Camp Bothin
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Camp Bothin officially known as the Bothin Youth Center, is a Girl Scout summer camp since 1948 located in Marin County, California. The site is managed by Girl Scouts of San Francisco Bay Area and supported by the Bothin Foundation.
History
Camp Bothin began as a convalescent home for women and children, called Hill Farm established in 1905 near Fairfax, California on property then owned by Henry E. Bothin. The patients were initially housed in an old farmhouse. Normally, Hill Farm was home to 30 patients, but during the summer the mild climate allowed as many as 60 through the use of tents and cots. During this time, Miss Elizabeth H. Ashe was director.
In 1910, a corporation entitled Bothin Convalescent Home for Women and Children was formed. Mr. Bothin deeded 152 acres (615,000 m²) of land to this corporation. The old farm house was torn down and a rustic building, now known as Manor House, was erected that could accommodate 40 patients with deep sleeping porches and an outdoor dinning room.
That same year the Arequipa Sanatorium, directed by Dr. Philip King Brown, was opened to serve women in the first stages of tuberculosis. The name Arequipa, taken from a city in Peru, is said to be a Native American word signifying ‘place of rest.’
Following the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, dust- and ash-filled air contributed to a tuberculosis epidemic in San Francisco. With the help of local artists and members of the area's philanthropic community, Dr. Brown engaged tubercular women in therapeutic handcrafts to combat idleness and avoid the stigma of charity. Arequipa Pottery is now highly prized among collectors.
The ceramics therapy was directed by a succession of nationally known ceramists: Frederick Hurten Rhead, Albert Solon, and Fred Wilde. The master potters were responsibile for shaping the greenware, thus resulting in very dramatic variations in styles; however the surface decorations were added by the patients either in the form of designs painted on the surface or patterns carved into the damp clay. Later, Rhead introduced slip trailing which has become the signature form of decoration of Arequipa pottery.
In 1917, the Bothin Helping Fund was incorporated. This group was responsible for raising the $30,000 need to build Stone House. It was here that professional and business women could come to rest and recuperate after illness.
As treatment methods changed, the need for Bothin dropped. In 1948, Miss Ashe offered a small building now known as Little House to the San Francisco Girl Scouts for troop camping. A few years later Manor House was made available for Girl Scout use and by 1955 the entire Bothin property was offered to the Council for its use. The property was developed for use by Girl Scouts and a pool was added. The name was officially changed to the Henry E. Bothin Youth Center.
In the 50s, Arequipa was closed as a hospital and in 1959 the property was leased to Girl Scouts. By 1963 both sides of the property began to operate as the Henry E. Bothin Youth Center.
Timeline
- 1905
- Hill Farm convalescent home for children opened by Henry E. Bothin
- 1910
- Bothin Convalescent Home Board founded and 152 acres (615,000 m²) is deeded.
- Manor House built.
- Arequipa built.
- 1917
- Bothin Helping Fund was incorporated to distribute funds under the terms of H. Bothin.
- 1919
- Stone House completed.
- 1922-1940
- Bothin is abandoned.
- 1948
- Use of Little House and Bothin property was offered to Girl Scouts.
- 1948-1953
- During this time, 181 troops, representing 2221 Girl Scouts and 556 leaders, made use of Bothin.
- 1954
- Severely crippled and mentally retarded Girl Scouts attend camp sessions.
- 1955
- Use of Bothin offered to Girl Scout for at least 10 years.
- Name changed to Henry E. Bothin Youth Center.
- 1959
- Use of Arequipa offered to Marin Girl Scout Council.
- 1963
- Entire property becomes Henry E. Bothin Youth Center.