“Once you get the dust of Horseshoe in your moccasins, you can never get it out.”

HSRAA
A Proud Benefactor to HSR Since 2000.



Camp Ware History

As the bright sun sets in the azure sky, Darkness comes as the embers slowly die…”

From it’s early days as the Explorer Base, through the years as Camp JubileeCamp Ware has continued to provide the Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts of Chester County Council with a valuable outdoor experience.

An aerial view of Camp John H. Ware 3rd.

In the late 1950’s, Council opened the Lewis property for use as an Explorer Base.  Under the leadership of Ernie Heegard, this Camp served older Scouts as a base camp for backpacking, canoeing and even sailing above the Conowingo Dam.

Some of the earliest structures built at the Lewis Property as it became the Explorer Base in the late 1950s.

In the early 1960’s, the Explorer Base was renamed Camp Jubilee.  The camp featured a ‘Jambo’ style of camping for troops that wanted to experience outdoor skills under their own leadership rather than the more structured program across the creek at Camp Horseshoe.

Scouts at a JLT training at Camp Jubilee in the 1970s.

1985 saw Camp Jubilee renamed to Camp John H. Ware 3rd in honor of the former Chester County Council president and member of the U. S. House of Representatives.  Since that time, the Camp has continued to be the site of Scout Summer Camp and special events in addition to becoming the Council’s Cub Scout Camp.

The Camp John H. Ware 3rd parade field.

Cub Town was a major addition to Camp John H. Ware 3rd in 2003 and a host of many thousands of Cub Scouts since it opened.

Macaleer Lodge several years after it was built and opened in 2003.

Follow us on social media

Last updated November 4, 2025

© Horseshoe Scout Reservation Alumni Association 2025

Camp Ware History

As the bright sun sets in the azure sky, Darkness comes as the embers slowly die…”

From it’s early days as the Explorer Base, through the years as Camp JubileeCamp Ware has continued to provide the Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts of Chester County Council with a valuable outdoor experience.

An aerial view of Camp John H. Ware 3rd.

In the late 1950’s, Council opened the Lewis property for use as an Explorer Base.  Under the leadership of Ernie Heegard, this Camp served older Scouts as a base camp for backpacking, canoeing and even sailing above the Conowingo Dam.

Some of the earliest structures built at the Lewis Property as it became the Explorer Base in the late 1950s.

In the early 1960’s, the Explorer Base was renamed Camp Jubilee.  The camp featured a ‘Jambo’ style of camping for troops that wanted to experience outdoor skills under their own leadership rather than the more structured program across the creek at Camp Horseshoe.

Scouts at a JLT training at Camp Jubilee in the 1970s.

1985 saw Camp Jubilee renamed to Camp John H. Ware 3rd in honor of the former Chester County Council president and member of the U. S. House of Representatives.  Since that time, the Camp has continued to be the site of Scout Summer Camp and special events in addition to becoming the Council’s Cub Scout Camp.

The Camp John H. Ware 3rd parade field.

Cub Town was a major addition to Camp John H. Ware 3rd in 2003 and a host of many thousands of Cub Scouts since it opened.

Macaleer Lodge several years after it was built and opened in 2003.

Follow us on social media

Last updated November 4, 2025

© Horseshoe Scout Reservation Alumni Association 2025