Georgia 4-H Centennial
Historic Legacy.... Dynamic
Future
Georgia 4-H: Still Making
the Best Better
1904 - 2004
The Beginning…Corn and
Tomato Clubs and Head,
Heart, and Hands
G.C. Adams – The Founder Of
Georgia 4-H
• Professor
• County School
Commissioner
• Started the Newton
County Corn Club in
December 1904 with
151 members
G. C. Adams
"Like a toy weighted at the
bottom and laid on its back,
Uncle Claud when pushed
always came up smiling and
more determined to carry on
and start a new adventure.
Like a tall oak, the mighty
4-H Club has grown from
that small corn club started
by G.C. Adams."
-From the Adams family
history book
• P.D. Johnson , a black
teacher in Newton County,
started the Negro 4-H
Program at the same time
with a corn patch project
for sons and fathers who
wanted to learn modern
corn production practices.
• The first Girls’ Tomato
Canning Club was
organized soon after in
Hancock County.
First State 4-H Winner
• In 1906, the
first State 4-H
Winner at the
Georgia State
Fair in Macon
was Roy Brown
from Toccoa.
The First Three H’s
• Head
• Heart
• Hands
The Fourth H
• Hustle (added in 1911)
• Later changed to the present
day H, Health
1912
• 73,000 boys and 23,000 girls
enrolled nationwide
• USDA created charter for 4-H
1914
• Congress passed Smith-Lever
Act, creating Cooperative
Extension Service
• In 1914, the Georgia 4-H
Poultry Club was started.
• By 1915, Georgia had 5,507
club girls and 14, 275 club
boys
The 20’s, 30’s and 40’s…Global
Expansion and National Conferences
Post WWI
• 4-H crossed the Atlantic to Great Britain,
Denmark, Sweden, Norway
• 1923 – More than 55,000 Black boys and
girls involved in 4-H clubs
• Late 1920’s – Federal Bureau of Indian
Affairs created its own Extension Service,
promoting 4-H among Native American
youth
Camp Wilkins – The First Georgia 4H Summer Camp
• Camp Wilkins opened its doors in 1924 on the grounds that now house the
UGA CAES's Driftmier Engineering Building. Its program incorporated
agricultural education and recreation. Each week, boys from all over the
state would come to the camp to take short courses on agricultural issues,
swim in Lake Kirota, play on the camp's baseball diamond and create
lasting friendships.
2001 Camp Wilkins Alumni Reunion
National 4-H Conferences
• National 4-H Club
Congress – 1923
• National Club
Camp – 1927
(now National
Conference)
– National 4-H pledge
and 4-H motto were
officially adopted
here
Georgia Master 4-H Club
• The Georgia Master 4-H Club was organized in
1935. The first meeting was held at Camp
Wilkins with 200 members present.
1940-41 Master Club Officers
1937
• In 1937, Georgia has
County Agents
working in every
county.
• 4-H enrollment grew
to 82, 962.
Great Depression
Food production and
conservation skills learned in
4-H were still an asset to
youth, their families, and their
communities.
World War II
• 4-Her’s canned, conserved, adopted
special recipes, and were at the
forefront of the war movement with
patriotic pledges and more.
1943- SS. Hoke Smith
• In 1943, Georgia
4-H’ers sold enough
War Bonds to buy a
$2,000,000 Liberty
Ship and grew food to
fill it!
Georgia 4-H Foundation
• In 1948, the Georgia
4-H Club Foundation
was organized to help
further 4-H work in
the state. Each 4-H
Club member was
asked to donate one
dozen eggs to the
Foundation during
1949. By year’s end
there was $7,000 in
the bank.
History of 4-H Camps in Georgia
Georgia’s 4-H Camps / Centers Opened:
• Camp Wilkins, Athens – 1924
• Negro 4-H Center, Dublin – 1939
• Wahsega 4-H Center– 1943
• Burton 4-H Center on Tybee Island- 1946
• Rock Eagle 4-H Center - 1955
• Fulton – 1971
• Jekyll – 1982
• Fortson - 2004
CURRENT 4-H CENTERS
Rock Eagle 4-H Center
Rock Eagle 4-H Center
• Opened 1955
• 1,428 acres of
forested land,
including a
110 acre lake
Jekyll Island 4-H Center
• Just renovated, Jekyll 4-H
Center is on Jekyll Island on
the coast of Georgia.
• The center was originally the
Dolphin Club and Motor Hotel,
but after desegregation the
facility was shut down.
• During the 1960’s and 70’s the
facility was used for a group
camp and youth center
• In June 1983, the Georgia 4-H
program leased the facility
from the Jekyll Island
Authority and it became Jekyll
4-H Center as we know it
today.
Burton 4-H Center on Tybee Island
• Renamed in 2004, Burton
4-H Center is located on
Tybee Island on the Coast
of Georgia
• One of the older camps,
Georgia 4-H began using
Tybee 4-H camp ( then
known as Camp Chatham)
in 1946
• Tybee offers 4-H’ers the
opportunity to experience
marine ecology and much,
much more!
Wahsega
• Before this valley in the
Chattahoochee National Forest
north of Dahlonega, Georgia
was called Wahsega 4-H
Center, it was home to the
McDougal family.
• In the 1930's, the valley was
used by the CCC as a camp for
the men building roads and
bridges in this area of north
Georgia.
• In the late 1930's the site was
used as a summer camp for
underprivileged youth. By
1943, Georgia 4-H was using
the facility for conferences and
rallies. 4-H Summer camp was
first held at Wahsega in 1947.
• In 1998 Environmental
Education program started at
Wahsega
Fortson 4-H Center
• Once a Henry County 4-H
camp, Fortson became a
Georgia 4-H Camp in
2004
• Fortson was used as a
community camp while
not a 4-H center.
• Fortson has been the home
of Georgia 4-H Officer
Training for 3 years.
• A new history will be
written for Fortson in the
next century of Georgia
4-H.
Other 4-H Milestones
• 1954 – 50th Anniversary Celebration of
Georgia 4-H
• 1958 – The first 4-H Automotive Club in
Georgia started in DeKalb County
• In 1963, Georgia 4-H enrollment was the
largest in the nation with 150,000 members
• In 1976, 4-H’ers celebrated the nation’s
bicentennial with a new citizenship program
called the Sunshine Brigade.
Corn and Tomato Club Members
Celebrate Georgia 4-H 50th Birthday!
Other Milestones
• 1979 – Georgia 4-H Turned 75!
• 1981 – The Georgia 4-H Performing Arts group, Clovers &
Company was formed.
• 1984 – 4-H Environmental Education began at Georgia’s
4-H Centers
• In 1990, Rock Eagle 4-H Center was renovated and
rededicated.
• In 2002, 1,200 youth and adults from throughout the
county participated in The National Conversation on Youth
Development in the 21st Century in honor of the National
4-H Centennial.
More Milestones
• In 2002, Founder’s
Lodge was dedicated.
This facility honors
those who gave
significant time, talent,
and energy to the
development of Rock
Eagle 4-H Center.
4-H: A Partner in Education
• Short-term educational programs
• Taught by teacher or Extension Staff member
• Over 190,000 youth participated in Georgia
4-H in 2003
• Georgia 4-H’s District Project Achievement
enhances language arts, encouraging the
development of both oral and written
communication skills
• 4-H has become an active partner in the
Cooperative Curriculum System
Georgia 4-H
75th Birthday Party!
2004…Still Making the Best
Better
Important Dates for the
Centennial Year
Don’t Miss…
Some 4-H Centennial Events
• June 26, 2004 - Kickoff of the
Georgia 4-H Centennial at State 4-H
Council
• Centennial 4-H Gala,August 14,
2004, Atlanta
• Georgia 4-H Centennial Celebration
Day, October 12, 2004.
Some Centennial Programs
• Centennial Website at
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•
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www.georgia4h.org
Georgia 4-H Hall Of Fame
– Fall, 2004
4-H Centennial History
Book
Bradford Basket Collector
Basket Program
4-H Quilt Expansion
Project
A Few Famous 4-H’ers
(Drum roll, please…)
Holly Hunter
Georgia
Alumnus
Garrison Hearst
Georgia Alumnus
Hershel Walker
Georgia
Alumnus
President
Jimmy Carter
Georgia
Alumnus
Governor Sonny Purdue
Georgia Alumnus
Nancy Grace
Georgia Alumnus
Nikki DeLoach
Georgia Alumnus
Faith Hill
Jim Davis
Reba McEntire
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture,
Ann M. Veneman
Johnny Carson
Dolly Parton
David Letterman
Alan Shepard
Reggie White
YOU!!!