CAMP LITTLE CLOUD

CAMP LITTLE CLOUD. Day camp at EAGLE POINT PARK or overnight outings at Boy Scout Camps provided the outdoor experiences for girls in the 1930s and 1940s. archerty A donation of 110 acres near Lattnerville, west of Dubuque, by the WAHLERT FOUNDATION in 1949 changed everything. Girls now had an opportunity to have their own outdoor education site.

Site development required financing which was begun with a "Path O' Pennies" campaign. To build a dam for an artificial lake and necessary buildings a total of $35,000 was needed. The city's sixth eight Brownie and GIRL SCOUTS began bake sales as well as sales of greeting cards and kitchen accessories. The first summer witnessed the drilling of a well, construction of an entrance road, and the clearance of land for a parking lot. Future plans called to the construction of a kitchen and dining hall, staff room, tent platforms, infirmary, showers, caretaker's cabin, and a recreational waterfront. (1) It was announced in 1952 that the sale of girl scout cookies would be earmarked for the construction of a shower house. (2)

With work continued during the winter, registration for the 1950 camping season opened on May 27th in the scout office in the LINCOLN BUILDING. The camp opened for the third week in July with registrations of 46 girls from Dubuque, McGregor, and Garnavillo, Iowa. Activity sessions included puppet making and archery.

The formal dedication ceremonies and an open house were held on July 29, 1950. The site received its name--Camp Little Cloud--on July 29th. The camp is the translation of La Petite Nuit, the name given to Julien DUBUQUE by the local SAUK AND FOX tribe. (3)

Camp activities were planned with a campfire program for parents and visitors on Friday. (4) As early as 1951 the camping schedule was expanded to six sessions for the summer with two sessions of two weeks each and four sessions with a single week. Fees were $16.50 for a single week and $32.00 for two weeks. (5) In 1989 Little Cloud offered day camps. (6)

Camp Little Cloud has served the Dubuque community for years. Beyond its association with the GIRL SCOUTS, the site served the DUBUQUE COMMUNITY SCHOOL DISTRICT for years in the 1970s with bus loads of students, generally in the fourth grade, traveling to the area by school bus for a day-long outdoor education experience. In addition to learning how to maneuver a canoe on the lake, nature crafts, and making molds of animal tracks, students were driven to the tiny cemetery near Lattnerville for the study of grave stones and the historical evidence they held. (7)

in 2018 Camp Little Cloud became the home of Inspiration Stables, a nonprofit organization offering adaptive horseback riding for children with disabilities and other sensory, physical, emotional, and behavioral challenges. The program moved its program to the Dubuque County Fair Grounds in 2022 and later to LaMotte. (8)

The future of Camp Little Cloud and the Girls Scouts was made even brighter by the donation of the HAMMER, David L. and Audrey Lowe HAMMER estate of $3.8 million. Both were longtime supporters of the Girl Scout movement in Dubuque. Plans announced called for using part of the money for renovations at the camp including construction of cabins capable of handling from twelve to fourteen girls--the size of an average troop. (9)

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Source:

1. Day, Mike, "Camp Little Cloud," Telegraph Herald, June 29, 2025, p. 1C

2. "Sally Scout Says..." Telegraph Herald, April 10, 1952, p. 18

3. Day

4. "Campfire Activities Will End Week at Little Cloud," Telegraph Herald, July 20, 1951, p. 12

5. "Little Cloud Schedule Set," Telegraph Herald, November 30, 1951, p. 4

6. "Volunteers," Telegraph Herald, June 11, 1989, p. 24

7. Lyon, Randy, fourth grade teacher at HOOVER ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

8. Kelsey, Elizabeth, "Donation Gives Area Nonprofit Stable Home," Telegraph Herald, May 20, 2023, p. 1

9. Reese, Kayli, "Girl Scout Council Announces $3.8 Million Donation," Telegraph Herald, May 30, 2023, p. 23