Glen Brook has been a working farm since 1776 when Jedediah and Mary Tayntor arrived by oxcart a year after Jedediah fought at Bunker Hill. It has been the home of farmers and craftsmen, legislators and famous artists as well as many teachers ever since.
In 1946, the 200-acre farm was purchased by William Harrer, a teacher from The Rudolf Steiner School in Manhattan, as a place for school children to spend summers away from the city in the sun, breezes and waters of New Hampshire. Students and teachers from many other schools and places soon began to arrive. The camp reached a capacity of 75 campers, a limit Camp Glen Brook maintains to this day in order to ensure the close family atmosphere that is as magical for kids as it was for some of their parents and grandparents 60 years ago.
In 1973, through the efforts and generosity of Peter Curran, the Waldorf School of Garden City acquired Camp Glen Brook. Today, Camp Glen Brook continues to weave together the tradition of New England sleep-away camp with many of the ideas from Waldorf / Steiner schools, one of the fastest growing independent educational movements in the world. Waldorf schools are known for their balanced, holistic approach to education, a clear view of child development and a recognition and deep respect for the spiritual core of each human being and the relationships that arise between them. Growing up is a precious time that must not be hurried or harmed. A high-speed, media-driven, materialistic culture which touches our children too closely and too early may produce undesirable long-term outcomes. Here at Glen Brook, children – and adults – have the opportunity to experience the peace of living in harmony with the natural world.
