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Summer camp is often considered a “home away from home,” a place where one can connect with nature, build community, and learn more about themselves. The practice of living with peers in a new environment at a young age gives children a plethora of opportunity to learn. Full of physical, mental, and emotional challenges and rewards for kids of all ages, genders, abilities, and backgrounds. But has it always been this way? When summer camps were developing, women were only just making political and social strides, only tiptoeing into the acceptability of participating in exercise and sport so how was that taken into account. What values were taught to young girls and how did they incorporate the still strong domestic ideals in a space outside of the physical home? Additionally, how was nature used as a tool for escaping industrialization?

As I delved into these topics, I found that primary and secondary sources often looked at different aspects of summer camp. Many of the primary sources were helpful in describing activities, sharing songs, images, and anecdotes, and learning about what advice was given for leadership and programming. While on the other hand, because secondary sources were written in a time when misogyny and bias was more widely recognized, they gave better insight on gender role differences and themes of domesticity and protection of childhood. Traditions of home were strong, though athletics were explored, careful planning of recreation was emphasized, but freedoms were found. Overall, summer camps reflected both the ideals of gender and childhood that were emphasized at the time.