Camp Tohikanee

"there's no place that I'd rather be, than with you here at Tohikanee..."

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What is Camp Tohikanee?
Tohi is my home, and is to many special people. There is something about Tohi that sets it apart from everything else, that makes it unique. It is a very special place to me, and always will be. Tohi is where I met some of my very best friends, and where I'll continue meeting new friends every summer, as well as reuniting with old ones. Friendships from Tohi last forever, as will our memories.

But What IS It?
Camp Tohikanee is a Girl Scout camp in Quakertown, PA. During the summer, girls ages 6-16 can come for 3-day, 1-week, or 2-week overnight sessions. While at camp, the girls will make new friends, learn new things, and have tons of fun! Every group gets a chance to do some arts & crafts, sports, swimming, and nature, as well as extra activities in their group's theme. We sings tons of really cool songs, too! Campers are grouped with other girls their own age, and sleep in units of platform tents or a-frames. The counselors are all great and the girls will adore them. Many are international, and the campers will get the opportunity to learn about customs and life in other countries as well as maybe some songs and games from around the world. Summer camp, especially Girl Scout camp, is an awesome experience for all girls, and will remain part of their lives forever.

the Essence of Tohi, a.k.a. Tohiness
Tohi is my home, and everybody at Tohi is part of my family. My summers there have been the best times of my life, and the friendships I've made are the strongest I have. The air at Tohi is clean, the atmosphere is open, and the hearts pure. Everybody is welcome and accepted there, and free to be completely themselves. We do crazy and silly things, have tons of fun, have some more fun, and then some. :-) I love all my Tohi friends more than anything, and know they love me right back. The spirit of Tohi is truly unique. After all, it's not everywhere that you can walk around all day wearing mismatched pajama bottoms & top and a yellow party hat with googly eyes and not be given a second glance. You can cover yourself in paint, wear your hair however you like, not shower (eww), whatever. There's never a day when I'm not happy being at Tohi. Camp is really relaxed, and I love the way we do things, and even just hang out, there. I'm so comfortable just being me and loving it. Tohi people, no matter how many summers they are there, leave their marks in Tohi forever. Their spirit lingers behind throughout camp - especially in the dining hall. There are faces we will never forget, personalities that'll always be with us. I remember counselors from years and years ago, and counselors from last year, who aren't returning, and think of all the little things about them that I liked so much. They left their legacies, and made an impact on everybody that knew them that summer. We all change Tohi just by being a part of it. Tohiness is something you cannot fully understand unless you've been there & know what it's all about.

Me & Tohi
I became a camper at Tohi in 1996, and have not stopped coming back since then. In 2001 I was a CIT, and in 2002 I was an intern in arts & crafts. This summer I'll be a counselor. My first time at Tohi, I was nervous of course. I was worried about not knowing anybody, not having fun, being homesick, all of that. But I ended up having such a great time, that now they can't keep me away! Tohi is awesome, and I am never alone, bored, or homesick while I'm there. Once you go to Tohi once and get hooked, you'll wish you became a camper here sooner!

History
(the following information was taken from the GSFVC Virtual Camp website, I did not write it)
     Prior to being a camp at all, Tohikanee was farmland, and before that wilderness inhabited by Native Americans. The deeds of any land in Pennsylvania can be traced back to William Penn, its founder in 1681. The property that makes up Tohikanee, however, was not settled until the 1770’s, when what is now known as Side 1 was purchased by George and Mary Phillips in 1777 from descendants of Penn. What is known as Side 2, (and much of the land surrounding it) was purchased in 1761 by William Bryan from a group of merchants that bought it from Penn himself.
     Traces left by past inhabitants can be found all over camp. The long trails of stones in several of the campsites are the remains of boundary walls laid by farmers, the stones quarried right in camp. The large ravine behind Potawatomi was once a rock quarry, as was a small area in Mahonick.
     The Tohickon Creek, which runs through camp, is the source of water for the lake in the Lake Nockamixon State Park a few miles from camp.
     The camp’s oldest building, The Stone House, built around 1750, is on Side 1 and opposite the Creek House and Camp Office, which was built in 1825. In the 1930’s the farm, became an Episcopal Church Camp, named Camp Tait, after the Bishop of the Philadelphia Diocese. During this period eight cabins and the original swimming pool were built. The pool is gone as are all the cabins except one which is the Nature Center located just inside the treeline between the field area and Achewan. It was referred to as The Coop. The Dining Hall is now what is used as the Arts & Crafts center. Father Lenhart, the Episcopal minister, operated the camp until it was purchased by the Bucks County Council of Girl Scouts on September 17, 1952 for $50,000.
     Although the exact dates are unknown, The Hi-Bucks House style suggests it was built in the 1820’s.
     The original 86 acres was in the shape of an Indian Head which is used as the camp symbol. This land was all on the east side of the Tohickon Creek.
     The name was selected in a contest among the troops and the winning name of Tohikanee was suggested by a troop from Andalusia in lower Bucks County. The name in Indian means:deer bone creek OR stream over which we pass by means of a bridge of driftwood.
     Resident camp began the summer of 1953 with the three original units, Quetit, Achewan, and the original Hempsigawan now abandoned. Wyconda followed in 1955, Pioneer in 1961 and Sacajawea in 1962.
     In the spring of 1959, two adjoining farms were up for sale. In this area, across the creek, was built the dining hall, the swimming pool, the infirmary and Hi-Bucks, for $92,000. An additional eight acres, which included the Rangers House, were purchased in 1966 to give us the present 235 acres.
     The 191 ˝ foot long "Cookie Bridge" was built in 1963 at a height five feet about the known highest flood level which is marked on the Spring House by the creek. This finally gives us easy access to the west side of the creek. The following areas were developed as folows:
                    Mahonick 1963                          Kikehuwet (Infirmary) 1968
                    Potawatimi 1964                          Swimming Pool 1969
                    Hempsigawan 1965                      Dining Hall and Cook’s Cabin (Driftwood Manor) 1970
     Here is a list of the unit names, how they are pronounced and what they mean.
Achewan: (a chee wan) – named for the Achewan tribe of the Central Plains Indian nation.
Quetit (kweet it) – Native American term meaning hot and humid region that is not good for settlement.
Wyconda (why con dah) – Native American term meaning rocky home where mushrooms grow – or shady river bank.
Pioneer (pie oh near) – A person or group that originates or helps to open up a new line of thought or activity; a new method or technical development.
Sacajawea (sack ah ja wee ah) – Named for Sacagawea, a young woman of the Shoshone tribe who acted as a guide to the Lewis and Clark expedition.
Hempsigawan (hemp see gah wan) – A Native American term meaning where weaving grass grows strong.
Potawatomi (pot ah wah toe me) – Named for the Potawatomi tripbe of the Eastern Woodlands Indian Nation.
Mahonik (ma ha nick) – Named for the Mohican tribe of the Eastern Woodlands Indian Nation.
Driftwood Manor – Renamed from Cook’s Cabin by the summer staff of 1981.
Nature Center – Renamed from The Coop. One of the original cabins when the camp was purchased, the name used to hang above its door."



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