Editing Scouting in Connecticut (section)

=====Camp Nahaco=====
The camp was founded in 1916 as Camp Keemosabee by the New Britain Area Council. Located on Weeks Road on the banks of Crystal Pond, in both [[Eastford, Connecticut|Eastford]] and Woodstock, Connecticut, the {{convert|134|acre|km2|1|adj=on}} camp was the Scout camp for four different Councils over its long history: originally New Britain Area Council, then Nathan Hale Council, Long Rivers Council and finally Connecticut Rivers Council. A feature most remembered of the camp is its lagoon, separated from the rest of Crystal Pond by the Causeway (bridge) and the points of the Scout Law painted on the steps at the beach that lead to the swimming area.

The merge of two former councils (the New Britain Area Council and the Bristol Area Council) into the Nathan Hale Council in 1968 come up with the amalgam of Camp <u>NA</u>than <u>HA</u>le <u>CO</u>uncil&nbsp;— NA-HA-CO : NAHACO. The entrance gate truss pattern spells out NAHACO. By 1972, the Nathan Hale Council became Nathan Hale District, but the camp still enjoyed keeping the name Nahaco in the newly formed Long Rivers Council.

A program pavilion was soon converted to a winter shelter that bears the name of Keemosabee. In 1981, another program pavilion that shares the parade field with the Keemosabee Shelter, was converted to a winter shelter and named in honor of Camp Cochipianee, which had been sold by the new Long Rivers Council. In the 1990s, the Highland District's fundraising put a lot of time and money into Nahaco, with improvements of updating the Dining Hall kitchen with all new stainless steel. It was then when the third and final program activity pavilion was converted into a winter shelter, then named the Highland Shelter. The deteriorated camp office was razed at that time as well.

Nahaco saw its last year as a full summer camp facility in 1977. Although several Specialty Camp weeks have been run at the camp since 1977, it never regained its full-time summer camp use. It always was a favorite place for winter camping up until the mid-2000s.

A referendum vote was held by the towns of Woodstock and Eastford about the purchase of Camp Nahaco from Connecticut Rivers Council. The referendum, held on October 16, 2002, approved the plan and on March 3, 2003, the camp became town property. The two towns shared the $560,000.00 purchase price. Today, {{convert|120|acre|km2|1}} are now permanently protected from development and Boy Scouts of America is still allowed to use the property.

Please see Camp Keemosabee (a previous name) for additional information.