp community, and helping staff to learn why certain strategies were more effective than others. We also enjoyed a number of other Cornell interns over the decade who brought innovative programming in remote sensing, GPS technology and map making.

Finally, the largest capital campaign in our 100 years brought us three brand new bath houses in 2017.This project included the demolition of two bath houses, construction of three new buildings, an expansion of our water treatment facility, consolidation of many septic fields into one new septic treatment system, and the installation of all new water lines through all of camp. This improvement also included showers in the village bath houses, something we’d never had in over 90 years of operation.

2020’s: The arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic had a major impact on the entire world, and Camp was certainly not spared. Camp shuttered it’s gate for the entire year, the first time in our history that we didn’t run summer camps. Looking back over history, Camp had continued to operate through WWII, through the Polio endemic, through the Viet Nam War, and so many other devastating world issues, but COVID was different. While we went into the year with big plans, and riding a wave of record high Camp enrollment, we also monitored the pandemic and knew that we would be needing to make modifications to our program. The NYS Department of Health was slow in rolling out guidance, and ultimately made the decision in May 2000 that they would not be issuing any overnight summer camp permits for the year.  We were able to re-open in 2021, but the impact of the pandemic was pervasive, requiring Summer Camps to have campers take pre-arrival COVID tests by mail, isolate campers and staff into cohorts, wear face masks anytime indoors, conduct temperature checks, installing hand sanitizer stations throughout camp, eliminating the ability for campers to select their own classes, but rather to rotate through a small selection of classes.

Over the following years, the operational impacts of COVID lessened each year, but the developmental impact on our campers and staff have lingered longer. Campers attending in 2021 were largely coming out of a year of isolation and immediately thrust into a camp environment with lots of people, busy schedules, tons of activities, and evolving requirements for camps. It was a simply overwhelming for many, but Camp and all of our staff, have worked hard to support campers where they are at, and help them to recover and move on from COVID. The 2024 Summer Camp season was the most “normal” season we’ve had since the pandemic.

Additionally, Camp saw the retirement of Tim Davis who had moved into the Executive Director role overseeing Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ontario County, as well as the retirement of Ellen Rosenbarker, who had been the Administrative Assistant for nearly 20 years. Camp Educator Jim Hooper took on the responsibilities of Camp Manager, and Mo Tidball accepted the position of Executive Director, while Michele Albrecht took over for the Administrative Assistant duties. The infusion of new ideas, new energies, and additional funding, has got us excited about the future of 4-H Camp Bristol Hills. We are excited to welcome the NEXT 100 years serving the youth of our communities!

Last updated January 20, 2025