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| The Farmhouse |
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HISTORY of the HATHAWAY FARM
In 1786, an enterprising young man by the name of Jesse Dickinson, who lived in New Jersey and had seen the fine logs for ship masts that were rafted down the Delaware River, decided to get into the lumbering business. So he purchased several hundred acres of land in Delaware County at the confluence of Trout Creek and the Delaware River. In that same year, with his family, livestock and several assistants, he traveled up the Hudson River to Catskill and then went cross-country by Indian paths through dense forests to settle on the land he had purchased at Trout Creek. Jesse found the country thickly covered with stately white pines and was so pleased that he made plans for improvements, laid out a town in regular squares and called it Dickinson City.
The following year, 1787, Jesse went back to Philadelphia to obtain men and materials to carry out his plans. A number of men, intrigued by his account of the new country, agreed to migrate to Dickinson City. Among that number was a young man just 16 years of age, JACOB HATHAWAY. And so it was that Jacob Hathaway, a native of Morristown, New Jersey, became the first Hathaway to live in Delaware County.
We digress here to explain the unfortunate fate of Jesse Dickinson’s development project. It seems he had exalted notions of the prospective growth of his new purchase. He laid out streets and built a sawmill, a gristmill, several dwellings and even a large town hall. But his lots were not selling and his building expenditures exceeded his income from lumber sales. Jesse was eventually forced to surrender his property to the mortgagors, and in 1796 he went back to Philadelphia and never returned. Shortly thereafter, an investor by the name of Benjamin Cannon bought the former Dickinson estate and continued its expansion into a viable community. In honor of this man who had done so much to rescue Dickinson City, the name was changed to Cannonsville. (We should also add that in the late 1950s, sad and grievous as it was, the town of Cannonsville was buried beneath the waters of the Cannonsville Reservoir.)
We now get back to Jacob Hathaway. After being employed by Jesse Dickinson for some time, Jacob purchased a tract of land along the Delaware River just east of Dickinson City and near the present-day village of Stilesville. His brother-in-law, Alex Crawford, owned adjacent land, so the two brothers-in-law built a double plank house where their families lived for many years. They engaged in the lumbering business, sending many log rafts down the Delaware River to Philadelphia. Jacob and Alex were long remembered for building a well-known saw mill on their property. When the river was low, the mill did not cut lumber very fast, so for as long as it existed it was called the “Slow and Easy Mill.”
Jacob enrolled in the Delaware County Militia as a major on August 23, 1803. He apparently enjoyed the title of Major and used it for the remainder of his life. In fact, his gravestone at Oakwood Cemetery in Stilesville reads “Maj. Jacob Hathaway.” Jacob married Lydia Lowry, one of the founding members of the Cannonsville Presbyterian Church, and they had eleven children. Their third child was BENJAMIN HATHAWAY who was born on February 22, 1810.
Benjamin Hathaway regularly attended a one-room schoolhouse while assisting his father with farm work and lumbering. When he came of age, Benjamin acquired some nearby wooded acreage and adopted his father’s occupation of lumbering and farming. Over a period of twenty years, Benjamin piloted many log rafts down the Delaware River from Deposit to the Philadelphia market, and in so doing he gained considerable wealth. (Incidentally, the town of Deposit acquired its name from the fact that logs were “deposited” there to await the higher waters needed to float them down the river.) In 1828 Benjamin married Elizabeth Case, always called “Betsy,” and they had six children: Edwin, Harriet, Amasa, Lydia, Robert and Sarah.
In 1850, at age 40, Benjamin acquired 730 acres of land at the headwaters of Sands Creek by purchasing a number of adjoining properties. (450 acres of this land are included in the present Kingswood Campsite property.) The only dwelling on his new land was a log house on the hill above the pond (see history of Stone Foundation), certainly not large enough for a family of eight. Therefore, Benjamin lumbered his new property while residing at his nearby farm. Within a short time sufficient land had been cleared to accommodate some farming, and in the mid-1850s Benjamin built the farmhouse that we still enjoy today. Shortly thereafter, he built a huge barn. (That barn was destroyed by fire in 1932 and was replaced in 1933 with the present smaller structure by Benjamin’s grandson-in-law, Edward Seymour. But we can visualize the immense size of the original barn by observing part of the former foundation below the barn and the earthen ramp at the back.)
Benjamin’s life was visited by sorrow in 1856 when Betsy, his wife for 28 years, died at only 50 years of age. But he somehow managed his loss and three years later married Sibyl Blake, a lady from Coventry, NY.
By 1860, Benjamin had disposed of his earlier properties and had developed his new land into a successful lumbering and farming business. To provide some perception as to the scope of Benjamin’s farming operation, we list the following numbers that he gave to a census taker from the U. S. Department of Agriculture in 1865:
Acres 730
Acres plowed 5
Pasture 110
Meadow 110
Tons of hay 75
Bushels of oats 60
Bushels of potatoes 40
Bushels of apples 30
Beef cattle 15
Oxen 3
Milk cows 29
Killed for beef 1
Pounds of butter 3,000
Horses 6
Pigs 5
Pigs slaughtered 5
Pounds of pork 1,200
Sheep 10
Pounds of wool shorn 33
Value of poultry $10.00
Some comments: (1) Benjamin owned 730 acres of which only 220 were cleared, so with 510 acres still in forest, we can be sure he was also harvesting timber. (2) 75 tons of hay is impressive. Before baling machines, this would have required grueling labor to get that hay in the barn. (3) 3,000 pounds of butter is also impressive. Benjamin did not sell milk, but instead churned it into butter that was readily salable, and the curds and whey would have been fed to the pigs. (4) Benjamin would obviously have had considerable income from sales of potatoes, apples, beef cattle, butter, pork, wool and lumber.
In 1865, Benjamin suffered another tragic loss. His oldest son, Edwin, had been living with his family for several years in the log house on the hill above the pond (see History of the Stone
Foundation). Caught up in the fervor of the Civil War, Edwin had enlisted in the 144th Regiment, New York State Volunteers in 1862. Near the end of the war, he was wounded by gunshot in his left leg during a skirmish on James Island, near Charleston, SC. His leg was amputated at the post hospital on Folly Island, SC and, as a consequence of the amputation, Edwin died on February 12, 1865 and was buried on Folly Island in an unmarked grave.
Succession of Ownership
For a period of 110 years, four generations of the Hathaway family owned and operated the farm during the years noted:
Benjamin Hathaway 1850-1899
Amasa J. Hathaway 1899-1911
Gertrude Hathaway 1911-1925
Edward Seymour 1925-1948
Robert Seymour 1948-1959
New York Annual Conference 1959 - Present
of the United Methodist Church
Benjamin Hathaway - As explained earlier, it was Benjamin who purchased the original 730-acre tract of land and developed it into a successful lumbering and farming operation. In his latter years he sold 280 acres, leaving him with 450 acres in 1895. The Biographical Review of 1895 is quoted as follows:
“Mr. and Mrs. Hathaway are earnest, active members of the Presbyterian Church, in which organization their influence for good is universally felt. Mr. Hathaway was an anti-slavery man and co-worker with Gerrit Smith; and he now votes with the Prohibition Party, a firm supporter of its platform and an ardent laborer for the cause of temperance. During his long residence in the town of Tompkins, Mr. Hathaway has been most fortunate in making many warm friends, whose companionship is one of the chief comforts of his declining years. He is an upright, public-spirited man; and the great respect in which he is held by all gives testimony to his strong and noble character.” (The Gerrit Smith mentioned above was, during the mid-1800s, a nationally known philanthropist, social reformer, prohibitionist, abolitionist and three times an unsuccessful candidate for President of the United States.)
In 1893, when he was 83 years old, Benjamin Hathaway organized a family reunion at his farm. That was the beginning of an Annual Reunion, always at the Hathaway farm, that became a tradition for the next 48 years. Officers were regularly elected, meetings conducted, formal engraved invitations were mailed and hundreds of Hathaway descendants gathered at the farm every August. The last Annual Reunion was held in 1941, after which they were discontinued due to gasoline rationing and never organized again.
Benjamin Hathaway died at his farmhouse on December 16,1899 at 89 years of age. His funeral, attended by a multitude, was held at the Cannonsville Presbyterian Church where he had been one of the organizers of that church in 1831. He was elected elder in 1848 and held that office for 50 years.
Amasa J. Hathaway - Upon Benjamin’s death in 1899, his son Amasa, then age 64, inherited the farm. Amasa was 15 years old when his father bought the land in 1850, so he had labored with his father from the beginning to lumber, improve and farm the land. In fact, Amasa eventually worked the farm for 61 years - longer than any other family member.
In 1861, Amasa married Mary Minor, a young lady from Coventry, NY. There was a family connection here in that Mary was a niece of Amasa’s stepmother, Sibyl (Benjamin’s second wife). Amasa and Mary had six children: Gertrude, Frances, Katherine, Frederick, Isabelle and Arthur, all born at the farmhouse. Shortly after the birth of their third child in 1866, Amasa, Mary and their three daughters moved into the log house above the pond and lived there for several years (see History of the Stone Foundation).
Like his father, Amasa also suffered his full share of sorrow. His first son, Frederick, died in 1880 at age 3 as the result of an accident. The following brief mention appeared in the Deposit Courier-Journal on June 17, 1880: “Last week, a three-year-old son of Amasa J. Hathaway, living on Sands Creek, near Cannonsville, was killed while at play. A log rolled over him.” Then just two years later in 1882, after 21 years of marriage, his wife Mary died at only 43 years of age. Amasa never remarried.
A peculiar thing worth mentioning about Amasa’s children is that only one, Gertrude, produced offspring. Frances, Katherine and Isabelle never married, and Arthur married but had no children. Amasa died on April 22, 1911 and his obituary in the Deposit Courier-Journal of April 26 read as follows: “Amasa Hathaway, one of the most respected citizens in the town of Tompkins, died after an illness of a few months’ duration at the Hathaway homestead near Kelsey April 22, aged 76 years. The funeral was largely attended at his late home today. Interment is in the Cannonsville Cemetery.” (In the late 1950s, prior to construction of the Cannonsville Reservoir, Amasa’s remains were reinterred in Riverview Cemetery, Hancock, NY.)
Gertrude Hathaway - After Amasa died, his daughter Gertrude became the next owner of the farm. Gertrude had married a neighbor, Edward Seymour, in 1887 and they had six children: Mary, Edward, Robert, Charles, Phoebe and Clarke. Right after Benjamin passed away, Edward, Gertrude and five children moved into the farmhouse with Amasa’s family. There were then twelve people living in the farmhouse, and as if that wasn’t enough, Gertrude delivered another child three years later.
We want to mention here that Benjamin’s second wife, Sibyl, lived until 1921, at which time she was 98 years old. For 22 years from the time of Benjamin’s death, Sibyl had lived in the farmhouse and, much to their credit, was cared for by both Amasa and Gertrude.
The succession of the farm to Gertrude was quite logical for these reasons: (1) Gertrude was the oldest child and, as we said above, the only descendant who had children, (2) her only living brother, Arthur, had married and moved years ago to Iowa, and (3) Gertrude and Edward Seymour had been working the farm with Amasa over the past twelve years.
As explained earlier, after Benjamin’s original barn was destroyed by fire in 1932, it was Edward Seymour and his son, Clarke, who built the new barn in 1933 that still exists today.
Gertrude passed away in 1925 at only 63 years of age. She had lived in the farmhouse for her entire life, longer than any other family member. But in spite of the hardship and with the help of his sons, Edward Seymour continued to run the farm for the next 23 years until his death in 1948 at age 90.
Robert Seymour - Well before Edward Seymour died at age 90, farming operations at the Hathaway place had been seriously reduced due to lack of labor, and Edward’s sons had farming interests elsewhere. In fact, census records show that Clarke was the only son living at the farm as early as 1920. When Edward Seymour died in 1948, the only son who had an interest in the farm was Robert, then age 54, who purchased the farm by paying a fair share to his siblings.
Robert lived at the farm for the next eleven years doing little more than subsistence farming. On September 16, 1959, at age 64 and in poor health, he sold the farm to the New York Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. Robert Seymour died four months later, so he never lived to enjoy the proceeds of the sale.
Development of Kingswood
In 1958, the New York Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church received, as a gift from a Dr. Lester L. Woolsey, a deed to a tract of woodland adjacent to the Hathaway farm. It was quickly decided to pursue the idea of developing this property into a youth camp. An outside consultant was engaged to make a planning survey of the property and his report was encouraging except for the lack of water sources. The timing was perfect because Robert Seymour had decided to sell the Hathaway farm, which of course included a pond and the upper reaches of Sands Creek. A sales agreement was concluded and the Hathaway farm, consisting of 450 acres, was deeded to the New York Annual Conference on September 16, 1959. The new property, totaling 766 acres, was named Kingswood after the town in England where John Wesley began field preaching and where he also started a school.
A master plan was developed, and in 1960 more than 250 volunteers from many churches visited the camp and devoted untold hours of work to develop rustic campsites. The following year, 1961, many church groups again visited the camp to work on improvements of camping, housing and sanitary facilities. And during five summer weeks of planned activities, 83 youths and 23 adults stayed at Kingswood, many living in makeshift shelters.
Over the ensuing years, following carefully developed plans, the grounds, accommodations and activities have been remarkably maintained, improved and expanded. Today we have ten weeks of activities every summer at Kingswood where retreat ministries, adult and youth groups and individual families enjoy a wide variety of outdoor experiences. And thus we are blessed with this wonderful legacy to Benjamin Hathaway, to the New York Conference founders of 50 years ago and to the hundreds of volunteers who made all of this possible.
Written by Frank Hathaway
Sources: U. S. Census Records 1895 Biographical Review
by the Biographical Review Publishing Company, Boston, MA
The History of Delaware County, 1797-1880 by W. W. Munsell
The History of Cannonsville, 1890 by Mrs. Hester Lane Miles
Agricultural Statistics by the National Agricultural Statistics Service
U. S. Department of Agriculture
New York Conference Yearbook and Minutes, 1958-1963
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| The Old Stone Foundation |
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HISTORY of the STONE FOUNDATION
On the hill above Hathaway Pond there are the remains of a stone foundation. Over the past 50 years, many Kingswood visitors have undoubtedly gazed at these lichen-covered stones and wondered what stories they might tell about the history of this monument to the past. This foundation happens to be of significant interest to me because it is part of my heritage…..my great-grandparents lived in the log house that stood on this foundation and my grandfather was born in that house. In fact, many Hathaways lived there over a period of 35 years from 1851 to 1886. At least 12 children were born in the house and 2 deaths occurred there.
My name is Frank Hathaway. I am a great-great-grandson of Benjamin Hathaway who in 1850 purchased a number of adjoining properties and developed the 700-acre farm that is now Kingswood Campsite. The log house residents were all related to Benjamin in one way or another, so to hopefully assist the reader in understanding the kinships, I will frequently refer to their relationship to Benjamin.
I am pleased to share what history I know with the understanding that it was necessary to apply some logical circumstantial evidence when sorting out the facts from these sources: (1) federal and state census records, (2) 1890 History of Cannonsville by Mrs. Hester Lane Miles, (3) Civil War military records of Edwin Hathaway and (4) my personal records of Hathaway family history.
Before we consider a more detailed account, here is a thumbnail list of adult residents and approximate dates of occupancy:
1790 – 1800 Memucan & Jemima (Leonard) Lowry
1800 – 1851 Unknown, but probably Lowry family members
1851 – 1853 Edwin & Elizabeth (Russell) Hathaway
1853 – 1867 Edwin & Jane Leonora (Russell) Hathaway
1867 – 1877 Amasa & Mary (Minor) Hathaway
1877 – 1886 Allen Dean & Elizabeth Jane (Hathaway) Moore
1886 & after Unknown
Memucan & Jemima (Leonard) Lowry (1790-1800)
A man by the name of Memucan Lowry built this foundation in 1790 and on it erected a log house. Memucan was born in Farmington, Hartford County, CT in 1768. He migrated to Delaware County, NY in 1790 and acquired the tract of 275 acres where his stone foundation still stands. Memucan married Jemima Leonard from Cannonsville in 1794, and their first three children were born in his log house.
The site seems remote today. But in those early times, it was on a well-traveled wagon trail called Cannon Hollow Road that ran between present-day Hathaway Pond Road and Cannonsville, a distance of about 3 miles. A section of that road still exists on Kingswood property and is well used by visitors.
Inspection of the foundation reveals that this was not a casual structure. It was not a slab house as was common at that time, but was constructed with uncut logs. And it undoubtedly had two floors because at one time as many as three adults and five children lived there. The house also had a basement for storage of foodstuffs having both a ground level entry and a first floor entry accessed by stone steps. A short distance below the house is the stone foundation for a barn. Not a barn as we think of one today, but more an animal shelter that would typically house a couple of horses, milk cows and pigs.
At the time, this whole area was a dense forest of mature trees, mostly hemlock and white pine, so Memucan’s first objective would have been to harvest and market the timber, and then farm the cleared land. It therefore makes perfect sense that it was also Memucan Lowry who constructed the dam at the head of Sands Creek (now Hathaway Pond) with a spillway and sawmill adjacent to the dam.
All this construction required exceptional mechanical skills, and Memucan indeed had such skills. It is well documented that Memucan was a talented mechanic, carpenter and woodworker. He vacated the log house in 1800 and moved to Cannonsville where he would build a house, stay there a few years and then move elsewhere to build another house. He in fact built several houses including one in a small valley that was thereafter called Lowry Hollow. It is also documented that Memucan was one of the craftsmen who built the large Cannonsville Hotel. In his latter years Memucan built a workshop at the mouth of Johnny Brook, just east of Cannonsville, where he turned out fine furniture. Of course, all these structures were lost to the Cannonsville Reservoir in the early 1960s.
Memucan Lowry was Benjamin Hathaway’s uncle (his mother’s brother). We have no proof, but tradition is that Benjamin purchased this old homestead from the Lowry family when he put together his 700-acre farm.
Edwin & Elizabeth (Russell) Hathaway (1851-1853)
My great-grandfather, Edwin Hathaway, was born in 1832 and was Benjamin Hathaway’s oldest child. In 1851 he married a neighbor, Elizabeth Russell, who lived at her parent’s farm on Sands Creek Road that included Russell Lake (now Camp Hilltop). Benjamin had recently acquired the Lowry homestead that included the log house, so Edwin and Elizabeth began their marriage living there.
In 1853, attended by Dr. Samuel Cottrell from Cannonsville and a neighbor by the name of Lucy Rose, Elizabeth delivered a baby girl they named Elizabeth Jane. Tragically, Edwin’s wife Elizabeth died 20 days after giving birth. That birth and death occurred in the log house.
Edwin & Jane Leonora (Russell) Hathaway (1853-1867)
Five months after Elizabeth’s death, Edwin married her sister, Jane Leonora Russell. They had four children, all born in the log house. The youngest was my grandfather, Stephen Russell Hathaway, born in 1861.
During his tenure at the log house, Edwin continued to work with his father, Benjamin Hathaway, in lumbering and farming the land. But over the years he had acquired carpentry skills, so he also worked independently in Cannonsville building and then selling a number of houses.
For whatever reason, probably caught up in the fervor of the Civil War, Edwin left Jane and his five children at the log house in September 1862 to join the 144th Regiment, New York State Volunteers.
Just before the end of the war, tragedy struck again. Edwin was wounded in the leg on James Island near Charleston, SC on 12 Feb 1865. He died three days later at the Union camp on Folly Island, SC and was buried there in an unmarked grave.
Jane Hathaway continued to live in the house, enduring her sorrow and caring for her four children and her niece until 1867 when she moved to Cannonsville. She died there in 1913 at age 93.
Amasa & Mary (Minor) Hathaway (1867-1877)
Amasa Hathaway, born in 1835, was Benjamin’s second son. In 1861 he married Mary Minor from Coventry, NY, a niece of Benjamin’s second wife. Amasa and Mary lived with Benjamin from the time of their marriage, and Amasa worked on the farm with his father as he had done from childhood. (Amasa holds the particular distinction of having worked the Hathaway farm for 61 years, longer than any family member. He eventually inherited the entire farm when Benjamin died in 1899. Amasa operated the farm until his death in 1911 and left it to his oldest daughter, Gertrude Hathaway Seymour.)
After Jane Hathaway and the five children left the log house in 1867, Amasa, Mary and their three daughters moved from Benjamin’s farmhouse to the log house. This was probably a matter of convenience because the farmhouse was rather crowded at the time with five adults and five children living there. And about that same time, Benjamin deeded the log house homestead to Amasa.
Another child was born to Amasa and Mary in 1876, and shortly thereafter, again probably for convenience, Amasa and his family moved back to Benjamin’s farmhouse.
Allen & Elizabeth Jane (Hathaway) Moore (1877-1886)
As explained above, Elizabeth Jane Hathaway (called Lizzie) was Edwin’s daughter by his first wife Elizabeth, and therefore Benjamin Hathaway’s granddaughter.
In 1872 she married a neighbor, Allen Dean Moore, who worked as a farm laborer for Benjamin. They had lived with Allen’s parents since their marriage, so when Amasa and his family vacated the log house in 1877, Allen, Lizzie and their son moved there and Allen continued to work for Benjamin.
Allen and Lizzie had six more children while living in the log house. (They eventually had 11 children with nine surviving to adulthood.) Needing a larger residence to accommodate their rapidly expanding family, Allen acquired a nearby farm in 1886 and they left the log house.
Epilogue
What happened to the log house after 1886 is anybody’s guess. It undoubtedly deteriorated from neglect and it’s likely that the logs would have been salvaged for lumber. Small scraps of metal including broken stove parts and many flooring nails were found in the basement area indicating that whatever structure remained was probably destroyed by fire. But we can take comfort in knowing that this old stone foundation will remain for ages a memorial to those hardy souls who were born and lived and died in that log house.
Written by Frank Russell Hathaway
January 10, 2009
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NEW YORK Annual Conference Quotes
The following is quoted from the records of the New York Annual Conference.
New York Conference Yearbook and Minutes, 1958
Trustees Report, p.158
On January 9, 1958, without previous consultation with us, we received from the Superintendent of the Newburgh District a deed to certain lands in the Town of Tompkins, Delaware County from Lester E. Woolsey to the individual Trustees of the Conference as Trustees, which deed had already been recorded and was not accompanied by survey, title search or opinion of title and which deed contained certain restrictions and conditions. Your Trustees are arranging through the Board of Missions to obtain a survey, title search and opinion of title together with a correction deed running correctly to the Conference corporation and omitting the conditions and restrictions. The correction deed has been executed and we believe will be tendered to your Trustees with survey, title search and opinion of title. In the meantime, since there is a recorded deed in the names of the Trustees, we have placed liability insurance of $500,000 for the protection of the Conference, and we request that the premium thereon, and any other necessary maintenance items be made a Conference charge and be paid by the Treasurer on certification by the Trustees.
James L. Cox, Chairman
Board of Education Report, p.110
Hancock Property Development
Under the leadership of the Rev. Ross W.M. Rolland, chairman of our Conference Center Committee, real progress has been made in relation to the property given us by Dr. L.L. Woolsey near Hancock, New York. We have now received the deed for the property and have engaged Dr. L. B. Sharp of the Outdoor Education Association, Inc. to make a planning survey of the property. Dr. Sharp has already had conferences with many workers in the Annual Conference and has done an on-the-spot survey of the property in company with persons from our Committee. Dr. Sharp has presented a preliminary report with maps and contour drawings and suggestions for the use of the property.
If we are able to carry out our hopes in relation to this situation, this development will provide a significant camp center primarily for the promotion of Youth and Young Adult Work.
Howard D. McGrath, Executive Secretary
New York Conference Yearbook and Minutes, 1959
Trustees Report, p.177
We have received during the year a correction deed for the camp property in Delaware County given to the Conference by Dr. Woolsey which removes all restrictions on the use of the property and correctly vests title in the New York Annual Conference of The Methodist Church. We have also received from the attorney for the donor an abstract of title and his opinion that we have a good and marketable title, but we still have not received any survey of the property.
James L. Cox, Chairman
George M. Northrop, Vice-Chairman
Board of Education Report, p.118-119
Considerable progress has been made in relation to the Hancock camp property. We now have the deed in our possession and are negotiating with the owner of an adjacent farm for a small additional piece of property in order that we may have full control of the water sources.
Howard D. McGrath
New York Conference Yearbook and Minutes, 1960
Board of Education Report, p.107
An additional 450 acres of land, including a house and large barn were purchased for $20,000 and added to the property near Hancock given to the Conference by Dr. L.E. Woolsey. Mr. L.B. Sharp has been employed to draw a master plan for this camp and he has submitted the first draft and made suggestions as to where the first camping should be done. More than 250 people enjoyed the campsite last summer.
The camp has been named KINGSWOOD after the place in England where John Wesley started field preaching and where he also started a school. Nine weeks of summer camping have been planned for this summer on this campsite. This includes junior highs, senior highs, and young adults. This will be small group camping, with the campers living in hogans and doing their own cooking. Training for this type of camping has been set for April 18-22.
… Work camps have been planned for KINGSWOOD and EPWORTH and it is hoped that many people from local churches will help in these camps.
Ross W.M. Rolland, Chairman
New York Conference Yearbook and Minutes, 1961
Board of Education Report, p.106
The Committee on Camps and Institutes rejoices with ….. (unreadable) at the accomplishments during 1960 at EPWORTH and at KINGSWOOD. These accomplishments pertain both to program and to the properties.
The relaxed, rustic program at KINGSWOOD enriched the spiritual lives of 83 youth and 23 adults who participated in the three weeks of junior high and two weeks of senior high activities. The eight-week program at EPWORTH gave 460 youth and 95 adults an institute experience which deepened the spiritual lives of those persons participating. Local churches, sub-district, district, and conference programs have been enriched and strengthened by the weekend retreats, coaching conferences, and training session conducted at these newly-acquired Conference properties. Some churches are reporting increased interest in Christian vocations among youth and adults – an interest directly related to the experience at KINGSWOOD and EPWORTH.
Much of the committee’s time has been given to planning for the maintenance, improvement, and development of the properties. As a result of such work, many churches have sent work groups: several organization, and laymen and women have helped to provide facilities more adequate for comfortable living and extended programs for 1961 and 1962. With the housing, sanitary, and equipment improvements of the past year – and additional similar improvements planned for this year – more progress in development is now possible.
For purposes of development, long-range plans have been approved, in principle, by the Board of Education. These plans were evolved only after considerable thought and discussion were given to the types of programs that might foreseeable be conducted at the properties. The first stage of planning involved general layout and location. The second stage was more specific as to the types of buildings and the use of space within the buildings. With the approval of these plans by the Conference, it will be possible for the committee to give direction for developmental changes to be made to the existing grounds and properties.
Robert A. Gevert, Chairman
New York Conference Yearbook and Minutes, 1962
Board of Education, p.118-119
The chairman takes this opportunity to express his sincere thanks to all those persons, lay and ministerial, who have given so devotedly of time, effort, and thought to the work thus far completed and to the advancement that is to come.
The maintenance, improvement, and development of KINGSWOOD and EPWORTH have moved ahead surprisingly fast, with the result that the properties are more attractive and the accommodations more comfortable than during the previous year …
The effectiveness of the institute and camping experiences for both youth and counselors is indicated by the number of persons accommodated in 1961 – 740 youth and 138 adults. This second year of operation produced an increase in enrollment at KINGSWOOD of 49 youth and 12 adults … at KINGSWOOD the addition of a “Tepee Village” will increase the accommodations at this site from 20 to 30 youth per week of operation …
This year the site at KINGSWOOD has demanded the committee’s time and thought in order that an orderly and specific plan of operation and development might be presented at this time. With the approval of these plans by the Conference, it will be possible to proceed with the orderly development of this property.
Robert A. Gevert, Chairman
New York Conference Yearbook and Minutes, 1963
Board of Education, p.127
The expanding programs and development in the two camps owned and operated by the New York Conference have necessitated readjustment in personnel so that each area could be covered more adequately. Development Committee chairmen and Program Committee chairmen were elected to serve both Epworth and Kingswood. Very capable leadership has been given by Robert A. Gevert, chairman of Epworth Development; Ralph E. Spoor, chairman of Kingswood Development; J. Philip Gehres, chairman of Epworth Program; and Joseph G. Bailey, chairpman of Kingswood Program.
The exterior of the house at Kingswood has been completely renovated and a new roof placed on the large barn. In addition a new camp unit was established at Kingswood, bringing the total to three units able to serve 30 campers each week. The summer program during 1962 involved … 159 campers and 42 counselors at Kingswood. Continuing to look forward to the summer program for 1963, we are able to report that, in joint session with the New York East Conference Board of Education, it was decided to open registrations of the four camps (two in each conference) to youth of both conferences, and to share staff members and staff training opportunities. [At that time there were two annual conferences – New York and New York East – which eventually merged to become the New York Annual Conference. The New York East Camps were Sessions Woods and Quinipet.]
Both Epworth and Kingswood have been used during the spring and fall by conference and district groups for retreats, planning conferences, and picnics. It is estimated that, including picnic groups, a thousand persons were served by these facilities in 1962.
Chester E. Grossman, Chairman
New York Conference Journal and Yearbook, 1964
Board of Education, p.217
In order to meet increased costs of operation it has been necessary to raise campers’ fees in three of the camps, so that these will be : Quinipet, $37.00; Epworth, $30.00; Sessions Woods, $27.00; and Kingswood, $22.00.
New York Conference Journal and Yearbook, 1965
Board of Education, p.691
It is the conviction of the Board of Education that each camp should be maintained and developed to serve the varied needs of a particular locale and to serve special needs within the total Conference program. We consider each camp individually:
Kingswood – Because of its scenic beauty, its hilly terrain and its location at the northwest corner of the Conference, this camp must be developed and maintained as a rustic-pioneer camp to serve primarily the western part of the Conference. The plan calls for a small retreat center as part of the overall development to serve the churches of this area during fall, winter, and spring. When renovation of Route 17 is completed, there will be easy access from the Metropolitan area. Development plans call for the opening of a new camp site this summer so that there will be four instead of three at Kingswood. By the summer of 1966, if funds are available, a new winterized administration center will be constructed, to be used in the summer as housing for staff, and as a health clinic, and for the remainder of the year a local church retreat center. Plans are now underway to make water available to all parts of the camp property. For several years the Board has recognized the value of local church camping – that is, a local church group coming with its own counselors. This program is being emphasized during any of the one-week camping periods at Kingswood or Sessions Woods. The counselors for these groups are required to attend the regular counseling training sessions for their particular week at camp. A new dimension has been given to local church camping as the New York City Society and the other agencies along with the Board of Education have cooperatively considered our responsibility to Methodist boys and girls in the inner city. Two units have been set aside at Kingswood and Sessions Woods each for two week periods during the summer of ’65.
Chester E. Grossman, President Latimer B. Neale, Executive Secretary
New York Conference Journal and Yearbook, 1966
Board of Education, p.1072
Property development completed or projected for the coming year include Kingswood: The new unit and water supply system mentioned in the 1965 report were completed and used during the 1965 summer camps. The lake was drained and the swimming area cleaned and sanded and a new dam built during the spring of 1965. The drought of the summer prohibited the lake from being completely filled during the summer, but it will be ready for this season. Two all-steel boats completed the additions to the waterfront. Shower facilities were added at the Barn. No further development is expected until the fall of 1967.
Inner-City Groups: The two-week periods at Kingswood and Sessions Woods during 1965 had many merits. A related program will be carried out in 1966 with some modifications.
The Annual Conference is reminded of the following actions taken at the 1965 session: That every pastoral charge provide at least one adult counselor for the summer camps and addition counselors on the ratio of one to every seven campers or portion thereof and that a pastoral charge unable to provide counselors, be asked to contribute $35.00 to $50.00 to the Counselor Fund for each seven campers or fraction thereof it sends.
Chester E. Grossman, President Latimer B. Neale, Executive Secretary
New York Conference Journal and Yearbook, 1967
Board of Education, p.1455
At Kingswood during 1967-68 several family camping sites will be created.
New York Conference Journal and Yearbook, 1970
Board of Education, p.926
Kingswood – The property is in good shape. The emphasis this summer will be on family camping with a cost of $1.25 per night per family, plus insurance. The beautiful countryside and facilities makes this a wonderful offer for the people of our churches.
Arthur Tedcastle, President Board of Trustees
New York Conference Journal and Yearbook, 1974
Discipleship, p.803
Cases can be cited where campers have learned through first-hand experience the power of love in action. Campers have experienced what it means to forgive. Others have felt for the first time a real concern and interest in themselves from others. Skills have been developed in the arts, worship, and leadership which are useful in the home church. Families have discovered themselves and couples have found renewed reason to reaffirm their commitment to each other.
New York Conference Journal and Yearbook, 1981
Council on Ministries, p.583-84
We are pleased to announce that for the first time in some years Camp Kingswood is offering a rustic program camp (Woodsmoke) for fifth through eighth graders, in addition to their usual family camp site facilities.
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