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Frontier Trading Company Area |
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The subscriber wishes to engage ONE HUNDRED MEN to descend the ST. JOE RIVER, in the Black Swamp, there to be employed for one week as traders, trappers. As a compensation to each man fit for such business, ROOM and BOARD will be given for his services - For particulars, enquire of Eric Shores Council, BSA, or the subscriber, Camp Frontier at Pioneer Scout Reservation. The Expedition will set out from this place.
Step back in time over 200 years before Camp Frontier was home to Scouts. The vast unsettled land was part of a French Territory- west of the Appalachian Mountains and as far north and south as one could hike or canoe.
Before civilization took over, settlers, trappers, fur traders, surveyors, mountain men, pioneers and voyageurs used survival skills, their intellect and humor to make a living on this frontier.
Conditions on the frontier required certain qualities from these bold individuals- strength and vivacity, an adventurous and restless spirit, and a curiosity for the unknown.
Scouts will be given the opportunity to explore their abilities and challenge themselves in the ways of the pioneers.
The Frontier Trading Company is a camper honor program directed towards Scouts 14 years of age and older. Participants will arrive with their troop and stay with their troop until after the opening campfire. From then on, they will begin functioning as their own crew, away from the rest of the camp, for a week-long adventure in the wilds of Pioneer Scout Reservation.
The Scouts will settle at the rendezvous point by the St. Joe River, study, duplicate and implement the tools, skills and ways of the past. There, activities will be limited by their own ambition.
The Scouts will only return to the main camp on Wednesday and Friday evenings.
Further involvement with other Scouts will occur during the Black Powder Outpost on Monday evening, the Starting Place Outpost on Tuesday evening and the Canoeing Outpost on Thursday evening at the rendezvous site.
The Frontier Trading Company is a French fur traders camp located along the St. Joe River, well north of the Maumee and west of the Erie. It is in the western frontier, just outside of Ohio Country, unsettled and unforgiving- this is the Great Black Swamp. It is the year 1740.
We, the Courier-de-bois (runner of the woods), come down from Quebec- that is French Territory- through Lake Ontario and across Lake Erie to Fort Pontchartrain. We were headin' for the Maumee Valley Alas, the Maumee was trapped clean and that's how we ended up here. Most of the traders headed on down the Maumee and took the Portage at St. Mary's River to Fort Miamis- St. Philippe we hear them call it. You see they have the help of the Miami there- good tradin'. We suspect they'll be headed down to the Ohio and then to the Mississippi. We hear New Orleans is the place to be.
This place is a horrific site. The swamp is full of mosquitoes and malaria, and you cannot walk very far in any direction without being up to the belt in mud. Well, not anymore. It has long been drained.] But there is a beauty to it all. You see there is beaver and rodent here like you could not imagine. There is some good fishin' too.
Luckily the Indians have been very good to the French in these parts. The Ottawa are good allies. So are them Shawnee, Delaware, Wyandot and Miami. Some of them are being chased west into Ohio Country by the British. Yeah the Indians are good traders. The British, they have been trying to block our trade routes and steal our business for some time now.
When we're not tradin', we're in these here canoes. Darned things- more holes than our boots- let water in. Anyhow, we usually travel alone. Can't say much for the others. Dat's their business.
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| Who Can Participate? |
Any Scout meeting the requirements for High Adventure activities is welcome to participate. The Scout does not have to arrive with their troop however they must arrive with parents or registered adult leaders. Participants must arrive at the normal time on Sunday with the appropriate medical information and they will be dismissed with the rest of the camp on Saturday. All participants are encouraged to return for subsequent weeks at the normal cost. Pre-registration Is required.
For more information, registration or scheduling, contact the Erie Shores Council.
1-800-241-7293, 419-241-7293
Erie Shores Council, Inc. #460
P.O. Box 337
Toledo Ohio, 43697-0337
The Erie Shores Council's Pioneer Scout Reservation is located 60 miles west of Toledo and is home to Camp Frontier. Pioneer Scout Reservation is comprised of 1,200 acres with flat land, hills, ravines, forests and lakes. The beauty of Pioneer Scout Reservation makes it a natural choice for a Boy Scout camp. Boys attending summer camp at Camp Frontier will find the entire reservation open for their summer experience.
The wide-ranging program at Camp Frontier offers something for every Scout. Older Scouts, who have earned Eagle or are close to that goal, might want to try the Frontier Trading Company program designed with them in mind.
The Frontier Trading Company is supervised by "booshways," leaders of the party of voyageurs, to teach and guide the Scouts throughout their adventure.
Building on the Scout Oath and Law, the Scouts are bound to the Frontiersman Code:
- Respect each other and the outdoors
- Be self-reliant
- Always keep your word
Frontiersman Slogan:
"Aux ailments du pays" (Survive by using the provisions of nature) |
| Equipment Checklist |
- Full Scout uniform
- 1 pair of Long pants, no sweatpants
- 2 pairs of Shorts
- 2 T-shirts
- I Long-sleeved shirt
- Plenty of socks and underwear
- Sturdy boots
- Swim trunks
- 1 Towel
- 1 Bandanna
- Toiletries
- Postcard and journal, pencil, stamp
- Pocket knife
- Medications
- Sunscreen
- Water bottle
- Sleeping bag or blanket
- Small plastic ground cloth
- Backpack and/or day-pack
All other items are either unnecessary or will be provided by the camp. |
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