Nestled amongst the foothills in the northwest corner of Middlesex County, 4-H Camp Middlesex on Erickson Road in Ashby, Mass., displays a unique vintage today as it did when first sighted by a camp committee in 1941. A 1700 era Grist Mill and Saw Mill are connected by the covered foot bridge over the water of Willard Brook. A very sturdy bridge spans over the water dam, and is the only access to the seventy-five acres of beautiful rolling fields and trails through the woods. A farmhouse beside the main road has a barn attached to it, another barn about 200 hundred feet up the paved road is three stories high and stores the hay and shelters the barnyard animals. The stable is located down a woodland path out in the hillside close to the lowest part of the property where the water cascades over moss covered rocks.

In the eleven years before this site was found, the campus of the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, Mass., hosted all Camp Middlesex youth and their programs. Tents were pitched on lawns and slept in. Some buildings were used for a dining hall and rainy day recreation. A trip to camp took a whole day and campers traveled caravan style to Amherst. 4-H Club work in those days taught the basics of living, cooking, sewing, field crops, animal husbandry, woodworking and the like. The campus at U. Mass. was economical campsite, the problem is that it did not give anyone a feeling of belonging.

When the farmer decided what he wanted for this farmland situated next to the New Hampshire border and six miles from the center of Fitchburg, Mass., the fund raising began! Everyone involved in 4-H club work and the Camp set out on a program supervised by the Middlesex County Extension Service to raise the appropriate funds to purchase the proposed land for their Camp! Bake sales, housework, handy work, jobs, fairs and letters to supporters of the 4-H Club programs joined in on this effort to "Make the Best Better"!

At first much work was done to clear the land of overgrowth and make room for camping facilities. The farmhouse was set up to serve meals and house those who ran Camp. A Board of Trustees had been formed to oversee Camp Middlesex until its incorporation in 1942 when The Middlesex County Foundation, Inc. was established.

Five small cabins were built on the hillside with a three sided cabin directly on top of the majestic hill. Wells were dug for water and pipes were laid out for the future dining hall, which came in 1952 from Ft Devens in pieces and was reassembled overlooking the brook. More fund raising needed to be done to outfit the kitchen area and build a cabin for the cooks to stay in. Interested donors helped to build six cabins on the lower side of Bowditch Hill. Two wash houses with toilets, a cabin for the Nurse, a three sided Pioneer cabin was built in 1952
by the Woburn Kiwanis who have given the Camp a tremendous amount of skilled help. A ranch sized Lodge was constructed on the side of the main lawn and into the hillside in 1968, with extreme campaign efforts to house the Director and his family. Six new cabins were built on the pine wooded side of the hill to replace the old lower cabins which were prone to erosion when it rained. A large recreation hall was dedicated in 1971, and an addition to the kitchen was built in 1975. Programs for campers grew with each addition.

There is a flagpole on the main green where everyone at Camp gathers
morning and evening for raising and lowering the American and 4-H flags. There is also a huge Memorial Circle at the near top of the Bowditch Hill where bonfires are lit and singing and stories are told. Mt. Watatic and the surrounding towns are visible in this breathtaking scene. And there is the Glen, which has been moved away from the brook area because of its changing waters, that rekindles our love of 4-H in the youth who receive the awards each week of Head, Hand, Health and Heart by applying it to their daily life. The camp Spirit is voted upon
by the counselors as the person who most exemplifies all 4-H skills. This is truly a special place!

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