Y.M.C.A. CAMP AT THE GORGE. / On this continent the Y.M.C.A. has favored summer camps for both / juniors and seniors. I was privileged to attend the first senior camp / held by the Y.M.C.A. at the Gorge in 1911. Although a junior, I was wel- / comed by the seniors as I was Marine Editor of The Times and was / able to record the activities of this new camp. / At that time the Gorge was noted for its regattas on May 24th and / it had a couple of pubs and very little settlement. The B.C. Electric / Railway had just opened a spur line from Esquimalt Road and was hope- / ful of developing a large amusement centre where the present (1972) / Kinsmen's Park is located. They did erected [sic] a large ballroom, a stage, / a scenic railway, a chute-the-chute and employed some Japanese to / establish a delightful Japanese Garden, with sam pans and a large floating / restaurant, which was reached by the tiypical [sic] three-span arched bridge. / The YMCA first camp had neither piped water nor electric light, but it / was set in primitive forest, with great Douglas firs dominating the area. / A cookhouse was built and two Chinese cooks were engaged to provide / the meals, breakfast and supper, and three meals on Sundays. All the / campers worked in town. Water was hauled from the Japanese tea Gardens / in a large barrel, set amidships of a craft, named Sloppy Liz. Two campers / were detailed each night to get the water, which , after safely reaching the dock at camp, had to be packed in buckets up the slope to a receiving / barrel. / It was a tremendous experience to live under these conditions. We went / into camp on May 24 and remained there until Labor Day, each year. We / enjoyed weekened hikes and most of us had canoes and spent the eventings / paddling "up the Gorge", usually with a girl up front. / I went to camp for five years. In 1915 the First World War was on and / almost all of us enlisted and served overseas. Our camp experiences / were to hold us in good stead when we went under canvas in Canada and / England and then in the mud and murder in France when the sky was our / only cover. / Archie Wills.
Page includes one clipping from The Victoria Times, hand dated 1913, with the note "Written by Archie Wills." Clipping includes a photograph captioned "Y.M.C.A. Campers Once Again Break Camp," and "The Sunday Mid-Day Meal."
Page includes one photograph with a hand-written date and caption. The photo is of a group of young men standing and sitting, with trees in the background, titled "The Bunch. - 1911." The photo was taken by Archie Wills, and underneath is a list of the men shown.
Page includes one photograph with a hand-written title and caption. The photo is titled "The Hospital" and "Plumb, Cheeseman & Wills' bungalow," and depicts a sleeping bungaloww at the camp.
Page includes three photographs, two of which are captioned. The first depicts a group of people on a dock, apparently throwing someone or something into the water. The second is captioned "Sunday Morning Service" and shows a group of people standing together in a clearing. The Last is captioned "The Gorge" and "2 Y camp" and shows the camp, as seen from the water or opposite shore.
Page includes one photograph of a group of young men standing and sitting in canoes and sailing dinghies. Tents from the camp can be seen on the shore, and the fifth bridge over the gorge inlet can be seen in the background.
Page includes one photograph of a group of young men standing in a line with hands on others shoulders. They are standing in front of a tent called "Seldom Inn."
Page includes one photograph of a group of young men sitting at a long table, likely waiting for a meal. The caption is "Ready for the Gong" and Archie Wills is identified with a note.
Page includes one photograph of a group of young men sitting at a long table, after a meal. The caption is "Afterwards. Releived [sic].", and Archie Wills, Geo Robinson, and Stan Young are identified with a note.
Page includes one cut-out of a photograph captioned "Revenge is Sweet", and "Medicine Men at Camp". Image shows one person lying down with a series of others around him. Each person around him is holding a weapon of some sort - an axe, a knife, and a saw. The standing young men are labeled as Wills, McKiel, and Robinson.
Page includes four photographs of water activities. The first shows a group of young men standing on the dock pulling more boys in a boat in, and is captioned "'Sloppy Liz' Loaded". The second photo is of a group of young men standing in a little rowboat in the middle of the Gorge. The third is a cut-out photo of two people in a sailboat, and the fourth is of a group of people in swimsuits jumping into the water.
Page includes one photograph of a large sailing ship sitting at a dock, with industrial buildings in the background. Likely taken from the Western bank of the Gorge looking East, with the Lemon-Gonnason lumber mill visible on the left.
Page includes two photographs, a title, and a hand-written annotation. The page is titled "Some Queer Displays." The top photo shows four of the young men holding three more on their shoulders, making a formation. The bottom photo shows nine young men linking arms in a fan formation, with two more on their shoulders. The young men in the bottom image are identified as McEwan, Dickson, Webster, Plumb, Huddleston, Young, C. Robinson, Wills, McKiel, Denny, and Hodges.
Page includes two photographs, each with a hand-written identification. The top image is an image of a man siting in a canoe, identified as Ernie Crompton. The bottom image is of a man buried in the sand, with his head poking out, and others sitting around him. One of the people in this image is Stan Young.
Page includes three photographs taken on the beach. Each photo focuses on a pair of pants which have been stuffed with sand and then put into various positions, so as to make it look like someone's bottom half is sticking out of the ground.
Page includes three photographs, and is titled "Hike to Metchosin". The first photo is of a group of young men, some eating, some around the fire, sitting on rocks. The next is of a young man getting ready to jump off an old structure into a sheet held by others, and in the last photo it appears to be a staged fight between those on the structure and those on the ground.
Page includes three photographs, and is titled "William Head". The first photo is taken from above and shows a group of young men lying in a triangle shape on the beach, with another young man standing over them. The second is of some young men walking down the beach, and the third is of a group of young men sitting on a hill, taken from below.
Page includes one photograph of a group of young men sitting beside a campfire (out of view). Photograph has a red hue, and is monochrome. Archie Wills is identified.
Page includes one photograph and the title "Canoe Races. Finish of the Fours". Photo is of people standing on the shore and sitting in a canoe watching as three canoes race across the waterway. "Y.M.C.A. Canoes Races. Victoria B.C." is the caption.
Page includes one photograph and the title "Tilting Contest". Photo is of people sitting in a canoe watch others in the waterway stand in a canoe and either try to stay upright or try to tip it over. "Y.M.C.A. Canoe Races. Victoria B.C." is the caption.
Page includes one photograph and the title "Doubles on Stretch." Photograph shows people in double canoes on the waterway. "Y.M.C.A. Canoe Races. Victoria B.C." is the caption.
Page includes one photograph and the title "Singles Well Bunched." Photograph shows a series of people in kayaks and on the dock. "Y.M.C.A. Canoe Races. Victoria B.C." is the caption.
Page includes one photograph and the title "Hike to Duncan. - 1911". Photo depicts a group of young men with trees in the background. Archie Wills is identified.
Page includes three photographs and the title "Cowichan River". Photos depict the Cowichan River railway bridge from various vantage points, and one photo shows three young men climbing one of the supporting posts.
Page includes four photographs and the title "On to Duncan". The first photo shows the group of young men walking along railroad tracks, the second shows the group posing together, the third shows people sitting and standing around with trees in the background, and the fourth shows one figure walking away down a dirt road.
Page includes two photographs, both of the group of young men. In one of the photos they are all gathered around a distance marker, marked with the number 32. In the other they are posed in front of some shrubbery.
Page includes two photographs. One shows a group of young men posing beside the railway tracks, likely on a bridge, and the other shows a group of young men (likely the same as the other photograph) posing around a small post office building.
Page includes two photographs. One shows a group of young men sitting on a rail car, in front of a large house, and the other shows the same group posing in front of a train engine.
Page includes one photograph and the title "At Duncan". The photo shows a series of people standing on a platform, leaning against a railing, with their backs to the camera.
Page includes three photographs and the title "Ready for Big Camp Fire". The outer images show the bonfire preparations, with a person balancing on top of the wooden structure. The center image shows two young men sitting in front of their sleeping bungalow.
Page includes one photograph and the title "Story-Telling". The photograph shows a group of youth around a campfire, listening to one person who is standing and facing them.
Page includes four photographs, each with a caption. The first is of four young men sitting on a beach, with the caption "Beach-Mongers". The second shows three young men sitting in the entrance to their sleeping bungalow, with the caption "Three 'Mutts'". These three boys are identified as F. Elliot, G. Robinson, and McKiel. The third image shows four young men sitting in grass, with the caption "Hooligans", and the fourth shows a group of young men in a large canoe, with the caption "Some Strength".
Page includes one photograph and the title "Nightie-Night-Pyjama Parade". The photograph shows a group of young men standing in a row, some holding lanterns, and all wearing pajamas.
Page includes two photographs and the title "Bivouac at Goldstream". Both photos are taken from the same angle, and show a group of young men standing and sitting in the trees, with food between them. Archie Wills is identified in both.
Page includes the title "The Gorge / Our Summer Home." with a note "opposite present Kinsmen's Park". It appears there once was a photograph on the page, which has since been lost.
Page includes three clippings of a newspaper article, likely written by Archie Wills. One of the clippings is an image of a group of young men sitting by a campfire, with the caption "Campers Listening to a Story". The other two clippings hold the story as a whole, which outlines the events and pastimes of campers who took part in the Y.M.C.A. camp that year, and gives the nicknames that campers used while at the camp.
Page includes three photographs and the title "At Shawnigan Lake". The first photo shows a young man sitting on railroad tracks with the lake behind him. The second shows a train engine coming towards the camera, and the third shows six young men sitting in a line on the railroad tracks, with the lake in the background.
Page includes two photographs and the title "Climbing the Malahat". The first photo shows a group of people walking up a gravel road, with trees on one side and rock on the other. The other photo looks up the mountain, figures are possibly in the distance, it is hard to tell how the light shines.
Page includes three photographs, each with hand-written captions. The first photo shows a group of young men standing and sitting in front of a tent, with the caption "Two Bunches". Both Archie Wills and Fred Wright are identified. The second photo shows two young men sitting on the beach with the caption "'Big' and 'Near Big'". The third photo shows a young man burried in the sand, with only his head poking out, captioned "A Big Pebble". There was a fourth photo which has since been removed, which was titled "One Crowd".
Page includes two photographs and the title "Campers Make Summer Homes Attractive". Both photos shows people sitting or standing in front of their sleeping bungalowws. The men in the second photo are very well dressed.
Page includes one photograph and the caption "Camp Dining Room - 2 Chinese Cooks". The photo shows a group of young men sitting under a tent at long tables, with two cooks holding plates of food. Everyone is looking towards the camera.
Page includes one photograph and the caption "McKiel - Wills - 1914". The photo shows two young men (Wallace McKiel and Archie Wills) standing and sitting in front of a sleeping bungaloww, both holding paddles.
Page includes five photographs, some with captions. The first image shows a group of young men sitting in the grass in front of a small building, with the caption "Another Hike". The second shows the young men standing in a line with hands on others shoulders, with the caption "Camp Scenes". The third shows two young men sitting in the sun, both laughing. The fourth photo shows a group of young men, likely doing the dishes, with the caption "Outdoor Plumbing". The last photo is a group picture, likely of all the young men at the camp.
Page includes three photographs and the title "Hike to Esquimalt 1913". The first photo shows a group of young men standing facing the camera. The second shows the group on a ship, with the caption "Aboard USS West Virginia", and the third shows the group standing in a field.
Page includes one photograph of a group of young men sitting and standing in front of a sleeping bungaloww with a sign that says "CAMP 1913". Many of the youth are holding paddles,.
Page includes five photographs and the title "Beacon Hill Park". The photos are arranged in a greek cross shape, with the four on the outside showing four young men wearing formal attire in various poses. The central image shows two young men standing on some steps.
Item is the Fall Newsletter - Issue 2, for the YM-YWCA of Greater Victoria, dated 2000. The first page shows an image from the first Y.M.C.A. camp in 1911, and has a write-up from Archie Wills, outlining the events from the camp (the same write-up as is on Cover - verso of the photo album).
Page 2 of the Y.M.C.A. Fall Newsletter on Y.M.C.A Newsletter. Page includes a "What's New" section of developments at the Y, a table of contents, and an article about the members of the preschool who are graduating, and moving on to kindergarten.
Page 3 of the Y.M.C.A. Fall Newsletter on Y.M.C.A. Newsletter. Page includes columns titled "Canada Day Dance, Vic West Community Y", regarding the Canada Day event, as well as discussing sponsorship that the Y has received; "Mural Project, Vic West Community Y", which announces the completion of a mural by the Summer Youth Program; "Celebrate, Celebrate, Celebrate, CEO Report", which discusses the turnout at the 125th Anniversary of the Y in the Victoria Community; "The Shoes for Youth Program - Victoria Elementary Schools", which gives information about the Runners of Compassion program, allowing children to acquire proper athletic footwear when they can not afford it.
Page 4 of the Y.M.C.A. Fall Newsletter on Y.M.C.A. Newsletter. Page includes columns titled "How Did We Do?", which is a comment / message board, and "Round Up Days", which details a partnership between the YM-YWCA Outreach Services and Sears, allowing more donations to be made to Outreach Services.
Item is a loose photograph, showing a group of young men facing the camera, all flexing their arms. In the background the Gorge can be seen, with a house on the opposite bank.
Item is a loose photograph, showing a group of young men sitting and standing in front of a sleeping bungaloww, with a gramophone sitting in the middle of the entrance to the tent.
Item is a loose photograph, showing the Y.M.C.A. camp from the opposite shore. In the water people are out in canoes, and people are visible in the camp and on the dock on the shore.
Item is a photo album belonging to Archie Wills. Photo album contains images taken during Wills' time at the Y.M.C.A Summer Camps from 1911-1915, including various expeditions the young men went on, and events at camp. Also included is a newsletter from 2000 which outlines the beginnings of the Y.M.C.A. Summer Camps, and three loose photographs from around the camp.
Young Men's Christian Association; Camps; Dinners and dining; Swimming; Boats and boating; Waterways; Hiking; Hotels; Contests; Races; Railroad trains; Bonfires; Newspapers; United States. Navy; Newsletters; Sports sponsorship
British Columbia--Esquimalt; British Columbia--Victoria; British Columbia; British Columbia--Cowichan Valley; British Columbia--Cobble Hill; British Columbia--Goldstream; British Columbia--Duncan; British Columbia--Shawnigan Lake; British Columbia--Metchosin