Camp Drake & Prairielands Council History
Scouting in the Prairielands Council began with the first troop being organized in 1919. Champaign County Council had been chartered and operated under that name until 1923. A new council, C-U Council was chartered that year. Camping was conducted at its camp Weldon Springs near Clinton, Illinois. This camp was called Hatetokwitit. It was used for 10 years.
A new camp was needed. Scouters began soliciting funds for this purpose in the name of “General” Bob Drake, who had been the scout executive until his death in 1929. Service clubs such as the Rotary Club & the Lions Club took the lead in seeking funding for the purchase of the land, and later, for the other facilities needed for a scout camp. The dining hall, an old Civilian Conservation Corp building was used for that purpose, was moved to the new site found near Catlin, Illinois. The new camp was named Camp Robert Drake and was dedicated on May 28, 1932.
The story goes that the first time a prominent scouter named A. R. “Buck” Knight visited Camp Drake he picked up an arrowhead. One year later, the new council containing a larger area was formed and he caused it to be named Arrowhead Council. Two years later, in 1935, Douglas County was added to Arrowhead Council when Kaskaskie Council with headquarters in Mattoon, Illinois, went out of existence.
A new era in camping began. Campers used concrete block cabins built on cabin row on the bluff above the Salt River which flowed through the camp property. The “Pollywogs” created by strip mining of part of the camp property provided a place used for canoeing and rowing and to build the “crib” for swimming.
The first service organization was the Fire Crafters. The members of this group provided the charter members for ILLINI Lodge 92, which was chartered in 1936. The members of this lodge have served the camp & the Order with distinction since that time.
A new dining hall was added in 1968. Other buildings and facilities have been added over time. In 1992, the Arrowhead Council and Piankeshaw Council merged to create Prairielands Council. Again, a new camping year began when Scouts from nine counties in East Central Illinois and West Central Indiana came together for Scouting Adventure at Camp Robert Drake.
