William R Kenan Jr., the late philanthropist, inventor, humanitarian, and benefactor of many organizations in Lockport and elsewhere made it possible to establish the camp which bears his name. The suggestion to develop a camp for children from the local area was made by John Tagg, the late general secretary of the Lockport YMCA. Mr Kenan was delighted by the idea.
Seven acres of land along Lake Ontario was acquired by Mr. Kenan in 1924, and the first camping season began. Although facilities were primitive, it was deemed a huge success and plans were developed to expand operations the following year.
Generous grants were made each year by Mr. Kenan and are still made today by Mr. Kenan's family to maintain, expand, and improve camp. These donations have made it possible to erect cabins for campers, build housing for staff, provide a state of the art dining hall which has been recently winterized, and build a two-story recreation hall. We are proud of the commitment the Kenan family has to preserve and enrich the vision of William R. Kenan Jr.
Gifts from other Friends of Camp Kenan have provided sports equipment, canoes for our waterfront programs, & eventually made it possible to build a 37' by 75' memorial pool.
William R Kenan Jr., the late philanthropist, inventor, humanitarian, and benefactor of many organizations in Lockport and elsewhere made it possible to establish the camp which bears his name. The suggestion to develop a camp for children from the local area was made by John Tagg, the late general secretary of the Lockport YMCA. Mr Kenan was delighted by the idea.
Seven acres of land along Lake Ontario was acquired by Mr. Kenan in 1924, and the first camping season began. Although facilities were primitive, it was deemed a huge success and plans were developed to expand operations the following year.