Before it was a Montgomery County park and wedding destination, Rockwood Manor Special Park in Potomac was a national Girl Scout camp. Its long and involved history is the subject of a Montgomery History virtual presentation, which will be available for viewing for a one-week period starting Monday, Aug. 19.
When Girl Scouts USA sold the camp, which is located at 11001 Macarthur Blvd, in Potomac, to residential developers, neighbors and individual Girl Scouts fought to stop the sale.
In “Remembering Rockwood,” author Ann Robertson, shares why Rockwood was so important to save, and how the Girl Scouts fought back. She told the story in her book “Rescue Rockwood: How a Group of Determined Girl Scouts Rallied to Save a Beloved National Camp.”
Located along the Potomac River and the Chesapeake and Ohio (C&O) Canal, Rockwood was the country home of Washington real estate developer Carolyn Gangwer Caughey. She purchased the land for its rolling hills, the lush cedar, tulip poplar, oak trees and the many birds and wildflowers. She chose the name Rockwood due to the sparkling gold-flecked rocks dotting the edges of a small, clear brook.
Mrs. Caughey (pronounced “Coy”) bequeathed her sizable estate, including Rockwood, to the national Girl Scouts organization upon her death in 1936. Once the property was converted from mansion to camp, Rockwood became a national hub of Girl Scouting. Between 1938 and 1978, more than half a million girls spent at least one night at Rockwood. The camp hosted adult training workshops, campers of all skill levels, sightseeing troops, special programs drawing girls from across the country, school groups, church groups, and international visitors.
The presentation, which originally aired in 2023, can be seen for free at History Conversations (montgomeryhistory.org).
