Camp Kehonka (1902-1985)

Laura I. Mattoon started Camp Kehonka in 1902, one of the first two summer camps for girls in the country. Kehonka was to become the oldest and finest girls camp in the United States.

Laura Mattoon and her dog Major on Knight's Pond, circa 1934

Miss Mattoon was head of Science at New York City’s Veltin School and known as an exceptional teacher. She wished to show her students a kind of growth and adventure that only the outdoors could offer.  The campers – there were eight of them – slept in tents, built their own furniture, and swam and hiked in New Hampshire’s pristine lakes and mountains.

They lived close to nature and close to the rest of the group.  This was Miss Mattoon’s vision.  It was she who insisted that the dining room encompass a pine tree and that corners of porches be reserved for spiders.  Meals were served family style, and campers joined in planning trips, activities and plays.

Laura Mattoon was a pioneer in the field of camping and in 1924 was elected as the first salaried executive of the Camp Directors’ Association of America (now the American Camping Association). Miss Mattoon served as secretary of the American Camping Association for 15 years.

Miss Mattoon believed that camping is an important means of building character. She taught her campers the pleasures, values, and skills of outdoor life. She shared in the publication of the Camper’s Guidance Manual which emphasized character development and skills in outdoor activities, canoeing, swimming, hiking, arts and crafts, music, drama, and nature studies.

Miss Mattoon’s ideals remained Kehonka’s ideals throughout the decades and benefited thousands of girls from all parts of the world. On its 80^th season in 1981, Camp Kehonka hosted 175 campers from 16 nations.  In addition, there were 60 counselors, something not heard of in the early years when everyone was a camper.