Clear Lake Camp for Farm Women: Offered by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation

While Shannon Van Patten Martin was involved in a family photo scanning project, she ran across her grandmother’s scrapbook. Iva Gundrum Van Patten was from Litchfield, and in 1939 she attended the Hillsdale County Clear Lake Mother Camp, which was sponsored by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. From the picture, as well as the ”Clear Lake Clarion,” it’s clear to see that this wasn’t a typical summer camp for kids, but for women. It had some of the usual camp activities, as well as “classes.” The “Mother” in the title may have been a reference to the fact that women were meant to be mothers, and the camp would help give them ideas on how to best care for their families. It lasted from Sunday evening through Friday afternoon … and it was probably a welcome break for these hard-working women.

Given that the camp was sponsored by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, there was probably an emphasis on healthy living and eating.

In 1876, John Harvey Kellogg became the superintendent of the Battle Creek Sanitarium, which focused on wellness. His brother, William Keith Kellogg, worked as the bookkeeper. W. K. Kellogg assisted his brother in research to improve the vegetarian diet of the Battle Creek Sanitarium's patients, especially in the search for wheat-based granola. The Kelloggs are best known for the invention of the famous breakfast cereal corn flakes. There is considerable disagreement over who was involved in the discovery and the role that they played. It is generally agreed that upon being called out one night, John Kellogg left a batch of wheat-berry dough behind. Rather than throwing it out the following day, he sent it through the rollers and was surprised to obtain delicate flakes, which could then be baked. W. K. Kellogg persuaded his brother to serve the food in a flake form, and it was so popular with those who ate it during their stay at the sanitarium that they asked to have the “corn flakes” sold to them after they went home.

The way to market the product led to a rift between the brothers. Convincing his brother to relinquish rights to the product, W. K. launched the Battle Creek Toasted Corn Flake Company on February 19, 1906. Both brothers remained committed to promoting wellness. The Clear Lake Camp experience for women was probably established as part of their mission.

JoAnne P. Miller (with a large assist from Wikipedia)