Brig O' Doon was a summer camp on Osgood Pond, established by Oliver and Emma Drake and Douglas S. Ogilvie. The founders were looking for a counselors' retreat from duties at Lone Pine Camp. The camp was purchased from the Cooper family, who lived on Easy Street, in 1956. Mrs. Joseph Marvin (Margaret Van Nest) Cooper and her sister, Mrs. George Colvacares, had acquired the camp by the mid-1920s, after their parents' family camp on the pond was sold.
After signing a lease with option to buy, the new owners decided that the roofs on the existing buildings were in such disrepair they needed to be replaced that summer, so they needed to start their own camp of 20 boys to help offset the cost. The Drakes and Ogilvie loved working with young people and Brig O' Doon came to be.
The camp name, "Brig O' Doon," was chosen because the Drakes and Ogilvie were of Scottish ancestry; also, the musical "Brigadoon," was popular at the time. Since the village of Brigadoon came back to life once every hundred years, Brig O' Doon gave each camper a once-in-a-lifetime experience. However, campers often came back for a second summer.
The campers came from Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. The family of 20 boys and five counsellors needed more inside play and sleeping area. Three of the cabins were enlarged to add a Lodge Hall and newer bathrooms and sleeping space. The last addition was for a married counsellor and his wife and child. The original camp consisted of two main cabins, an ice house, cook's cabin, a chauffeur's quarters and a storage shed. They all still exist with additions, except the shed.
The camp offered activities of astronomy, water skiing, nature study, swimming, life saving, archery, riflery, first aid, canoeing, crafts, and plant identification, first aid, knot tying, mountain climbing and fire starting. There were three levels of skill in each class. One had to pass first class swimming before he was a first class canoeist. Each camper was expected to pass the test in his chosen activities as well as pass "Getting Along" in order to earn his Brig O' Doon B at the end of the seven week season. The campers took pride in wearing their "B"s to school on their jackets.
The last season with boy campers was the summer of 1965.
Brig O' Doon continues to rent cabins, with a minimum three night stay. The cabins have been upgraded to more comfortable bedding ( no more Army cots) and have minimal cooking area. Mainly they are for campers who would like a roof over their heads instead of a tent. They have hot and cold running well water and a quiet place from which to enjoy Osgood Pond.
Source: "A Wee Bit O' Heaven" by Becky Richardson, The Good News, a small newsletter published on Osgood Pond in Paul Smiths, New York, Summer 2000
