Frequently Asked Questions

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Yes, It is old growth White Pine that has darkened over the last century.  The resin crystalizes and makes the wood very, very hard.  Old growth white pine that has cured for over a century is very different from currently available white pine.

Looking closely at the floor beams one can see light, circular saw marks indicating it was cut at a saw mill.  At the time camp was built there were numerous operating saw mills in the area.

The author of this website and his sister heard a first hand account from a local man in 1973.  The man was 6 years old in 1902 and remembered handing nails to his dad while his dad was building at camp.

We used AI to date the photo and the woman in it.  We then matched the answers to camp's log book and created a list of possible people it could have been.  Thelma makes sense because she was the daughter of Aunt Hatte's best friend.  She was also the best friend of the second generation owner of camp.  As a matter of fact, she was the only bridesmaid at the former owner's wedding.  We then matched the picture at camp with other pictures we know were Thelma and found a perfect match.

Camp is currently in its 4th generation of family ownership.  At least six generations of our family have stayed at camp.   Aunt Hatte deeded camp to her niece, who deeded it to her 2 children.  One of those children bought the other out.  It was then deeded from the 3rd generation's owner to her four children.

The original Chimney that was built in 1902 was deteriorating and only resting on rocks.  We had it removed in 2024.  During the removal process it was discovered that there was a slab of granite weighing over 300 pounds in the chimney that was causing the center portion (closets, stairs, fireplace, hearth) of camp to be unlevel.  Side -to-side the entirety of camp is level.  As camp settles after the chimney removal it will eventually even out in the center portion.

The three bedrooms and hall upstairs are all original.  The stairwell, living room, closets, and kitchen downstairs are all original.  The front porch was replaced in 1992 as was the eating porch.  The eating porch was added after the initial build by Aunt Hatte, exactly when is uncertain.  The original porches, while made of the old-growth white pine, would get wet year after year due to rain and snow.  In 1992 the roof of the front porch partially collapsed.  The eating porch floor was bad and beginning to separate from the house so when the front porch was replaced it was decided to replace the eating porch as well.  

• For at least the first 25+ years of camp's existence there was no electricity.   Rural Thornton did not have electrical service until at least 1928.  Then, out of convivence and necessity electricity was added and then kept updated over the years.  Phone service was was installed in the 1980s after 75+ years of no phone at camp.

• In 2024 Broadband Internet was added.  Like the phone and electricity it was necessary and convenient.   For example, over the past summer, at its highest usage, there were 26 devices connected to the internet at the same time.  Today's technology includes laptops, smartphones, smart watches, game consoles, tablets, and iPads, among others. 

• Camp is in a very isolated location in the woods.  Lately, there are many times when we visited camp where there wasn't anyone staying in the houses on our street, only a person in a tent off our driveway.  We know strangers have visited the cabin and it was vandalized by kids many years ago.   A security camera is a necessity now.

• When we had the chimney removed, we were startled to find burn marks inside the walls of camp from the fireplace.  It truly was a scary sight.  Every contractor that looked at our fireplace situation urged us stop burning wood at the cabin.  In 2024 we installed an electric fireplace.

• All of these updates were lovingly made in order to keep camp safer and more enjoyable,  while keeping with the vibe at camp.

They run on batteries - CR2032 type.  Replacement batteries are in the bin in the living room.

The thermometer displays the outside temp with the big digits.  The inside temp is on the bottom left.  The outside temp is done with a probe sticking out the back of camp.

It does.  It's on the top shelf of the Game Shelves in the Living Room.