Camp Stephens in the 1940s

Here's a few minutes of old film of Camp Stephens in what appears to the the 1940s, the same year the log cabin was built just above Emblem Rock. There's a few seconds of what looks like the installation of a window.
Whatever year it was shot, life jackets were not mandatory. It appears they weren't even a suggestion.
There was no sound on it, so my youngest and I added music. We hope it fits.
Thanks to Hal Studholme for supplying it.

Chapel Service on 100th Anniversary of Camp Stephens

This is the chapel service on the Sunday of the 100th anniversary, following the banquet and camp directors roast the evening before. (Click to watch)
I don't know the voice behind the camera.
It opens with a quick tour of Lount Lodge, then about 10 years old, and seques to Burton Boryen's (Tutt) participation in the service.
The theme of the service is that while much had changed with the island, like programming and new buildings, a lot had stayed the same since the very early days of Camp Stephens.

Alfred David's War

Alfred David is a legend at Camp Stephens.


He was camp cook for about 40 years. He died April 10, 1962 in Winnipeg after spending his last summer at camp.


He is buried at Brookside Cemetery in Winnipeg.

What's little known is that when he started working at camp in the early 1920s, and for the downtown YMCA during the winter, he was a veteran of the First World War. He served with the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry.



When the war started, David was not a young man. He was 30 when he enlisted Dec. 29, 1914 in Winnipeg.

Alfred David

David was was a soldier on the Western Front and was involved in the second battle of Ypres in the spring of 1915. 


That battle is known for the first use of poison gas in warfare. (Click on the highlighted words to read more about the battle).
David was captured by the Germans and was a prisoner of war until the war ended in the fall of 1918.


David's complete war records are  here.

Page from the regimental diary on day David was listed as missing.

They were supplied to me by Library and Archives Canada. These records belong to the Government of Canada and are stored in Ottawa. Included are his health records, pay records and his will, something every soldier prepared.


I thank Don Cochrane for helping me.


You can read earlier blog posts about David here and here.


"At the going down of the sun and in the morning we will remember them."

More photos added

As promised, here about 550 photos from camp archives collected by Lynda MacIntosh.
Some of you may have seen some of them before. Some of these photos haven't been seen in decades. Each is available for download. The task now is to identify as many people as possible.
To view this, click the play button and then click on bottom right-hand button to watch on full-screen.
I'll add even more and re-post in coming weeks.

I'm also trying to edit them into bite-sized collections for quicker viewing. Please bear with me; I'm learning as I go, too.

Camp Stephens 100th Anniversary~Camp Directors Roast

Following the banquet July 27, 1991 five past and one current camp director reminisced at about their time and the meaning of Camp Stephens.
Featured are Alex Owen (1958-59), Hal Studholme (1964-65), Doug McEwen (1966-70), Punch Jackson (1971-76), Lynda MacIntosh (girls camp), Grant Platts (1980-86) and Bob Picken (1987-??).

There are three parts.

In the coming weeks and months more video of camp back-in-the-day will be posted here.

To read the history of camp, click on Spirited Challenge to read and download. It was written by Picken for the 100th anniversary.

There are also references to the Native Lore program at camp. Bill Owen explains the program, with photos, in this post: Native Lore: In a Different Time.

Part One





Part Two





Part Three

Camp Stephens Newsletter Nov. 2010

Click the link below to download and read the most recent Camp Stephens newsletter:

https://docs.google.com/viewera=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=1HN5PzDuJrURBuJuXbr6nS7BIUdj9iBUaiRGoIDrkOxTwfqB8BJsSPgYkCe07&hl=en

More photos coming

Baseball game on campus, looking towards old rec hall/dining hall. My guess this was taken in 1920s. (click to enlarge)

Lynda MacIntosh has scanned several hundred camp photos from the 1890s to 2005 over the past year.
This was done to preserve old photos like this and to share them using this blog and Facebook.
Most of the photos have sat in boxes for years. Few are labelled.
Most also haven't been seen for years. It's doubtful even the people in them have seen them.
I'll post them in batches as time allows, and put them in some reasonable order.
Please take a look through the two Flickr accounts on the left side column. If you see yourself or someone you know, let me know so that we can begin to properly indentify folks.

Camp Stephens 100th anniversary

This was recorded on the day we celebrated Camp Stephens 100th anniversary

July 27-28, 1991. If you were there that day, you'll recognize where you sat at dinner and where you pitched your tent.

It's from a VHS tape supplied to me by former camp director Hal Studholme. 


At this point I don't know the man behind the camera. As time allows I'll convert more video he shot that day to share here, including the camp director's roast and Sunday's outdoor chapel service. Enjoy.


Hal has more "historic" Camp Stephens on tape, and I'll convert that, too.


Photos of the 100th anniversary are posted here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/campstephensalumni/sets/72157620555151981/

John Prine

When I first got involved at the old St. James 'Y' in the mid-1970s I was introduced to John Prine.
For the next decade I collected a lot of his albums (still do) and learned a lot of his songs by heart. We sang on the camp bus, around the camp fire and when we cleaned the high rises at camp.

Here's one of Prine's best-known songs Dear Abby (Just click on 'slow download' for the mp3).

This version was recorded live at Rockefeller's, Houston, Texas on Feb. 6, 1984

If you want the full show drop me an email and fire you the link.

To learn more about Prine here's his bio courtesy of his label Oh Boy Records.

Cheers, Bruce