Last updated: August 18, 2023
Place
Camp Kiwanee Historic District
Photograph by Timothy Orwig, courtesy of the Massachusetts State Historic Preservation Office
Quick Facts
Location:
1 Camp Kiwanee Rd., Hanson, Massachusetts
Significance:
Architecture, Community Planning and Development, Entertainment/Recreation, Social History
Designation:
Listed in the National Register - Reference number 05000081
MANAGED BY:
The Camp Kiwanee Historic District in Hanson, Massachusetts was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. The district is significant for its association with the development of both family and group summer recreation in the area.
The property was first developed by businessman Albert Cameron Burrage and his wife Alice H. Burrage as The Needles, one of their summer estates. The couple sold the property to the Boston chapter of the Camp Fire Girls in 1922. The Camp Fire Girls was one of a number of organizations founded in the first decades of the 20th century to promote outdoor activities for youth. The Camp Fire Girls were distinct from many of these other organizations, which were often tied to church groups, in that it claims to be the "first national nonsectarian interracial organization for girls in the United States." The Boston-area Camp Fire Girls camp was named Camp Kiwanis, after a supportive businessmen's organization that focused on children's charities.
At the first camp session in 1923, 250 girls from Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Massachusetts slept in conical or gabled Army tents without floors, enjoyed a water toboggan slide, and rode horses. Over the decades, the camp built out its physical facilities and changed its name from Camp Kiwanis to Camp Kiwanee, but continued to maintain many of its early traditions. The camp stopped operating out of the Kiwanee facility in 1985, and the property was sold to the town of Hanson, where it continues to serve as a campground and event venue.
The property was first developed by businessman Albert Cameron Burrage and his wife Alice H. Burrage as The Needles, one of their summer estates. The couple sold the property to the Boston chapter of the Camp Fire Girls in 1922. The Camp Fire Girls was one of a number of organizations founded in the first decades of the 20th century to promote outdoor activities for youth. The Camp Fire Girls were distinct from many of these other organizations, which were often tied to church groups, in that it claims to be the "first national nonsectarian interracial organization for girls in the United States." The Boston-area Camp Fire Girls camp was named Camp Kiwanis, after a supportive businessmen's organization that focused on children's charities.
At the first camp session in 1923, 250 girls from Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Massachusetts slept in conical or gabled Army tents without floors, enjoyed a water toboggan slide, and rode horses. Over the decades, the camp built out its physical facilities and changed its name from Camp Kiwanis to Camp Kiwanee, but continued to maintain many of its early traditions. The camp stopped operating out of the Kiwanee facility in 1985, and the property was sold to the town of Hanson, where it continues to serve as a campground and event venue.