Camp Columbia
Growing up in Morris I always heard strange stories about Camp Columbia. Told of devil
worshiping and satanic rituals kept me far from the place. I was told that chickens and
puppies were used to sacrifice at these rituals. As time went on and the camp was acquired
by the state and turned into a park of sorts, I decided to check the place out.
(History from CT DEP)
In 1903, Columbia University purchased farmland to serve as a summer camp for
Columbia University’s surveying and engineering students. Ironically for a future “state
forest”, there were practically no trees on the property in those days! For 80 years,
students used the grounds of Camp Columbia to put their classroom skills to practical
use, sometimes even resulting in engineering breakthroughs. A demonstration of a new
method of construction using a pre-stressed concrete roof with no interior supports was
later tested on a much larger scale with the construction of Madison Square Garden in
New York City! The university football team also practiced here, and Dwight D.
Eisenhower is one of the dignitaries who reportedly hunted on the property during the
20th Century.
During World War I, the Camp was used for combat training for college students that
planned to apply for commissions as officers. Captain Ralph Williams of the Canadian
Light Infantry, a decorated veteran of the French and Belgian fronts, was in charge of the
program. Students were forced to march, drill, dig trenches, and fight in simulated
warfare that included real as well as dummy gunfire and explosives. Even today, subtle
remnants of trenches dug in 1917 and 1918 are still evident in various parts of the
property. Camp Columbia closed in 1983, and has since remained relatively quiet.
Every new state property must undergo a period of scrutiny to determine the best public
use based on location, past use, resources present, access, and other factors. Based on
this scrutiny, the majority of this parcel was designated as “State Forest”. This is
consistent with the property’s history of active forest management and hunting – as trees
re-grew following Columbia’s acquisition of the property, forest management became a
part of the care of the land. A State Forest is managed for such multiple uses as the
growth and harvest of forest products, wildlife habitat enhancement, research, hiking,
hunting and trapping.
A small portion of the acreage was designated as a “State Historic Park”, including the
frontage on Bantam Lake and the immediate site of the Columbia University buildings.
State Parks are usually areas meant for preservation and recreation. Although there are
exceptions, there are usually no active resource management programs such as timber
harvesting and hunting on State Parks.
Camp Columbia is still a very new property, with limited opportunities for public access.
Although a public parking area on Route 109 and a trail system will eventually be
constructed, these improvements are not complete as of this writing.
Ticks are in abundance at Camp Columbia most of the year, but most notably in spring,
early summer and mid to late fall. You should wear light-colored clothing sprayed with
repellent and check yourself frequently. Remember that the ticks can be very tiny! Also, it
is always wise to avoid being in forests on very windy days, as limbs and other material
can dislodge from the trees above you.
Well the above statement about ticks holds true! Several of our members complained of
ticks being on them and one actually contracted Lyme disease several days after our
outing. Anyway, a nine member team joined together for our investigation of the place. It
is a very short walk on a clean trail to find the place. We first came across a garage and
storage building. The garage was open and was loaded with debris. The storage building
was all locked up but the windows are broken out and easy to snap pics through it. As we
continued to the center of the place we saw a large stone tower surrounded by many
boarded up buildings. We did what we could to look inside the structures via broken
windows and un boarded doors. The roofs on most of the structures are rotten and I
wouldn't recommend trying to enter. We did come across a small house that was open
and debris such as beer cans and candles littered the floors. It began to rain before we
could finish searching the property so we packed it in and returned the following day.
Several of us met up the following day and continued on the investigation. We were
surprised at all the graffiti that was found on the exteriors of the buildings, it hadn't been
there the previous day. Kids partying was evident but additional beer cans found on the
porches. We found several more buildings, one which may have confirmed the stories.
There were burnt candles and a pentagram found inside the structure. A broken
blackboard was found outside the front door with 666 carved into it. Another finding was
a chalkboard in a house with "Raum come to us", Raum is a demon name which is listed
as: Great Earle, commands 30 legions; seen as a crow. I wondered if this could be
attached to the stories of my childhood. We ran several EVP sessions and checked areas
for electromagnetic fields all turned up negative. In my opinion Camp Columbia is not
haunted but is a very interesting place to visit. My sources tell me that several of the
buildings are scheduled to be demolished in the near future for safety purposes and Id
recommend checking the place out before this occurs. -John Zontok Founder NWCPS
Growing up in Morris I always heard strange stories about Camp Columbia. Told of devil
worshiping and satanic rituals kept me far from the place. I was told that chickens and
puppies were used to sacrifice at these rituals. As time went on and the camp was acquired
by the state and turned into a park of sorts, I decided to check the place out.
(History from CT DEP)
In 1903, Columbia University purchased farmland to serve as a summer camp for
Columbia University’s surveying and engineering students. Ironically for a future “state
forest”, there were practically no trees on the property in those days! For 80 years,
students used the grounds of Camp Columbia to put their classroom skills to practical
use, sometimes even resulting in engineering breakthroughs. A demonstration of a new
method of construction using a pre-stressed concrete roof with no interior supports was
later tested on a much larger scale with the construction of Madison Square Garden in
New York City! The university football team also practiced here, and Dwight D.
Eisenhower is one of the dignitaries who reportedly hunted on the property during the
20th Century.
During World War I, the Camp was used for combat training for college students that
planned to apply for commissions as officers. Captain Ralph Williams of the Canadian
Light Infantry, a decorated veteran of the French and Belgian fronts, was in charge of the
program. Students were forced to march, drill, dig trenches, and fight in simulated
warfare that included real as well as dummy gunfire and explosives. Even today, subtle
remnants of trenches dug in 1917 and 1918 are still evident in various parts of the
property. Camp Columbia closed in 1983, and has since remained relatively quiet.
Every new state property must undergo a period of scrutiny to determine the best public
use based on location, past use, resources present, access, and other factors. Based on
this scrutiny, the majority of this parcel was designated as “State Forest”. This is
consistent with the property’s history of active forest management and hunting – as trees
re-grew following Columbia’s acquisition of the property, forest management became a
part of the care of the land. A State Forest is managed for such multiple uses as the
growth and harvest of forest products, wildlife habitat enhancement, research, hiking,
hunting and trapping.
A small portion of the acreage was designated as a “State Historic Park”, including the
frontage on Bantam Lake and the immediate site of the Columbia University buildings.
State Parks are usually areas meant for preservation and recreation. Although there are
exceptions, there are usually no active resource management programs such as timber
harvesting and hunting on State Parks.
Camp Columbia is still a very new property, with limited opportunities for public access.
Although a public parking area on Route 109 and a trail system will eventually be
constructed, these improvements are not complete as of this writing.
Ticks are in abundance at Camp Columbia most of the year, but most notably in spring,
early summer and mid to late fall. You should wear light-colored clothing sprayed with
repellent and check yourself frequently. Remember that the ticks can be very tiny! Also, it
is always wise to avoid being in forests on very windy days, as limbs and other material
can dislodge from the trees above you.
Well the above statement about ticks holds true! Several of our members complained of
ticks being on them and one actually contracted Lyme disease several days after our
outing. Anyway, a nine member team joined together for our investigation of the place. It
is a very short walk on a clean trail to find the place. We first came across a garage and
storage building. The garage was open and was loaded with debris. The storage building
was all locked up but the windows are broken out and easy to snap pics through it. As we
continued to the center of the place we saw a large stone tower surrounded by many
boarded up buildings. We did what we could to look inside the structures via broken
windows and un boarded doors. The roofs on most of the structures are rotten and I
wouldn't recommend trying to enter. We did come across a small house that was open
and debris such as beer cans and candles littered the floors. It began to rain before we
could finish searching the property so we packed it in and returned the following day.
Several of us met up the following day and continued on the investigation. We were
surprised at all the graffiti that was found on the exteriors of the buildings, it hadn't been
there the previous day. Kids partying was evident but additional beer cans found on the
porches. We found several more buildings, one which may have confirmed the stories.
There were burnt candles and a pentagram found inside the structure. A broken
blackboard was found outside the front door with 666 carved into it. Another finding was
a chalkboard in a house with "Raum come to us", Raum is a demon name which is listed
as: Great Earle, commands 30 legions; seen as a crow. I wondered if this could be
attached to the stories of my childhood. We ran several EVP sessions and checked areas
for electromagnetic fields all turned up negative. In my opinion Camp Columbia is not
haunted but is a very interesting place to visit. My sources tell me that several of the
buildings are scheduled to be demolished in the near future for safety purposes and Id
recommend checking the place out before this occurs. -John Zontok Founder NWCPS
