Jewish Summer Camps, 1945-1968

Collection Items

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  Camp Tall Trees banner, circa 1950s-1960s

  Cream colored cloth banner with appliqued blue letters reading "Tall Trees JCC." Images of a male figure, a star of David with a tree inside of it, and a female figure--all made of blue cloth--are also appliqued on the front of the banner. The Louisville Young Men's Hebrew Association and its successor the Jewish Community Center held 2-3 week overnight summer camps at Camp Tall Trees in Meade County, Kentucky, about 35 miles from Louisville. In 1966, a section of Otter Creek Park was renovated and opened as Camp Ben F. Washer, the successor to Camp Tall Trees.
  
  
  
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  Camp Riccaree YMHA Day Camp, 1945

  2-page brochure for the June-July 1945 season of Camp Riccaree day camp operated by the Young Men's Hebrew Association in Louisville, Kentucky. The center fold notes "Camp Riccaree operates from the Y.M.H.A. building where are located cabins, craft shops, council ring, and the dining room. The camp is operated during the day with activities and programs similar to a boarding camp. Parks, swimming pools, and other public and private facilities are used as occasions warrant." The brochure details the fees, season and daily schedules, and staff.
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  Y.M.H.A. Camps for a summer of fun, 1950

  4-page brochure for Camp Riccaree in Louisville and Camp Tall Trees in Meade County, Kentucky. The brochure describes the dates, staffing, locations, food, fees, and activities for the Jewish summer camps.
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  Report of Operations: YMHA Camp Tall Trees, 1950

  29-page report on the 1950 season of Camp Tall Trees in Meade County, Kentucky. The Louisville Young Men's Hebrew Association (YMHA) operated the Jewish overnight summer camp.
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  Tall Trees Tower, First Camping Period, June 23, 1951

  Newspaper produced by Jewish counselors and campers of Camp Tall Trees in Meade County, Kentucky. Includes a list of the cabins and campers with "an outstanding characteristic of each camper," and biographical sketches on the counselors. Headlines include "Experiments," "Bravery Department," "The Treasure Hunt," "An Overnight Hike," "The Perfect Boy Camper," "The Chuckle Box," "The Perfect Girl Camper," "Things Most Appreciated This First Camping Season," "Nature Report," "A Report from One of Our Choir Members," "Evening Programs," and "The Swimming Pool."
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  Tall Trees Tower, Second Camping Period, July 14, 1951

  Four-page newspaper produced by Jewish counselors and campers of Camp Tall Trees in Meade County, Kentucky. Includes a list of the cabins and campers with a characteristic of each.
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  Camp staff and proposed salary allowances, circa 1950s

  Handwritten, two-page list of positions and proposed salaries for the Young Men's Hebrew Association's Camp Tall Trees staff. The boarding camp operated during two to three summer sessions in Meade County, Kentucky. The cook, assistant cook, dishwasher, and maintenance and helper positions are notated with "(negro)", while the list otherwise assumes that a white person holds the other roles.
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  Camp Tall Trees pennant, circa 1950s-1960s

  Cream colored felt pennant with blue trim and strips of felt on the left side, a tall tree in blue, and the text "Camp Tall Trees" in blue. On the back is an ink stamp in green with the text "The Felt Crafters / Emblematic Sportswear for Club-Camp-Campus / Factories - Plaistow, N.H. / Made in U.S.A." The Louisville Young Men's Hebrew Association and its successor the Jewish Community Center held 2-3 week overnight summer camps at Camp Tall Trees in Meade County, Kentucky, about 35 miles from Louisville. In 1966, a section of Otter Creek Park was renovated and opened as Camp Ben F. Washer, the successor to Camp Tall Trees.
  
  
  
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  A Summer of Camp Magic: Camp Tall Trees, 1966 Season

  Content note: some imagery and language that stereotypes Indigenous people. Brochure for the Jewish Community Center of Louisville's summer boarding camp called Camp Tall Trees in Meade County, Kentucky. The brochure explains the camp's purpose: "Camp Tall Trees offers your child an opportunity to learn how to work together with youngsters and adults, learn good sportsmanship, and make new friends. / The camp program stresses activities which normally are not available to children in the city. / Camp aims are achieved through supervised programs, including hiking, camp-craft, arts and crafts, cookouts, overnight trips, swimming, archery, sports, games, cabin activities, special programs, and horseback riding."
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  A new CAMP is born!: Camp Ben F. Washer in scenic Otter Creek Park, 1967

  Advertisement poster for the Jewish Community of Louisville's new summer boarding camp in Meade County, Kentucky, named Camp Ben F. Washer. The brochure explains the camp's purpose: "Camp Ben F. Washer offers your child an opportunity to learn how to work together with youngsters and adults, learn good sportsmanship, and make new friends. / The camp program stresses activities which can only be enjoyed in a rural atmosphere. / Camp aims are achieved through supervised programs, including hiking, camp crafts, arts and crafts, cookouts, overnight trips, swimming, boating, archery, sports, games, cabin activities, special programs, and horseback riding."
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  Camp Bulletin, 1968 Season

  Brochure for the Jewish Community Center of Louisville's 1968 summer camps: Camp Ben F. Washer, Camp Ricarree, and Junior Camp.
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  Polio vaccines, 1960

  8mm color film clip of two medical professionals administering vaccines to children at Camp Tall Trees in Meade County, Kentucky. The Jewish Community Center of Louisville hosted the 2-3 week long summer camp in Otter Creek. The children in this film are receiving what was likely the Salk polio vaccine, introduced just five years earlier in 1955. Before this point, many parents dreaded the late summer months when polio cases peaked, and swimming pools were often shut down to try to curb transmission through contaminated water. The year 1952 marked the worst outbreak of polio in the nation’s history, with nearly 58,000 reported cases of paralytic poliomyelitis. The number of cases dropped to just under 3,200 in 1960 and fell to the single digits by the 1980s.
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  Field day at Camp Tall Trees, 1960

  8mm color film clip of field day competitions at Camp Tall Trees in Meade County, Kentucky, as shot by a camp counselor. The Jewish Community Center of Louisville hosted the 2-3 week long summer camp in Otter Creek.
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  Camp Tall Trees store, 1960

  8mm color film clip of the merchandise in the camp store at Camp Tall Trees in Meade County, Kentucky, as shot by a camp counselor. The Jewish Community Center of Louisville hosted the 2-3 week long summer camp in Otter Creek.
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  Camp milk delivery, 1959

  8mm color film clip of a milkman delivering and removing milk churns for Camp Tall Trees, and children dispensing milk. The Jewish Community Center of Louisville hosted the 2-3 week long summer camp in Otter Creek Recreation Area, Meade County, Kentucky.
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  Jewish campers visit a farm, 1966

  8mm color film clip of Camp Tall Trees visiting a farm in Meade County, Kentucky, as shot by a camp counselor in 1966. The Jewish Community Center of Louisville hosted the 2-3 week long summer camp in Otter Creek Recreation Area.
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  Combine harvester in Meade County, Kentucky, 1966

  8mm color film clip of Camp Tall Trees visiting a farm in Meade County, Kentucky, as shot by a camp counselor in 1966. Farmer workers are demonstrating the use of a tractor-pulled combine harvester in a field.
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  Grounds of Camp Washer, 1967

  8mm color film clip of the grounds and facilities of Camp Ben F. Washer in Meade County, Kentucky, as shot by a camp staff member. The Jewish Community Center of Louisville worked with Otter Creek Park to open the new camp grounds by the 1967 camp season.