Mollie Gordon Camp Caravan letters

The Mollie Gordon Camp Caravan Letters document the cross-country summer travel activities of camp organizer Mary "Mollie" Gertrude Gordon (Feb 2, 1914 – Sept 4, 2016), dating 1956–1972 (except 1962, when they didn't travel). It contains handwritten letters, travel itineraries, postcards, and a few photographs. These 16 journals, written in longhand by Mollie Gordon, describe daily events from Camp Caravan, a business venture she co-led with her husband, Bill Gordon. Each summer, they took approximately 25 boys aged 12–14 from New York City across the United States in two modified trucks named Hobo and Gypsy, camping nightly and visiting National Parks and other notable sites and locations, such as Old Forge and the Adirondacks (NY), Alaska, and more. The letters, written to Mollie’s sisters, detail camping locations, meals, sightseeing, and the group’s adventures and misadventures. A digital transcription of the 1956 letters and itinerary is included.