The Historic “Camp Atwater” Experience For Black Youth
Along the shores of Lake Lashaway in central Massachusetts, stories abound of kids frolicking in the sun, making art, fishing, and making new friends. Known as Camp Atwater this legendary summer camp is widely considered the first and oldest American Camp Association (ACA) accredited Black-owned and operated camp in the nation.
Over the years it became recognized as a cultural, educational, and recreational experience created for children of Black professionals who were excluded from the vast majority of the region’s white camps
Says the late Lawrence Otis Graham in his book “Our Kind of People” widely considered a seminal review on the history of America’s Black Middle-Class remarked:
“Summer camps are an important complement to the school-year activities of Jack and Jill. Founded in 1921 with forty young campers by the late Dr. William DeBerry, Camp Atwater has historically been the only “right” camp for children of the black elite. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the seventy-acre camp with its twenty-four buildings and a three-acre island is located on Lake Lashaway in North Brookfield, Massachusetts, just an hour west of Boston.”
This majestic waterfront property includes 75 acres, 40 buildings as well as a 3-acre island. Still owned and operated by the Urban League of Springfield, Massachusetts, the camp, which has a capacity for 160 campers at a time, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
Initially called St. John’s Camp, the name was officially changed to Camp Atwater in 1926. It was named in honor of Dr. David Fisher Atwater, whose daughter Mary made a major financial donation to the camp.
The camp’s primary mission is fostering the emotional and academic maturity of its youth participants. The early impetuous behind its launch was to provide recreational opportunities to Black children of families who had moved to the Springfield, Massachusetts area from the South as a part of the Great Migration of the 20th century.
Camp leaders facilitated an abundant range of activities for boys and girls aged eight to 15 including basketball, archery, soccer, swimming, boating, tennis, ballet, and drama classes. In addition, activities highlighting Black history and culture were promoted.
One of the main benefits for the youth was the opportunity to create lifelong connections and friendships with fellow attendees. In fact, a number of kids who met while participating in the camp’s activities married in later years, even sending their own kids to the camp for similar experiences.
Campers and staff have historically arrived from various U.S. cities as well as several foreign countries. It has long catered primarily to middle- and upper-class Black Americans, and drew attendees from up and down the Atlantic coast. Notable attendees include former Detroit mayor Coleman Young, former university president, corporate executive, and United States Deputy Secretary of State. Clifton Wharton, Jr., and former Secretary of Energy Hazel O'Leary
Said Graham in the book “Our Kind of People”
“By the 1950s and 1960s, Camp Atwater began to decline in popularity as middle-class African American parents enrolled their children in desegregated summer camps closer to home. Camp Atwater, however, continues to operate today. It is owned and managed by the Urban League of Springfield and its enrollees are from a variety of socio-economic backgrounds. Nonetheless, the camp, now listed on the National Register of Historic Places, continues to focus on its original mission, fostering the emotional and intellectual development of African American youth.”
“Today, many of my friends are raising young children and simultaneously hoping that there will be some way to re-create what Camp Atwater used to be. They agree that it is wonderful to provide less fortunate children with a camp experience, but they are still left with the desire to have what affluent white parents have for their children that are filled with children who are just like them.” — Lawrence Otis Graham.
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