Another quick historical photo post… Browsing through our archives, I found this picture labeled “August 1971.” It shows the Sunday morning flag raising ceremony, the girls gathered on the hill dressed in their uniforms, and the amazing view of the mountains we have at the center of camp. The Sunday uniforms are slightly different nowadays. Campers today wear white shorts, shirt and a red tie, but not red knee socks! 🙂
Is that an Oldsmobile in the background?
In 1895, Mr. and Mrs. Henry Peck Clarke, formerly of Connecticut, purchased over 800 acres in Transylvania County on which they built their mountain estate. On this site, their daughter Nancy Clarke Carrier and her husband Henry established Rockbrook Camp for Girls in 1921. One of the more interesting facts about Mrs. Carrier is that she was the great granddaughter of PT Barnum, of circus fame. Many circus artifacts were on display in the Carrier House, and thrilled many a camper, such as the chair of Tom Thumb and many lovely home furnishings.
This circus history also has a direct link to the building known as Goodwill. The circus winter residence was at the Goodwill Plantation, located near Columbia, SC. When Nancy Carrier decided to establish a summer camp on her property in Brevard, she moved two 200-year-old hand-hewn chestnut log cabins to the property. She restored the cabins to their original beauty and made them part of the center of camp life. The buildings were named “Goodwill” after the SC plantaion and Curosty (the mountain word for crafts). Both are still in use by the campers and remain a part of Rockbrook’s proud history.
Do you know about the “Camp Fire Girls” of America? This is a drawing taken from the inside cover of their handbook (the 1947 edition), The Book of the Camp Fire Girls. The history of this organization is really cool. Founded in 1910 in Vermont, it’s as old or older than the girls scouts in America. It later became coed, and has since changed its name to “Camp Fire USA,” but it originally sought to help girls gain important skills for living a “well rounded life—a vivid, intense life of joy and service.”
As you can see from the drawing this included all kinds of skills. Some, like boating, camp craft, nature lore, gardening, dramatics, dancing and art, are still part of the camp experience at Rockbrook. Others are more specialized, like aviation, science and business. Click on the drawing to see a larger version. It’s really great.
The Camp Fire Girls valued spirituality, beauty, service, knowledge, trustworthiness, health, work and happiness, and provided opportunities for girls to form, as Luther Gulick the founder put it, “habits making for health and vigor, the out-of-door habit, and the out-of-door spirit.” It’s neat to realize that this was “in the air” when the first summer camps were forming in America, and how Rockbrook too shares these ambitions. Camp really is a place to grow… in some really important ways!
More Cookies!
At camp, there are cookies every night! It’s a long standing tradition at Rockbrook for all the campers (and counselors 🙂 ) to have a cookie and small cup of milk at the end of the day. Everyday the kitchen crew makes a batch of homemade cookies— chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin, cinnamon nut, peanut butter, or maybe sugar cookies. Which kind is a daily surprise. When the evening program is finished, a couple of staff members from each line grabs their bag of cookies and jug of milk from the kitchen and sets it all out for the girls.
It may seem a little strange to have cookies right before bed, but it makes a nice little snack to get you through the night. Don’t forget to brush your teeth before hitting the hay. Maybe read a little in bed, and the next thing you know you’ll be waking up to the morning bell. Ahhh camp..
My daughter grew so much in her time at camp. She met new kids, loved her counselor, dealt with homesickness, and tried many, many new activities. She loved being in the beautiful camp setting.
Read more testimonials.
This part of North Carolina, in the western part of the state, is well known for its lush mountains and waterfalls. In the Brevard area alone there are more than 250 named waterfalls (Do you know the two that are on the Rockbrook Property?). Some of these waterfalls are quite remote and hidden, but others are popular places for swimming.
The most famous example of these waterfalls is Sliding Rock. This is a place in the Pisgah National Forest where Looking Glass Creek cascades about 60ft over a smooth sloping rock and drops into a deep pool at the bottom. The Forest Service has developed it into an organized recreation area so it can provide parking, lifeguards and first aid services during the busy summer months. In the last few years, Sliding Rock has become so popular the Forest Service has begun charging a small fee to use the area.
The Rockbrook Middlers and Seniors take a trip to Sliding Rock most sessions. We go at special times when the area is less crowded and we always bring our own additional lifeguards. It’s a great mountain experience for the girls, and when you top it off with a trip to Dolly’s Ice Cream stand, it really can’t be beat.
You’ll have so much fun, you might raise your foot in excitement!
This weekend, with the help of Tara Millington and Catherine Goodnight, the first seeds were planted in the new Rockbrook garden. What you don’t see yet in this photo are the carrots, beets, beans, corn, onions, peas and more that will soon be sprouting! This is actually the same place that the old garden use to be many years ago. The soil is top notch!
This summer, like in camp years gone by, campers will be able to sign up for garden workshops, where they might even get to pick right out of the garden! Both campers and counselors can pitch in during Twilight (the time after dinner and before evening program) to water and care for the garden.
Fun with plants!
It’s a “split leap!” Taken directly from Ballet and applied in gymnastics to Floor Exercises and the Balance Beam, this gymnastics skill begins with a leap forward where the athlete does a 180 degree split in the air, leaping off one foot and landing on the other.
The split leap is more that just doing a split in the air. Judges look for style, proper arm, hip and shoulder position as well. For example, it’s important to keep your shoulders and your hips square. This is a common error, in fact, because many young girl gymnasts have to turn their hips in order to do a split at all, and once they learn this, it’s difficult to “un-learn” it to do a split leap properly.
Of course, the trick to doing this gymnastics skill is excellent flexibility and strength, both of which come from proper form when practicing. It’s important to keep your hips and shoulders square as you stretch and improve hamstring, hip flexor and quadricep flexibility.
The Rockbrook Camp gymnastics activity is a place where girls can practice their split leap, improve their flexibility, and learn the correct techniques for this important gymnastics skill.
Hug your horse!
Why would you do that? Well, it’s because you love your horse. He or she becomes a really good friend of yours at camp. Like all good friends, you’ll grow closer with good communication, trust, and consistency. Horse riding requires all of these, and over time riders and their horses become more and more responsive to each other. A real emotional bond begins to form, a real feeling of care.
That’s what we mean when we say at camp you can “befriend a special horse.” Riding, you’ll develop a special relationship with someone wonderful. It won’t take long; soon you’ll be hugging your horse too!