Great Camps

The Great Camps of the Adirondack Mountains are often grandiose family compounds of cabins that were built in the latter half of the nineteenth century on lakes in the Adirondacks. The camps were summer homes for the wealthy, sites for more or less lavish entertainment, with some featuring bowling alleys or movie theatres. The style of the remotely situated Great Camps was influenced by the British Arts and Crafts Movement and the related American Craftsman style as well as by Swiss chalet design, albeit with indigenous stone and heavy use of logs in vernacular architectural usage. William West Durant was an early developer of great camps.