Sign
A 22″ x 28.5″ sign for the successful campaign to authorize the Town of Westford to purchase East Boston Camps in 2005. CPA funds were used for the purchase. According to the Friends of East Boston Camps website, in 1937, Isabella and Sarah Hyams sought to create a “Fresh Air Camp” for the children of East Boston, who were then suffering through a tuberculosis epidemic. The land surrounding Burge’s Pond was purchased from such residents as Oscar Spalding (1867-1941), Allister MacDougall (1891-1989), and Charles Hildreth (1879-1968). This property was owned by the Hyams foundation and run by the East Boston Camps Social Centers until 2005. Names of the original three camps around Burge’s Pond were Wakitatina, Cielo Celeste, and Nashoba (the Boys Camp). Today, the management of the “Stony Brook Conservation Land” is split between the Conservation and Recreation Departments. As well as the town still running the summer camps, there are public trails and rental properties.
W.2005.23