Children in Progressive-Era America

Summer Camp

Photograph of African American Boy Scout with a trumpet, Atlanta, Georgia

<h2>4-H</h2>
For many rural children in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century, life could be lonely. A neighboring farm might be hours away, and play time was limited anyway because of work and chores. Many youths answered the call of newly industrialized cities, where they moved to work once they came of age. Recognizing a need among rural children for social organizations that also instilled an appreciation for rural life, agricultural clubs were born. Established as a national organization known as 4-H in 1914, these clubs operated in several states, and sought to create a youth movement in agriculture. In particular, 4-H hoped to harness young people's willingness to experiment with new technology, which adult farmers had been hesitant to do. Camping was a major feature of the organization—a social benefit to farm children who may have otherwise been isolated from other children, especially in the summertime.
The organization satisfied the concerns of Progressives because it fostered a relationship with nature within an organized and instructional setting—a feature of play advocated by the playground reformers. Furthermore, a child who joined 4-H was signing up to participate in activities that were strictly for fun: a luxury that many farm children, busy with chores, lacked. By the mid-twentieth century, 4-H clubs had sprung up in high schools around the country.

Photograph of Habersham County 4-H clubs event

Children's Organizations

Work Life

Reform

Public Health

Play

Childhood in Postwar America

Library of Congress

HathiTrust

After helping to organize the Girl Guides in Britain, Juliette Gordon Low formed the Girl Scouts in the United States in 1912. Like the Boy Scouts, this program focused on nature and the outdoors. Scouting for Girls, the official handbook of the Girl Scouts published in 1927, included instruction in animal tracking, building fires, and Morse Code. Like the Boy Scouts, the Girl Scouts emphasized camping and sought to teach participants to be self-sufficient in nature.
Older organizations such as the Camp Fire Girls and the Girl Pioneers of America aimed for the same organized leisure activities as the Scouts. Despite its name, the Camp Fire Girls had a smaller emphasis on camping and outdoor skills than the Girl Scouts, and included more domestic pursuits instead. The Girl Pioneers of America, formed in 1910, taught its members to be like “pioneer girls”—well-rounded individuals who had an understanding of nature, survival, and laws that affected children.