“History is not a burden on the memory but an illumination of the soul”. –Lord Acton
Exhibit Details
Inside this exhibit, you’ll see how outside history has made an indelible impression on HSR and how its camps reflected those events since Lindbergh flew solo across the Atlantic.
Most dining hall plaques display inside jokes in the troop/patrol or show regional attributes like flags or iconographs of town history. These plaques reflect the history of the country or the world, often pop culture features, but also severe weather events or sports.
Ball and Chain
1969 – Contributed by Andrew Coe
This plaque does not depict any singular event in history, but the wavy titles were common in posters, album covers, movie credits and other works of art in the 60s and 70s.
M*A*S*H Makes Its Mark
1970 – Contributed by Andrew Coe
The 1970 Robert Altman film spawned a long-running television series of the same name as well as this swell plaque constructed by troop 70.
Apollo Plaque
1974 – Contributed by Andrew Coe
It would appear this plaque is referencing the famous Apollo missions from 1969-1972, despite having an “alternative” spelling and a different year (1974).
Spark Mitz
1972 – Contributed by Andrew Coe
The Water Carnival plaque of 1972 celebrated one of the greatest olympic feats ever- Mark Spitz’s capturing of a then-record 7 gold medals at the Munich Olympics. When you put a campaign hat on him, however, he apparently becomes the alter-ego “Spark Mitz”.
1982 Camp Horseshoe Staff Plaque
1982 – Contributed by David B. Woodward
The 1982 staff plaque featured the expression from the movie, Caddyshack.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Craze
1990 – Contributed by Andrew Coe
Troop 2 reflected the Turtle Craze in their well-constructed 1990 plaque. After a mere 6 years in the comics scene, the Turtles had several video games and an animated TV series culminating in the 1990 feature film.
Surge
1998 – Contributed by Andrew Coe
At the height of the Surge phenomenon the Aquatics Department placed a can of the drink – their favorite – on their 1998 Water Carnival plaque. The product was discontinued however in 2001.
Yankees vs. Mets
1999 – Contributed by Andrew Coe
Apparently there was some rivalry between members of Staten Island Troop 27 when it came to baseball, or could it be that this 1999 plaque was predicting the future? The Mets and Yankees met one year later in the 2000 World Series.
Duck Vader
2000 – Contributed by Andrew Coe
This plaque from Marshallton Troop 52 depicts Duck Vader to coincide with the 1999 release of Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, the return to a galaxy far, far away after a 16 year absence.
The Greek Games
2004 – Contributed by Andrew Coe
Athens was the site of the 2004 Summer Olympiad, so the Aquatics Department based their Water Carnival on that theme.
2006 Flood
2006 – Contributed by Andrew Coe
The beginning of the 2006 season was an especially wet one and Troop 451 decided to mark the occasion with their Noah’s Ark plaque.
Troop 53 Juggernaut
2006 – Contributed by Andrew Coe
Troop 53 incorporated their purple color and mushroom motif into the X-men character “Juggernaut” who was feautred in the 2006 film X-Men: The Last Stand.
10,000 Losses
2007 – Contributed by Andrew Coe
The first franchise in the history of all professional sports to reach 10,000 losses, Troop 21 commemorated the Phillies’ July 15th, 2007 feat with a plaque.
Gigantic iPhone
2012 – Contributed by Andrew Coe
Webster, MD Troop 965 created a gigantic iPhone plaque, complete with “apps” that represent the various program areas of Camp Horseshoe.
Scouts of Anarchy
Contributed by Andrew Coe
This “Scouts of Anarchy” sign is in reference to the popular TV series “Sons of Anarchy”.
2016 Camp Horseshoe Staff Plaque
2016 – Contributed by Richard Gardner
The 2016 Camp Horseshoe Staff Plaque payed homage to the Pokemon Go mobile application that was taking the world by storm in the summer of 2016, as well as including the typical Camp Horseshoe iconography.
Reflecting Pictures
Display Details
This display shows some real-life reflection of the events that shape our lives.
Horseshoe July 4 Bicentennial Paraders
1976 – Contributed by John B. Rettew III
July 4, 1976 – Horseshoe celebrates along with the rest of the country.
Fire Company Pays Respect
2021 – Contributed by Anonymous
Here, members of the Rising Sun Fire Company visit the 2021 Horseshoe Trails District Camporee at Camp Horseshoe to honor the firefighters and first responders who gave their life during the 9/11/01 terrorist attacks in New York City.
Buzzard’s Rock Bootleggers
Contributed by Evan Ellwanger
Here is a rare photo of Bootleggers at Buzzard’s Rock before Camp Horseshoe was purchased by Chester County Council.
The Blizzard of 1993
1993 – Contributed by Evan Ellwanger
Scouts who camped at Horseshoe in January 1993 were treated to an unfortunate event – a blizzard! They were trapped at Schramm Lodge for several days and eventually freed by the National Guard. To commemorate such an event, this patch was made and presented to the units who had the misfortunate of camping at Camp Horseshoe that weekend. As you can see from the patch, the Scouts had to keep the fires blazing in the fireplace of Schramm to stay warm.
Reflecting Stories
Display Details
As we chronicle stories about real-life events and the memories of Scouts and Scouters who lived them at HSR, we will share them here.
J.F.K. Assassination
I was a member of Paoli Troop 181, joining in 1961 when I turned 11. Our troop met in a cabin on a wooded nature preserve in Paoli. Our troop leader was Bill Watson and Harry Holden. I attended Camp Horseshoe every summer from 1962 through 1968 when my parents moved out of state. Our troop also went to the camp for winter camping. The most memorable was the weekend of Nov. 22-24. J.F.K. had been assassinated that day, we were going to cancel but we would have lost our spot so we went anyway. We discovered that we couldn’t get a radio signal on the car radios at the winter cabin, so peroidically one of the adults would drive down the camp road until they could get the news and come back to update us. As we were driving back home, we heard the live reports of Oswald’s shooting and death. Quite a weekend.
