Pinewoods Camp is a
traditional dance and
music camp located on 31 acres (13 ha) of woodland between
Long Pond and
Round Pond in
Plymouth, Massachusetts. It is the oldest continuously run folk dance camp in the U.S.,[2] and is arguably the most popular and well-known camp of its type.
History
Initially known as "Pine Tree Camp", Pinewoods was founded in 1919 by
Helen Osborne Storrow as the first National Girl Scout Leadership Training School.[3] In 1933, the facility was converted for use as a dance camp. The name was changed to Pinewoods Camp in 1935.[4] Storrow died in 1944, and left the property to Lily and Rick Conant, who operated the property until 1976. At that time, the Conants transferred its ownership to a newly created nonprofit organization, Pinewoods Camp, Inc., that now runs the facility.[3][5] Pinewoods was added to the
National Register of Historic Places in 2009.[1]
Activities
Each summer, Pinewoods Camp hosts over a dozen sessions, some of which are a week long, and others of which take place over a weekend. Each session features music and dancing educational programs for adults and is run by one of five Program Providers:
Pinewoods has played a central role in the development of
country dance traditions in the United States.[11][12]
Grounds and facilities
Pinewoods's facilities include four open-sided dance pavilions (Hands Across, Pine Hollow, Ampleforth and Newbiggin),[a] a dining hall and kitchen, a camp house, and rustic cabins for up to 140 campers[4] (plus offices, staff housing, and support facilities). Three of the pavilions and the dining hall were renovated as part of a recent[when?] capital campaign and are
handicapped accessible, although some other facilities are not.
Pinewoods grounds
Hunsdon House, a house with several rooms for campers
^"Hands Across" and "Pine Hollow" were originally named "C#" and "C# Minor" respectively, references to
Cecil Sharp. In 2023, the names were changed due to concerns about Sharp's legacy.[13][14]