Gypsy Camp’s legacy lives on
For more than 50 years campers spent their summers at the Gypsy Camp for Girls, making friends, spending time in nature and enjoying the water of the Illinois River.
That legacy of summer fun will continue on in the new Gypsy Camp and Canoe, which will strive to keep the history of the camp alive while also providing family-friendly float trips on the Illinois River.
The historic camp went up for sale last fall, after former owner Bob Coe died at the age of 96 in August. Coe and his late wife Daisy had run the camp since the 1960s.
Three local couples — David and Jill Ellingson, Jerrid and Tracie Gelinas, and Nathan and Mandi Reed — purchased the camp in June and opened their new business on June 30.
The camp is located about seven miles south of Siloam Springs on the northwest side of the Arkansas Highway 59 bridge over the Illinois River. It served as a girls’ summer camp from 1923 until 1978, Jerrid said. Since then, the camp has been used for summer get-togethers, events and reunions.
The camp has 11 original buildings, including two houses, a recreation center, four cabins, two bath houses and a well-house all nestled between towering limestone bluffs and the riverbank. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Gypsy Camp Historic District.
During the years the camp operated, girls came from all over the region, including from states such as Texas, Kansas, Missouri, Louisiana and Oklahoma. Campers would often arrive by train in Tulsa or Fayetteville and be transported by bus to the camp. They were divided into two teams — red and orange — that competed with each other.
Former campers formed a sort of sorority and still meet for reunions each summer. Some of them went on to become wellknown public figures, such as actress Natalie Caneday who played in “Sling Blade, “October Sky” and “Walk the Line”; actress Mary Martin, who starred in “Peter Pan” in 1960; and Alice Walton, daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton.
“The girls that were here, they wear that like a badge of honor, like ‘I’m a Gypsy forever,’” Jerrid said.
During their most recent reunion, on June 23, they inducted Jill and her daughter into the orange team and Tracie and her daughter into the red team.
“It really made us feel like we’re part of the Gypsy clan now,” Jerrid said.
Discovering the camp
Jerrid started floating local rivers with his family when he was only a year old, and has kept it up every summer since. He dreamed of opening a float trip business one day and purchased property near the Siloam Springs Kayak Park.
Last September, Jerrid was floating the river when the old buildings happened to catch his eye and he had to stop to take a look. Then in October, he learned the property was for sale.
“Jerrid and I came out here and looked at it, and obviously we fell in love with it,” Nathan said.
Jerrid asked his friend David, who owns a construction business, to come look at the structures and judge how sound they are.
“David came out here and he fell in love with it, and here we are,” Nathan said.
The couples worked together for eight months to purchase the property, then quickly turned their attention to opening the business just a few days later.
Keeping the legacy alive
The new owners plan to preserve the original camp’s history.
“I think we’re all just excited to be able to offer a float business, yes, but also kind of preserve a piece of history. All we advertise right now is the boats but there is more to it that I think we will get to showcase one day and I think we’ve all got a piece of our hearts in this. The boats are great but this is really cool,” Jerrid said, gesturing toward the historic buildings.
Currently, Gypsy Camp and Canoe is offering three- to six-hour float trips in canoes, single or tandem kayaks, and rafts starting at the Siloam Springs Kayak Park and ending at the camp. The camp offers a shuttle service for people who are renting their brand-new equipment as well as for people who bring their own equipment.
In the future, the owners hope to add tent and RV camping spaces, restore the original structures and make them available for overnight rentals, and perhaps even create a space for weddings and events, all while keeping the historic atmosphere.
“That’s one of our big goals, to keep it very historic, very natural like it is,” Jerrid said.
One of the advantages of floating the Illinois River is it is spring fed, which means the water is deep enough for float trips even during drought years, Jerrid said. Another advantage is that it is within a 30- to 45-minute drive of most locations in Northwest Arkansas, Nathan said.
The business also offers brand-new equipment and a unique level of customer service, Jerrid and Tracie said. They also give each group of customers a trash bag and encourage them to pick up not only their own trash but any other trash they might find along the way.
“We try to be really family friendly, that’s one of our big things. … We want everybody to come and enjoy themselves here,” Tracie said.
The camp is open for float trips on Saturdays and Sundays and shuttles people up the river for float trips until 4 p.m. Float trips are also available by reservation during the week.
For more information, visit the Gypsy Camp and Canoe Facebook page or call 479-238-5396.