Camp Fern

Though they had facilitated recreational activities for children on the shores of Fern Lake since 1931, Vernon and Maggie Hilliard officially founded Camp Fern in 1934 with the addition of residential cabins built from logs sourced from the surrounding area. A five-week, all-girls session began each summer, followed by a five-week, all-boys session.

The original activities offered, including English horseback riding, swimming, canoeing, riflery, archery, arts & crafts and educational programs on the natural ecosystem of the Piney Woods of East Texas, all remain. Through the years, more have been added - including water skiing, tennis, boxing, fencing, drama and a ropes course. Additionally, Camp Fern seeks to provide unique cultural experiences - such as the 2015 visit from the Bolshoi Ballet from Moscow, Russia.[2]

Since the beginning, a focal point of camp life at Fern has been tribal competition - in which all campers join one of two tribes (Bena or Owaisso at girls' camp, Caddo or Tejas at boys' camp) that are pitted against each other in a variety of contests throughout the session. [3] On the last night of camp, the result of the session-long competition is announced by revealing that year's "feather" - painted in the winning tribe's color - on a wooden plaque that resembles a Native American headdress.

In 1985, Camp Fern reduced the length of the all-girls and all-boys sessions to four weeks apiece, and added a two-week co-ed session for younger children. Tribal competition is also a part of the co-ed experience, though the rivalry between its two tribes (Cherokee and Apache) is not as intense.

Today, Camp Fern is owned and operated by the third and fourth generations of the founding family. For the past ten years, it has received the Safety First designation from the Markel Insurance Company.[4] In 2008, the remake of Friday the 13th was partially filmed at Fern. [5]

• Kay Bailey Hutchison, former United States Senator from Texas.[6]
• Chandra North, model

• Official website