June 2016 History Spotlight: Summer at King’s

What does a college do with itself during the summer?

Royal Rocket student workers
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What does a college do with itself during the summer?

In the mid-1960s, King’s not only had the famous property at Briarcliff Manor, but it also owned a Mediterranean-style mansion in Ossining that was used for additional student housing. Before becoming a King’s residence, it had been first a golf club and then a swim club before going out of business. When the College acquired the property, it still had a pool. Athletic director Norm Wilhelmi, who served at King’s from 1954 to 1973, came up with an idea to hold a day camp on the property during the summers. According to alumni memory, it got started in 1965, and its name was Royal Rock.

King’s students, of course, helped staff the camp. They worked not only as counselors, but also as bus drivers and monitors who picked up children to attend Royal Rock from the Briarcliff Manor area (this driver/monitor arrangement was partly responsible for the marriage of Gary Corwin and Dotsie Fesmire, who worked at Royal Rock in the late 60s). Royal Rock had more long-term staff as well: Richard Johnson served as Camp Director under Mr. Wilhelmi’s guidance in the early years, later followed by Dr. George Lawther. And Marty McCandless, the late wife of former Admissions Director Roy McCandless, ran the smallest participants’ Tiny Tots program for almost the entire life of Royal Rock, minus its first three years.

Royal Rock brochure

 

A 1973 brochure[1] describes a typical Royal Rock day:
9:15 – flag ceremony
9:15-10:15 – swim and craft lessons
10:15-11:15 – hike, archery, fishing, boating, etc.
11:15-12:00 – crafts, swimming
12:00-1:00 – lunch/stories
1:00-2:15 – active game time
2:15-2:30 – snack break
2:30-3:30 – pool programs and free swim
4:00 – end of day

 

Even a few memories from students who worked at Royal Rock indicate quickly that it was a lively event, run with considerable imagination. Dotsie Corwin ’69 recounts, “We had backwards day when everything was backwards, including driving the bus backwards up the long drive and beginning the day with the usual end of camp. One time we drove all the kids down to Croton Point to meet RedBeard, who came in on a raft, all covered with seaweed.” One of the camp’s more iconic features was the Royal Rocket, a train or series of train-car shaped floats on which Coach Wilhelmi would treat the kids to a ride.

Royal Rocket color

Royal Rock came to an end in the early 1980s, toward the end of Dr. Robert A. Cook’s presidency at King’s, when the Ossining property was sold. The land, which was situated on a hilltop with gorgeous views of the Hudson River, was subsequently divided up, and homes were built around a residential loop called Hudson Watch Drive.

Perhaps that seems like a dismal ending. But given the sustainability obstacles present with the institution from the beginning of its sojourn in Briarcliff Manor, it seems more fitting to focus on the enthusiasm and apparent community spirit with which King’s conducted itself in that location. By all accounts, those qualities made it a blessing to the surrounding community in more ways than one—with Royal Rock being just a small part of that picture.

While the College no longer has idyllic facilities for children’s summer camps, it does make its world-class living situations available for students and young professionals pursuing their calling through summer jobs and internships in New York City. If you’d like to have a look, and especially if you know a young person who fits that description, please visit NYCIntern.org.

And there’s even a new twist on camp for intellectually curious high school students. The Summer Academy is a weeklong camp designed for students who love ideas and want to understand the philosophical foundations of modern society. King’s faculty use original source readings, lectures, and discussions to broaden students’ understanding of the ideas that animate our society, and round out the experience with the finest resources of New York City: museums, historic sites, and other attractions. Summer Academy students can choose between two study tracks according to their interests: Politics and Government, or Media and Journalism.

Colleges do different things with their summers according to what they have to offer. Although that has changed significantly over time at King’s, what was true at Royal Rock is still true at 56 Broadway: King’s uses summers to play to its strengths, and to bless the communities in its reach.

Additions? Corrections? Tips for future history spotlights? Email Emily!


[1] Courtesy of Jay Wilhelmi


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