Registration Open For 2011 History Camp

The Newtown Historical Society announces that registration is open for its 2011 Summer History Camp. The camp will take place at the Matthew Curtiss House, 44 Main Street, the week of July 11–15. This camp is for children ages 8–10. It will offer these children the chance to step back to 1750 and spend some time living the life of a Colonial child.

The camp, in its sixth year, is the brainchild of historical society trustee and former history teacher Gordon Williams. The camp had been a dream of his for many years. After he was no longer president of the historical society, Mr Williams had time turn his dream into a reality.

For the five days that the camp is in session, Mr Williams and three other adults, all educators, guide the campers through hands-on pursuits. From the moment they cross the threshold of the historic house until they go home, children are engaged in activities from another era, each day offering new adventures.

By the time last year’s campers had written their names with quill pens on name tags, they were at ease. By the time the girls had decorated “mop” caps sharing buttons and bows, and the boys had cut out and sewn their own vests, they had begun to make friends. Like last year’s children, this year’s campers will learn the real meaning of “Sleep tight, don’t let the bedbugs bite” and other homilies from the Colonial era.

Every summer the campers make their snacks the old-fashioned way. They shake jars of cream to make butter, crank the grinder of an old-fashioned ice cream maker, and even help prepare the fruit cobblers that are baked on an open hearth… all of which are shared after cooking, of course.

Besides the cooking, campers get to play some of the games their Colonial counterparts played. Graces (an activity that involves throwing small hoops into the air and catching with sticks), hoop rolling, and cat’s cradle are just a few of the games that engage the campers on the back lawn of  Curtiss House. One of the highlights of these activities is learning to play marbles with their own handcrafted and painted marbles, made as they were centuries ago.

Children also learn to weave their own baskets, make bricks, as well as practice the art of tinsmithing, creating their own lanterns.

Many past campers encouraged by their summer experience have come back as junior docents conducting tours of Matthew Curtiss House. Some campers have even returned to History Camp as junior aides. Parents and campers alike have praised the history camp experience as one that has enriched their knowledge and view of a bygone era.

Cost of the camp is $150 for the week ($135 for Newtown Historical Society members). To reserve your child’s opportunity to attend, send a nonrefundable $25 deposit (which will be applied to the camp fee) to Newtown Historical Society Summer Camp — Attn Gordon Williams, PO Box 189, Newtown CT 06470.

For additional information, call Mr Williams at 203-426-6443.