Camping in America: A Century of Good Times© Thomas Stephens Sr.
Dec 21, 1999
Photos courtesy of the RV/MH Heritage Foundation, Vintage-Vacations.Com and Airstream.Com To quote an old song,"Ain't it funny, how time slips away?" The last time I remember we were planning our spring camping trip! Another year has come and gone, and with it a century and a millennium. Camping is more popular than ever-and my, how things have changed! Even the less expensive tent trailers provide amenities that were not dreamed possible 50 years ago. Yet, the more things have changed, the more they remain the same. People went camping at the turn of the last century to enjoy nature and her many treasures-and that's why I go camping today.I would imagine that people were camping back when bearskin garments were in fashion-the only fashion. As soon as humans found cozy caves in which to dwell, someone probably thought it would be fun to take the family and sleep-out under the stars. They missed out on the marshmallows and hotdogs to be sure, but I bet they had a roaring campfire! The history of RV camping dates back to even before the advent of the automobile. Camping was popular by buckboard and wagon. The wife says that the first true RV was a covered wagon. No matter how comfortable our living conditions may be, many of us feel the need to be in the great outdoors-even if we do bring along the kitchen sink! Camping Trailers and Housecars When the automobile came along, it allowed campers to roam farther from home. Even in the early part of this century, camping in trailers and housecars (motorhomes) was very popular. Vintage-Vacations.com reports that Travel Magazine published an article in 1939 that stated there were 2,600 builders of trailers in the U.S.! There must have been a lot of happy trailer campers out there, and lots of folks were eagerly awaiting next year's new models. Airstream had its beginning in Wally Byam's backyard in the early 1930s. It was to become one of the most respected names in the RV industry. Today, there are vintage airstream clubs as well as other manufacturer's antique RV clubs. The RV/MH Heritage Foundation, located in Elkhart, Indiana, provides an extensive library and displays of vintage travel trailers and motorhomes in their fabulous museum. Starcraft introduced its first tent trailer in 1964-with a hard top and an innovative crank-up lifter system. The Coleman Company entered the market in 1967 with a quality pop-up. It is #1 in market share today. Of course down through the years, many campers built their own folding trailers. My brother constructed a nifty little unit during the 1950s.
Go To Page:
1
2
The copyright of the article Camping in America: A Century of Good Times in Camping is owned by . Permission to republish Camping in America: A Century of Good Times in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
No, Tom, the satellite receiver won't bring us Internet (darn it!), just the program service we have to pay for at home whether used or not. So, with the price of the extra dish and LNB so cheap, we d ...
|
Jerri, Hang in there as spring will return--I promise! But, not for a while yet.Vern, You are really outfitting that trailer of yours top notch! Do you use satellite to access the Net, or is that ...
-- posted by Tom_Stephens
|
Hi All!Those of us in the Chicago area are now sitting under 3-5 inches of snow and have wind chills of -5 to -25. That is why we are sitting here drooling through all the camping magazines a ...
|
Think Spring, Tom? No need to think of it here in the Ozarks, it is already here -- in fact we haven't really had any winter yet. Coldest it has been is 12 and it was no colder than 56 last night. We' ...
|
Well, spring will be here before you or I know it! Boy, the last I remember it was Oct. of the last century. Our big trip across the U.S. is coming up in May, and we can't wait! However, our solar pan ...
-- posted by Tom_Stephens
|
For a complete listing of article comments, questions, and other discussions related to
Thomas Stephens Sr.'s
Camping topic, please visit the Discussions page.
|
