In 1968, Trent University Archives entered into an agreement to accept and preserve records pertaining to the camping movement in Ontario. It now stewards a vast collection documenting camps and camping in Ontario, Canada, and even internationally.
Published Material
Includes books, pamphlets, magazines, and brochures on camps and camping.
- Camping book collection: A collection of more than 280 books on all aspects of camps, especially camps for children and youth and the camping movement. These are part of Special Collections, kept in the Archives.
- Camp pamphlet collection: A collection of more than 85 pamphlets pertaining to camps and camping.
- Camp brochures collection: A collection of promotional brochures for specific camps over the years.
- Camp magazines and newsletters: The Archives has runs of Canadian Camping and the OCA Newsletter (OCAsional news). Digitized copies of Canadian Camping are also available online via the Internet Archive.
Archival Records
Includes largely unpublished materials: minutes, letters, photographs, guides, newsletters, maps, films, and more.
You can browse all archival collections on camps and camping in the archives database.
We are the repository for the records of the following organizations. These collections include administrative records documenting the operations of these organizations, as well as materials documenting particular camps.
We also hold some records for the following bodies:
The archives also holds fonds and collections created by individual camps, camping leaders, camp directors and staff, and campers themselves. Note that individuals camps may also be documented in organizational records, like the Ontario Camps Association fonds. If searching for materials on a camp, we recommend searching across the Archives Database by camp name.
Support the Camp Archives at Trent
Give to the Ebbs Camping Archive Fund: The Ebbs fund was created through the generosity of Harry and Adele Ebbs, and is used to support the preservation of, and access to, camp collections. This fund supports archival supplies, staffing for special projects, digitization, and creating displays on camp histories.