Camp Namanu National Register Nomination

Nestled along the banks of the Sandy River, east of Portland, Camp Namanu offers 500 acres of meadows and forest settings that immerse summer campers into the natural world.

In time for its 100 Anniversary, Camp Namanu was officially recognized as a National Historic District in the National Register of Historic Places. Founded by the Camp Fire Girls national organization, the camps has offered thousands of girls (and more recently boys, trans and non-binary youth) a place to hone skills like weaving, archery, exploring nature and building self-confidence.

The camp’s nomination documents its cultural and built history using a cultural landscape methodology to identify the camp’s contributing features—an uncommon approach for nominations, but one that fully captured landscape’s collection of rustic buildings, campfire circles, paths and trails that blend with their natural settings. Through oral interviews, site documentation and intensive archival research, the document narrates a history that illustrates the significance of community building and outdoor education in the empowerment of young women, set against the backdrop of the 20th Century women’s movement.

The new designation for Camp Namanu highlights its significance as a physical space and its impact on the lives of Oregonians who credit their experiences at Namanu with instilling in them a sense of confidence, resilience and environmental stewardship.