DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF A 
 LONG AND ACTIVE LIFE 
 
Class Jj^/t2.j 
 BookJ.,^-5_iX- 
 
Extra copies of this book have been 
 printed and will be presented to any 
 who would value them. Request should 
 be sent to D. C. Rogers, 319 Elm Street, 
 Northampton, Mass., or P. K. Rogers, 
 21 Camp Street, New Britain, Conn. 
 
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 ^<x'2'^2-<.y^--^ 
 
DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 RECOLLECTIONS OF A 
 LONG AND ACTIVE LIFE 
 
 THE AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL NOTES OF 
 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 EDITED BY HIS GRANDCHILDREN 
 
 NEW BRITAIN, CONNECTICUT 
 1917 
 
Lf\z3/7 
 
 •025" /?3 
 
 THE RXIMFORD PRESS 
 CONCORD, N. H. 
 
 D. of D. 
 
 (AN 1 5 ' ' 
 
PREFACE 
 
 Mr. Camp was already a very old man when he began 
 to put together on paper the reminiscences which are col- 
 lected in this little volume. His strength failed before 
 his undertaking was completed. Of some portions of his 
 life there are parallel accounts in his manuscript. Some 
 prominent topics are left quite unmentioned. 
 
 In the preparation of these memoirs for publication 
 brief statements on the subjects which are omitted from 
 his own account have been inserted in bracketed para- 
 graphs. It is the desire of his grandchildren to add here 
 a brief mention of some of the distinctive impressions 
 which his life has made on them. 
 
 As small children they found him warm-hearted, gener- 
 ous to their faults, interested in their thoughts and wishes, 
 skillful at tempting them into interest in serious pursuits, 
 courteous to every one including themselves, an unfailing 
 example of industry and sagacity and of religious devo- 
 tion and reverence. In later years they found the same 
 characteristics continued. It was typical that each time 
 as they returned for college vacations he would question 
 them as if they were his equals and as if the details of 
 their affairs were matters of large importance. 
 
 Having received the beginnings of his education and 
 religious training with a much earlier generation, he had 
 kept through his life the habits of reading and of obser- 
 vation of people which are indicated in his own account 
 of his youth. The result was an unusual progressiveness 
 of spirit, openmindedness for new points of view, and 
 generosity for the opinions of those who differed from him. 
 In him these traits proved to be thoroughly consistent 
 with clear convictions and ideals, and with unswerving 
 loyalty to them. Paragraphs from Mr. Camp's own pen, 
 in the pages that follow, give evidence of a deep religious 
 experience. It is for us to record the fact that long years 
 of active living realized the religion of aspiration with 
 singular completeness. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 I Parents and Early Life 1 
 
 II Teaching in Public Schools 11 
 
 III Visit to New York and Ohio 19 
 
 IV Meriden and Teachers' Institutes 25 
 
 V State Normal School 29 
 
 VI Visit to Europe 48 
 
 VII Annapolis — Bureau of Education — New 
 
 Britain Seminary 58 
 
 VIII Our Boarders 63 
 
 IX Second Visit to Europe 65 
 
 X Literary Work 70 
 
 XI Financial and Civic Interests 73 
 
 XII Religious Training and History 78 
 
 XIII Later Years 91 
 
CHAPTER I 
 PARENTS AND EARLY LIFE 
 
 In compliance with the requests of my sisters and others, 
 the following recollections of a long and busy life have been 
 placed on paper. While the account necessarily includes 
 much of personal history, much has been omitted. As 
 the narrative is designed merely for the members of my 
 own family and my nearest friends, I have not hesitated 
 to include personal experiences which may have an interest 
 for them, though they would not be expected to interest 
 the general public. 
 
 My life has been a varied one, partly because I have been 
 affected by circumstances beyond my control, — a frail 
 constitution, disease, disappointments, trials, lack of 
 intimate friends in early life, — and partly through my 
 own mistakes, but at all times and in all circumstances I 
 have seen the leadings of a kind Providence, for which I 
 have reason to be supremely grateful. 
 
 My father was Elah Camp, son of Nathan Ozias Camp, 
 and a descendant of Nicholas Camp of Nasing, Essex 
 County, England. My mother was Orit Lee Camp, 
 daughter of Eber Lee, of Guilford, Connecticut. On her 
 mother's side, she was a descendant of Theophilus Eaton, 
 the first governor of New Haven Colony. 
 
 My grandfathers were both farmers, each living some 
 two miles from church, post-office, stores, and principal 
 places of business of his native town. The home of my 
 grandfather Camp was in the South West District of 
 Durham, Connecticut, and that of grandfather Lee in the 
 north part of the Nutplains District of Guilford. The 
 farms of both were diversified, consisting partly of land 
 suitable for tillage and partly of hilly and stony land used 
 only for pasturage or woodland. 
 
 1 
 
2 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 My parents, thus, were both reared in farming com- 
 munities, enjoying such privileges and subject to such 
 privations and limitations as were connected with agricul- 
 tural life in the latter part of the eighteenth and the first 
 part of the nineteenth centuries. 
 
 My grandfather Lee was a soldier in the Revolutionary 
 War, and after his return from the war, opened a free 
 evening school where the boys and young men of the 
 vicinity could study arithmetic and geography, studies 
 which at that time were not allowed in the public schools. 
 My father was in the army for a time during the War of 
 1812. Both had many interesting stories of events in 
 the wars for their children and grandchildren. 
 
 My parents received such education as the public 
 schools of that time afforded, with a little help from short 
 terms in private schools. Both were teachers in the 
 public schools of Guilford, and my father taught in a 
 public school in Durham. His principal occupation was 
 farming and stock raising. His teams, which were mainly 
 employed on the farm and in taking produce to market, 
 were sometimes engaged in transporting the goods of 
 others. 
 
 I was born at Durham, October third, 1820. The home 
 of my parents and my own home for the first eighteen 
 years of my life was in the South West School District of 
 Durham. 
 
 This district included a cluster of about twenty-five 
 homesteads, chiefly farmhouses with farms adjoining 
 them, situated in the extreme southwest corner of the 
 town, and extending for more than a mile and a half on the 
 New Haven Turnpike and nearly as far on an old road 
 partly parallel to the turnpike. The hamlet was separated 
 from the center or business portion of the place by more 
 than a mile of vacant land, some of it swampy, on which 
 was no building of any kind. 
 
 Most of the proprietors were farmers with small hold- 
 
PARENTS AND EARLY LIFE 3 
 
 ings. Hay, grain, and apples were the principal products. 
 On some of the farms were a few cattle, horses, and sheep. 
 In this hamlet there dwelt two or three carpenters, two 
 shoe-makers, and a blacksmith. The produce of the 
 farms not used by the families was exchanged at the stores 
 two miles distant for groceries and other goods, or sold to 
 workmen in the shoe shops, or marketed at New Haven 
 and Middletown. Nearly all the houses were occupied 
 by the persons who owned them, or by those employed in 
 service by the owners. 
 
 My father's farm was the largest in this hamlet and he 
 ■employed the greatest number of "hired help." Adjoin- 
 ing the farm was a mountain lot from which wood was 
 obtained and on which his flocks were pastured in suminer. 
 He also owned in Great Swamp more than a mile from 
 home a meadow lot where the young cattle were pastured 
 in the spring and from which several tons of hay were 
 obtained in the summer. 
 
 It has been my fortune to see many changes in society 
 and in manners and habits. In my childhood there were 
 no railways, telegraphs, telephones, or electric lights. 
 The public travel was by stage-coach, steamboat, or canal- 
 boat. Houses were lighted with tallow candles, and 
 a few rooms were warmed by wood fires in open fire-places, 
 but usually the chambers and many of the lower rooms 
 had no artificial heat, having to depend on the sun's 
 rays for whatever heat was obtained. 
 
 In farmers' families the meat supply for the year con- 
 sisted chiefly of beef and pork salted down in barrels in the 
 autumn, with perhaps a few hams cured at home and 
 sausages made at home. The killing of hogs or cattle 
 on the larger farms in the autumn or early winter provided 
 fresh meat for the neighborhood for a few weeks, and in 
 most families the occasional killing of a fowl varied the 
 meat supply at all seasons of the year. 
 
 Bread and cakes made from rye and buckwheat raised 
 
4 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 on the farm, with corn-meal cooked in a variety of ways,, 
 constituted the principal articles of cereal food. A few 
 pounds of wheat flour bought for some special occasion 
 varied the diet. 
 
 The clothing was chiefly made in the family, and in 
 my early home, largely from wool sheared from my father's 
 flock or from flax raised on the farm. In winter, boys 
 wore woolen caps made by their mothers, and in summer, 
 hats braided from the straw from which the grain had been 
 threshed. 
 
 The household work in our home was generally done 
 by my mother, or if help was employed in the family it was 
 usually some American girl. 
 
 There were few books in my early home, except the 
 Bible, Scott's Commentaries, a few hymn or psalm books, 
 a few religious books, and a few old school books. A 
 weekly newspaper was received part of the time. Postage 
 on letters depended on distance carried as well as on 
 weight. 
 
 In the hamlet was a one-room schoolhouse located on the 
 highway. There was a similar school in the Union Dis- 
 trict a mile distant. Both of the district schoolhouses in 
 which the first eight years of my school life were passed 
 were one-room buildings with long writing desks against 
 the walls on two sides of the room. In front of these 
 desks were long benches made of plank or slabs. When 
 writing or using slates and pencils, the pupils turned 
 around with backs to the room and feet under the desks. 
 Near the center of the room were lower narrow benches 
 without backs for the younger pupils. A small box- 
 stove for wood supplied warmth for the room. The 
 writing was with pens made of goose-quills, in homemade 
 books formed by folding sheets of foolscap and placing 
 them in brown paper covers. 
 
 The principal thoroughfare in Durham was a turnpike 
 extending from New Haven to Middletown through 
 
PARENTS AND EARLY LIFE 5 
 
 Durham and past my parents' and my own home. Stage- 
 coaches and other vehicles were seen passing on this road 
 with frequency. There were toll-gates in Northford and 
 Durham. 
 
 Besides agriculture and the breeding and raising of live 
 stock, the principal business in Durham for twenty or 
 thirty years after the War of 1812, was the manufacture of 
 shoes. The leather and other materials were brought from 
 New Haven or Middletown by ox or horse teams, and 
 the finished products were transported to these ports for 
 shipment in the same way. The distance of the shops 
 from Middletown was about six miles, and from New 
 Haven three times as far, but the greater part of the 
 traffic was with New Haven. My father's teams were 
 employed a part of the year in this transportation and 
 in taking the products of his own and other farms to 
 market. 
 
 One winter when the harbor of New Haven was frozen, 
 and ships could not come to the wharves, there was a 
 scarcity of sugar in the city. My father, learning that 
 there was an abundant supply at Middletown, bought 
 several loads in hogsheads and barrels, and had it carted 
 by teams to New Haven, selling it at a good profit. The 
 gun barrels for the firearms manufactured at Whitney- 
 ville, Connecticut, were formed at Higganum, and trans- 
 ported from that place through Durham to the factory at 
 Whitneyville where the guns were finished. My father's 
 teams were used in this transfer. 
 
 At some seasons of the year considerable freight passed 
 between Hartford, Middletown, and New Haven over the 
 turnpike. Mail stages passed over the road every day, — 
 sometimes as many as four or six four-horse stages might 
 be seen in a line, all going in the same direction and all 
 filled with passengers. A home on such a thoroughfare 
 though far removed from the excitements of city life was 
 by no means a lonely place. 
 
6 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 My mother taught me to read, and I was sent to the 
 district school quite young. At first I attended the 
 school a quarter of a mile from our home for four months 
 in the year, but when eight years old I also attended 
 the same school when open in the Union District, more 
 than a mile away, for another four months. The latter 
 school was reached by a lonesome route which for most 
 of the way was by a footpath across the fields. 
 
 The teachers in the public schools seldom remained 
 more than one term, the schools being taught by a man 
 in the winter and by a woman in the summer, a change 
 being made each spring and autumn. There were few 
 classes in the public schools except in reading and spelling 
 and sometimes in grammar. In arithmetic, geography, 
 and some of the sciences, each pupil studied by himself, 
 and recited when the teacher could find time to hear a 
 lesson. The winter schools would sometimes have as many 
 as seventy or eighty pupils of different ages from four 
 years to eighteen. There was of course very little of 
 thorough teaching. 
 
 At about twelve years of age I was sent to a small 
 private school taught by Mrs. Goodwin, widow of Dr. 
 Goodwin, and by her niece. Miss Urania Stone. These 
 teachers were cultivated women, thoroughly educated, 
 and their influence over their pupils was great and highly 
 beneficial. 
 
 After a few terms in this school I was transferred to the 
 Academy, the sessions being held sometimes in the 
 Academy building on Durham Green, and part of the 
 time in a building on Durham Street. The former place 
 was two and a half miles, and the latter three miles from 
 my home. The teachers were Benjamin Coe and Gaylord 
 Newton. 
 
 The vacations and a portion of the summer months 
 were passed in labor on the farm, — tending the sheep on 
 the mountain lot, driving young cattle to the swamp 
 
PARENTS AND EARLY LIFE 7 
 
 meadow and watching them there, or assisting in cultivat- 
 ing the fields or in gathering the crops. 
 
 While attending school I was accustomed to give 
 several hours daily, both before and after school, to the 
 care of the stock or to other work on the farm. I was 
 expected to rise at four o'clock, or half-past four, both 
 winter and summer. In winter the feeding of horses, 
 cattle, and sheep had to be done before breakfast, and 
 in summer, work in the garden, grinding scythes for the 
 mowers, driving the cows to pasture, and other farm work, 
 all had to be performed before I started on my walk of 
 two and a half or three miles to school. 
 
 As my mother's parents resided in Guilford, we often 
 went there on visits to her father's home. The numerous 
 incidents which her father recalled from the Revolutionary 
 War were very interesting to me. He was at Greenwich, 
 Connecticut, at the time of the British attack, and though 
 he did not see Putnam's escape, he was at the place a few 
 hours afterward, and he saw distinctly the impress left 
 by the feet of Putnam's horse, as he rode down a steep 
 bank, — not down stone steps as represented in the school 
 books. 
 
 The route to Guilford was usually through "the farms," 
 a series of pastures and wood lots separated by fences 
 with gates at the road crossings. We would sometimes see 
 foxes, squirrels, rabbits, or partridges as we drove by the 
 woods. The road passed Quonepaug Lake where we 
 frequently stopped to fish. A little distance from my 
 grandfather's farm was a large lot in which were large 
 quantities of huckleberry bushes with plenty of berries 
 at the proper season, and my sisters and I picked many 
 baskets full in berry time. 
 
 I attended school for several weeks in Guilford, in the 
 Clapboard Hill District, with a pleasant teacher, and in 
 the Nutplains District, with one who seemed to me to 
 be ill-natured. We often visited with cousins at the 
 
8 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 Bishops' and Dudleys', three miles from my grandfather's 
 home. 
 
 My father believed in teaching his children self-reliance 
 early, and in placing upon them responsibilities which 
 would tend to develop that trait of character. Perhaps 
 because I was the eldest of the family, or because the next 
 two children were girls, a large share of responsibility 
 rested upon me, more than upon any of my sisters or 
 brothers. This was the case not only in matters relating 
 to the care of the stock, and the work on the farm, but in 
 business transactions. Thus before I was fifteen years 
 of age I was entrusted with buying horses, cattle, and 
 sheep, and was frequently sent to market at New Haven 
 and Middletown, with wood, meat, and other produce of 
 the farm. 
 
 Through such a trip made while I was a mere boy, my 
 first knowledge of New Britain was obtained. I was sent 
 from Durham to White Oak, in Plainville, on a business 
 matter, and thus drove through New Britain village. I 
 little thought then that my home would ever be in that 
 place, or that it would ever become a flourishing manufac- 
 turing city. My mother did not think that I was old 
 enough to go far from home alone and among strangers, 
 and many anxious hours she had while I was away. 
 
 On one occasion, I was sent from Durham to Westbrook 
 for a load of shad. An uncle, my father's brother, had an 
 interest in the fishing company and provided a place for 
 my horse and gave me a bunk in a fish-house with the 
 fishermen. I enjoyed my stay, also the special dishes of 
 the place, which were fish taken fresh from the water, 
 nailed to a plank, and broiled before an open fire, and 
 chowder such as is found nowhere but in a fishing station. 
 The weather was unfavorable for catching fish, and I 
 was detained several days before I could get the quantity 
 wanted. My mother became so anxious about me that 
 
PARENTS AND EARLY LIFE 9 
 
 she had a messenger sent to find me. He met me on my 
 way back some distance from home. 
 
 I intended to have a college course, and my purpose was 
 encouraged by my mother who gladly did all that she 
 could to further my plans for a liberal education; but 
 the income from a farm, much of which was rough and 
 stony, was barely sufficient to furnish comfortable support 
 for a growing family, and I could expect little help from 
 my father. During the years from 1836 to 1838 I was a 
 part of the time in the Academy taking some special 
 studies, and part of the time at home. My health was 
 not good. A part of the time I was at work on the farm. 
 Sometimes I took business trips for my father to Middle- 
 town, New Haven, and elsewhere. Finally my father 
 had a severe and protracted illness, and my continuous 
 presence at home in the care of his business and of the 
 family became for a time necessary. I studied some, 
 read more, and became especially interested in the revival 
 of educational enthusiasm which occurred in these years. 
 However occupied, I still held to my purpose to go to 
 college. 
 
 While I was still engaged in studies preparatory for 
 college, a serious illness occurred which weakened my 
 constitution, left me nearly blind, and necessitated a 
 change in my plans of life. All books and papers were 
 forbidden, and I was kept in a darkened room for what 
 seemed to me a long time. When able to bear the light, I 
 found employment on the farm and in driving to New 
 Haven, Middletown, and elsewhere on business. As soon 
 as possible I resumed my studies, taking Latin, book- 
 keeping, surveying, and higher mathematics, in prepara- 
 tion for a business life. I had at different times taken the 
 place of an absent teacher for a day, and had heard some 
 recitations in the Academy. At the age of eighteen I was 
 requested to teach the school at the center of North 
 
10 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 Guilford. My plans of life had been frustrated, and my 
 studies had been interrupted. Two sisters and two 
 brothers had become helpful in the family at home, so 
 my services were not so much needed as before. My 
 health was not yet fully restored and I seemed to be 
 ready for some change. I knew nothing of the place or 
 the school, but it seemed an opportunity for some good 
 to others and perhaps to myself. I accepted the proposi- 
 tion and became a teacher. 
 
CHAPTER II 
 TEACHING IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 The school was to commence the Monday after Thanks- 
 giving, the examination to be on the previous Sunday 
 evening. My father took me to the home of the clergy- 
 man, the Rev. Mr. Whitemore, where were gathered the 
 school visitors, consisting of the pastor, two deacons, a 
 doctor, and a justice of the peace. The visitors, with the 
 school text-books in their hands, proceeded to question 
 me from them. The examination seemed to be satis- 
 factory, and a certificate was given. I was to "board 
 around." 
 
 On going to the schoolhouse on Monday morning, I 
 found a low unpainted building with one room and a small 
 entry. On three sides of the room were desks against the 
 wall, with long slab seats in front of them. When the 
 pupils wrote they turned their feet over the benches and 
 faced the wall. There were a few small benches in the 
 middle of the room for the younger pupils. These 
 benches had no backs, and were so high that the smaller 
 children sitting on them could not put their feet on the 
 floor when sitting upright. 
 
 There was a small wood stove in the room, but no wood 
 had been provided. It was a cold morning, so with some 
 of the older boys I went to the neighboring woods and 
 picked up fallen limbs sufficient to maintain fire for the 
 day. Before night wood was supplied by the committee. 
 
 At my boarding place my room was cold, and the only 
 warm room was the living room where the cooking was 
 done, the meals eaten, young children dressed and un- 
 dressed, and the ordinary domestic work of a farmer's 
 family performed. As I had taken no books with me 
 except what were at the schoolhouse, I asked for a book 
 
 11 
 
12 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 to occupy my time. The only one that could be found was 
 an old edition of Murray's Grammar. 
 
 I passed the three months of that winter in this farming 
 town, boardiVig in many homes and gainjng some valuable 
 lessons in the study of human nature. 
 
 There was little excitement in this community, but the 
 ordinary routine of a farming village had its interests. A 
 debating society was organized, and some of the debates 
 exhibited the results of careful reading and much general 
 knowledge. As my school was in the center district of the 
 society, the meetings were near and convenient to attend. 
 I formed some pleasant acquaintances, became much 
 interested in the work of teaching, and began to see its 
 opportunities of usefulness. My sister Elizabeth taught 
 the school the following summer. 
 
 At the close of the term I returned home with thirty- 
 nine dollars, the reward for three months' work in a dis- 
 trict school. As I was under legal age the money was 
 given to my father, and I was at work on the farm the 
 following summer, giving my spare time to reading and 
 study. 
 
 Frustrated in my plans for a complete college course, 
 and pleased with my success in teaching, I now determined 
 to prepare myself for the business of a teacher. The State 
 Board of Education had been organized in 1838, and Henry 
 Barnard, who had been appointed Secretary, conceived 
 the idea of having a temporary normal school in Hartford 
 for a few weeks in the autumn of 1839, designed especially 
 for the benefit of teachers of winter schools. My father 
 was persuaded to allow me to attend, and he and my 
 mother went to Hartford to establish me in a suitable 
 boarding place. This was found in a family hotel at the 
 corner of Main and Asylum Streets. 
 
 The school, or institute, was held in connection with the 
 Hartford Grammar School, and Mr. T. L. Wright, the 
 principal of that school, and John D. Post, teacher of 
 
TEACHING IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS 13 
 
 mathematics, were two of the instructors of the normal 
 class. Among the other teachers and lecturers, were 
 Charles Davies, Professor of Mathematics at West Point, 
 Professor Barton of Andover, Massachusetts, Rev. Thomas 
 H. Gallaudet, principal of the Asylum for Deaf Mutes, 
 Mr. Snow, principal of the Center School, Hartford, 
 Henry Barnard, and others. The instructions and 
 lectures were all practical and very helpful. I formed at 
 that time a personal acquaintance with some of these 
 teachers and lecturers, especially with Professor Davies, 
 Mr. Gallaudet, and Mr. Barnard, which, with some of 
 them, was continued until the time of their death. 
 
 The next winter I was invited to teach the upper de- 
 partment and have oversight of the primary department 
 for five months in a school in the Northwest District of 
 Cromwell. There was a manufactory in the district, and 
 the population consisted of farmers and factory owners and 
 employees. The teacher was expected to board with 
 all the families except a few that were quite poor and not 
 in circumstances to entertain company. The rule was 
 to remain with each family a number of days proportioned 
 to the number of pupils enrolled from the family. Conse- 
 quently, while the time with some families might be two 
 weeks or more, with others, it would be only a few days. 
 The habits of the people were so different, and the manner 
 of living so varied, that there was a great opportunity to 
 study social conditions. 
 
 The farmers in the place were generally owners of good 
 farms, and were living in comfortable homes, well pro- 
 vided with the requisites of comfortable living. Their 
 houses were warm and usually well furnished. The few 
 factory owners were living in a little more of style, and 
 had some luxuries not found in farmers' homes. In the 
 houses of the operatives there was a great variety in 
 furnishings and in style of living. The families with which 
 I boarded were chiefly American with a few Scotch and 
 
14 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 French. There were some very interesting experiences 
 during this winter. 
 
 The time for calling at each place was intended to be 
 that most agreeable to the householder. From one family 
 word came by one of the children that her mother did not 
 wish the teacher to come to her house until after her 
 father had killed the hogs. From another the message 
 was that the teacher would please not come until the new 
 carpet was put down. With one family the table equip- 
 ment was evidently to a considerable extent borrowed 
 while the teacher boarded there, and at other places cer- 
 tain articles of furniture were the result of temporary 
 loans. 
 
 At one house, the residence of a prosperous but eccentric 
 farmer, I was met at the door by the head of the family 
 with a shake of the hand and with these words, "I am glad 
 to have you come to board with us, but shall be gladder 
 when you leave !" As I had been informed of his peculiar- 
 ities and habit of frightening teachers who came to board 
 with him, my reply was, "The pleasure of parting may be 
 mutual." I found him a genial, well-informed man, fond 
 of reading and anecdotes. We had many pleasant even- 
 ings together. He was a good mathematician, and had 
 many curious and interesting problems to propose to the 
 teacher. When the time for my leaving came he ex- 
 pressed deep regret at parting. I, moreover, had gained 
 much from him. 
 
 Later in the season when the sleighing was good, I con- 
 ceived the idea of driving home some twelve or fifteen 
 miles. I learned that my late host had the best horse 
 and sleigh in the place, but allowed no one to drive the 
 horse but himself. I called upon him and asked him if I 
 could hire his team to drive to Durham. His reply was 
 that he allowed no one to drive the horse but himself. 
 After some further conversation, but without gaining his 
 consent to have the team go, I left him, telling him I would 
 come for the team Friday after school. 
 
TEACHING IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS 15 
 
 I went according to appointment, having a friend with 
 me. The man was as curt as ever. I asked him about the 
 team. His answer was, "I have told you that I let no 
 one drive that horse but myself." I did not leave him, but 
 followed him as he went to the barn, ostensibly to feed his 
 stock. When the barn door was opened I saw the sleigh 
 with blankets and buffalo robes apparently all ready for 
 me. The horse, which appeared to have been recently 
 groomed, was led out and watered. Soon a nice harness 
 was put on. No one said anything about the use to which 
 he was to be put, and I had no direct answer, but the horse 
 was soon attached to the sleigh and taken to the street. 
 I watched the proceeding with interest, and noticing no 
 whip in the sleigh, I inquired if the owner did not take a 
 whip with him. The answer was, "No whip goes with 
 that horse." I was asked to take a seat in the sleigh, 
 and did so with my friend. Then came a long line of in- 
 structions as how to drive, turn out, blanket the horse, 
 how to feed him, and many other directions, but closing 
 with, "Don't let any one run by you." It was a beautiful 
 evening. The moon was nearly full, the weather clear, 
 and the air crisp and pure. The ride of some fifteen miles 
 was much enjoyed. 
 
 The school was composed of young people from twelve 
 to twenty years of age and of both sexes, desiring lessons 
 from the elementary branches to the higher mathematics, 
 commercial book-keeping, and the natural sciences. One 
 young sailor, just returned from a sea voyage where he had 
 been mate of the ship, wished to study navigation. I 
 found that my previous study of surveying, with some 
 practice, enabled me to explain the science of navigation 
 to the satisfaction of the student, and I hope to his benefit. 
 There were also special classes in natural philos- 
 ophy, chemistry, ancient and modern history, and other 
 branches. 
 
 The writing was with quill pens which the teacher was 
 
16 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 expected to keep in order. With seventy or more pupils, 
 it necessitated the making or mending of nearly one 
 hundred pens each twenty-four hours. This work was 
 chiefly done at night by the light of a tallow candle. 
 
 Thus the winter passed with some trials and much work, 
 it included experiences to which I could look back with 
 pleasure, but when an engagement was proposed for the 
 following winter, it was respectfully declined. I returned 
 home on the first of April with one hundred dollars, the 
 wages for the five months, and gave the money to my 
 father, as I was still a minor. 
 
 I again went to work on the farm, devoting my evenings 
 and leisure to reading and study. I became interested in 
 history and metaphysics, and read all the books I could 
 find on those subjects. As I believed I might engage in 
 teaching again and was desirous of continuing my studies, 
 my father was persuaded to let me go back to Hartford 
 again and study with some of the teachers of the Hartford 
 Grammar School. I was in the family of John D. Post, 
 the teacher of mathematics, and when he removed to 
 Meriden tb establish the Meriden Academy and Boarding 
 School I went with him. 
 
 My roommate in Hartford and afterwards in Meriden, 
 was Nathan Chidsey, son of a former member of Congress 
 and afterwards an attorney in New York. He believed 
 that he could prepare his lessons in science or history 
 better by studying aloud. For a while it seemed difficult 
 to arrange our hours so that there should be no interfer- 
 ence, but after some time I found that I could prepare 
 lessons in mathematics or solve problems readily, while 
 he in the same room was preparing his lessons in another 
 subject orally. Then when the study hours were over, 
 I not only had my lesson in mathematics prepared, but I 
 also had the lesson my roommate had been studying aloud, 
 and was capable of reciting it without having opened the 
 text-book. 
 
TEACHING IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS 17 
 
 While attending school in Meriden I had a letter from 
 my father stating that an old friend and neighbor of ours 
 who had removed to Branford had written him inquiring 
 whether I would take a school in that town for the winter. 
 I disliked to give up my studies, but after a little delay 
 accepted the proposition, and for the next few years was 
 engaged in teaching in the public schools of Branford and 
 North Branford, at first winters only, but finally both 
 winter and summer, with long vacations usually spent at 
 home assisting with the farm work, or in travel. 
 
 These were years of reading and reflection, with mail 
 only once a week, and with much time at my command, 
 since little special preparation was necessary for school 
 work. Keeping lights at the schoolhouse, I went there 
 mornings between four and five o'clock to study several 
 hours before breakfast and school, and evenings I went back 
 for more study. I was thus able to secure several hours 
 of uninterrupted time for myself each week. Having free 
 access to the library of Rev. John D. Baldwin, afterwards 
 member of Congress from the Worcester District, Massa- 
 chusetts, I read Paley's and Butler's works, and some 
 history and poetry, and studied astronomy, German, and 
 some other branches. 
 
 During my minority the money I earned by teaching 
 school or in other ways was given to my father, who pro- 
 vided me with clothes and a small amount of spending 
 money. On approaching my twenty-first birthday I felt 
 the need of a better suit than I had. The season had been 
 unfavorable for crops, and the returns from the farm, 
 always small, had been less than usual. While my 
 father would gladly have provided me with the best he 
 could, I knew it would be difficult for him to furnish the 
 money. Therefore I sheared from the flock of sheep 
 sufiicient fleeces to furnish wool for the requisite cloth 
 for the suit and to pay for the manufacture of the cloth. 
 I then went to a mountain wood lot and cut wood suflScient 
 
18 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 to pay a skillful tailor for making the clothes. I carried 
 the wool to the factory and in time brought back the cloth 
 for the tailor, and I carted the wood myself from the wood 
 lot to market. When my freedom suit was finished I 
 took some pride in the fact that it w^as truly a home pro- 
 duction, and largely the reward of personal effort. 
 
 Ever since I had found that my plan for a full college 
 course must be given up, I had pursued a course of reading 
 and study as persistently as my health would permit. I 
 had studied French and German with private teachers, 
 and had read some works in both languages. My atten- 
 tion had been principally on history and mental philosophy. 
 I had purchased some books and these with access to a few 
 good libraries had furnished me all the literature that I 
 could read. Weakness of my eyesight had necessarily 
 given me many hours for reflection. After I became 
 permanently engaged in teaching I obtained a considerable 
 number of good books and found them of great value. 
 
 It was a time of special intellectual awakening in New 
 England, and public lectures and lyceums and other as- 
 sociations were being utilized in efforts for the improve- 
 ment of schools and the diffusion of knowledge. While 
 attending an educational meeting in Hartford over which 
 Rev. Thomas H. Gallaudet presided, I was requested by 
 him to preside at one of the sessions. Thus I had my 
 first experience in conducting a large public meeting. 
 
CHAPTER III 
 VISIT TO NEW YORK AND OHIO 
 
 In 1842 I made a trip to western New York and Ohio 
 with my father. He had sold a part of his farm in Dur- 
 ham and had serious thoughts of moving to one of the 
 states of the Middle West. 
 
 Leaving Durham on the morning of October fifth, I 
 passed most of the day in New Haven, and about three 
 o'clock in the afternoon took passage on the steamboat, 
 Globe, for New Y^ork. Arriving in New York early in 
 the morning of the sixth, I went to the residence of my 
 uncle Ozias, and passed a couple of days with my cousin 
 Alfred Henry and my sister Elizabeth who was visiting in 
 New York. 
 
 Leaving New Y'ork on the morning of the eighth, my 
 sister and I went by steamboat to Stuyvesant Landing. 
 Here we were met by our cousins George and Franklin 
 Hinman, who took us to their home in Kinderhook. 
 While at Kinderhook we went with my cousins to the 
 residence of President Martin Van Buren, and I had an 
 opportunity to attend the examinations and closing exer- 
 cises of the Kinderhook Academy and to meet some very 
 pleasant people. 
 
 After a few days' visit with friends in Kinderhook and 
 Valatie, my sister returned to New Y^ork, and I went on a 
 steamer for Albany, finding my father and Uncle Erastus 
 Lee on the steamer. We arrived at Albany about six 
 o'clock in the evening and at seven took the train for 
 Utica. After being detained there for some hours we left 
 for Syracuse, arriving about six o'clock in the morning. 
 This was the end of the railroad, and for the next stage 
 of our journey we were obliged to take a canal-boat. A 
 part of the time we were on a line boat which we found 
 
 19 
 
20 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 crowded, slow, and uncomfortable. Afterwards we trav- 
 eled by the packet boats which, as we found, were clean and 
 well-furnished, had good food, were faster, more comfort- 
 able, and very pleasant. 
 
 We arrived at Brockport at about four o'clock on Sat- 
 urday afternoon. Not finding any conveyance, we started 
 for Clarkson on foot, but soon joined a farm wagon with- 
 out springs in which we rode part of the way over a cordu- 
 roy road. The country was flat, late rains had made the 
 roads very muddy and the fields wet, and the whole 
 scenery was unattractive. My father had thought of 
 looking for a farm in western New York, but this ride of a 
 few miles dissuaded him from inquiring in that vicinity. 
 We arrived at Uncle Elan Lee's at Clarkson at about half- 
 past seven Saturday night. We remained until early 
 the following week. 
 
 Thence we went by canal and railway to Niagara Falls 
 where we passed most of the day, and then to Buffalo 
 where we took a steamer for Cleveland. The night was 
 very pleasant with a full moon, and at Uncle Erastus' 
 suggestion we had a deck passage. During the night a 
 violent storm arose, and my father and I were both sea- 
 sick, so he paid the extra dollar for each of us, and we went 
 into the cabin. The air was close and impure, and as the 
 storm continued its violence, we left the steamboat at 
 Erie. We passed the latter part of the night in a hotel, and 
 in the morning proceeded by stage. We passed through 
 Cleveland and arrived at Uncle Eli's home at Isvenzburg 
 at about seven in the evening. 
 
 We remained here a few days, looking at farms and mills. 
 The morning after our arrival, in a walk of twenty min- 
 utes in woods back of my uncle's home, I saw eight black 
 squirrels and two gray ones. My father was pleased with 
 the land and the country, and thought favorably of lo- 
 cating in the vicinity, but did not purchase. We had in- 
 tended to leave on Saturday morning for Atwater, where 
 
VISIT TO NEW YORK AND OHIO 21 
 
 Father had friends, and where we proposed to pass the 
 Sabbath, but the weather in the morning was very un- 
 pleasant, and we did not leave until afternoon. 
 
 Uncle Erastus remained at Uncle Eli's. Father and I 
 started on our return journey at about six in the evening 
 in a four-horse stage. We rode until about one o'clock 
 in the morning, when we arrived at Edinburg. We then 
 left the stage and slept at a hotel for the rest of the night. 
 In the morning we walked eight miles over a very muddy 
 road to church and called on father's friends at Atwater. 
 My father was much opposed to traveling on Sunday. 
 
 We returned to Edinburg in the evening, and slept in 
 our rooms at the hotel until past midnight, when we were 
 awakened to take the stage which arrived a little after one 
 o'clock. The roads were bad, and there were many ob- 
 structions, including large trees broken down by the storm 
 which had to be cut away before the stage could pass, so 
 our progress was slow. Finally at ten o'clock on Tuesday 
 evening we arrived at Pittsburg. 
 
 During the last part of our ride to Pittsburg we had as 
 stage-companion a merchant who had been our companion 
 on Saturday. He had been in such haste to reach Pitts- 
 burg, that when my father and I left the stage soon after 
 midnight on Sunday morning, he continued on his journey. 
 He had been hindered, however, by various accidents and 
 road obstructions, until he entered Pittsburg with us, 
 while we had had twenty-four hours of Sunday rest. 
 
 Before reaching Pittsburg we passed Economy, a 
 German town with dwelling houses clustered near to- 
 gether and with one large bakery and cooking house, 
 society being organized on the communist principle. 
 
 W^e left Pittsburg the next morning about eight o'clock 
 by stage to cross the Alleghanies. For the first two stages 
 the roads were good for country roads, the horses fair, and 
 the drivers intelligent; but as we approached the moun- 
 tains the roads were poor and frequently obstructed by 
 
22 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 fallen trees or rocks. The horses employed were untrained 
 and the drivers ignorant and coarse in manners. The 
 policy of the company running the stages seemed to be to 
 put the best equipment and the best drivers on the por- 
 tions of the road near the cities and large towns, and on the 
 bad wild roads to use young and untrained horses with 
 less skilled drivers. 
 
 While the driver was changing horses in the mountains 
 one morning, a boy, apparently about sixteen years of 
 age, was watching the operation. 
 
 "In what town do you live.f^" he was asked. 
 
 " I do not live in any town," was his answer. 
 
 "In what state do you live?" 
 
 "I do not live in any state." 
 
 Of other matters relating to society and civil affairs 
 he was equally ignorant. When questioned regarding 
 some bear tracks, however, which were observed in the 
 snow by the road, he was all animation, and he gave an 
 intelligent account of the habits of those animals. 
 
 As we continued our journey day and night in the stage, 
 we had no occasion to test the sleeping accommodations 
 of the mountain taverns, but we had some singular ex- 
 periences at the eating-houses where our meals were ob- 
 tained. At one place the driver announced that we would 
 stop twenty minutes for supper. The washing arrange- 
 ments were outside of the house. When dust was re- 
 moved from hands and face, the travelers went to the 
 eating room, paying fifty cents each at the door for supper. 
 The first course was soup, boiling hot. Before it was 
 sufficiently cool to be eaten, the soup-dishes were removed. 
 As the next course was being brought to the table the stage 
 horn blew, and the cry, "All aboard," was given. Every- 
 one made a scramble for the stage. One man took a whole 
 chicken from the table and carried it to the stage. He had 
 his supper. Most of the other passengers continued their 
 journey as hungry as when they stopped. 
 
VISIT TO NEW YORK AND OHIO 23 
 
 We left the stage at Harrisburg, and proceeded by rail- 
 road to Philadelphia and thence to New York. We had 
 been obliged to shorten our stay in Pittsburg, Phila- 
 delphia, and some other places, because my father had a 
 business appointment, and I was to begin school on the 
 Monday following our reaching home. We arrived safely 
 at New Haven on Saturday night about ten o'clock, and 
 walked home, sixteen miles, in time for a little rest before 
 we went to church on Sunday morning. 
 
 My father was so well pleased with Ohio that he 
 planned to make that his home as soon as he could close 
 up his business in Connecticut. He had selected a loca- 
 tion which pleased him, and the terms were satisfactory. 
 But unexpected complications arose in his business at 
 home, and before these were adjusted, the health of my 
 grandfather, Eben Lee, who had become a member of the 
 family, was such that it was not considered safe to remove 
 him so far. My father then decided to look about this 
 state for a place to live. At last he bought a farm of about 
 one hundred and twenty-five acres situated in Meriden 
 and owned by General Walter Booth, president of the 
 Meriden bank. The farm had been rented for several 
 years and was in poor condition, but it had a good orchard 
 and soil capable of improvement. It extended from the 
 turnpike, or Broad Street, to Colony Street, and was 
 crossed by the Harbor Brook and another small stream, 
 and by the New York, New Haven, and Hartford railway. 
 It had a large dwelling house which had sometimes been 
 used as a tavern, and two barns, both needing repairs. 
 The family removed from Durham to Meriden in 
 1843. 
 
 The latter place was then a straggling village, with a 
 bank, a tavern, three churches, and a post-office, all on the 
 turnpike, or Broad Street. Two railway trains, usually 
 with but one passenger car each, passed between Hart- 
 ford and New Haven each day. The locality about the 
 
24 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 railway station known as "the Corner" had a small store, 
 a shoe-shop, and a few scattered houses. 
 
 Soon after my father's family were established in 
 Meriden, I was invited to teach the public school in the 
 district in which the family lived, the Colony Street 
 School. As soon as the term in North Branford closed 
 and I could be released there, I made arrangements to 
 teach in Meriden. 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 MERIDEN AND TEACHERS' INSTITUTES 
 
 The Colony Street School was about one-third of a mile 
 from my home. The schoolhouse was an ordinary one- 
 room building with entries. Soon after the school was 
 opened, it was evident that the room was too small for the 
 number of pupils who would attend. A school meeting 
 voted a new building and left its erection to me. Plans 
 were prepared. No builder in Meriden could build as 
 soon as desired, so the plans were taken to New Haven, 
 and a contract was made with builders in that cit5^ The 
 frames, doors, windows, and casings were all prepared in 
 New Haven. When the frame was erected in Meriden 
 it was so much larger than the former schoolhouse that 
 the neighbors inquired of me if we were building a church. 
 The schoolhouse was completed and occupied within a 
 few weeks after the contract for building was made, and 
 the improved accommodations were very favorable for 
 the winter school. 
 
 I was married on June twenty-fifth, 1844, to Sarah 
 Adaline Howd. 
 
 We resided for some months in the family of my father. 
 Preparations were made for building a house for us near 
 my father's home. The stones for the foundation were 
 found on the farm; the timbers were cut from a wood lot 
 and hewn and framed on the ground. I drove the teams 
 for hauling the timber and stone, and for bringing the 
 brick from Westfield for chimneys. The boards for cover- 
 ing the house were bought in New Haven. I painted 
 them every day as they were put on, so when the sides 
 of the house were covered with sheathing, it had the first 
 coat of paint. The work was done in vacations and with 
 it much other work. Most of my summer vacations were 
 
 25 
 
26 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 occupied with reading and study and with work on the 
 farm. 
 
 A new school building was erected at "the Corner," 
 or West Meriden, in 1846, and a private academy, called 
 the Meriden Institute, opened in it by Henry D. Smith. 
 I had an application to teach there, and as soon as I 
 could complete arrangements for leaving the school on 
 Colony Street, I joined Mr. Smith at his academy. The 
 few years passed at this institution were years of real 
 enjoyment. The school was all that could be desired 
 in membership and studies. Classes of young men and 
 young women, many of them from refined and cultivated 
 homes, who were studying with an earnest purpose, some 
 of them with a college course in prospect, made teaching 
 a pleasure. 
 
 I was living in my new home furnished simply, but to 
 my taste and that of my wife. I had a small but carefully 
 selected library, few cares, and much time for reading and 
 study. Our parents, who were our nearest neighbors, were 
 in health and in comfortable circumstances. Our eldest 
 daughter, Ellen Rosamond, born in 1846, was our constant 
 companion when at home. Her childish prattle, and our 
 interest in her education and development, led us to give 
 much time to her. 
 
 The importance of improving the public schools by 
 making provision for the better education of teachers was 
 attracting the attention of the friends of education in 
 different parts of the state. A few academies and large 
 private schools established teachers' classes and teachers' 
 departments for the benefit of young teachers. Rev. 
 Thomas H. Gallaudet of Hartford, Professor Denison 
 Olmstead of New Haven, and others, wrote articles for the 
 daily papers urging the establishment of teachers' semi- 
 naries by the State. 
 
 In 1845, Hon. Seth P. Beers, Commissioner of the 
 School Fund, was appointed Superintendent of Common 
 
MERIDEN AND TEACHERS' INSTITUTES 27 
 
 Schools for the state. His salary as Commissioner of the 
 School Fund was $1,250 and expenses. He had no ad- 
 ditional salary as superintendent, and was not expected 
 to devote much time to that office. But provision was 
 made for holding two teachers' institutes a year in each 
 county of the state. The superintendent had the selec- 
 tion of teachers and lecturers for the institutes, and I was 
 appointed one of the number. For some years thereafter 
 I was occupied with conducting these institutes during 
 several weeks of each spring and autumn. 
 
 These teachers' institutes were similar in many respects 
 to temporary normal schools. The attendants were usu- 
 ally teachers of some experience. At the day sessions 
 classes were formed in the usual common school studies, 
 lessons were recited, methods of teaching the various 
 branches and of developing the faculties of students were 
 criticized and explained, questions asked by the members 
 were answered by the leaders or lecturers, and for six 
 hours each day the institute was something like a well 
 taught school. The evenings were usually devoted to 
 popular lectures on historical or educational topics. The 
 institutes usually opened with a public lecture on Monday 
 evening, and closed on Friday evening or Saturday noon. 
 Two persons were appointed to conduct each institute and 
 give lessons during the day. They were assisted at the 
 evening sessions by special lecturers, so far as these could 
 be obtained. Professors Brewer, Dana, Olmstead, and 
 others of Yale, professors and presidents of Wesleyan and 
 Trinity, Rev. Horace Bushnell, D. D., Rev. Thomas 
 Beecher, Rev. Merrill Richardson, and other clergymen, 
 physicians, and lawyers were among the popular lecturers. 
 At some of the institutes there would be two hundred or 
 more teachers and prospective teachers in attendance. 
 
 The members of the institutes were usually entertained 
 by families in the places in which the institutes were held. 
 Some clergymen, physicians, lawyers, and other educated 
 
28 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 men gave the meetings their presence and counsel, and 
 often participated in discussions at the evening sessions. 
 The famihes entertaining the teachers became interested 
 in the work and members of these families were often 
 present in the day time as well as in the evening. 
 
 The influence of these institutes was soon seen in the 
 improvement of public schools, and in the aroused public 
 sentiment in favor of better qualified teachers. Partly 
 as a result of this awakened interest, the establishment of 
 the State Normal School was authorized by the Legislature 
 in 1849. 
 
 I was reappointed as one of the conductors of these in- 
 stitutes each year as long as they were under the direction 
 of the office then having them in charge. I universally 
 found kindness and co-operation in the different towns 
 and cities in which the institutes were held, and made 
 acquaintances and formed friendships which have con- 
 tinued for more than half a century. 
 
 It was at an educational meeting held in Meriden in 
 1847 that the State Teachers' Association was organized. 
 Rev. Merrill Richardson, a lecturer on education, was ap- 
 pointed president. I was made secretary and was sub- 
 sequently retained in this position for some years. Upon 
 invitation I organized and conducted teachers' institutes 
 in New Hampshire and New Jersey, and assisted at in- 
 stitutes in Massachusetts and in other states. 
 
CHAPTER V 
 STATE NORMAL SCHOOL 
 
 The State Normal School was established in 1850. 
 Hon. Henry Barnard, who was secretary of the Board of 
 Commissioners of Common Schools in 1838-1842, and 
 who had left the state to become commissioner in Rhode 
 Island, was recalled and appointed State Superintendent 
 of Common Schools and Principal of the Normal School. 
 The teachers of the school were appointed by a board of 
 trustees composed of one member from each county in the 
 state. This board had the general management of the 
 school affairs and finances in its hands. 
 
 Before the school was opened, Mr. Barnard, and Mr. 
 Stone who was to be associate principal, invited me to 
 become one of the teachers. I at first declined as I had 
 a good position at my home in Meriden with Henry D. 
 Smith in the Meriden Institute. After some conferences 
 with the ofiicers of the school and citizens of New Britain, 
 I agreed that I would go when I could properly be relieved 
 of my duties at the Institute. 
 
 I visited New Britain in the spring of 1850 before the 
 school was opened. My visit happened to be on the day 
 following the reception to Elihu Burritt, given on his 
 return from his first visit to Europe. The town hall in 
 which the school was to be held was strewn with branches 
 of evergreen trees, mottoes, and other remnants of the 
 decorations used for the reception the night before, and 
 was by no means an attractive place. 
 
 The village — for New Britain was then a village of 
 Berlin — had no special attractions. The streets were in 
 poor condition, with dirt sidewalks where there were any. 
 
 The First Congregational Church edifice at the corner 
 of Main and East Main Streets, the South Church, a 
 
 29 
 
30 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 small wooden building on the present site of the South 
 Church, small Methodist, Baptist, and Episcopal churches, 
 and the town hall, were the principal public buildings. 
 
 A few small factory shops had been erected. There 
 were a few small stores, a tavern kept in what was at first 
 a dwelling-house, and a sawmill on East Main Street near 
 the present Hartford Avenue. The railroad from Willi- 
 mantic to Bristol was opened in 1850, the same year as 
 the State Normal School. 
 
 There had been opposition in the Legislature to the 
 establishment of the Normal School, and, partly on ac- 
 count of increased expense, there had been much opposi- 
 tion in New Britain to the organization of the High School 
 and the partial grading of the public schools. The school 
 visitors had for ten years sought to secure some improve- 
 ment in the public schools and the establishment of a 
 school of higher grade, but had been unsuccessful. 
 
 There had been eight school districts with an average 
 of seventy-five children between the ages of four and 
 sixteen years in each. Each had a small one-room build- 
 ing, meagerly furnished, in which a few children were 
 taught, usually by a young woman in the summer and a 
 man in the winter, while the more intelligent families, 
 when able, sent their children to private schools. Upon 
 the establishment of the Normal School, three of these 
 districts were united, and a High School was established 
 for the more advanced pupils. The High School and all 
 the schools of the consolidated district were placed under 
 the charge of the principal of the Normal School as model 
 or practice schools. For the first year following the open- 
 ing of the Normal School, there were model schools for 
 children lower than the High School located as follows: 
 one at the corner of West Main and Washington Streets, 
 one at the corner of East Main and Elm Streets, and one 
 on South Main Street near the location of the present 
 High School. 
 
STATE NORMAL SCHOOL 31 
 
 I visited the Normal School after it was opened, and on 
 entering the hall where the school was in session was 
 announced as "Professor Camp, who will deliver a 
 lecture." The subject was mentioned by Mr. Stone, the 
 acting principal, but I have forgotten it. As no word 
 had ever been spoken to me about a lecture or anything 
 of the sort, and I was visiting the school as a stranger, I 
 was taken by surprise, but afterwards learned that the 
 school had already become accustomed to surprises. 
 
 At that time the Normal School room was supplied with 
 ordinary small breakfast tables and cheap wood seat 
 chairs, four to each table, the students facing each other 
 except at recitations. The first story of the same building, 
 comprising a study room and a small anteroom used for 
 recitations, was occupied by the High School. The build- 
 ing had been erected as a town hall and was ill-adapted 
 for a school building. 
 
 The second or autumn session of the Normal School 
 was to hold for six weeks and was designed to afford an 
 opportunity for teachers of some experience to attend the 
 school for a short time before beginning the winter schools. 
 
 I closed my connection with the Meriden Institute in 
 time to be at the Normal School at the beginning of the 
 second session in August, 1850. My family remained in 
 Meriden, and almost every week I went home on Satur- 
 day and returned to New Britain on Sunday evening or 
 Monday morning. 
 
 Eight of the young ladies who had been members of 
 my class in the Meriden Institute entered Mt. Holyoke 
 Seminary in the autumn, and a few of the pupils in the 
 Institute came to the Normal School. 
 
 Rev. John A. Guion was principal of the High School, 
 and had one lady assistant. Miss Rebecca Smith. In the 
 Normal School, Rev. T. D. P. Stone, the associate prin- 
 cipal, had general charge, while I had some classes and 
 had charge of the students who went to the practice 
 
32 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 schools to observe or to teach. There were no other 
 teachers in the Normal School at first. 
 
 New Britain had just been incorporated as a town, with 
 about three thousand inhabitants. There were few 
 boarding places for normal students, and a large boarding 
 house which had been erected for the benefit of a factory 
 was appropriated to the Normal School. I boarded with 
 some forty or more students at the boarding house. 
 
 My sister, Sarah M. Camp, and my brother, Leverett L. 
 Camp, were members of the Normal School the first year, 
 my brother graduating with the class in 1851. He after- 
 ward taught in large public schools as principal for nearly 
 fifty years. My other brother, Alfred E. Camp, entered 
 the Normal School in 1851 and graduated in 1853. Mr. 
 Edward W. Robbins was teacher in the Normal School 
 for a few months in 1851-1852. Nelson A. Moore and F. 
 Julius taught drawing. These all boarded with me at the 
 boarding house or in my home and were all helpful in the 
 work of the school. 
 
 I found many warm friends in New Britain and moved 
 my family there, taking them at first to a small second- 
 story tenement, but building a house as soon as practicable. 
 In the new home in 1854 my daughter Emma Jane was 
 born. 
 
 Hon. George M. Landers, Major Seth J. North, Fred- 
 erick T. Stanley, John Stanley, and a host of others were 
 the true friends of the Normal School and contributed 
 largely to its success during the early years of its existence. 
 Their co-operation was a great help to me. 
 
 Mr. Barnard believed it important that the teachers 
 of the Normal School deliver lectures or conduct teachers' 
 institutes during vacations. Accordingly at the close of 
 the school in the spring of 1851, for the vacation of a week, 
 I was notified that appointments had been made for me 
 to lecture every day except Sunday. I was to begin at 
 Andover on Monday afternoon, and then go to Columbia, 
 
STATE NORMAL SCHOOL 33 
 
 Hebron, Colchester, and other towns in New London and 
 Middlesex Counties, visiting two towns each day and in 
 some cases three, giving a lecture in each, and closing with 
 a lecture at Haddam on Saturday. I was able to fill every 
 appointment on the east side of the Connecticut River, 
 and spoke to a large audience on Friday evening, expecting 
 to cross the river in the morning on the ice and give my 
 last lecture. During the night, however, a violent rain 
 storm broke up the ice, rendered the river impassable, and 
 prevented my keeping the appointment at Haddam. 
 
 During the first year of the history of the Normal School, 
 one hundred and fifty-four students were enrolled in the 
 different normal classes, and there were nearly four hun- 
 dred children in the model schools. Additional teachers 
 were consequently employed. 
 
 Such was the demand for teachers in the state that one 
 hundred and thirteen of the students engaged in teaching 
 within a year, and only thirty-seven of the first year's 
 students remained in the second year, though many of the 
 others returned to the school after teaching a term or two. 
 One hundred and forty-seven others entered the school 
 the second year. 
 
 The first class graduated from the Normal School had 
 two young women and three young men, all of whom 
 soon became teachers in the public schools of the state. 
 
 Of the three hundred and thirty students who became 
 members of the Normal School the first two years, one 
 hundred and twenty-four, or more than one-third of the 
 number, were young men. Several of these afterwards 
 graduated from colleges or universities, one became presi- 
 dent of a college, another was secretary of state, and 
 others were afterwards teachers of high schools or graded 
 schools. In the first three classes, which graduated in 
 1851, 1852, and 1853, there were thirteen men and nine 
 women. Men continued to attend in large numbers until 
 the breaking out of the Civil War. 
 
34 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 An additional building for the schools, 76 feet by 48, 
 four stories in height, with large class rooms for the Normal 
 School, added rooms for the High School, and rooms in 
 the basement for the intermediate and primary schools, 
 was so far completed as to be opened and dedicated June 
 fourth, 1851. The Governor and other state officers, the 
 Legislature, and many invited guests were present, escorted 
 to New Britain by military companies and a band of 
 music. Addresses were made during the day and evening 
 by Professor E. A. Andrews, Francis Gillette, Henry 
 Barnard, and Rev. Horace Bushnell. The erection of 
 this large annex to the Normal School afforded much 
 needed accommodations for the Normal and High Schools 
 and permitted the opening of an intermediate and a pri- 
 mary room in the same building with them. 
 
 The year following the opening of the new building was 
 a busy year. The large increase in the numbers of stu- 
 dents of the Normal School and of pupils in the model 
 schools increased the necessity of giving much time to the 
 supervision of the teaching of normal students in the 
 schools of practice, while, at the same time, there was a 
 demand for increasing the amount of attention given to 
 the regular lessons of the Normal School. 
 
 The difficulties were increased by the dissensions occur- 
 ring between the associate principal of the Normal School 
 and the principal of the High School. The unpleasantness 
 had reached such a stage that in the latter part of the 
 autumn session of 1852 they did not speak to each other 
 either when they met in the street or in the school building, 
 and their communications with each other about the 
 school work were made entirely through a third person, 
 even when both were in the same room. 
 
 This condition of the school made it unpleasant for me, 
 and my position was made the more difficult by the 
 unexpected call of more than a dozen of the principal men 
 of the town, who by concerted action, and led by the 
 
STATE NORMAL SCHOOL 35 
 
 warden of the borough, came to my house one evening 
 and announced that they had come uninvited to inform 
 me that in their judgment the associate principal of the 
 Normal School, and perhaps the principal of the High 
 School, should vacate the positions which they held. I 
 afterwards learned that a similar decision had been com- 
 municated to the Trustees of the Normal School and to the 
 School Committee, 
 
 I had known something of the dissatisfaction in the 
 community, and was well aware that the schools were 
 suffering from the bad management, but I was unprepared 
 for the decisive action recommended. My first impulse 
 was to hand in my own resignation and retire from the 
 approaching storm, but I was strongly urged not to do so, 
 and it was intimated to me by the trustees that my resigna- 
 tion would not be accepted. 
 
 On the last day of the term, as the second class to 
 graduate from the Normal School were receiving their 
 diplomas, the resignation of Mr. Stone was presented to 
 the trustees. That of Professor Guion followed very soon. 
 The resignations were promptly accepted, and as the as- 
 sistant in the High School had also left, both Normal and 
 High Schools were without any teachers except myself. 
 The unexpected resignations left both schools without 
 heads and to some extent disorganized. Both of the 
 retiring teachers opened private schools in New Britain, 
 but they continued only a short time. 
 
 I was asked if I would accept the position of associate 
 or acting principal of the Normal School. I did not think 
 it best, and declined. I felt it to be of great importance 
 that an older person should occupy the place and that 
 the force of the school should be strengthened as far as 
 possible. 
 
 After the erection of the annex, the High School room 
 had been extended through the new building, providing 
 seats and desks for more than two hundred and fifty pupils. 
 
36 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 As the lower departments were crowded, children had been 
 advanced to the High School before their attainments 
 justified the change. The result had been demoralizing 
 to the High School, not only lowering the standard of 
 attainment, but seriously affecting the discipline of the 
 school. After it became known that the teachers were to 
 leave, the school, which for weeks had been in a troubled 
 condition, closed the term in a state of general disorder. 
 
 Mr. Barnard, who as Superintendent of Common 
 Schools was nominally principal of the Normal School, 
 though seldom at the school, was very anxious for its 
 success, and came to my house repeatedly to confer in 
 relation to the interests of both the Normal School and 
 the village schools. 
 
 At that time there were few high or graded schools in 
 the state. After visiting most of these, and also the 
 normal and model schools of Massachusetts and New 
 York, and conferring with teachers, I became fully con- 
 vinced that a radical change in the High School was 
 imperative. Permission was obtained from the trustees 
 of the Normal School to make any changes in the school 
 building which were deemed desirable. 
 
 In the autumn vacation workmen were employed, and 
 new partitions were placed in the High School building. 
 The High School room made two rooms, each having seats 
 and desks for one hundred and twenty pupils. There were 
 four recitation rooms, two for each department, and 
 requisite clothes rooms. 
 
 Notices of the autumn teachers' institutes, which 
 were required by law, one for each county, had already 
 been issued by our Mr. Barnard, and for most of the fall 
 it was my duty to attend these institutes and provide for 
 the various lectures and other exercises. I was neces- 
 sarily away from New Britain for several weeks at these 
 meetings. 
 
 As the gentlemen who had been at the head of the 
 
STATE NORMAL SCHOOL 37 
 
 Normal and High Schools had severed their connection 
 with these schools, they were not expected to take part 
 at the institutes as before. Consequently other teachers 
 must be provided. The professors of Yale College, other 
 teachers, and some ministers, as Dr. Bushnell, Thomas 
 Beecher, and others, rendered valuable assistance, espe- 
 cially in the evening lectures. But this vacation was a 
 wearisome one, the only time for rest, each week, being 
 on Sunday, and on this day I had a large Bible class. 
 
 As the time approached for the opening of the Normal 
 and High Schools, it was realized that no teachers had 
 been engaged for the vacant positions. It was believed 
 by the School Committee that the commencement of the 
 schools must be postponed. But Mr. Barnard and the 
 trustees deemed it very important that the schools should 
 all begin at the regular appointed time, the first Wednes- 
 day in December. 
 
 As principal for the Grammar School, which was in 
 charge of the District Committee and was then being 
 opened for the first time, a teacher of some experience, 
 C. Goodwin Clark, had been engaged. Mr. Barnard 
 requested that I go to Massachusetts, and elsewhere if 
 necessary, and get the best teachers to be found, for the 
 Normal and High Schools. I first went to Springfield, 
 then to Worcester and other cities in Massachusetts. 
 At last I went to Boston, conferred with the school author- 
 ities, visited several schools, and finally came to Quincy 
 School. I was pleased with the order and appearance 
 of the school. I had some conversation with the principal, 
 John D. Philbrick, whom I had never seen before, and 
 learned that it was possible that he might be obtained 
 for the Normal School. I referred the matter to the 
 trustees and he was engaged, but he could not leave the 
 school in Boston until the Christmas vacation. 
 
 Mr. Barnard and the trustees were still desirous that the 
 schools should all open at the appointed time. When the 
 
38 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 day arrived it was found that there was an increased num- 
 ber of appHcations for the Normal School. The students 
 were arriving by all the morning trains, they needed to 
 be classified and seated, and some needed to be helped to 
 boarding places. Though Mr, Stone and Professor Guion 
 had both established private schools in New Britain, 
 there appeared to be no diminution in the number of 
 pupils attending the public schools. Some were children 
 of parents who sympathized with the teachers who had 
 retired, and these were not all ready to acquiesce in the 
 new arrangements. 
 
 Mrs. A. D. Gaylord had been appointed to assist in the 
 High School and was present, but Mr. Clark had not 
 arrived to take charge of the Grammar School. As soon 
 as the Normal School was opened and properly started 
 in its work, it was left in the charge of Miss Jane A. Bar- 
 tholomew, who afterwards became a beloved and efficient 
 teacher but was then an assistant student. I then went 
 to the High School room, where only the advanced class 
 of the old High School had been admitted, and had that 
 organized. Going then to the room assigned for the new 
 Grammar School, I found the room in complete disorder. 
 Many of the pupils had been members of the old High 
 School, and when they were hindered from entering the 
 new High School room there was incipient rebellion. But 
 papers had previously been prepared for their examination, 
 and when the leaders of the uproar understood that admis- 
 sion to the Grammar and High Schools would be on 
 examination only, they quieted down and went to work 
 on their papers. 
 
 Mr. Clark arrived in time to be at the opening of school 
 the next morning, and the New Britain Grammar School 
 was fairly started. As there was no principal in either 
 the Normal or High School for several weeks, I conducted 
 the opening exercises of the Normal School at 8.45 A. M. 
 and then went to the High School and conducted the 
 
STATE NORMAL SCHOOL 39 
 
 exercises there at 9 o'clock. Students of the Normal 
 School who had had some experience in teaching before 
 coming to the Normal School were given classes both in 
 the High School and Grammar School, and rendered 
 important assistance during this winter of 1852-1853. 
 
 The term was a difficult one for both teachers and 
 pupils in all the schools. The teachers who had left had 
 friends both in the schools and in the community. One 
 of them had been pastor of one of the churches and had 
 his personal friends, some of whom were unfriendly to the 
 new arrangements for the public schools. The former 
 opponents of the High School and of the Normal School 
 took occasion to manifest anew their opposition. Some 
 of the teachers were threatened with violence. The 
 school building was believed by citizens to be in danger. 
 Almost the entire responsibility of the building and the 
 schools seemed to devolve on me. A person was engaged 
 to remain in the school building nights as watchman, and 
 I was accustomed to accompany a teacher who was 
 threatened with violence to and from the school. 
 
 But the situation soon awakened the interest and 
 developed the loyalty of the friends of the school. Hon. 
 George M. Landers, William A. Churchill, William H. 
 Smith, the Norths, the Stanleys, and others, as well as 
 the School Committee and School Visitors, rallied, and by 
 many tokens of their loyalty demonstrated their friend- 
 ship for the schools and the teachers. One gentleman 
 said he could not teach, but would send his carriage to 
 take me to and from the school. It was during the 
 experience of this winter that, as tokens of interest, a 
 silver pitcher and a gift of a hundred dollars to purchase 
 books for my library were sent to me. 
 
 Mr. Philbrick, who had been appointed associate 
 principal, came to New Britain soon after the Christmas 
 holidays, prepared to assume his duties in the school. 
 After looking over the field, he thought best to give his 
 
40 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 time at first principally to the High School and the other 
 schools of practice. He accordingly took charge of the 
 High School, hearing lessons in that department, but 
 having general supervision of the other practice schools 
 in the building. 
 
 Mr. Philbrick's long experience in the schools of Massa- 
 chusetts, and his ripe scholarship and genial manner, 
 enabled him to exert a highly beneficial influence on all 
 the schools. He occasionally came into the Normal 
 School to give a lecture, but during the remainder of the 
 winter the teaching in that department was left to Miss 
 Bartholomew and myself, except such as was given by 
 special teachers once or twice a week in music and drawing. 
 
 It was during these early years in the history of the 
 Normal School that I became intimately acquainted with 
 Henry Barnard and his delightful family. I had known 
 him during his first educational work in Connecticut in 
 1838-1842, but it was not until his return from Rhode 
 Island in 1849 to accept the office of Superintendent of 
 Common Schools in Connecticut that I knew him as a 
 personal friend and counselor. During the early history of 
 the Normal School we were often tog^her. I was fre- 
 quently summoned to his office in Hartford for conference 
 and ate at his table, while he as often took his meals with 
 me when visiting the Normal School at New Britain. 
 We often traveled together when holding teachers' insti- 
 tutes, and sometimes occupied the same room at night. 
 For some time his son, afterwards an eminent lawyer, 
 recited to me. When at his death bed I visited Mr. 
 Barnard at his home, he said to me, "We have worked 
 together in the cause of education for nearly sixty years. " 
 
 In the spring of 1853 Moses T. Brown was appointed 
 principal of the High School, and Mr. Philbrick took his 
 place in the Normal School, relieving me of much of the 
 responsibility. I then had the superintendence of the 
 Normal School students in the school of practice and gave 
 
STATE NORIVIAL SCHOOL 41 
 
 instruction in mathematics, moral philosophy, and geog- 
 raphy in the Normal School. I was employed nearly 
 two months a year holding teachers' institutes. 
 
 [In 1853 Mr. Camp received the degree of Master of 
 Arts from Yale University.] 
 
 On the first of January, 1855, Mr. Barnard resigned his 
 offices, Mr. Philbrick was appointed in his place, and I was 
 appointed associate principal. The school had largely 
 increased in numbers, students coming from every county 
 in the state. Mr. Philbrick now gave less time to teaching 
 in the Normal School, and more to lecturing on education 
 in different parts of the state. My duties were prin- 
 cipally in the Normal School and in superintending the 
 work of the Normal students in the practice schools. In 
 vacations I still was occupied with teachers' institutes. 
 
 In 1857 Mr. Philbrick resigned, and I was appointed 
 State Superintendent of Common Schools and Principal 
 of the Normal School. The increase of students at the 
 Normal School seemed to require more of my time than 
 had previously been given by those who held the oflSce. 
 Accordingly, I continued to teach classes in the Normal 
 School as well as to take charge of the institutes held in 
 the different counties. 
 
 I filled appointments to lecture in different parts of 
 the state so far as time would permit. On one occasion 
 an appointment had been made for a lecture to be given 
 on a certain evening in New London. I went to New 
 Haven in the morning to visit schools. Noting by a time- 
 table on the wall of the station that the train I would take 
 stopped at Fair Haven, I went to that place to attend to a 
 school matter there. When the train came it passed the 
 station without stopping, I was left behind, and no other 
 train was scheduled to go to New London in time for the 
 lecture. I had never missed an appointment except for 
 an address in Haddam when the breaking up of the ice 
 in the Connecticut River made it physically impossible 
 
42 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 for me to reach the place. I now went back to New Haven 
 and to the railroad office, and inquired if it were not 
 possible to send me to New London on a special engine. 
 The reply was, "Not without orders from the superin- 
 tendent. " 
 
 "Where is the superintendent?" 
 
 "On the road with the commissioners." 
 
 He was found by telegraph and asked if a special train 
 might be sent from New Haven to New London. After 
 some inquiry and reply he gave his consent, providing 
 the train could leave so as to reach New London in time 
 for the regular train for New Haven to leave New London 
 on time, this being a single-track road. Several employees 
 had gathered around the office while the conversation took 
 place, among whom was an engineer. He was asked if a 
 car could be put through in time. Looking at his watch 
 he replied that if the gentleman was willing to go to the 
 train yard in a carriage it could be done, but he would not 
 have time to bring a car to the railway station. We went 
 to the street, and as no carriage was in sight, we jumped 
 into the first vehicle we found, which happened to be an 
 express wagon. On it we were quickly taken to the train 
 yard a mile away. The engineer found an engine already 
 fired up, and in a few minutes this was attached to a 
 passenger car. I said to the engineer, "I do not wish you 
 to expose your life or mine." His reply was, "Please 
 get into that car and hold on." The road was not as 
 direct then or as well graded as at present, and I found his 
 advice timely. 
 
 With the exception of a moment's stop to see if there 
 were any hot-boxes, the ride was continuous and fast from 
 New Haven to the Connecticut River. There was no 
 railway bridge there at that time, and as no train was 
 expected at that hour the steam ferry boat was not fired 
 up. The officers of the railroad hailed a row boat, how- 
 ever, and I was soon taken to the other side of the river. 
 
STATE NORMAL SCHOOL 43 
 
 There I found a car with engine iattached ready to proceed, 
 and I was soon taken to New London, reaching there in 
 time for the evening lecture. My friend, Hon. Henry P. 
 Haven, who had charge of the meeting, expressed himself 
 as highly pleased and greatly relieved when he saw me, 
 as he knew I did not arrive on the regular train, and a large 
 audience had gathered for the meeting. 
 
 There were many interesting occurrences connected 
 with the institutes and lectures in different parts of the 
 state. Mr. Barnard and I left Hartford one Monday 
 afternoon to open a teachers' institute at Essex. There 
 was no railway to the place at that time, and we went down 
 the river on a steamboat. As the time came for supper, 
 Mr. Barnard said there would be special preparations for 
 our reception at Essex, and one of us must accept the 
 invitation to supper there. It was finally arranged that 
 Mr. Barnard should have supper on the boat and be 
 ready to go to the hall on arrival, while I should accept 
 the invitation to supper on shore. The boat had been 
 delayed, and when we arrived we were cordially met at the 
 wharf and taken to the hall in a carriage, where we found 
 a large audience awaiting the opening of the institute. 
 We each had a part in the organization and in the addresses 
 of the evening. When we went to our rooms after ten 
 o'clock Mr. Barnard remembered I had had no supper, 
 and taking two delicious pears from his pocket which he 
 had brought from his garden, he insisted that I should eat 
 them. It was an illustration of his thoughtfulness for 
 the welfare of his companions. 
 
 While holding an institute in Wallingford, I had become 
 so exhausted one day from the work of the morning and 
 afternoon sessions that I retired soon after supper with a 
 headache, hoping to obtain a little rest. I had been but a 
 few minutes in bed when word came that the lecturer who 
 had been engaged to give the evening lecture had failed to 
 come and the church was full of people waiting for a 
 
44 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 lecture. I arose, dressed as quickly as possible, and went 
 to the church and gave the lecture of the evening. 
 
 Having an appointment for an institute in Lebanon, I 
 went to Willimantic and after considerable delay suc- 
 ceeded in finding a man and team to take me to Lebanon 
 with maps, books, and apparatus, to be used at the insti- 
 tute. I had been requested by the local committee to 
 leave the equipment at the post-oflSce, from which place 
 it would be taken to the place of meeting the next morning. 
 It was quite dark when we arrived at Lebanon, and we 
 stopped at a store which we supposed from the directions 
 given us was the post-ofiice. During the night, the post- 
 office, the store in which it was held, and the contents of 
 both, were destroyed by fire. I found in the morning 
 that we had made a mistake the night before and left my 
 articles where they were still all safe. Had I not been 
 delayed until it was quite dark, they would have been 
 left in the post-office and probably would have been lost. 
 
 Two years I was engaged for a week or two holding 
 institutes in New Jersey. I found much enthusiasm there 
 and was afterwards present at the dedication of the first 
 Normal School of the state at Trenton. 
 
 At the close of an institute one spring in New Hamp- 
 shire, the members brought me the greatest amount of 
 trailing arbutus that I ever saw at one time — more than 
 a bushel. Most of it was brought back and distributed to 
 lovers of flowers in New Britain. 
 
 In the course of my work, both in the Normal School 
 and around the state as superintendent of schools, I met 
 with cordial co-operation and found many choice friends. 
 Hon. Francis Gillette, President of the Board of Trustees 
 of the Normal School, and other members of the board, 
 were very cordial and faithful in their support of the school 
 in its hours of trial. Governors Seymour, Dutton, Minor, 
 Holley, Buckingham, and Hawley were all personal friends 
 and ready to do all in their power to advance the interests 
 
STATE NORMAL SCHOOL 45 
 
 of education in the state and country. I enjoyed the 
 hospitality of some of them, especially Governors Minor, 
 Holley, and Buckingham. I was at Governor Bucking- 
 ham's house when the first communication between the 
 United States and Great Britain was made by telegraph. 
 Governor Buckingham said the event was worthy of 
 recognition. The bells of Norwich were rung, and a public 
 meeting was held with a crowded church. 
 
 Professors Denison Olmsted, Benjamin Silliman, Dana, 
 Brewer, and others of Yale University rendered me much 
 assistance at institutes and educational meetings. Dr. 
 Bushnell of Hartford, Dr. Gulliver of Norwich, Dr. Mun- 
 ger of New Haven, and other clergymen were also very 
 helpful, and some of them lectured for me several times. 
 
 Rev. Thomas Beecher lectured at an institute at Thomp- 
 sonville, and we were both entertained at the residence 
 of a Scotchman, the superintendent of one of the mills. 
 At that time Mr. Beecher was temporarily making his 
 home with an uncle in Hartford. He told our Scotch 
 hostess that he was lonely and did not know where he 
 should sleep the next night. This so aroused her sym- 
 pathy that she offered to give him an umbrella and to 
 contribute in other ways to the comforts of a forlorn 
 minister. 
 
 After the first four years, appropriations had to be 
 made annually by the Legislature for the support of the 
 Normal School, and it was often the case that opposition 
 to the appropriations would be made by members igno- 
 rant of the work and needs of the school. Changes in the 
 school laws and local questions also were raised and were 
 referred to the Committee on Education, and I was 
 frequently called before the committee to explain matters. 
 
 By this work and the teaching in the Normal School, 
 combined with my duties relating to schools in different 
 parts of the state, my health became impaired and my 
 physician advised my leaving home and going away for a 
 
46 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 time. The Normal School had closed. I consequently 
 finished my work and left immediately for the West, going 
 by way of the Great Lakes, but without any definite plan 
 of destination. 
 
 After a leisurely trip of ten days, with but one night's 
 sleep in a bed on shore, I found myself at Houghton, then 
 a new mining camp near the shores of Lake Superior. I 
 had met on the Lake Superior steamer a clergyman from 
 Detroit bound to Houghton, and he invited me to make 
 that my destination. I arrived soon after noon and found 
 the place full of excitement over the discovery of new 
 copper mines. 
 
 There were no finished roads, but winding rocky paths, 
 over which necessary supplies were taken in dog-carts or 
 on men's backs or by mules. I found a large building 
 designed for a hotel partitioned off into rooms. I saw 
 a man who appeared to have charge as landlord or clerk, 
 and asked him if I could have a room. His reply was, 
 "Yes, if you can find one not occupied." I soon found 
 an unoccupied chamber with a comfortable looking bed, 
 and by searching about the premises I collected the neces- 
 sary articles of furniture to make it a suitable place to live 
 in for a few days. There was no lock on the door, but 
 after taking a long board and placing one end against the 
 door and the other against the opposite wall, I felt secure 
 and went to sleep. In the early morning I saw the floor 
 of the dining-room covered with late guests who had 
 arrived on the evening boat, and finding no vacant rooms 
 had made the floor their resting place for the night. The 
 next day was Sunday, and during the morning business in 
 the mining camps seemed to proceed as usual, but in the 
 afternoon there was some cessation of work and a religious 
 service was held. On Monday I visited the copper mines 
 with my clerical friend, and started for home rested in 
 mind and body and with renewed health and vigor for 
 work. 
 
STATE NORMAL SCHOOL 47 
 
 The few years preceding the Civil War brought elements 
 disturbing to the work of school improvement, and many 
 educational projects were postponed or abandoned. 
 When at last war broke out, a large proportion of the 
 young men in the Normal School — in some cases whole 
 classes — enlisted in the army. Others were called from 
 the school for other duties. The number of students, both 
 of young men and young women, was less during the 
 early years of the war, and the number of young men was 
 never afterwards as great as before. 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 VISIT TO EUROPE 
 
 Severe application and anxiety were seriously affecting 
 my health, and Dr. Comings, our family physician, 
 advised strongly that I be released entirely from all mental 
 work and make a trip abroad. I resigned my position and 
 as soon as practicable took steamer for Europe. A friend 
 in New York had secured me a berth on a steamer of the 
 Anchor Line which sailed from New York to Liverpool via 
 Moville and the north of Ireland. 
 
 My roommate was an intelligent English merchant from 
 whom I obtained valuable information. In Liverpool he 
 introduced me to an English Coffee House where I met 
 many business men during my stay in Liverpool and 
 learned something of their methods of business. 
 
 While on week days each one at the hotel had his meals 
 at his convenience and no ladies were admitted, on Sun- 
 days there was a formal dinner when gentlemen could be 
 accompanied by ladies. At this dinner a president and 
 vice-president of the company were present, and had 
 direction of the conversation, which was general but quite 
 formal, the presiding officer being addressed when any one 
 spoke. There were several students present from one of 
 the English universities. It was just after the close of 
 the Civil War in the United States, and the students and 
 some others at the table took occasion to berate the North, 
 charging its people and soldiers with being selfish, mer- 
 cenary, and cruel. Some of their remarks represented the 
 New England Yankee in a ludicrous light, and I had no 
 doubt were spoken partly in jest, because they knew there 
 was a Northerner at the table. I thought it best to take 
 no notice of their ridicule and remained silent. 
 
 The next morning the gentleman who presided at the 
 
 48 
 
VISIT TO EUROPE 49 
 
 dinner on Sunday, passing the desk where I was opening 
 my mail, saw an envelope postmarked IT. S. He inquired 
 if I was from the United States. When he learned that I 
 was from Connecticut, he expressed deep regret for the 
 remarks of the students at the dinner table, and said he 
 would certainly have checked them had he known there 
 was a person present from the northern part of our country. 
 He then invited me to visit the Liverpool Exchange and 
 other places not usually visited by Americans. 
 
 While in Liverpool I heard the great organ, went to the 
 free library, where I saw more than four hundred men in 
 the reading room at the same time between twelve and one 
 o'clock, and visited some of the more important business 
 establishments. 
 
 I then went to Birmingham. On the trip the occupants 
 of the railway compartment were a clergyman and his wife 
 from Brooklyn, an Englishman, and myself. The events 
 of our Civil War were the subject of conversation. The 
 clergyman, though a native of England, found fault with 
 the course of the English in the matter of the war. He was 
 so severe in condemnation of some of their men and their 
 acts that I spoke in their defence. In time the clergyman 
 left the car, and the Englishman, remaining, said, "How 
 those Americans do berate us Englishmen!" — taking me 
 to be one of his countrymen. 
 
 At Birmingham I took a room at a hotel, planning to 
 stop there until morning, and to call on my friend, Elihu 
 Burritt, who was then American consul agent at that 
 place. When I went to his ofl&ce, however, he insisted 
 that I should go to his place at Harborne, about two miles 
 distant. Mr. Burritt was living there in a pleasant Eng- 
 lish cottage with his niece. Miss Strickland. I passed a 
 few delightful days there, usually walking into the city 
 with Mr. Burritt in the morning and visiting places of 
 interest while he attended to the duties of his office. 
 
 While my prime object in going to Europe was to seek 
 
50 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 health, I had also planned to visit schools, museums, and 
 other educational institutions, as far as I was able. I 
 had letters of introduction from Dr. Barnard to several 
 prominent educators and was able to obtain much in- 
 formation from them. Mr. Burritt, on learning that I 
 intended visiting the educational institutions of England, 
 proposed to give me a letter to the head-master of the 
 King Edward VI School in Birmingham, at the same time 
 saying he did not know whether I would be admitted. 
 The large building and yard were surrounded by a high 
 stone wall obstructing all view of transactions within. I 
 presented myself to the doorkeeper. He courteously in- 
 formed me that visitors were not admitted. I asked him 
 if he could take my letter of introduction to the head- 
 master. At first he demurred, but he finally consented to 
 do so. He returned to say that the master was busy with 
 a class but would like to see me at his classroom. He 
 took me through the school-yard and a number of the 
 rooms of the building, giving me an opportunity to see 
 just what I desired — the arrangement of the rooms, seats, 
 desks, and other equipment. My interview with the 
 master was formal but pleasant, and I soon left reflecting 
 that my visit had after all succeeded. 
 
 My next stop was at Stratford, where I visited the 
 Shakespeare house and garden, the church where the 
 Shakespeare tablet is shown, and other places connected 
 with his name, and walked over to Shottery in a path 
 which led me through a field of grain and over an English 
 stile, the first I had ever seen. The Hathaway cottage 
 was found without difficulty. 
 
 At Oxford, after looking through some of the colleges, I 
 passed most of the time at the wonderful Bodleian Library. 
 Arriving at London I found a very comfortable boarding 
 place at a family hotel on King Street, where I remained 
 for nearly a month. In London I visited King's College, 
 the Blue Coat School, Borough Road School, and some 
 others, and some of them several times. 
 
VISIT TO EUROPE 51 
 
 King's College in its method of instruction, organization 
 of classes, and general atmosphere seemed more demo- 
 cratic and more similar to American colleges than to the 
 colleges of the older universities which I visited. The 
 Borough Road School had a good department for teachers, 
 who were expected to reside at the school and to be under 
 strict rules out of school hours. The Home and Colonial 
 School, with its teachers' department and model schools, 
 was evidently designed chiefly for the poorer classes, but 
 had some good teachers. 
 
 The boys of the Blue Coat School, as it was termed, 
 might be seen about London in their blue coats with their 
 small caps usually in their pockets. In several visits to 
 this school I was quite impressed with the thoroughness of 
 instruction and the strict regulations of the school. In 
 one of the recitations some members of the class became so 
 excited in their desire to answer questions that they stood 
 on seats or on the desks, with hands extended, waiting for 
 permission to give an answer. 
 
 I had a letter to Dr. Frazer, afterwards Bishop of Man- 
 chester, one of her Majesty's Commissioners of Education, 
 and passed a few days with him, visiting the country 
 schools of England in Reading and vicinity. Dr. Frazer 
 informed me that there were four distinct classes whose 
 children were educated separately, no two classes as- 
 sociating together. There were first the titled aristocracy 
 or nobles, second the esquires or large land owners, third 
 the farmers or merchants, the employers of labor, and 
 fourth the peasants or laborers. The schools which I 
 visited with Dr. Frazer were chiefly for the two lower 
 classes. 
 
 In schoolhouses we would at one time see a room sup- 
 plied with school furniture and occupied by scores of 
 children and their teachers engaged with lessons, and a few 
 hours later we would see the same room transformed into a 
 living room in which the teacher and his family were tak- 
 
52 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 ing their evening meal. At this time manual training 
 and industrial work were seen to a far greater extent than 
 in this country. The girls were often busy with their 
 sewing, and boys were being taught some handiwork. I 
 saw whole classes of boys in London being taught shoe- 
 making as one of the regular exercises of the school. 
 Text-books were used much less than in this country. 
 
 I much desired to visit Parliament, but when I applied 
 to our minister for a permit I learned that the privileges 
 which he could grant were all taken for more than two 
 weeks ahead. As I expected to leave London for Paris 
 before the expiration of that time I supposed that I should 
 not gratify my desire. 
 
 I had had business at the Education Office, and had 
 become acquainted with Mr. Lingard, the secretary. On 
 one of my calls he asked me if I would like to visit Parlia- 
 ment, and on being told that I would, he said that he 
 would arrange for me to do so. I soon had a letter at my 
 hotel requesting me to call at the Education OflBce in the 
 afternoon. When I called I was introduced to Lord Bruce, 
 the head of the office, who asked me if I would like to see 
 the "Bear Garden," as he called Parliament. After 
 showing me about the different parts of the House of 
 Parliament he took me to the House of Commons and 
 pointed out Mr. Gladstone and other notables and then 
 left me in the House of Lords saying he would call for 
 me when there was special interest in the House of Com- 
 mons. He said there was to be an interesting debate that 
 night and that Mr. Gladstone would speak. 
 
 After I had been an hour or more in the House of Lords, 
 Mr. Bruce came for me in time to hear the debate, and in 
 the course of it I had the privilege of hearing Mr. Glad- 
 stone and other noted statesmen. I was afterwards 
 taken into parts of the building which I could never have 
 seen had I visited Parliament on ticket from the American. 
 Minister. 
 
VISIT TO EUROPE 53 
 
 The New Field Lane Ragged School Building was com- 
 pleted and to be opened while I was in London. Lord 
 Shaftsbury was to preside and there was much interest in 
 the meeting. Mine host thought I would like to attend 
 and said he would introduce me to an English gentleman 
 of some influence. This gentleman said he would take 
 me if I would follow his directions. He had but one 
 ticket, and no others were to be had at any price. When 
 we arrived at the building, we found a great crowd 
 extending far down the street seeking admission. I had 
 no expectation then of entering, but my English friend's 
 schemes soon placed me within, where I heard an eloquent 
 speech from Lord Shaftsbury and a poor one from an 
 American clergyman. The next Sunday morning I went 
 to the new building to see the Sunday School. More than 
 four hundred young people were present to be taught. 
 
 On Sundays I went frequently to Spurgeon's Tabernacle 
 to hear Mr. Spurgeon preach. The large building was 
 always crowded; at times there were more than eight 
 hundred, mostly strangers, who were waiting for admission 
 when the doors were opened. On one Sunday notice was 
 given that Communion would take place immediately after 
 the morning service. The invitation for strangers to join in 
 the service was so broad that I thought it might include a 
 Congregationalist. However, knowing that it was a 
 Baptist church, I sought Mr. Spurgeon, told him my 
 church relations, and asked him if it would be right for me 
 to join in the service. He said, "Most certainly," gave 
 me a seat with those to whom he passed the elements, and 
 gave me the bread and wine as he did the others. 
 
 I sometimes attended services at St. Paul's, West- 
 minster Abbey, and at other Anglican and dissenting 
 churches, and heard eloquent preaching, but in no in- 
 stance preaching which received such marked attention or 
 which seemed to produce such effect as that at the Taber- 
 nacle. 
 
54 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 On my trip to Scotland I met a teacher from New York 
 traveling with eight of her pupils. As we crossed Loch 
 Katrine we found that nearly all the passengers on the 
 steamer were Americans; the captain said he would stop 
 running the boat if it were not for the Americans. I 
 visited Rob Roy's Cave and many other places of interest 
 with the New York party. At Glasgow I had opportunity 
 to see some of the interests of the great ship building 
 companies and at Edinburgh visited the places of historic 
 interest. I was twice in Scotland during this trip and on 
 one of my visits passed several days in the Highlands and 
 went into some of the schools where the dialect of the 
 Highlands was used. 
 
 I had letters of introduction to Dr. Brodie who was at 
 the head of an institution for feeble-minded youths and 
 saw in him an example of entire devotion to his philan- 
 thropic work. I also met at his institution one of the 
 Hartford physicians. 
 
 Crossing from Glasgow to Belfast, I found the people 
 of northern Ireland different from those in the southern 
 provinces and more like the English and Scotch in habits 
 and culture. In Dublin I visited the large normal and 
 model schools and found one of the finest institutions that 
 I saw on my trip. The Normal Department was well 
 equipped, and the large Model School was presided over 
 by a young woman who moved like a queen among her 
 classes, all of which were in perfect order. I was invited 
 to breakfast the next morning with Sir McDonald, the 
 head of Ireland's Educational Commission. From him I 
 obtained much valuable information on education in 
 Ireland. A storm on the Irish Sea made me quite sick on 
 my return. 
 
 My route to Paris was by Dieppe, taken partly because 
 less expensive than by Calais, and partly because it would 
 take me to some places which I wished to visit. The 
 educational institutions in France were most of them not in 
 
VISIT TO EUROPE 55 
 
 session when I was there, and I devoted much of my time 
 to the picture galleries, museums, churches, and parks. 
 
 After a few weeks passed in Paris and vicinity, I went to 
 Lyons and then to Switzerland, passing most of my time at 
 Geneva, Chamonix, Lausanne, and Berne. Many in- 
 teresting incidents occurred on the trip. On the route 
 by diligence from Geneva, tickets had to be bought be- 
 forehand which specified what seat the holder would oc- 
 cupy. When the diligence was about to start, two young 
 men from the Southern United States had taken seats 
 that belonged to others, one of whom was a colored man. 
 When this person came and claimed his seat, the Southern 
 gentlemen declared with oaths that they would never give 
 up their seats to a "nigger." At last when they were 
 about to be arrested by an officer, they left the diligence, 
 the colored man got his seat, and the vehicle proceeded. 
 
 At Chamonix I met Mr. Green, author of The English 
 People and crossed the Mer de Glace with him and his 
 son. I passed over the Tete Noir on horseback and 
 stopped a few days at Lausanne. I passed the Sabbath 
 at Berne, where, in the morning, I attended services at the 
 Cathedral. In the afternoon I was passing the Cathedral 
 again and saw that an election was going on. I was 
 offered a ticket, which in appearance much resembled the 
 tickets formerly used at elections in Connecticut. 
 
 While in Switzerland I had word from Mr. Monroe, a 
 friend in Paris, that a patriotic celebration was to be held 
 there at which it was desired that as many Americans as 
 practicable should be present. I just had time to stop at 
 Strasburg to see its Cathedral and wonderful clock. While 
 there I met a mechanic who was at work on the Cathedral. 
 He said that he had lived with his family in a house built 
 on the roof of the Cathedral for more than ten years and 
 had worked on the Cathedral all that time. The celebra- 
 tion in Paris was held in the Bois de Boulogne, and was 
 attended by many Americans and Parisians, including 
 members of the reigning family. 
 
56 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 A letter from Dr. Barnard came to me in Paris, in- 
 quiring if I would return in time and would accept an 
 appointment to St. John's College, Annapolis, the State 
 College of Maryland. The contents of this letter led me 
 to shorten my stay in Europe, but I made a second visit 
 to Birmingham and Edinburgh. During this visit to 
 Scotland, I was desirous of securing a place on a fast mail 
 train which would be two or three hours quicker than the 
 regular train. Arriving at the station, I asked the train 
 starter if I could get a seat on the train which was soon due. 
 His gruff answer was, "No, the cars are all full." I told 
 him I wanted to go and slipped a shilling into his hand. 
 He said in a surly manner, " Go and sit down on that seat, " 
 pointing to a seat outside the station. The train came in, 
 all was bustle about it, transferring cars and mail. It 
 was night. Lanterns were moving about, orders were 
 given in loud voices, and I little expected to get a place on 
 the train. But just before it left, the starter came to me, 
 caught my bag, and shouted, "Come here." He opened 
 the door of a compartment, tossed my bag in, pushed me 
 in after it, and locked the door. The train started in a few 
 minutes, and I was the only occupant of the compartment 
 for the night. 
 
 When I arrived in Liverpool I found a letter from Mrs. 
 Jane A. Bartholomew Porter expressing a wish to see me. 
 I went to the office of the company whose ship her husband 
 commanded. As I entered the door Captain Porter 
 saw me, and jumping over the counter which stood be- 
 tween us, caught my hand and said, "You must see Jane." 
 I looked her up and passed most of the day with her at the 
 house of a friend. 
 
 Her husband had sailed from Boston to New Orleans 
 and while at the latter place had received orders to proceed 
 to Liverpool. His wife had joined him at New Orleans, 
 expecting to go to Liverpool and return to Boston with 
 the ship, but on their arrival at Liverpool, Captain Porter 
 
VISIT TO EUROPE 57 
 
 had found orders to proceed with the ship to Calcutta. 
 Mrs. Porter had become useful on board the ship, and she 
 had decided that it was her duty to remain with her hus- 
 band and the ship and proceed to Calcutta instead of 
 returning to this country as had been planned. In con- 
 versation she went over much of her school life at New 
 Britain, inquired about many of the students, and gave 
 me messages to many of her friends. 
 
 A few days later she sailed with the ship for Calcutta. 
 On the return voyage, while the ship was becalmed in the 
 Bay of Bengal, she sickened and died. Her body was 
 brought home and was laid in the burying ground with those 
 of the family, at Granby. 
 
 When I had procured my ticket for this visit to Europe, 
 gold was at a premium of about twenty per cent. Not 
 knowing how long I should remain in foreign countries or 
 what might be my needs, I had procured a bill of exchange 
 for more than twice the amount that I used, obtaining it 
 through Brown Brothers of New York. During my 
 absence there were heavy failures in this country and in 
 Europe, and the premium on gold had advanced so that 
 when the bankers settled my account and remitted to me 
 the value of the unused part of the bill of exchange, I 
 found to my surprise that the advance in the premium of 
 gold had paid the cost of the voyage across the Atlantic. 
 
 On my return to America I called on Dr. Barnard and 
 soon made arrangements to go to Annapolis and assist in 
 opening St. John's College over which he was to preside. 
 
CHAPTER VII 
 
 ANNAPOLIS— BUREAU OF EDUCATION— NEW 
 BRITAIN SEMINARY 
 
 Annapolis, the capital of Maryland, is about an hour's 
 distance by railroad from Baltimore and from Washington. 
 It had a fine State House, a bank, half a dozen churches, 
 and two printing offices. The United States Naval 
 Academy, with spacious and attractive grounds, was 
 located there on the banks of the Severn. The St. John's 
 College campus consisted of several acres of rolling land 
 with large shade trees, and was located on one of the 
 principal streets. 
 
 Most of the buildings were old, but there were two 
 modern dormitories. The college had been closed during 
 the war, the buildings being used as barracks for soldiers 
 and storage places for the implements of war. A railway 
 track had been laid across the ground during the Civil 
 War to facilitate the transportation of war material from 
 the Severn River to the railway depot. The railway track 
 had been removed from the ground and the buildings 
 partially renovated before I went to iVnnapolis. Much 
 still remained to be done to get the college buildings in 
 order and arrange for opening the college. 
 
 On my arrival I found Professor Atherton, who was to be 
 one of the teachers, already at work. In a few days Mr. 
 Barnard arrived, and consultations were held in regard to 
 the measures to be adopted on opening the college. As 
 the college and the preparatory schools of the region had 
 been closed for several years, there were few young men 
 prepared to take a college course. 
 
 A preparatory department was opened in connection 
 with the college, and I was requested to take charge of it 
 and also to examine in English studies candidates for the 
 
 58 
 
BUREAU OF EDUCATION 59 
 
 college department. While there were many bright and 
 intelligent young men, a great lack of general and scientific 
 knowledge was brought to light in the examination. As a 
 result there was a very small class to take the regular 
 college studies and a large preparatory department. Some 
 of the methods that had been adopted in the Connecticut 
 Normal School were introduced in this department with 
 success, and the combined efforts to re-establish this old 
 state college bore satisfactory results from the first. 
 
 For a few weeks I boarded with Professor Atherton, but 
 at Mr. Barnard's request I took charge of the boarding- 
 house, and Mrs. Camp and our two daughters came to 
 Annapolis, which then became our home. The college 
 faculty were all very cordial to us and we made many 
 friends in the city, especially in the families of teachers of 
 the Naval Academy. My daughter Ellen taught a class 
 of girls in Professor Dashiel's school for a while, and 
 we both read the Thirty Years' War in German with 
 Professor Steflin of the college. 
 
 When the Bureau of Education was established in 
 Washington, Dr. Barnard was appointed at the head as 
 Commissioner of Education. He wished me to go with 
 him to assist in the department. I was urged very hard 
 to remain in Annapolis and take a more responsible posi- 
 tion in the college. Our social relations and surroundings 
 had been pleasant, and we could go to Baltimore and 
 Washington every week if we chose— to the former place 
 without expense, through the courtesy of the Naval 
 Academy which sent a steamer there every week. But 
 our friends and relatives and my pecuniary interests were 
 largely in Connecticut. My parents were reaching old 
 age and wanted me nearer them. Mr. Barnard was ur- 
 gent that I should join him in the Bureau of Education, 
 and as he wished me to travel and spend some time at his 
 office in Hartford, I resigned my position at college and 
 removed my family to our home in New Britain and 
 
60 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 entered upon service in the Bureau of Education at 
 Washington. 
 
 While I was in Washington the trial of President John- 
 son occurred. There was a great demand for tickets, but 
 I was fortunate in having one given me through Senator 
 Trumbull of Illinois. My seat was a favorable one, and 
 I had the privilege of listening to most of the evidence and 
 much of the argument during the trial. The building 
 was crowded at every session. Alexander Stephens, 
 Benjamin Butler, and other men of note were present and 
 argued the case. One of the most impressive incidents of 
 the trial was the speech of Benjamin Butler, who kept 
 the pages running to the library for books and an assistant 
 turning to volume and page as he quoted one authority 
 after another to support his argument, until he had a huge 
 pile of books on the table before him and a large audience 
 listening to his eloquence. When the vote was finally 
 cast, with thirty-five votes in favor of impeachment and 
 nineteen against it, so that the change of one vote would 
 have altered the decision, there was excitement and dis- 
 appointment to many, but general relief. 
 
 While I was at Washington with Dr. Barnard, the First 
 Congregational Church of Washington was organized. I 
 had been appointed delegate from the South Church of 
 New Britain, and attended the council with Dr. Goodell. 
 
 At Mr. Barnard's request I visited the Eastern and 
 Middle states at this time, going as far west as St. Paul 
 and Des Moines, to obtain information for the Bureau of 
 Education. In nearly every state I met former students 
 of the Normal School. While speaking before a crowded 
 audience at Normal, Illinois, a woman in the audience was 
 noticed to be weeping. When questioned she said that 
 the sight of the speaker made her so homesick for New 
 Britain that she could not keep the tears from her eyes. 
 She had been a student in the Connecticut Normal School. 
 While at St. Paul and about to give an address on Normal 
 
BUREAU OF EDUCATION 61 
 
 Schools, I learned that the Normal School of Connecticut 
 was to be closed by action of the Legislature. 
 
 Mr. Barnard had learned that a circular had been issued 
 describing a Normal School in Southern Illinois. As Mr. 
 Barnard's name appeared on the circular without his per- 
 mission or previous knowledge, he wished me to ascer- 
 tain the facts about the school. I found the school was 
 reported as located at Carbondale in Southern Illinois. 
 On arriving at the railway station I asked for directions to 
 the school. No one seemed to have knowledge of such an 
 institution. At last by the aid of the postmaster I was 
 directed to an unused path which led to a field at a con- 
 siderable distance from the highway, and here were the 
 foundations of a building which had apparently been de- 
 serted for several months. This was the only show for the 
 Normal School so fully advertised. 
 
 The illness and death of my father in the winter of 1868- 
 1869 seemed to require my personal attention at home, and 
 I was obliged to give up work for the Bureau of Education, 
 except such as I could render Mr. Barnard at his oj05ce or 
 home in Hartford. 
 
 On retiring from service for the Bureau of Education, I 
 was invited by O. D. Case of Hartford to undertake the 
 compilation and editorial work of the American Year Book, 
 and accepted. 
 
 In the preparation of this work I passed some time in 
 New York, Boston, Washington, and some other cities. 
 I was materially aided by Mr. Greeley, Mr. Young, and 
 other editors of the Tribune and of other newspapers. In 
 the various public departments at Washington, I found 
 many willing helpers and a readiness to furnish any in- 
 formation desired which could be obtained at these de- 
 partments. The preparation of this work necessarily 
 brought me into communication with executive officers of 
 all the states and territories and led to the formation of 
 some pleasant acquaintances. Though the volume was 
 
62 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 favorably received, it did not become a source of profit 
 either to the author or to the publishers. 
 
 A written request signed by a number of the leading 
 citizens of New Britain and followed by oral communica- 
 tions induced me to found the New Britain Seminary. 
 Here my daughter Ellen and I taught for several years, 
 but my health failing, I was eventually obliged to relin- 
 quish teaching. The school was continued for some years 
 by Mr. Lincoln A. Rogers and my daughter. The plan 
 at first contemplated only a school for young ladies, but 
 the urgent request of parents and citizens led to modifica- 
 tion of the arrangement of the building, and a department 
 was opened for boys. The school was continued with 
 marked success for several years, but the development of 
 the model classes connected with the Normal School made it 
 less important that this school should be continued, and it 
 was closed. The rooms were used by the State for classes 
 of the Model School until the annex built for them was 
 completed and ready for occupancy. 
 
 In 1883 occurred the death of my wife, the devoted and 
 beloved companion of nearly forty years. 
 
 [In 1864 Mr. Camp was secretary of the National 
 Teachers' Association, afterwards known as the National 
 Education Association. In 1881 he took part as a charter 
 member in the organizing of the National Council of Edu- 
 cation.! 
 
CHAPTER VHI 
 OUR BOARDERS 
 
 In the early history of the Normal School there was 
 difficulty in finding proper places for the students, and 
 our house was sometimes filled with Normal School 
 boarders. Several of the teachers of the Normal and 
 High Schools have boarded with us at different times, 
 some for a few weeks, others for a longer term. Through 
 this means I have kept in touch with the schools, have 
 known of their work, and in some instances have been able 
 to render aid. 
 
 Soon after Dr. C. L. Goodell came to the South Church 
 as a pastor he made his home with us, and when he was 
 married he brought his bride to our home. We had the 
 privilege of entertaining Dr. Goodell and his wife for nearly 
 a year until a parsonage was completed. While they were 
 with us we had the privilege of receiving visits from Gov- 
 ernor Fairbanks, who was Mrs. Goodell's father, and 
 other members of the family. 
 
 Sometimes we have had boys placed under our care. 
 Thus in the few years before the Civil War, George Dewey 
 and William Schnell of Newbern, North Carolina, were 
 with us for a few years. In one of the vacations I went 
 home with them. They had readily conformed to north- 
 ern customs while in Connecticut, but I noticed that as 
 soon as we were south of Washington they required the 
 black people to perform all kinds of service, commanding 
 them as master to slave. During my visit to Newbern 
 I was invited to the residences of gentlemen of the town to 
 meet some of the people socially. In these informal meet- 
 ings I would hear slavery bitterly denounced even when a 
 number of slaves were serving at the table at which we were 
 eating. 
 
 63 
 
64 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 When the Civil War broke out, the boys were recalled 
 home. Dewey said, when he left, that if he should be 
 compelled to enter the Southern army, he would never 
 point a gun toward a soldier from New Britain. 
 
 They both entered the Southern army. Will Schnell 
 was taken prisoner in battle by members of the Sunday 
 School class to which he belonged when he resided in New 
 Britain. He was exchanged and afterwards killed in 
 battle. 
 
 At different times I had Chinese and Japanese young 
 men under my care. Some of them have occupied official 
 or other positions of influence since their return to their 
 native country. In general, the Japanese students were 
 the more thoughtful and persistent in their studies. 
 
CHAPTER IX 
 SECOND VISIT TO EUROPE 
 
 While engaged in teaching in the Seminary, I took a long 
 vacation, and with my two daughters and a few other 
 pupils made another trip to Europe, visiting England, 
 Scotland, France, Germany, Holland, Switzerland, Italy, 
 and Austria. There were many interesting incidents on 
 our trip, and I returned much invigorated in health, but 
 was able to continue teaching only a few years longer. 
 
 The two young ladies who made the whole trip with us 
 were Harriet Beckley Collins of New Britain and Miss 
 Van Sanvoort of Mount Vernon, N. Y. Both were seasick 
 on the outward voyage, and Harriet said if she could 
 see all Europe it would not compensate for what she had 
 suffered. But later in a single day after visiting Stratford 
 and Warwick, we took a carriage to Leamington, riding 
 across the country, visiting Kenilworth and some English 
 parks, and at night Harriet said that she had seen enough 
 that day to compensate for all she had suffered on ship- 
 board. 
 
 Arriving, after the ocean voyage, at Liverpool in the 
 late afternoon, I telegraphed to A. P. Collins at New 
 Britain at 7 P. M. by Liverpool time. The telegram 
 was received at 5 P. M. by New Britain time. 
 
 It was learned at the hotel that two distinct meals were 
 served in the evening, "dinner" and "tea." The ladies 
 decided that they preferred dinner. There were five in 
 the party so dinner for five was ordered. Before it was 
 entirely eaten one of the ladies asked for a cup of tea. 
 When the bill was presented it was for six meals, five 
 "dinners" and one "tea." 
 
 We passed but a few days in London at this time, as we 
 desired to go to the continent before the hot weather. 
 
 65 
 
66 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 We visited Scotland, going by way of Loch Katrine and 
 the Trossachs. One Sunday was passed in the Highlands 
 and another in Edinburgh. At the latter place I heard 
 a hotel keeper rebuke some gentlemen for singing songs on 
 Sunday though at the same time he was dispensing intox- 
 icants to his customers. 
 
 Our visit to the English Lake Country was brief but in- 
 teresting. On arriving at Lodore in the afternoon after a 
 long carriage ride, we found very little water at the falls, 
 and some of the party were disappointed with the view. 
 But during the night there was a violent storm, the 
 stream was full in the morning, and the rapids could be 
 seen in all their grandeur. 
 
 We crossed to the continent from Harwick to Antwerp. 
 Arriving in the early morning we passed the day with the 
 wonderful paintings and interesting museums. Going 
 by rail to Cologne we were there joined by Miss Louise 
 Wakely who traveled with us the rest of our journey. 
 The Cathedral at Cologne and other objects of interest 
 occupied but a day or two of our time. We then pro- 
 ceeded up the Rhine b}" boat, having a fine view of the 
 castles on its banks. 
 
 After a few days at Geneva we went to Chamonix by 
 diligence. The few days passed here were full of interest. 
 The whole party went on horseback to the great glacier, 
 Mer de Glace. Some of the ladies who had never ridden 
 in that way before declared that they could not keep on 
 their horses,"but as each had a separate guide who had been 
 instructed not to let any one dismount until the glacier 
 was reached, all arrived safely and walked partly over 
 the sea of ice. 
 
 On a previous visit to the glacier I had walked the whole 
 distance to it, across the glacier, and returned to Chamonix 
 from the other side on foot, but it was a hard day's task. 
 On my first visit to this place I crossed the Tete Noir on 
 horseback, as there was only a bridle path over the 
 
SECOND VISIT TO EUROPE 67 
 
 mountain. But the path had since been widened so 
 that our party were taken over safely in a wagonette. 
 The road was rough in places but safe. A short ride by 
 rail in the evening brought us to the foot of the Giesbach 
 range of the Alps. This we crossed the next day in a 
 diligence. We were called at three o'clock in the morning 
 for an early breakfast. As soon as it was light, the 
 diligence started. For an hour the road zigzagged up the 
 mountain, and we could then see the hotel and the village 
 we had left apparently but a short distance below us. 
 
 It was the fourth of July. In passing over the moun- 
 tains we frequently passed the remains of snow drifts, and 
 when the diligence stopped at noon the girls had a game of 
 snow ball. At one place the vehicle passed through what 
 had been a tunnel through an immense snow drift. The 
 roof of the tunnel had fallen in, but the snow was still as 
 high as the windows of the diligence. Before we arrived 
 at our destination at night by one of the Italian Lakes, we 
 passed by ripening grain fields. 
 
 The weather was very warm while we were in Turin, 
 Milan, and Bologna, and our stops in Turin and Bologna 
 were brief. We remained longer in Milan, where we 
 passed some time in the Cathedral and its different 
 chambers. The weather of Florence was more favorable, 
 and we passed several days in its picture galleries and 
 museums. As one of the young ladies, Miss Van San- 
 voort, was taken ill, and much sickness was reported at 
 Rome, we avoided that city and went from Florence to 
 Pisa and then to Venice. Here we found delightful 
 weather and pleasant surroundings. 
 
 From Venice we went into Austria at Innsbruck and 
 over the Austrian Alps to Luzerne. Here I left the party 
 for a few days while I went to Winterthur where the 
 O. D. Case Company were having some engraving done 
 for outline maps. When we arrived at Munich I again 
 left the party to visit galleries and museums while I 
 went to Vienna to visit the exposition. 
 
68 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 I had tickets to a hotel in Vienna to which tourists were 
 consigned by an agency, but on arriving there I found the 
 hotel crowded. I went then to an Austrian hotel, where 
 I found comfortable rooms and excellent fare and attend- 
 ance, all at a reasonable rate. A card in the chamber 
 which I occupied prescribed with government signature 
 the daily rates which might be charged for the room and 
 for meals. 
 
 The exposition was very favorably situated on an ex- 
 tensive park easy of access. In manufacture and food 
 products it was much less extensive than the exhibitions 
 of Philadelphia, of London at the Crystal Palace, or of 
 Chicago or Paris, but in paintings, sculpture, and the fine 
 arts generally it exceeded any of the other expositions. 
 Loans of rare and expensive works of art had been made 
 by the different royal courts and noted galleries of Europe, 
 so that a rare collection of art had been secured. The 
 exhibition was opened on Sundays as on other days, but 
 the Fairbanks Company and some other American com- 
 panies kept their exhibits covered, and had no display or 
 attendance on that day. 
 
 From Munich our route to Paris was by Strasburg,. 
 where we passed a night and had a view of the famous 
 Cathedral and its contents. It was a short time after the 
 war between France and Germany, and German soldiers 
 were still parading in the streets of Strasburg. The two 
 weeks passed in Paris and vicinity were full of interest 
 to all the members of the party. When ready to leave for 
 London, some of the young ladies declared that they were 
 tired of visiting museums, picture galleries, cathedrals, 
 and works of art, and would be glad to see their homes and 
 find a place of rest. 
 
 In London, at the recommendation of Mr. Henry 
 Russell, we found a pleasant stopping place in a 'pension 
 kept by a cultivated American lady in the fashionable 
 part of the city and near the Houses of Parliament and 
 
SECOND VISIT TO EUROPE 69 
 
 places of greatest interest. While in Windsor viewing one 
 of the royal parks, one of the young ladies remarked that 
 it seemed a pity that so large a tract should be reserved 
 for royalty while there were so many poor people needing 
 land to cultivate. By the remark she seriously offended 
 the royal attendant, ever loyal to his Queen. Places of 
 special interest in London, as Westminster Abbey, St. 
 Paul's, the Tower, and other historical places were visited. 
 As most of their purchases had been made in Paris, the 
 ladies had few things to buy in London. They heard 
 Spurgeon and other noted preachers and saw much of 
 interest in the place. 
 
 The trip was on the whole a pleasant one. I was very 
 thankful that after visiting so many countries and passing 
 over so many routes there had been no accident, and all 
 were in good health for the return home. 
 
 The steamer on the return voyage left Liverpool in a 
 storm. I became seasick and went to the table in the 
 cabin but once during the voyage. 
 
CHAPTER X 
 LITERARY WORK 
 
 Literary work of various kinds enlisted my attention at 
 different periods, and occupied part of my time, both 
 while I was teaching and for a number of years afterward. 
 
 My first book was a small Globe Manual published by 
 George Sherwood and Company of Chicago [1864]. 
 
 [The next year Mr. Camp brought out through the same 
 publishers a Manual of Illustrative Teaching which in- 
 cluded the Globe Manual as one of its three parts.] 
 
 I revised Mitchell's Outline Maps for O. D. Case and 
 Company, correcting the Key to correspond. I after- 
 wards prepared a set of Outline Maps which were used 
 extensively in schools, especially in the western states. 
 I was the author of four different Geographies to go with 
 the maps. 
 
 For a short time I edited and published the Connecticut 
 School Journal and wrote the editorials for a daily news- 
 paper. I gave a much longer time to the work of gathering 
 the data for the American Year Book and editing it. 
 
 While occupied with the Year Book I was frequently in 
 the office of the New York Tribune and became well 
 acquainted with Horace Greeley, who was then the editor- 
 in-chief, and with some others of the editorial staff. Mr. 
 Greeley was very near-sighted, and he had a special desk 
 which stood at about the level of his chin while he was at 
 work. Besides his private room at the Tribune office he 
 had a small room in the upper part of the city which he 
 called his "den" and in which he wrote many of the 
 editorials for the Tribune. Mr. Greeley wrote an article 
 for the Year Book and also lectured at institutes which 
 I held in New Jersey. He always attracted large audi- 
 ences. He seldom used notes but would sometimes have 
 
 70 
 
LITERARY WORK 71 
 
 the heads of his lectures on numerous pieces of paper 
 about two inches square to which he would refer as he 
 talked. 
 
 He was usually very mild in manner, and in his long 
 light colored overcoat looked very peaceful, but when 
 matters did not go as he wished he could become quite 
 excited and use strong language. On one occasion a large 
 business house in New York was desirous of having a 
 full-page illustrated advertisement in the Tribune, but 
 knowing Mr. Greeley's aversion to display or cuts of any 
 kind, the manager of the house w^aited until Mr. Greeley 
 had left the office and then went to the publisher to 
 arrange for the publication. At first the request was 
 denied, but at last when asked to fix a price, the publisher 
 named a sum so high he supposed it would be prohibitive. 
 It was accepted, however, the copy was furnished, and the 
 next morning the Tribune appeared with a page advertise- 
 ment of Fairbank's scales profusely illustrated. Mr. 
 Greeley came into the office in the morning full of wrath, 
 with paper in hand, and wanted to know if any one could 
 tell him when, or why, the Tribune had become a pictorial 
 newspaper. 
 
 I became acquainted at the same time with N. C. 
 Meeker, who had charge of the Agricultural Department 
 of the Tribune and who afterwards went west and founded 
 the town of Greeley. He was a modest man, skilled in 
 agriculture, and the writer of an article for the Year Book. 
 
 On account of persistent throat and lung trouble I was 
 for several years advised by my physician to pass a portion 
 of each winter and spring in a milder climate. At the 
 time of the blizzard in March, 1888, I was at Fortress 
 Monroe. There we had a violent storm of wind but no 
 snow. It was several days after the storm before I could 
 communicate with home by mail or telegraph. When I 
 came home several days after, there were streets in New 
 York not yet open to traflfic, and the cars passed through 
 cuts in drifts where the snow was nearly to the top of the 
 
72 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 car windows. I was in Lakewood for several years during 
 portions of February, March, and April, and found its 
 climate particularly beneficial. Some of my literary 
 work was done there. 
 
 At the request of Mayor F. T. Stanley and others, I 
 undertook the preparation of the History of New Britain, 
 Farmington, and Berlin. This work, which took me out 
 of doors most of the time, I found conducive to health 
 though not financially remunerative. I visited the 
 cemeteries of Farmington, Berlin, and New Britain, and 
 all other places in the townships of special historic interest. 
 I consulted the aged persons of these towns and other 
 persons such as clerks and collectors who had been brought 
 in contact with the people of former years. I necessarily 
 gave much time to town, society, and church records, 
 sometimes passing most of the day in a town clerk's office 
 looking through musty volumes to interpret the meaning 
 of records nearly obliterated by the ravages of time. I 
 found some records which were supposed to be entirely 
 lost, in the hands of the descendants of the early settlers of 
 these towns, who had removed to New York, New Haven, 
 and other places. 
 
 Though a work of much labor there was much of interest 
 connected with it. I found many interesting old people 
 and was everywhere met with kindly co-operation. I was 
 especially indebted to William H. Lee and Amos R. Eno 
 of New York, Charles Hoodley of Hartford, and to T. W. 
 Stanley, F. T. Stanley, and H. W. Whiting of New Britain, 
 for information given. This work occupied my time for 
 three or four years. [It was finished in 1889.] 
 
 [It should be added that these are only the larger items 
 in Mr. Camp's literary work. Some of his institute lec- 
 tures and other addresses have been printed in pamphlet 
 form or as chapters in the proceedings of the associations 
 before which they were delivered. Historical sketches 
 from his hand have been embodied in a number of his- 
 torical reports and collections. During the period of his 
 main educational activities he contributed quite largely 
 to the educational periodicals.] 
 
CHAPTER XI 
 FINANCIAL AND CIVIC INTERESTS 
 
 In my early life business was conducted in an entirely 
 different manner from that of to-day. Agriculture and 
 small manufacturing were the principal employments of 
 the residents of central Connecticut. The farms were 
 chiefly small, or when as large as a few hundred acres, 
 included mountain land or swamps not suitable for tillage. 
 Little attention was given to the rotation of crops or to 
 any form of scientific farming. As a consequence while 
 in favorable circumstances there would sometimes be 
 records of large crops, the ordinary returns from agri- 
 culture were small. 
 
 My father's farm included several hundred acres, but 
 probably not more than one-third of it was suitable for 
 cultivation. Part of the remaining land was good pasture 
 land upon which his flocks of sheep and herds of young 
 cattle grazed. The mountain land was covered with 
 forests, the cutting of which furnished work for his help 
 in the winter, while the drawing of the wood occupied his 
 teams. The products of the farm were largely used in the 
 family, or were exchanged for groceries and other articles 
 needed by its members. 
 
 In a community of such circumstances the amount of 
 money in circulation was small, all business transactions 
 except the sale and purchase of farms were of small 
 amount, and there was little opportunity for speculation. 
 There were no very rich families and few very poor ones. 
 Integrity and fair dealing were the rule rather than the 
 exception in all kinds of business transactions. Economy 
 was necessarily practiced in both domestic and business 
 affairs. 
 
 73 
 
74 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 As I have mentioned already, my father believed it to 
 be best that I should early have business responsibilities 
 placed upon me. So while I was attending school he 
 often placed products of the farm in my hands for sale, 
 and on holidays or in vacations I was sent to Middletown 
 or New Haven with loads of wood, of vegetables, or of 
 fruit for sale. 
 
 My father was accustomed to buy cattle in the spring, 
 feed them through the summer and autumn, and sell 
 them to butchers in the fall and winter for beef. 
 
 On one occasion while I was attending school in Durham, 
 he sent me to buy oxen. I bought a pair of large cattle 
 without horns and drove them home. It was the first 
 large trade I made, the price seemed high, and my father 
 and I were doubtful whether we would get the return of 
 our money. So I kept a careful account of the cost of 
 pasturage, feed, and care, and when they were sold in the 
 autumn we found that after deducting all expenses there 
 was a handsome clear profit on the transaction. 
 
 I had become convinced that some crops on the farm 
 were being cultivated at a loss, and prevailed upon my 
 father to give me the data by which we might determine 
 whether it was so. Taking his value of the land and 
 keeping a careful account of the cost of fertilizers, labor, 
 seed, taxes, and other expenses, I was able to show that 
 while some crops were yielding a fair profit, others were 
 cultivated at a loss. The result was a change in the 
 selection of crops. 
 
 While teaching in public schools salaries were very low, 
 so besides giving considerable time to reading and the 
 study of foreign languages, I was glad to receive a small 
 income from the time given on evenings and holidays to 
 writing up the books of merchants and manufacturers. 
 
 Some of my investments in western banks, mines, and 
 lands proved worthless, while others were remunerative. 
 
FINANCIAL AND CIVIC INTERESTS 75 
 
 Investments in local concerns have with a few exceptions 
 been remunerative. 
 
 On the organization of the Skinner Chuck Company in 
 1887, I was persuaded to take a little of the stock, not 
 expecting at the time to engage personally in the service 
 of the company. Circumstances seemed later to make 
 it desirable that I should give some time to the company's 
 financial operations, so I gave up some of my other work, 
 and now for more than twenty years have given much of 
 my time to business. This has brought me into the open 
 air, has occupied much of my time, and has generally 
 seemed to be conducive to health. 
 
 My observations and experiences in the business world 
 have led me to believe that while at times there is misrepre- 
 sentation and fraud, the majority of business men are 
 upright and are desirous of being honest in their trans- 
 actions. 
 
 [Mr. Camp was president of the Skinner Chuck Com- 
 pany from 1887 to 1915. 
 
 Another main item in his business interests was his 
 connection with the New Britain National Bank. The 
 graceful words of Mr. Andrew J. Sloper, the president of 
 the bank, are quoted in summary of this division of his 
 activity. 
 
 "It is a full half century, fifty years ago last month, 
 that this bank commenced business, and Mr. Camp, as 
 one of the original subscribers to the stock of this bank, is 
 the only one living who has continued as a stockholder 
 during that period. . . . Mr. Camp became a mem- 
 ber of the Board of Directors in 1874, and with the ex- 
 ception of William H. Hart who was elected in 1866, Mr. 
 Camp is the oldest in length of service, and it is of record 
 that his attendance at board meetings stands far above 
 that of any other member, past or present. His wide 
 acquaintance, ripe experience, and careful and conserva- 
 tive judgment have given such weight to his opinions that 
 they have come to be the standard by which the affairs 
 of the bank are conducted. The year that he was elected 
 
76 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 a member of the board he was appointed as chairman of 
 the auditing committee and has served continuously in 
 that position, and been present and directed and reported 
 every semi-annual examination during that time. How 
 well and thoroughly that difficult and exacting work has 
 been done, and with what confidence those reports have 
 been received and accepted, I need not remind you. In 
 behalf of the officers and employees whose accounts have 
 been examined, your president can bear testimony to the 
 rigid scrutiny to which the affairs of the bank have been 
 subjected and to the unfailing courtesy with which the 
 examinations have been conducted. 
 
 "For twenty -five years he has served as vice-president 
 of the bank without compensation, and while the active 
 m^anagement of the details of the business have not de- 
 volved upon him, he has filled the office with dignity and 
 with entire acceptance to the members of the board." 
 {New Britain Daily Herald, October 3, 1910.) 
 
 Mr. Camp was president of the Adkins Printing Com- 
 pany from its organization in 1880 till his death. 
 
 In 1871 Mr. Camp was a member of the Common 
 Council of New Britain. From 1872 to 1876 he was on 
 the Board of Aldermen. He was mayor from 1877 to 
 1879. In 1879 he served a term in the General Assembly 
 of the State and was chairman of the Committee on Edu- 
 cation. 
 
 When the New Britain Institute was organized in 1853, 
 Mr. Camp was made chairman of the Library Committee. 
 He retained this office for the remainder of his life, and 
 its duties were one of his larger interests. In travelling 
 he eagerly visited the libraries of other cities. He went 
 to a number of meetings of the American Library Asso- 
 ciation. In the routine of his activities in New Britain no 
 pursuit seemed to give him more pleasure than his part in 
 the affairs of the Institute library. Mr. Camp was presi- 
 dent of the Institute from 1853 to 1864. On the incor- 
 poration of the Institute in 1858, he was one of the incor- 
 porators. During the years 1897 to 1901 he was an active 
 member of the committee that had charge of the erection 
 of the present building of the Institute. He was vice- 
 president of the Institute from 1900 to 1905, and a second 
 time president from 1905 till the time of his death. 
 
FINANCIAL AND CIVIC INTERESTS 77 
 
 In 1867 Mr. Camp was president of the New Britain 
 Young Men's Christian Association. From 1881 to 1890 
 he was president of the Connecticut Temperance Union. 
 He continued as director of the Union till 1912 when he 
 retired from active responsibility and was made life 
 director. He was president of the Board of Managers of 
 the Erwin Home from the time of its incorporation in 1893 
 till 1914, ' He was vice-president of the Erwin Home 
 Corporation from its founding till his death.] 
 
CHAPTER XII 
 RELIGIOUS TRAINING AND HISTORY 
 
 Both of my parents were members of the Congregational 
 church. My father was a deacon of the church in Durham 
 when he removed from the place in 1843. He was 
 regular in attendance at church and at prayer and con- 
 ference meetings, the weather seldom detaining him at 
 home. In winter when the snowdrifts obstructed the road 
 he would send out an ox team and sleds to break a path, 
 or would hitch two or four horses to a big sleigh, and taking 
 some of his workmen with shovels, would proceed to the 
 meetinghouse, breaking a path for himself and for others. 
 He was a punctual attendant at the church prayer- 
 meeting held on Thursday afternoons at the church two 
 and one-half miles from home, and even in the busy 
 summer season would arrange his business so as to attend 
 the meeting. He was also generally present at the 
 monthly concert of prayer for missions held at the church 
 or chapel the first Monday evening of every month. 
 
 In my childhood days. Sabbath rest and the cessation of 
 business and sports were supposed to commence soon 
 after sundown on Saturday evening. Tools were put 
 away, playthings were consigned to closets, and prep- 
 arations were made for keeping the Sabbath. Since 
 on Sunday evening a conference meeting was held at a 
 schoolhouse near our home, at which all members of the 
 family able to attend were expected to be present, there 
 was not much question of how to pass that evening. 
 
 At the meetinghouse there were two preaching services 
 on Sunday, one at half past ten, continuing until noon, 
 and a second service at half past one, usually closing about 
 three. In the intermission Sunday School was held, and 
 a lunch carried from home was eaten when there was time. 
 
 78 
 
RELIGIOUS TRAINING AND HISTORY 79 
 
 Members of the family who had driven to church arrived 
 home about four o'clock, the horses were put in the stable, 
 those who had walked to church arrived a little later, and 
 then the Sunday dinner, the principal meal of the day, 
 was eaten. After dinner in the winter season, the family 
 was brought together in the living room to recite the 
 Assembly's catechism or some scripture lesson, continuing 
 until nearly time for the evening prayer-meeting. 
 
 In my early childhood many barrels of cider were made 
 each year from apples raised on the farm. Cider was 
 used freely in the family and furnished to the workmen 
 on the farm. In seasons when it was unusually plentiful 
 the surplus was taken to a still and converted into cider- 
 brandy. I well remember an occasion when I was quite 
 young, on which my father took me with him when he 
 went to a still in Durham for some cider-brandy that was 
 due him there, and on which I heard him remark that he 
 had cider-brandy enough to last him and his workmen 
 several years. 
 
 While my father did not use distilled liquors of any kind 
 they were furnished to his workmen particularly in harvest 
 time as was then the universal custom, but in the tem- 
 perance reformations which followed the delivery of Dr. 
 Lyman Beecher's six famous sermons on temperance in 
 1825, and the organization of the National Temperance 
 Society in 1826, he became a strong temperance advocate. 
 The cider-brandy which had been so highly prized was 
 thereupon taken out of the cellar and poured on the ground. 
 He did not drink or sell cider after that but converted his 
 apples into vinegar or fed them to his stock. 
 
 My mother was even more opposed to intoxicants than 
 my father. A devout Christian woman, she prayed with 
 and for her children and brought them up "in the fear of 
 the Lord." 
 
 With my childhood in such a family, with beloved 
 Christian parents watching over me and praying for me. 
 
80 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 it miglit seem that I should have been good. But I was 
 undoubtedly much like other boys morally, violating no 
 rules of propriety, but without any positive conviction of 
 sin. I had been taught to say my prayers from earliest 
 childhood, had been to Sunday School, and had attended 
 meetings that had no particular interest for me. 
 
 It was during the general religious awakening of 1831 
 that my mind became more deeply impressed with the 
 idea of the sinfulness of sin and the need of a Savior. 
 I attended inquiry meetings, especially those for children, 
 and read the Bible and religious books, but wandered in 
 darkness for days before peace came. At last it flowed 
 like a river. 
 
 I united with the Congregational Church in Durham, and 
 for more than five years was its youngest member. Con- 
 scious of my unworthiness and failure to realize the expec- 
 tations of my parents or of myself, I have nevertheless 
 felt that the step may have been ordered in God's 
 Providence for the best, both for me and for the world. 
 
 Timid, extremely bashful, easily led by others, I might 
 have been much worse without the restraining influences 
 about me. From the time my mother first taught me 
 I had been a great reader, especially of story books, but 
 now my taste was changed. Abbott's Young Christian 
 became a fascinating book for me. Pilgrim's Progress 
 occupied leisure moments. The works of Doddridge, 
 Baxter, and others, and the poems of Milton, Pollock, 
 and Young, became my delight. The teachings and 
 influence of our pastor. Reverend Henry Gleason, and his 
 beloved wife, were a great help to me in those years of 
 character forming. Their kindly words and wise counsels 
 came just at a time when such helps were needed. Sug- 
 gestions in forming rules of daily living were among the 
 helps given. In after years when questions of casuistry 
 arose, the fact that I was a member of Christ's church 
 would often determine the decision and leave no necessity 
 of debating the propriety of an act. 
 
RELIGIOUS TRAINING AND HISTORY 81 
 
 The prolonged illness which so materially changed my 
 life's plans, was followed by a feeling of gratitude for 
 recovery and a desire in some way, though feebly, to 
 further the cause of my Master. The position of teacher 
 seemed to afford the most favorable opportunity, and 
 for most of the time during more than forty years I was 
 engaged in teaching or educational work of some kind. 
 
 I became secretary and then teacher of the Sunday 
 School in Durham before leaving that place, and was 
 afterwards teacher in Sunday Schools in North Branford, 
 Meriden, and New Britain, and was Sunday School 
 superintendent for a time in each of the latter places. 
 For a dozen years or more in New Britain, I had a Bible 
 class held on Sunday mornings in the hall of the Normal 
 School attended chiefly by Normal students, and another 
 Bible class in church at noon. In all of these places there 
 were great opportunities for the influencing of young people 
 for the better. My chief regret is that I did not do more. 
 
 I was made deacon of the First Church in Meriden in 
 1848, and continued to serve after removal to New Britain 
 until 1853, when a letter was taken to the South Church 
 of New Britain. I was soon afterwards elected to the 
 office in this church, but felt obliged to decline on account 
 of duties arising from my connection with the educational 
 work in the state. I served on the standing committee 
 for several years, however, before I was again elected 
 deacon in 1861. 
 
 In my earlier Christian experience, I found help from 
 a few rules of life, which I wrote out and kept with my 
 Bible, and to which I could frequently refer. There were 
 epochs when I especially felt the need of their help. 
 One of these was my departure from home and removal 
 from its restraining influences. Then again on my reach- 
 ing my twenty-first year there seemed to be a pressing 
 burden to seek help, not only from God, but by adopting 
 some definite fixed rule of action. While I know that 
 
82 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 some of these rules were only imperfectly kept, I should 
 be loth to say that they had not been a help to me. 
 
 While a school boy, I was taken by my parents to the 
 anniversaries of the national missionary societies, for some 
 years held in the Broadway Tabernacle a little north of 
 the Park on Broadway, New York. After early becoming 
 a member of these societies I began to attend the annual 
 meetings regularly when they were held east of the 
 Mississippi River. 
 
 Rev. David Smith and Rev. Henry Gleason, pastors of 
 the Church in Durham, were my early religious teachers. 
 I later became somewhat intimately acquainted with Rev. 
 Z. Crocker of Cromwell, Rev. Z. Whitemore of North 
 Guilford, Rev. John S. Baldwin of North Branford, Rev. 
 Nathaniel W. Taylor of Yale College, Rev. Noah Porter, 
 Rev. Horace Bushnell, Rev. Merrill Richardson, Rev. 
 George Perkins, and some others, before I became actively 
 identified with the state and national missionary societies. 
 I afterwards found many warm friends among the officers 
 of those societies, and among the clergymen of New Eng- 
 land and elsewhere. 
 
 For many years the annual meetings of the American 
 Home Missionary Society were held at Saratoga Springs, 
 and it was my fortune to be present at nearly all of them. 
 These meetings were attended with much interest, and 
 I there became acquated in with the Secretaries, Doctors 
 Clark and Choate, and many others who were life long 
 friends. 
 
 It was my privilege to be present at the organization of 
 the General Conference of Congregational Churches of 
 Connecticut at New Britain in 1867. I was a delegate 
 to the first annual meeting in Waterbury in 1868, and I 
 have attended most of the meetings since. I became a 
 member of the Board of Directors in 1875. In the various 
 meetings of this board I have been privileged to make the 
 acquaintance of many of the pastors of the Congregational 
 
RELIGIOUS TRAINING AND HISTORY 83 
 
 churches of Connecticut, and have known something of 
 their sacrifice and devotion in promoting the interests 
 and welfare of the Congregational churches of the state. 
 Through the same means I have been brought into close 
 relations with some of the mission churches and their 
 pastors, and with some of the foreign churches, and have 
 found Connecticut true missionary ground. 
 
 [In 1875 Mr. Camp became a director of the Missionary 
 Society of Connecticut; from 1882 to 1901 he held the 
 office of auditor; from 1882 to 1908 he was chairman of 
 the Finance Committee; in 1899 he became a member of 
 the Executive Committee; in 1900 he was elected presi- 
 dent; the latter office he held for the remainder of his life.] 
 
 I was chosen auditor of the National Council of the 
 Congregational Churches of the United States in 1883, 
 and by repeated re-elections I was continued in office until 
 1913, a period of thirty years. It has been my privilege 
 to attend the meetings of the National Council and of 
 the national societies connected with it, at New Haven, 
 Chicago, Worcester, Syracuse, Portland, Oregon, Des 
 Moines, Cleveland, and Boston. 
 
 My attendance on the meetings of that body led me to 
 become acquainted with many of the prominent ministers 
 of the denomination in this country, and gave me the 
 privilege of listening to them in sermon, address, and dis- 
 cussion. At the same meetings, the principles, doctrines, 
 and methods of Congregational churches were often 
 brought before the council in a way which gave observers 
 the opportunity to learn much of Congregational polity. 
 
 In 1898 Ellen was my companion in attendance upon 
 the National Council at Portland, Oregon. Going out via 
 Chicago we stopped a few days with Mrs. George Sherwood 
 of that city, a former student of the Normal School, and 
 an active worker in moral and religious work in Chicago. 
 On the train between Minneapolis and the West we met 
 Mr. Almstrohm, a former pastor of the Swedish Church 
 
84 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 of New Britain, who studied English and the Bible at 
 our home. 
 
 Our next stop was at Moorhead, Minnesota, where I 
 had some land in cultivation. Here we had an opportu- 
 nity to ride out over the virgin prairie, and also to see 
 the fields of grain and vegetables where the land had been 
 cultivated. It was the first time that Ellen had seen 
 extensive prairies in their wild state. Passing the Sabbath 
 here we attended a small Congregational Church with an 
 audience of less than forty people. On the same street a 
 few rods distant were a Baptist church and a Methodist 
 church, both small buildings. One of them was closed^ 
 and the other had a smaller audience than the Congrega- 
 tional Church. We visited Fargo in Dakota, and saw 
 there the business of a city in the midst of the great wheat 
 fields of the North West. 
 
 At Livingston we left the main line of the railway, the 
 Northern Pacific, and traveled by a short line a few miles, 
 and by stage, to the Mammoth Springs Hotel in the 
 Yellowstone National Park. A ride of a few hours about 
 the Mammoth Springs and other places of interest gave 
 us a foretaste of the wonders of the Park. The next 
 morning we left the hotel in a four-horse stage for a six 
 days' trip of exploration of it. Our companions were the 
 Bishop of Minnesota and his wife, and a traveler returning 
 from Alaska. The trip was full of interest, every day 
 revealing new objects of attention in the colors of the 
 water, the action of the springs, and the wonderful 
 scenery. We met in the Park, Reverend Doctor Bradford 
 and Reverend F. M. Noble, D. D. and his wife, all of 
 whom we afterwards saw at the meetings of the Council at 
 Portland. 
 
 At Portland, we were the guests of Mr. and Mrs. Eggert, 
 who also entertained Dr. Lyman of Brooklyn, Rev. Joel 
 S. Ives of Meriden, and some others. Ellen addressed the 
 Woman's Missionary Association of the state, and I made 
 
RELIGIOUS TRAINING AND HISTORY 85 
 
 my report to the National Council. Rev. F. A. Noble was 
 elected Moderator of the Council. The meetings were 
 full of interest and importance. 
 
 After a week in Portland at the Council we went to San 
 Francisco, stopping at the Grand Hotel and visiting noted 
 places. Ellen was especially interested in the Chinese 
 Quarter and the parks, while I went to the business part 
 of the city. 
 
 From San Francisco we went to the Yosemite by way 
 of Merced. A short ride by railway and a day and a half 
 by stage, brought us to this wonderful region. El Capitan, 
 standing a single rock more than half a mile in perpen- 
 dicular height, was a particularly grand sight. There 
 was little water at the Bridal Falls, but enough to show 
 their beauty. 
 
 We stopped for a day at Ahwanee to visit the forest of 
 big trees. The four-horse stage in w hich we were riding 
 was driven through the trunk of one of the trees which 
 was still growing, and in the trunk of another we saw a 
 party sitting around a table at dinner. 
 
 At Salt Lake City we remained over Sunday and attended 
 service in the Mormon Tabernacle. The large building 
 was filled with an attentive audience. On Monday we 
 went out to Saltair, where a large number of persons were 
 bathing in the Great Salt Lake. 
 
 Stopping at Colorado Springs, we passed a night and a 
 day at Manitou, visiting the Garden of the Gods and the 
 Crystal Cavern. At Denver we met Harry Merriam and 
 wife, and with them visited the park and other places of 
 interest. 
 
 As Ellen wished to call at the Schauffler Institution in 
 Cleveland, which was receiving some aid from the society 
 of which she was president, we made our last considerable 
 stop at that place. From Cleveland to our home was 
 comparatively a short trip. 
 
 Ellen had been strongly impressed at one time with the 
 
86 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 idea that it was her duty to become a foreign missionary.. 
 Afterwards she became more intensely interested in home 
 missionary work, and was president of the Woman's 
 Society of Connecticut. 
 
 She had frequently been my companion at the annual 
 meetings of the national missionary societies in Saratoga 
 and other cities, and had been with me at the meeting 
 of the national Home Missionary Society at Omaha, 
 Nebraska. As this trip to Portland was the last con- 
 siderable journey that Ellen made with me, and less than 
 two years before her decease, its events were indelibly 
 impressed upon my memory in connection with her. 
 
 Ellen's entire consecration to the work of the Master, and 
 her devotion to the cause of missions wherever there was 
 opportunity for service was an inspiration to others; her 
 life and example were an inspiration to me, and her 
 co-operation was always helpful in all kinds of religious 
 work. Her death in 1900 removed from my side one who 
 had been not only a devoted daughter, but a faithful 
 counselor and friend, a companion in my trouble, and 
 the light of my home. 
 
 Since the death of Ellen, my attendance on the meetings 
 of the national benevolent and missionary organizations 
 has been less frequent, but my granddaughter, E. Gertrude 
 Rogers, was with me at Des Moines in 1901, my grandson, 
 D. Miner Rogers, was with me at Cleveland in 1907, 
 and my granddaughter, Mary E. Rogers, at Boston in 
 1910 and at Toledo in 1912. I was accustomed to attend 
 the meetings of the American Board, and the Congrega- 
 tional Home Missionary Society as far west as Omaha, 
 while Ellen was living, but have necessarily omitted 
 some of them in later years. At all of these meetings 
 there has been much to inspire the members, and much 
 to encourage all who were praying and working for the 
 extension of Christ's kingdom on earth. 
 
RELIGIOUS TRAINING AND HISTORY 87 
 
 [Among Mr. Camp's papers there have been found 
 the two sets of resolutions to which his narrative refers, 
 one made at the time of his joining the Christian church, 
 the other written on the twenty-first anniversary of his 
 birthday and re-adopted with added comments on a num- 
 ber of his later birthdays. Since these documents sug- 
 gest the key to so much of his life, and present so vividly 
 some of the things which we of the present generation 
 count of highest value in our inheritance from the past, 
 it has seemed permissible to publish them here at the 
 close of his own account of his religious history.] 
 
 Resolutions 
 
 1. I am resolved to obey, love, and fear God. 
 
 2. To obey and cheerfully comply with the wishes of 
 my parents and teachers. 
 
 3. I will strive ever to treat others with that kindness 
 which I wish to receive from them by exhibiting an 
 affectionate disposition. 
 
 4. I will endeavor to improve my disposition by 
 endeavoring to subdue every wrong emotion. 
 
 5. I am resolved to overcome selfishness by placing self 
 very low. 
 
 6. I am resolved never to exaggerate or give a false 
 coloring to any statement whatever, sincerely desiring 
 that truthfulness may be a prominent trait in my charac- 
 ter. 
 
 7. I am resolved that sincerity shall mark my inter- 
 course with all. 
 
 8. I will strive to make a wise improvement of my time, 
 remembering that for every idle moment I must render 
 an account to God. 
 
 9. I will endeavor to apply myself to study during 
 school hours and appropriate such hours to study at home 
 as the teachers may direct, striving to obey all the rules of 
 school and set a good example. 
 
 10. I will endeavor to render myself useful everywhere 
 
88 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 and by faithful self denying acts induce others to believe 
 that I desire faithfully to perform the duties of my 
 station. 
 
 11. Regular seasons of prayer morning, noon, and 
 evening. 
 
 12. Resolved, to read two chapters in the Bible daily, 
 one from the Old Testament and one from the New. 
 
 13. Never to speak a cross word. 
 
 14. That my thoughts and conversation be directed to 
 heavenly things. 
 
 15. To be more careful of another's things than my own. 
 
 16. To make the necessary preparations for the Sabbath. 
 
 17. To be punctual in attending meetings when practi- 
 cable. 
 
 18. Not to allow my thoughts to wander when I pray or 
 when others are praying. 
 
 19. When I know my duty, to do it. 
 
 20. Always to remember that the eye of God is upon me. 
 
 21. To do all the good I can. 
 
 22. I am resolved to think more seriously of these things 
 than ever before. I have often thought I wished to 
 become truly good and have made efforts to improvement 
 but have soon relapsed into old habits. Now I will 
 pursue a different course. I will implore the blessing of 
 God, asking him for strength to carry out the above 
 resolutions. 
 
 Durham, Ct., 1832. 
 
 Durham, Oct. 3, 1841. 
 This day is the anniversary of my birthday : to-day I am 
 twenty-one years old. Through my infancy, my childhood, 
 and my youth has a merciful God watched over me and 
 protected me, and now with a full confidence in his prom- 
 ises, a perfect belief in his word, full reliance on his 
 holy spirit, I take the following as my help in this my 
 earthly pilgrimage. 
 
RELIGIOUS TRAINING AND HISTORY 89 
 
 Resolved : 
 
 1. To begin and end every day with prayer. 
 
 2. To be much in prayer continually; while at my daily 
 calKng to let my heart arise to God. 
 
 3. To be much in heavenly contemplation and medita- 
 tion on divine things, especially at the close of the day. 
 
 4. To let my conversation be such as becomes a follower 
 of Christ, a child of God, an heir of heaven. 
 
 5. In all transactions of a secular nature always to let 
 principles of justice predominate over those of gain, to 
 receive a wrong rather than give one. 
 
 6. To engage in such business only as I can in faith 
 pray God to prosper. 
 
 7. Not to participate in any pleasure which has a 
 tendency to vitiate the mind, corrupt the morals, or 
 draw the soul from God. 
 
 8. To remember that time is an estate, too valuable to be 
 squandered away, too precious to be spent in idleness, 
 and that every moment be employed to some good purpose. 
 
 Meriden, Oct. 3, 1846. 
 On a review of the last five years of my life, I find the 
 above resolutions have not at all times been kept as I 
 had hoped; yet trusting in the grace of God and atonement 
 of Christ, and believing these resolutions to have been 
 aids in my life's experience, I again resolve to take them 
 as my rules of life, praying God to enable me to keep them. 
 
 D. N. C. 
 
 New Britain, Oct. 3, 1851. 
 Five years more have passed like a vapor from my 
 earthly course. How feebly have I kept in spirit the 
 above resolutions. Yet with stronger faith than ever in 
 God's grace and goodness, and in the merits of Christ 
 my Saviour, I to-day renew my consecration to God, 
 adopt again these principles as my aid. Looking to 
 God for help, may the close of the next five years find me 
 
90 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 farther advanced in Christian life, in holiness, purity, and 
 likeness to God, serving him more faithfully here, or united 
 with the redeemed in praising him above. 
 
 D. N. Camp. 
 
 New Britain, Oct. 3, 1856. 
 Again at the lapse of another five years would I record 
 the infinite goodness of God, renew my covenant vows 
 with him, and subscribe again to these resolutions, praying 
 for Divine aid that I may live holier, purer, and more 
 devoted to the cause of Christ in all my life. 
 
 David N. Camp. 
 
 The five years last past have been full of lessons and of 
 mercy. I have been taught my own weakness and un- 
 worthiness and the infinite grace of God. With reliance 
 on that grace and mercy and prayer for the Holy Spirit, 
 I here renew my covenant vows and re-adopt these 
 resolutions. 
 
 New Britain, Oct. 3, 1861. D. N. Camp. 
 
 Though ill at the return of my sixty-first birthday, I 
 had more than ever reason for thankfulness for God's 
 goodness, and am more than ever before confident that 
 these resolutions embody the sentiments and principles 
 which should guide my life. Trusting in Divine aid, I 
 again adopt them. 
 
 New Britain, Oct. 3, 1881. D. N. Camp. 
 
 Though Jacob says, after a life of a hundred and thirty 
 years, "Few and evil have the days of the years of my life 
 been," I must say that many and blessed have the days 
 of my life been. Though trials and disappointments 
 have come again and again, and I have too often failed 
 in achievement, the mercy and goodness of God have 
 been infinite and my cup of blessing has been full. 
 
 New Britain, Oct. 3, 1908. D. N. C. 
 
CHAPTER XIII 
 LATER YEARS 
 
 The house which Mr. Camp erected on his coming to 
 New Britain remained his home till the end of his life. 
 The out-of-door interests which are reflected in his reminis- 
 cences continued in his later years to occupy an important 
 place in his activities, and the hours spent at manual work 
 on his lawn and garden had a large part, without a doubt, 
 in the prolongation of his vigor. 
 
 With his daughter Emma, Mrs. Daniel O. Rogers, and 
 her husband and children, living in the house beside him, 
 and in later years with the home of his grandson, Paul 
 Rogers, located between the two older houses, he was for 
 many years the patriarch of a changing but united family 
 group. The children had always been much in his house. 
 After the death of his daughter Ellen, his granddaughters 
 Gertrude and then Mary made their home in his house- 
 hold. 
 
 His ninetieth birthday was made memorable by thought- 
 ful tributes from many organizations and friends. His 
 associates in the Skinner Chuck Company gathered in 
 his ofiice and presented a handsome umbrella to him 
 with expressions of their good will. His fellow directors 
 in the New Britain National Bank entertained him at 
 dinner and after a graceful address by the president 
 presented him with a beautiful watch and adopted the 
 following resolutions: 
 
 ''Resolved: That on this third day of October, 1910, 
 being the ninetieth birthday of our honored and beloved 
 vice-president, David N. Camp, the directors of this bank 
 record our hearty congratulations and the assurance of 
 our esteem and affection, on his having attained to four 
 score years and ten, with faculties unimpaired and with 
 the good health that he now enjoys: that we assure him 
 of our high appreciation of his long, faithful and valuable 
 services which he has given to this bank as director, and 
 especially of his intelligent and painstaking services for 
 
 91 
 
92 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 thirty-six years as chairman of the auditing committee 
 of this bank. 
 
 "That we record with pride his varied and useful serv- 
 ices to the city of New Britain in the several offices 
 which he so capably filled, and for the example set by 
 him of official integrity, and high and unselfish purpose in 
 the conduct of city affairs. 
 
 "That we further record with gratitude his services to 
 the city and state as an educator, and especially his active 
 and efficient work in promoting and firmly establishing 
 the New Britain Institute. His labors in connection 
 with this educational institution cannot be adequately 
 measured and we congratulate him at this time on the 
 successful realization of his many years of unselfish labor. 
 
 "That we assure him of our earnest hope that he may 
 live many years in the enjoyment of health and prosperity, 
 to continue in the future as in the past, an example of 
 useful Christian citizenship." 
 
 The South Congregational Church adopted these reso- 
 lutions, of which a handsomely engrossed copy was pre- 
 sented to him. 
 
 "Voted by the South Church at a special meeting Sun- 
 day, October 2, 1910. 
 
 "There are some private festivals that rise to the dig- 
 nity of public occasions. Surely this may be said of the 
 birthday of Prof. David N. Camp of our own church and 
 city, who reaches to-morrow the completion of his nine- 
 tieth year of age. 
 
 "A citizen serving his community in many public ways 
 and with unfailing fidelity, a business man of penetrating 
 judgment and sterling honesty, a teacher who has perpet- 
 uated his influence in the grateful memories of many 
 pupils, a speaker and writer whose words always wed a 
 true humanity with chasteness and dignity of style, a 
 philanthropist giving time and energy and money to good 
 works both in his own community and abroad, a church 
 member whose conscientious devotion to all the interests 
 of Christ's kingdom has been an asset which any church 
 might well covet, and above all a Christian gentleman 
 revered wherever his work has been done and loved 
 wherever he is known — this is David N. Camp, our friend 
 and saint. 
 
LATER YEARS 93 
 
 "Inasmuch as he has been since 1854, a member of 
 this church, and for nearly a full half-century has sat as a 
 deacon on its official board, his happiness to-morrow de- 
 serves a congratulatory word from the church he has so 
 nobly served. 'Old age,' declares a French philosopher, 
 'carries its own lamp.' Our friend living still with un- 
 abated zeal and unquenched enthusiasm notably exem- 
 plifies the truth of the saj^ing. And always the lamp 
 which he carries is shedding its light upon others. In the 
 picturesque words of Scripture he is still bringing forth 
 fruit in old age; he is full of sap and green — and his fruit 
 is the fruit of the Spirit, love, joy, peace. 
 
 "Accordingly the South Church of New Britain here- 
 with by formal vote extends its deepest good wishes and 
 heartiest congratulations to Deacon David N. Camp on 
 the attainment of his ninetieth anniversary. Grateful for 
 the beauty of his character and for his varied and contin- 
 uous gifts to it and to the church at large it prays God that 
 divine blessing rich and lasting may attend our senior 
 saint through the further years of his pilgrimage; and not 
 less earnestly does it pray that it may be consecrated to a 
 worthy following of the lustrous example set forth in the 
 life of our friend and fellow citizen." 
 
 From the Missionary Society of Connecticut came a 
 beautifully embellished copy of the following resolutions: 
 
 "At a meeting of the Directors of the Missionary Society 
 of Connecticut held December 6, 1910, the following reso- 
 lution was unanimously adopted: 
 
 "If there is anything that entitles one to the reverent 
 admiration and gratitude of his fellow men it is decades 
 of devotion to the things that are pure, and honorable, 
 and of good report among men. 
 
 "For more years than the life of most of us covers 
 Deacon David N. Camp, our honored President, has been 
 in the active service of the kingdom of God. Every up- 
 building cause has shared in the generous outgivings of his 
 sympathy, his energy, and his substance. He has been 
 eminent in education, estimable in citizenship, progres- 
 sive and consistent in reform, constant and prominent in 
 the support, the exemplification and the spread of true 
 religion ; a leader among the leaders of his community and 
 state. 
 
94 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 "But we are especially impressed by the record of 
 what he has been to the Missionary Society of Connecti- 
 cut. For thirty-five years a director in the Society, and 
 for ten years its President, his interest has never flagged, 
 his sense of obligation has never been dimmed, his faith 
 has never faltered; his clear vision and calm counsels 
 have been our reliance, his generosity and patient atten- 
 tion to details have been our inspiration, while his wis- 
 dom, tact and graciousness many times have saved us 
 from mistakes and from criticism perilous to the work 
 we are seeking to advance. He has seen the Society grow 
 from weakness, limited resources and meager plans to 
 the wideness of outlook, the comprehensiveness of pro- 
 gram, and the large endowment of the present time. 
 Of all this development he has been a distinguished and 
 influential part. 
 
 "Standing now with the burden of four score and ten 
 years on his shoulders, but with the heart of a youth and 
 the soul of a warrior, erect, alert, virile, full of faith, hope, 
 love and 'the spirit of a sound mind,' we congratulate 
 him upon the long life God has given him, and the wide and 
 conspicuous service God has helped him to render, and 
 pray that he may be spared to be our leader for many 
 more happy and fruitful years." 
 
 Many friends added to the happiness of the day by 
 their expressions of estimation and affection. 
 
 While resigning, in his last years, a number of his ad- 
 ministrative offices, he retained others till the time of his 
 death. He kept unabated his interest in the affairs of 
 his family and friends, in business, in public and political 
 affairs, in the work of the church, and in anything con- 
 nected with the advancement of God's kingdom. 
 
 In the autumn of 1914 he had a serious attack of 
 pneumonia. This left him weakened but active for two 
 years more. After a few days of marked decline in 
 strength he died peacefully on October nineteenth, 1916. 
 
 Nothing illustrates more strikingly, perhaps, the pres- 
 ervation into his very last years of the strength and qual- 
 ity of his spirit, than two articles which he wrote during 
 this period for publication. One was an essay which was 
 submitted and won the prize in a contest conducted for 
 its "Men and Religion" number in 1911 by the Congre- 
 
LATER YEARS 95 
 
 gationalist. The other was a letter to the New Britain 
 Herald written in 1913. 
 
 The occasion for the latter was a public agitation of the 
 question of engaging certain non-resident advisers for the 
 city. His letter reviewed in vigorous language the deeds 
 of civic loyalty which had marked the history of New 
 Britain, leading up to the concluding plea that "wuth or 
 without a commission" there be "union of effort and de- 
 tennined purpose to secure the best things possible for 
 the town and city." (New Britain Daily Herald, July 18, 
 1913.) 
 
 As a closing summary of the lessons of his life, could 
 anything be more adequate than the essay which he sent 
 in his ninety-second year to the Congregationalist? The 
 question proposed was, "What makes the Christian 
 religion worth while to any man?" This is Mr. Camp's 
 answer : 
 
 It is worth while because it gives its possessor an ever 
 present and ever abiding confidence in eternal realities, 
 which become an important influence affecting his whole life. 
 
 In prosperity it makes him grateful for the blessings 
 which come to him and more unselfish, ever seeking the 
 good of others. 
 
 In adversity it makes severe trials bearable, because its 
 possessor has faith in an all-wise Providence, which lifts 
 his thoughts from material trials and effects to everlasting 
 promises of good. It broadens his views, enlarges his 
 conceptions, and makes his life more fruitful to others 
 and consequently more valuable and beneficial to himself. 
 
 In business relations it gives its possessor a standard of 
 action, based on truth and justice, which accepts no com- 
 promises with wrong. 
 
 In social relations it makes its possessor not only more 
 lovable and companionable to others, but the reflex 
 influence upon his own life enlarges his capacities for 
 enjoyment and usefulness, because he unselfishly seeks 
 the good of all. 
 
96 DAVID NELSON CAMP 
 
 Engaged in teaching for more than forty years, and 
 having direct personal responsibility in the education of 
 more than four thousand students, other things being 
 equal, I found the true possessors of the Christian relig- 
 ion most faithful and reliable in their work, and the most 
 successful in achievement. 
 
 In circumstances which for more than half a century 
 brought the writer in more or less close relations with 
 persons in official position, he found those who were the 
 true possessors of the Christian religion (not always mem- 
 bers of the church) most courteous in manner and most 
 faithful in the performance of official duties. 
 
 These statements do not refer to the believers of any 
 particular creed, or to members of any particular church 
 or denomination, but to those persons who are not only 
 believers in Christ and his teachings, but to those who are 
 imbued with his spirit and are the sincere and consistent 
 followers of his example. {The Congregationalist, Sept. 23, 
 1911.)