OCKLAWAHA COUNCIL 1924 to 1935 (Gainesville, Interlachen)
Ocklawaha Council received its first charter in April 1924, serving the Scouts of Alachua, Marion, Putnam, and St. Johns counties. In later months, the coverage included Flagler, Bradford, Levy, and Clay counties. The first summer camp program under their supervision was in the summer of 1924, at the Rotary Boy Scout Camp on Anastasia Island, outside St. Augustine. That summer, the council obtained a lease for property in Interlachen, later named Camp Charles Francis. Both Rotary and Charles Francis were used simultaneously, but fundraising appeals by the council in 1925 made it clear that funds would be used for the Interlachen camp, as Rotary was not owned by the Boy Scouts. Headquarters for the council was officially in Gainesville, but the council executive established his office at Camp Charles Francis, as that was a halfway point in the council. The title for Camp Charles Francis was later given to a non-profit organization "Charles Francis Camp Inc". In April 1927, Osceola Council was formed, covering the St. Johns, Putnam, and Flagler counties. By the beginning of 1935, Ocklawaha Council had been merged into Greater Jacksonville Area Council. An article in the Florida Times-Union, January 28, 1935, referred to the "newly formed Oklawaha Nation (district), Boy Scouts of America, comprising 12 counties of the State... the old Oklawaha Council was a unit of nine counties, ....., provides for a larger scope of activities.". This new formation was composed of Dixie, Gilchrist, Columbia, Union, Bradford, Sumter, Pasco, Hernando, Citrus, Alachua, Levy, and Marion Counties. By 1940, Sumter, Pasco, Hernando, and Citrus were no longer included.
OSCEOLA COUNCIL 1927 to 1928 (St. Augustine)
In March 1927, Osceola Council was formed out of the eastern end of Ocklawaha Council, with St. Johns, Putnam, and Flagler counties. John J. Sigwald, the field executive in Palatka that covered that area in Ocklawaha Council, was tapped to be the new Council Executive. The initial charter for the council was issued in a public ceremony on April 14, 1927. Camp Charles Francis was utilized by both councils. For 1928, the council arranged for their summer program to be held at Camp Johnston, a Florida National Guard Base (now the site of Naval Air Station Jacksonville). By early 1928, however, the new council was experiencing financial difficulties, with fund-raising pleas that donations were necessary to keep the council afloat. The fundraising fell short: by the end of October, the council needed to raise enough money to pay Mr. Sigwald for one more month, and his employment ended on November 30. A final Jamboree was held on December 1, the last activity of Osceola Council. Afterwards, the council was merged into Greater Jacksonville Council.
KNOWN CAMPS, PROPERTIES, AND CAMP PROGRAM NAMES
ROTARY BOY SCOUT CAMP 1923 to 1926 (Ocklawaha Council)
Before either council was created, there was a Boy Scout camp, on Anastasia Island south of St. Augustine. The camp itself was owned by the local Rotary Club under the name "Boys' Work Inc", on property at the southern end of the island, about one mile from Crescent Beach. Development of the facility required donations of $10,000, in order to construct a pavilion, dock, bath houses, showers, a pumping station, lighting, and an artesian well. Camp opened on June 18, 1924, for a three week period, with 200 Scouts expected to attend. The Rotary Club provided tents, cots, and mosquito nets for the campers. For 1925, the camp also had bunk houses, to accommodate Scouts, as well as other youth and civic groups, and college football training camps. With the availability of the new camp in Interlachen, Rotary Boy Scout Camp was no longer used for council programs.
CAMP CHARLES FRANCIS, also CAMP FRANCIS, 1924 to present (Ocklawaha Council, Osceola Council, Greater Jacksonville Council., North Florida Council) |
Ocklawaha Council received this property in 1924 through a donation by local businessman Charles Francis. The 34-acre camp is located in Interlachen on Lake Lagonda (later named Lake Interlachen), about twelve miles from Baden-Powell Scout Reservation. The camp was officially opened on November 22, 1924. Summer Camp opened in 1925, with a mess hall, a dock on the lake, cabins, and other structures built at the personal expense of Mr. Francis. Mr. Francis died September 23, 1927, and both councils honored him with a memorial in the mess hall in the camp area. By 1930, the camp was no longer used for long-term summer camping, and was used for weekend troop camping, other youth groups in the area, and high school football teams. The property is still operated as a primitive weekend camping venue. Today, the camp property is owned by the Camp Francis Trust, and is operated by North Florida Council.
