History of 4-H Camp Sacandaga

On February 12, 1945, at the Army Depot in Scotia, the buildings and facilities of the Speculator Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was turned over to the 4-H committee, which comprised of Fulton, Herkimer, Montgomery, Oneida and Warren Counties. This gift did not included the land, which was owned by the Harvey Behlen Estate and later sold to Frederick Rusilon. A lease was drawn up with the Behlens, providing got the rental of 4.4 acres of land for a period of 5 years with the option for renewal for 5 additional years.

The lease was renewed over the years until November 1967 when the owner would not renew. At that time, the Board of Directors of the 4-H Camp Sacandaga, representing the 4-H Division of Fulton, Herkimer, Montgomery, Oneida and Warren Counties, decided to purchase the 4.4 acres of land under the buildings they owned plus an additional area of about 5 acres. At that time Herkimer County made the decision to withdraw from the Camp Corporation, leaving the four remaining counties as owners and operators.

Following the purchase of the land, permanent improvements were made in buildings which could not have been made in the event the camp had to move. Two dormitory roofs were sealed or covered with new roofing paper and girl's dorms were painted in 1968 and 1969. The Recreation Hall was shingled in 1970. In 1971 the dining hall collapsed under the weight of a heavy spring snow and was replaced by a new building before camp opened in June.

In 1973 three sleeping dorms (cabins) were erected with the help of the Glens Falls Seabees which is the reserve construction unit of the Navy. Three additional dorms were erected by the Seabees, two in 1976 and one in 1977. These first three cabins, #1-3,replaced Dorm II which had been attached to the girl's bathroom. Dorm I, which is now cabin 6, had been half torn down prior to this. Cabins #0,5 and 6 were put in most recently.

Demolition of the Director's cabin began in the fall of 1979. The Seabees started work of the Seabee Lodge in the fall of 1979 and ended construction in the spring of 1980. The lodge is used for the Director's housing and Camp Office during the summer months and for a variety of activities during the fall and winter months. The Seabees Lodge was dedicated October 2, 1982.

The Seabees have also done a variety of maintenance work on the camp since 1975 including repair on the recreation building roof. In 1976 the program was expanded from a five week camping season to a 7 week one. Off camp canoe and hiking trips were also added this year. In 1977 a trailer was brought onto the camp grounds for housing of staff. In 1978 a 22 foot well was dug in one day and a Bar-B-Q pit was constructed in 1979 introducing Friday night chicken Bar-B-Q's. 1980 saw the introduction of a sailing program at camp. Also, in the fall 1980, $40000.00 worth of equipment was stolen from camp.

Additives from the Past, Present and Future:

The Civilian Conservation Corps was created during the depression, March 1933,to keep idle youngsters from "riding the rods", living off soup kitchens and sleeping in hobo "jungles" Incidental to the task of saving youths was that of saving natural resources.

Three major government agencies were instrumental in the C.C.C. . The Labor Department recruited the workers, the Army set up the actual camps, and the Forest and Park Service planned and supervised the projects to be worked on.

Recruits were 17 to 28 years old and came from large cities, small towns, slum street corners hobo jungles, rails and roads. Some of these men had never seen mountains.

Each worker received a monthly wage of $30.00, part of which was a family allotment, and was sent to the families.

Projects worked on by the C.C.C. included planting trees, building roads and trails, preventing and checking of forest fires, creating lakes, reservoirs and fish ponds, cabins built and historical battle grounds restored. Other practical lessons were learned by the youth - learning to do a full day's work, carrying out orders, taking pride in the results and acquiring skills.