Author Archives: Charlotte Page

Charlotte Page is a longtime Associate Director at Rockbrook. She began her career at Rockbrook in 1980 when she was a junior camper and has served in many roles since then, including a Cabin Counselor and Program Director. She is a graduate of Converse College with a degree in Education of the Hearing Impaired. When Charlotte isn’t at Rockbrook, you can find her coaching S.M.A.R.T Girls Run, teaching therapeutic riding lessons at Free Rein Riding Center, or volunteering with the North Carolina Boys & Girls Club.

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April 17, 2018February 29, 2024 • History • Charlotte Page

The Water Wheel

We have written about the Rockbrook water wheel in the past but wanted to share this new photograph that we just came across while doing some research into the history of Rockbrook at the Transylvania County library. It is a great view of the water wheel from the perspective of the lake. We know the water wheel was in use from the founding of the camp in 1921 until Duke Power brought electrical lines to the camp in 1930. If you stand on the dam at the lake today and look down you can still see the stone remains of the water wheel foundation.

Rockbrook Camp water wheel — The Rockbrook water wheel, date of photograph unknown

Elizabeth O'Neill Verner waterwheel sketch — The Rockbrook water wheel, by Elizabeth O’Neill Verner

The water wheel was such an important and certainly noticeable part of the camp in those early years that there was even a song written about it! Take a look at this earlier post to learn more about the Rockbrook Camp water wheel song.

There is also a beautiful etching by famed Charleston artist Elizabeth O’Neill Verner of the camp water wheel. Mrs. Verner was an art instructor during the early years of camp and her daughter Elizabeth Verner Hamilton was the first camper at Rockbrook! In this earlier blog post, you can see a photograph of Mrs. Verner teaching an art class at camp. Maybe they were drawing the water wheel?

A local rumor has it that when the water wheel was taken down it was given to another camp in the area at some point in the 1940’s. We have not been able to verify the story, however. Wouldn’t it be cool if we could track down the old wheel?

We also have a little bit of amazing video of the wheel in motion! This footage came to us from an alum and it was incorporated into a video about Rockbrook’s history. We’ve since made a more complete video about Rockbrook’s History, but it’s still fun to see this shorter version too. Enjoy!

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January 16, 2018December 11, 2022 • History • Charlotte Page

The Greatest Showman and his Rockbrook Connection

We were excited last week when the local movie theater began showing The Greatest Showman, not just because we love a good movie, but because of its connection to Rockbrook! As some of you may remember, Nancy Clarke Carrier, the founder of Rockbrook is the great-grandaughter of the famous P.T. Barnum- The Greatest Showman himself! Here is a wonderful old photograph of P.T. Barnum (seated on right) and to the far right is Julia Caroline Hurd, Nancy Carrier’s mother. Such rich history! For more on their family history check out this previous post.

In keeping with the P.T. Barnum connection, we have regularly heard from campers from the early years of camp that there was circus memorabilia in the Rockbrook house. The most frequently mentioned item was a small chair that was once owned by Tom Thumb, a star of Barnum’s circus. Campers mention getting to see and even sit in the chair. The chair is no longer in the home but its regular mention has led us on a multi year quest to track it down! The only clue we had was that a family member was pretty sure that the chair had been donated to a Barnum museum!

The first stop on the great chair quest was the Ringling Museum down in Florida which houses lots of Barnum and Circus memorabilia. Sarah and Jeff were on the road hosting camp reunion parties and made a point to go by the museum to see if they could find any information about the chair. Unfortunately they had no such chair in their collection but it was a good start!

Next up was to contact The Barnum Museum in Bridgeport, CT. We spoke with the curator of the museum who said they did have a few Tom Thumb chairs in their collection but none of them had any history associated with the Carrier Family. They did have one in the collection with no background information so our next challenge was to find a photo of the Barnum Rockbrook Chair. If we could just find a picture we may be able to make a match!

P.T. Barnum's Tom Thumb chair at Rockbrook House, Brevard North Carolina — Carrier great grand children and the Tom Thumb Chair, circa 1970

We spent several months looking through the archives to no avail when out of the blue a set of photographs was donated to Rockbrook by Phillip Tucker who is a great grandson of Nancy Carrier. While flipping through the pictures we were THRILLED to see this photo:

We were ecstatic to find the photo and sent it promptly to the Barnum Museum for their inspection and were so happy to get the following reply:

Restored Tom Thumb Chair — Tom Thumb Dining Chair. Photo provided courtesy of The Barnum Museum. Anyone wishing to use the image must receive permission in writing from The Barnum Museum. (info@barnum-museum.org)

“…But it seems very likely that with the background story you stated previously, this chair came to the museum from Nancy Carrier’s grandson. Of course, the chair, being part of a dining room set, is not entirely unique, though possibly only one of two still in existence, that we know of. So it does seem likely that going back many years, the Clarke-Carrier chair was donated to The Barnum.” – Adrienne Saint-Pierre, Curator

So, while we can’t say with total certainty that this is THE chair, it sure seems likely that we have found the Rockbrook Tom Thumb Chair! Here it is in all it’s fully restored glory. Next time you take a trip to Bridgeport, CT, be sure to go by the museum and pay it a visit!

For more on Tom Thumb and The Greatest Showman check out this neat article by the Hollywood Reporter that compares the real people to the characters in the movie!

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March 14, 2013May 25, 2020 • News • Charlotte Page

Surprise for Mr. Potter

Although Rockbrook has offered pottery since the 1950’s, it really took off in the 1980’s when John and Sybil Dodson aka “Mr. and Mrs. Potter” began their work at Rockbrook. They created a fabulous program and helped build our first pottery studio, located down in the old garage of The Rockbrook House. For over 20 summers the Dodson’s taught legions of Rockbrook girls the art of hand building, wheel throwing and glazing. If you were a camper during that time you probably also remember the petting zoo down at pottery! Mr. Dodson would often bring a goat or a chicken as artistic inspiration. When we hear from former campers and staff they often talk about Mr. and Mrs. Potter as some of their favorite camp leaders.

In addition to working at Rockbrook, Mr. and Mrs. Dodson had their own pottery shop. Mud Dabbers Pottery and Crafts was located in the Old Distillery Building on the Rockbrook property. It did not take long for them to outgrow their original shop with all of their amazing pottery, so they moved Mud Dabbers down the street to the Old Powell Store, where it is currently located. It is quite an amazing shop, filled with the work of over 20 artists. It is still a destination location for many people who journey up the mountain just to visit Mud Dabbers!

So, In honor of Mr. Dodson and all of his amazing work with so many people over the years, his family and friends are organizing a memory book for him for his upcoming birthday. If you have a memory of Mr. Potter that you would like to share for this special tribute, please write Shannon at: srood31@hotmail.com. Deadline for submissions is Memorial Day. We love you Mr. Potter!

Rockbrook Camp Office and Mud Dabbers Pottery, 1997

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March 5, 2013December 11, 2022 • History • Charlotte Page

The Amazing “Jerky”

In the stories and history of Rockbrook, perhaps no one is more legendary than former counselor and director Ellen Hume Jervey. Fondly known as “Jerky”, she was an institution at Rockbrook for over 40 years. Jerky grew up in Charleston, SC (just an interesting side note, Jerky lived next door to The Verner Gallery, the art gallery of Elizabeth O’Neill Verner, another memorable Rockbrooker). She began her Rockbrook career as a counselor in the 1920’s. After college, Jerky was the Physical Education Director at Hood College, but she continued to work at Rockbrook for the summer. In the 1940’s Jerky became a Director at Rockbrook and continued working at camp through the 1960’s. She lived in Charleston, SC during the school year where she taught at Ashley Hall, a private girls school. She is referred to by many of our alumna as one of the most influential people in their lives.

One of the most shared stories about Jerky is that during WWII she was commissioned as an officer with the US Naval Reserves! Rockbrook closed for the summers during the war and many women became involved in the war effort. None more so than Jerky! We have searched high and low for more information about it and were thrilled to find the following article from a Charleston, SC Newspaper.

The WAVEs (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) division of the Naval Reserve consisted entirely of women. From the very beginning, the WAVES was an official part of the Navy, and its members held the same rank and ratings as male personnel. The first commissioned female officer in the Navy was the commander of the WAVES, and she was commissioned in August, 1942. You can see from the article that Jerky was not far behind, being commissioned in December. We are not sure how long Jerky served, but will continue our research to find out more about her time in the Navy. You can see just one of the reasons why she was an amazing role model and mentor to so many Rockbrook women.

Stay tuned for more Jerky stories! If you have any you would like to share we would love to hear from you!

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February 26, 2013December 11, 2022 • History • Charlotte Page

The History of the Parlez-Vous Song

Singing is a huge part of camp life and one of the funniest song traditions at Rockbrook is the Parlez-Vous Song. A Parlez-Vous is a song made up by a cabin or group of campers and then performed spontaneously in the dining hall. After asking several Alumna if they remember singing Parlez- Vous at camp, it seems that they have been part of the Rockbrook lore since the 1930’s. Here is an example of a Rockbrook Parlez- Vous:

We had so much fun at the camp out last night, parlez- vous

We had so much fun at the camp out last night, parlez-vous

We had so much fun at the camp out last night

The S’mores and stories were out of sight

Inky Dinky parlez- vous

These spontaneous songs are often very humorous and creative and always bring a laugh and a smile to everyone as we enjoy our meals together.

So, what in the world is the history of the Parlez- Vous and how did it come to be part of Rockbrook’s history?

After a little digging it appears that the origins of the Parlez- Vous come from a World War I song called Mademoiselle from Armentières. This song was adapted from a British Indian Army song called Skiboo. It was a rhyming song, whose lyrics changed quite regularly. During World War I it was often referred to as the Hinky Dinky Parlez Vous Song and would be adapted and sung by soldiers. Some versions were a bit risque but we were able to find a great version. Listen below and be sure to wait for the chorus!

Isn’t it fascinating how songs at camp are passed along from generation to generation? If you remember any funny Parlez-Vous from your days at camp, please send them in! We would love to hear them.

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February 18, 2013May 25, 2020 • News • Charlotte Page

Winter Walkabout

We enjoyed a beautiful walk around camp last week and wanted to share some of the scenes we captured as we wandered around. Camp is quiet in the winter but the beauty of the quiet cold season is remarkable. It is hard to believe that there will be flowers blooming, frogs chirping and kids laughing at camp in just a few short months! Enjoy these winter shots. Can you tell where they were taken?

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February 7, 2013May 27, 2020 • North Carolina • Charlotte Page

The Heart of a Wooded Mountain

Camp lake 1932 from hill — Rockbrook Camp, 1932

Check out this great old photograph we found in a camp scrapbook that was recently donated to Rockbrook. The Lakeview Lodge and Vesper Rock are the stars of the show! They are central to camp life and seem to always show up in photographs of the girls doing evening program.

If you have not been to camp recently you will be relieved to know that it still looks very much the same as in this wonderful old photograph. The trees are a bit taller but the feel of camp is just like this picture! If you look really hard you may even see Mrs. Carrier in the front left of the image, walking down the road wearing white.

We love the unique perspective of this photo of our North Carolina home as it was taken from the hill where the gym currently stands. Be sure to click on the photo to see a larger version of the image.

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January 16, 2013March 24, 2023 • History • Charlotte Page

The Rockbrook Songbook

singing songs at night — Singing along at Spirit Fire, 2012

Singing is a HUGE part of life at Rockbrook and is something that every camp generation can share. We hear fabulous stories from our alumnae of camp songs being sung at weddings, college events, in the middle of a restaurant, or even when you run into a friend at the grocery store. The songs are in a way a history of camp. What is it about those fun camp songs that sticks with you forever?

Because singing is such a big part of camp life at Rockbrook, we are in the process of updating our famous camp songbook. Over the years some songs drifted out of popularity, while new ones “came into fashion”. Songs like “Liberty” and “When the Moon Plays Peek A Boo” were very popular in the 60’s while songs like “The Coconut Song” and “Yogi Bear” are a few current hits. With our new songbook we hope to include ALL of the camp songs from the Rockbrook repertoire. That is where you come in! We do not have a songbook from the 20’s-40’s. If anyone has an old songbook or can send us any information about the songs from the early years of Rockbrook we would SO appreciate your help.

Now that camp songs are running through your mind, go an listen to our archive of Rockbrook Camp songs!

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December 19, 2012May 27, 2020 • History • Charlotte Page

The Carrier Pigeon

We have just mailed the 2012 Rockbrook Carrier Pigeon to this years campers and staff. The Carrier Pigeon is the camp’s annual yearbook featuring stories, poems, drawings and photographs of the summer. The Carrier Pigeon has been published each year since the camp was founded in 1921, making it one of the best resources for the history of camp. This makes this years copy the 91st edition of the Rockbrook memory book. The Carrier Pigeons are wonderful treasures filled with Rockbrook memories and fun times. Here are some samples from over the years:

Carrier Pigeon writings 1926 — The Carrier Pigeon, 1926

The Aim of the Pigeon

“Like ghosts passing to and fro, good times come and good times go.”

Good times do come and go as swiftly, but the Pigeon is going to help us keep our good times with us. The little funny incidences and all the pleasures that go toward making up this happy summer of ours are going to pass more slowly because of the Pigeon. Certainly, time will pass as quickly, but the memories will remain.

In the long winter to come, we will be able to laugh and talk over the good times at camp. Not only that, but we will be able to pass on our happiness and share it with others- the others that are not with us now. All because of the Pigeon that will bring back our memories at Christmas time.

We will never forget it it, this happy summer of ours, It is the aim of the Pigeon to do this, to serve as a record of happy memories. With your help it will succeed. – K. Wallingford, Junior Editor

Camp writings book 1980 — The Carrier Pigeon, 1980

To Me Rockbrook Means-

togetherness around a campfire

Jean and Sarah Scott playing their guitars

And everyone listening and enjoying the soft music

Making crafts and going home and sharing them with your family

Sitting on the hill in the evening watching the sun slowly

fade behind the proud tall mountains

Rockbrook I thank you for the Happy days you gave me. – Muffy Howard

We hope you have many happy memories of your time at RBC and if you have any copies of your old Carrier Pigeons we would love to hear from you. Please share with us any of your favorite camp poems, memories, stories and photos.

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December 7, 2012May 27, 2020 • History • Charlotte Page

The Rockbrook Tie

The most distinguishing feature of the Rockbrook Uniform is the Red Rockbrook Tie. The tie has been part of the camp uniform since Rockbrook was founded in 1921. This made us wonder…what is the origin of the Rockbrook tie?

After doing some digging, it looks like that many of the early girls’ camps like Rockbrook had a tie as part of their uniform. While they come in many different colors, they all share a similar element- the Friendship Knot. It appears that the history of the friendship knot in camping came from the Girl Scouts. According to the Girl Scouts, the Friendship Tie (and knot) stand for the “tie that binds all girls and women who are part of the world association of Scouts”. The knot is a sign of the continuous friendships they share. Nothing could be more true for all of our Rockbrook girls and women all over the world. The red Rockbrook tie is surely a symbol of the Spirit of Rockbrook that binds us all together!

Vintage camp photos of women in ties — Rockbrook Uniform, 1920’s

modern camp girls in ties — Rockbrook Uniform, 2012

We also found a wonderful poem that speaks to the beauty of the Friendship Knot. While we are not sure of the author, we know that they definitely went to camp!

The Friendship Knot

This knot is women in friendship true,
And interlaced with memories, too.
Of friendship found and share by you,
That times and miles cannot undo

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