|
|
Dorothy Copus Brush Col. Rice -- The Renaissance Man Once again quiet reigns at the "Thousand
Acre Camp for Girls." That was the way founder Col. L.L.
Rice spoke of it before he coined Nakawana as the permanent name.
For the past six weeks, the camp has been the summer place for
hundreds of young women from states across the nation and from
other countries. Now, they have all gone home, and the grounds
no longer ring with laughter, songs and activities. Col. Rice was the founder and headmaster of
Castle Heights Military Academy for boys at Lebanon and the president
of Cumberland College. In June 1920, this visionary opened Nakawana
as one of the first camps for girls in the South. Located just
north of Mayland, the 1,000 acres had been an important Cherokee
hunting ground before the 1800s. Col. Rice purchased the land
for $30,000. It is believed he made up the name Nakawana using
the Native American words for "large body of land." A 1936 article in the Chronicle speaks
of the camp lake, Lake Alealoa, which William Cooper began building
in 1913. "In building the lake which covers 300 acres, care
was taken to remove everything that might be detrimental or offensive
and the stream is of such magnitude as to carry off impurities
should any accumulate." On the maps of today, the lake is
shown as Mayland Lake but to the campers it will always be Lake
Alealoa. It now covers about 250-275 acres. Today, Col. Rice would undoubtedly be described
as a Renaissance Man. Laban Lacey Rice was a classical scholar
and was also considered the leading layman expert on the theory
of relativity. At age 75, he retired from both Nakawana and Cumberland
College in 1946, but in his first eight years of retirement,
he published three books. One was on relativity and another on
astronomy. On his 98th birthday he conducted a baseball pitching
clinic for boys at Cumberland College, and after his 100th birthday
he wrote three more books. He died at age 103. Those first campers lived in tents along the
lake. One of the first buildings erected on the campgrounds was
the Wigwam, a carefully crafted 12-sided structure overlooking
the lake. It is now listed on the National Register of Historic
Buildings and has served campers well for 81 years. On the second night of that first camp in
1920 the girls gathered in the Wigwam. They listened intently
as the colonel introduced them to the team names he had chosen
from mythology. He explained the teams would be the basis for
individual and team competition. The ideals of sportsmanship
and friendly rivalry were to be foremost in their minds. He explained one team would be called the
Amazons, found in Greek mythology. These women formed a tribe
of valiant fighters noted for their clean living, courage and
sportsmanship. The second team would be called the Valkyries,
from Norse mythology. These women were skilled in horsemanship
and known for their bravery. Those two team names have lived on and a number
of traditions are built on the tales of the Amazons and Valkyries
as described by the colonel in 1920. Annie Hays Rice O'Neil, daughter of Col. Rice,
served as associate director for 13 years, 1933-'46. In that
final year, Nakawana was listed as the largest private camp for
girls in the United States. The colonel's son, Cole Young Rice,
who had been called "America's greatest lyric dramatist,"
visited Nakawana often with his wife, Alice Hegan Rice, author
of Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch. The couple found the
camp an inspiring place to do their writing. It was a surprise to many that Col. Rice did not pass Nakawana on to his family. More of Nakawana's 81-year-old history will continue next week. |