Camp Kwahoti

I'm trying to locate the site of a children's summer camp from the 50's and 60's named Camp KWAHOTI. It was in the Newfoundland/Wallenpaupak area

I attended Camp Kwahoti in 1962 and 1963. I don't remember exactly where in Newfoundland PA it was -I do remember going up a hill past a general store and then turning left into the camp. It was a long time ago and I was only 12. Looking at mapquest looks like it might have been Hilltop Drive but I'm not sure. Last I heard the camp had been sold and was a private residence. Did you go there? I'm suprised there are no posts regarding Camp Kwahoti - I had a great time there.

Chris Andrews wrote:

I attended Camp Kwahoti in 1962 and 1963. I don't remember exactly where in Newfoundland PA it was -I do remember going up a hill past a general store and then turning left into the camp. It was a long time ago and I was only 12. Looking at mapquest looks like it might have been Hilltop Drive but I'm not sure. Last I heard the camp had been sold and was a private residence. Did you go there? I'm suprised there are no posts regarding Camp Kwahoti - I had a great time there.

I was a camper and then counselor at the camp in
the sixtees. In the early 1980s I drove up to find the camp, just for fun. It's a group of private residences; the stones around the tent platforms were still there (but no statue of a Kwahoti). The messroom is a house, too. The pool was filled in. The ball field looked TINY. Lots of fond memories, though. I kept in touch with Ed Wallace for many years after.

Rick ("Dick") Parmentier

I remember you Rick. You were a counselor when I was at Kwahoti. Other counselors were Steve Atwood, Robbie Rainey, and there was a Spike and a Jim I think. The campers I recall are Mike Dubose, Gil Ulrich and Brent Wallace. I won an archery tournament one year - I often wonder whatever happened to the plaque in the rec hall with my name on it. And all those inspection paddles with red blue and yellow tape!! Far above the Paupack Valley.....
Chris

Rick, can you provide driving directions to the site? I will be in the Poconos area for the first time in 30 years in mid-July and like you, want to find the place just for fun. I remember lots of faces, personalities and pranks, but cannot recall a single name. I was also at Kwahoti in 62 and 63, probably in late June. Favorite memories - the overnight horse bivouc and a kid, possibly the owner's son or grandson, who had access to the canteen, which we raided for goodies late at night

Chris Andrews wrote:

I remember you Rick. You were a counselor when I was at Kwahoti. Other counselors were Steve Atwood, Robbie Rainey, and there was a Spike and a Jim I think. The campers I recall are Mike Dubose, Gil Ulrich and Brent Wallace. I won an archery tournament one year - I often wonder whatever happened to the plaque in the rec hall with my name on it. And all those inspection paddles with red blue and yellow tape!! Far above the Paupack Valley.....
Chris

Steve Atwood (from my hometown, Westfield NJ) went on to a distinguished career in pediatric medicine; currently works in Thailand; Google his name to see all the awards he has won. I also won the archery championship (in 1960); in fact I have the gold painted award right here on my desk--for some reason it never got tossed.

Rick

ron pickle wrote:

Rick, can you provide driving directions to the site? I will be in the Poconos area for the first time in 30 years in mid-July and like you, want to find the place just for fun. I remember lots of faces, personalities and pranks, but cannot recall a single name. I was also at Kwahoti in 62 and 63, probably in late June. Favorite memories - the overnight horse bivouc and a kid, possibly the owner's son or grandson, who had access to the canteen, which we raided for goodies late at night

I've tried (on Mapquest and Google Earth) to locate the exact spot, but I have not come up with the right location. I suspect that where the camp was has been so radically changed, with new roads and new houses. I actually sketched from memory a map of the camp (with the path up to the firetower, the long road to "CampCraft," and the ballfield. But nothing now corresponds to my sketch. I know that the camp was west of the main intersection in Newfoundland, and the drive was no more than 15 minutes. If you do find it in July, let me know the exact spot.

Rick Parmentier

what is a kwahoti, anyhow? some kind of pocono sasquatch or yeti?

I was one of Dr. Gilbert's West Chester, PA choir boys and was at Kwahoti from 1963-1966; tents = Spruce and Hemlock; Charlie Gibney was one of my counselors. Rob Rainey, Steve Atwood, Bob DuBose, the guys from Westfield - all blasts from my past. Bob DuBose won The Order of the Kwahoti my final year. Our Spruce tent had the best inspection record in camp history but Rob Rainey made sure on his final OD day that, as he had vowed, we would not beat HIS Maple Tent record of X straight blue's.

I found the property in 1985 when I was visiting the area, Dr. Gilbert had died in an automobile accident some years before and the camp had been closed for quite a while but everything was still intact and in the early stages of decay. The Kwahoti bird at the camp fire and the tent frames were all rotting, but the buildings were in pretty good shape (lodge, the "Willie" and the dining hall) and padlocked with fairly new locks.

Dr. Gilbert's house was empty and locked but the lawn and the old athletic field were obviously being mowed. The fire tower was still there but not in use and had a barbed wire fence around it.

The basketball hoop with no net was still in place as was the pitcher's rubber on the softball diamond. The archery shack was padlocked but looking the worse for wear after 10+ years of disuse.

It was a little spooky. The property was abandoned but someone was still watching it for the family (Mrs. Wallace and Mrs. Rainey were Dr. Gilbert's daughters, as you guys will recall). Seeing the Kwahoti bird and the raccoon cage 50% decomposed but the grass on the athletic field being maintained was kind of strange. Even in broad daylight, it was somewhat ghost-like.

So has anyone else seen it recently?

I attended Camp Kwahoti from the mid-late 50s to early 60s and was from St. Paul's choir in Westfield, NJ. I couldn't begin to tell you exactly where it was, but to this day, I still have fond memories of my time there. The 'willie', pancake eating contests, cherry vanilla ice cream cones in the afternoon, the campfires and my favorite counselor that I only remember as 'Sam'. I won some weekly camper award (plaque)my last year there which I wish I had saved. Ironically, Bruce Wallace became the music director at Westfield High School my last year there and I cherished that time as well. Would love to reconnect with former campmates to share experiences. It was a hugely positive influence on my life. I have a timeshare in that area and wouldn't mind looking around when I go up there Oct. 11

Edgar Wallace, not Bruce. Will check with locals when I'm in the area next week to attempt to locate the property. Chip, I now belong to Church of the Holy Trinity in West Chester. Was that the church you and Dr. Gilbert were from?

A.

I attended Camp Kwahoti for one week in the summer of 1966. My older brother Paul had attended for two weeks twice in previous years. I lived in Glen Mills Pa at the time then moved to West Chester and graduated from Henderson High in 74. I couldn't remember anyone's name from the camp until I saw this post. Chip Oat was in the same tent as me, and I remember he signed my pennant on my last day. I often wondered whatever became of the camp.

Thanks all for the memories of Camp Kwahoti and the "willie". I attended one summer in the early fifties with the boys' choir of St Paul's in Westfield, NJ. I really can't remember any names but Steve Atwood seems familiar. I definitely remember running theb ases late one night and the ping-pong paddles.

Best wishes to all,
Richard Fremon

It's been great reading all the recollections that have been posted. Has anyone actually figured out the location of the place? So we can see it on googlemap?

I passed through there a year ago on my way to reconnect with another old memory - Hurd Road at West Shore in Bethel NY, August 1969. I checked with the post office and several old-timers, but no one even remembered a Camp Kwahoti. Was it really that long ago as to have even disppeared from memory?

I'm Dr. Gilbert's oldest grandchild, now living in the Poconos near the camp. I just now saw this website. I know it's a year late, but the directions from the center of Newfoundland at the blinker light are: head west from the blinker onto Crestmont Drive; continue all the way up the hill until the road takes a 90 degree left turn; the camp, now a private residence, is about 1/4 mile on the left from that turn. There is a yellow iron gate across the entrance. Unfortunately, the person my parents sold it to in 1986 does not welcome visitors. He does rent out the rec hall and mess hall. It's great to "see" you guys online and to know you still "remember the times you've had here..." I miss those days terribly and am glad to be "back home" since 1995.

Chris Andrews wrote:

I remember you Rick. You were a counselor when I was at Kwahoti. Other counselors were Steve Atwood, Robbie Rainey, and there was a Spike and a Jim I think. The campers I recall are Mike Dubose, Gil Ulrich and Brent Wallace. I won an archery tournament one year - I often wonder whatever happened to the plaque in the rec hall with my name on it. And all those inspection paddles with red blue and yellow tape!! Far above the Paupack Valley.....
Chris

Thanks for the info, but I still have a question about the location. I located Crestmont on googlemaps and followed it west of town. There doesn't seem to be a 90 degree turn in the road, but you can turn left onto Hillside Road or continue on Crestmont to a T intersection with Hazleton and turn left there. Was the camp on Hillside or hazleton?

Andy, Holy Trinity in West Chester is correct!

Bonnie,

I remember your sister, Kathy (she and Charlie Gibney were an "item" that summer of '66) and your cousin, Debbie (and both sets of parents). Rob was adamant that our Hemlock tent would never surpass his 1960 Maple's record of 30+ consecutive "blue's" for daily inspection - and he made sure it didn't happen.

One question: how do you spell your grandfather's family name (i.e. "Bockey")?

Chip Oat

Wow!
Just for fun I googled Camp Kwahoti and found all of your comments, which brings me back to the ebb and flow of nostalgia.
I was a student at St. Peter's Choir School in Philadelphia in the late 50's. The school had a camp in South Sterling called Camp Wissawanick, and was the rustic, rugged camping experience that was a real challenge to those of us city boys who attended the school.
Dr. Harold W. Gilbert was the Headmaster of the school and Choirmaster and Organist at St. Peter's Church. Dr. Gilbert "retired" at the end of my 8th Grade there, and went on to be the Director of Music at Overbrook School for the Blind.
I then began to attend Dr. Gilbert's own camp, run by him and his family, the Wallaces and the Raneys, located at "Top-O-Hill" in Newfoundland. You have described the way to get there, turning at the only light in Newfoundland (at the time) and heading up the hill to the property. I was a camper there for a couple of years, served as "Workboy" for a year, and throughout my high school years was a counselor. I was scheduled to continue counseling into my college years, but "Summer School" raised its ugly head and I never got back in any official capacity.
I visited the property several times, and looked around to just reflect and remember the great times. Store...Mess Hall...Pool Time...Craft Time (how many lanyards do you still have?)...Friday night Campfires...The Big "Indian Gathering" of the Final Bonfire in the middle of the night...the Garnets vs. the Greys in all kinds of competition...archery...swim meets...Overnight bivouacs...overnight Horse back trips...Day trips to Promised Land...Lake Wallenpaupak...building a real bathroom as a Workboy and having the privilege of tearing down and burning the outhouse, personally...eating from and then washing our Mess Kits...Mrs. Downs in the Kitchen.. the Staff skit nights...the singing...sometimes going with Dr. Gilbert to the Moravian Church and sometimes running back down to Philadelphia at St. Peters...the joys and freedoms found on the mountains and in the woods...and who can forget "Watering Rock" for those unable to make it to the Bath House in the middle of the night.
Where has the time gone?
Dr. Gilbert had several of us return to Camp one time when he brought up a busload of kids from Overbrook School for the Blind. We had a Scavenger Hunt (yes, with the blind), and ate and sang and utilized music, as every camper would expect.
My wife and I stopped in many years later and met Bonnie Raney, a long-ago friend and one of Dr. Gilbert's granddaughters from Connecticut, and took one last tour through the Gilbert residence where I tried to figure out how I could acquire Dr. Gilbert's Pipe Organ located in his music room and transfer it to my house.
Dr. Gilbert was one of the most extraordinary men I have ever met, and I really enjoyed working for him.
Just a few years ago, I stopped in again, wishing all of my children could have had the experiences I did under the shadow of the Great Thunderbird, Kwahoti.
Of course, all the neat stuff was deteriorating, much to my chagrin. Actually, Interstate 84 was constructed just over the hill from the Camp, and I always hated the intrusion of civilization into that pristine, wonderful, unique, Camp Kwahoti.
But I will never forget.
Blessings to all.
Jim Smith
Reading, PA

For those of you involved with The Men and Boys of the Church of the Holy Trinity in West Chester, PA, I have started a facebook page under that name to gather old members/photos etc together. It's less than a week old, but I invite you all to join and post updates on your status, add photos, and tell stories. I was a choir member from 1977-1981 and 1985-1989.

Kevin,
I've never done Facebook but, for Holy Trinity Choir, I might get my teenage daughter to sign me up. I sang from 1960 - 1969 and got the Gold Cross in 1968 (which is now on my wife's charm bracelet). Dr. Gilbert ran the Thursday night rehearsals and one of his protege's, Jane Moore, was the organist/director on Sunday and ran the Wednesday rehearsal (boys only). Those years were important to me and I remember them well. I also came back to sing on Christmas Eve from 1970-1983. My mother, Judy Oat, joined the choir when it went co-ed sometime in the 1980's and she ran a men/boys reunion around that time, as well. I think the directors in those days were Court Dunn and, afterwards, George Finnecal.