The Earliest Photos of Boxwell
Camp Boxwell–not Boxwell Reservation–at Linton, TN (between Bellevue and Fairview, around HWY 100) was the very first summer camp to bear the name “Boxwell.” Part of the Nashville Council (Middle Tennessee Council did not yet exist), Linton opened in 1921. According to Boys Will Be Men, the camp was located on the Harpeth River and used military surplus tents from the First World War. Council Executive “Coach” William Anderson himself headed up the camp (a feat he continued for 26 more years!). A former Vanderbilt track coach, Anderson “recruited local high school athletes and members of his track team to assist at the camps” (51).
Scouts (not Scoutmasters!) met at a central location and were ferried out to camp by truck. Every day consisted of a morning tent inspection followed by morning sessions (about two hours) and a swim before lunch. If an afternoon snack was desired, a Scout had to kill 50 flies and would then receive a candy bar. The camp was self-governed with each tent getting one representative to a camp council. Afternoon activities are unknown, but we do know that meals were cooked by Walter Whittaker, an African American cook who became something of a camp celebrity during his tenure because of his meals. While Linton was eventually replaced by the Narrows of the Harpeth Boxwell in 1930, for a few years, it was the hub of summer Scouting activity.
Pictured here are two photos from an August 28, 1921. They are from a full page spread in the Nashville Banner (the same paper that was later run by E. B. Stahlman). The first is a photo of a camp-wide cross-country jog. The second is an image of a Linton Campsite, complete with surplus tents, which are quite a bit different from the two-man tents used today.
As has been noted before, the 2014 Reunion brought forth a variety of fascinating material. It is hard to beat this sample from Greg Tucker–photos of the FIRST Boxwell in it’s FIRST summer. It doesn’t get much more historical than this!

From _The Nashville Banner_ August 28, 1921. “A Cross-Country Jog Participated in By All.”

From _The Nashville Banner_ August 28, 1921. The caption reads: “The Scout Camp and One of the Troops which occupied it.”