Our History
Dr. John K. Howard
came to Glendale and acquired the two hundred and forty acres known as Fir Point (named after the nearby hill) sometime in 1914 or 1915. At that time it was a homestead with a house by the spring up the hill in back of the old boys dormitory where the tules grow. There was also at one time a cabin on the hill by the old out houses. There was another cabin on the upper slopes some distance above the present fire circle lived in by two Finnish people who had their own private sauna built over the creek. At one time there was a still for making moonshine way on top of the hill.
According to Mrs. Howard, a Lumber Mill gave the homestead and land to Mr. Howard after the Mill had logged it. In 1915 Dr Howard put up the logs for his home (now the lodge) and then returned to Arizona and married Mrs. Howard.
In 1919
They came back and lived in Glendale for the summers while Dr. Howard worked on the house. He paid $15.00 a thousand for knotty pine for the inside of the lodge because the less expensive board he had ordered burned in a fire. He was a graduate of Trinity School of Theology in Texas.
In the Fall of 1930, the Howards moved into their new home. He became pastor of the First Presbyterian Church in Glendale, Oregon. He was a man with a burden for children and young people and begin work right away to establish a Young People's Bible Camp on his property. In 1931 they completed the dining hall multi purpose building (the Dining Hall today). Young people in Glendale peeled the logs for the building. That year, according to Mrs. Howard, they held their first Presbyterian Young People's Bible Camp on this property.
In 1932 the large dormitory for girls was built. It was then named Morgan Hall after a lady who was married at Fir Point. Also, according to Mrs. Howard, it was during this same year that men from Glendale came and constructed the old swimming pool just to the left of the road as you entered Fir Point. In 1933 a boy's dormitory was completed and dedicated to Mr. Ingham, owner of the Dollar Lumber Company, who had donated toward its completion. Before building the pool, according to Mrs. Howard, the creek was dammed to form a lake, which filled nicely, but then washed out.
Dr. Howard was holding camps at Fir Point, the American Sunday School Union Missionaries who served in the Roseburg and Medford areas were holding camps and conferences in different locations which they borrowed or rented. D.D. Randall from Medford held camps at Copper, Oregon (now covered by Applegate Lake), and conferences in different area churches, the old Federated Church in Central Point in particular. On the Roseburg Field camps were held at Tyee and perhaps at other places.
Garland Shinn
And his wife Roberta first came to Southern Oregon in February, 1959, to become area missionaries. A camp did not exist at that time on that field, so they took twenty-three young people and five staff members to Fir Point to join Glen Goddard (who was by now field missionary in Roseburg) in holding two weeks of camp at Fir Point which he had rented from Dr. Howard.
During that first week at Fir Point, Roberta Shinn was invited by Mrs. Howard into the Lodge at Fir Point to look at her lovely home which later became "The Lodge." The Howards had built that and all of the other buildings at Fir Point which existed at that time. (Dining Hall with kitchen out back where dish washing room is now, two large dormitories, one smaller dormitory, two large outhouse restroom facilities and a cooks cabin {office now}). With the exception of the outhouse facilities, these were all lovely log buildings. Mrs. Howard took Roberta through her home pointing out hand braided wall-to-wall carpets, beautiful myrtle wood furniture Dr. Howard had made, hand carved wagon wheel light fixtures (not the ones now in place), and shared how much she loved her home, the conference site, and the trees. She also showed long chains which Dr. Howard carved in the winter from single blocks of wood with no breaks in the links in them. Behind their home, was a large garden and a family orchard. Behind the house stood a rustic shed, which was used as shop and garage. An old filbert orchard was where the ball diamond now is. A cement creek-fed cold swimming pool was to the left side of the road right after you enter the property. The campers called it "The Cement Pond." The water leaked out as fast as it filled, and the water was always cold. Many campers remember early morning "Polar Bear Swims."
Property Sold!
In either 1960 or 1961 Dr. Howard sold the property, buildings, and all equipment to the Medford Monthly Meeting of Friends Church. The Friends Meeting at that time included smaller churches in Talent and Klamath Falls. They too had been renting from Dr. Howard. They made a commitment to Dr. Howard to never sell the property except for use as a Bible Conference Grounds. American Sunday School Union Camps directed by Glen Goddard, then missionary on the Roseburg ASSU field, continued at Fir Point renting from the Friends.
During 1963 the American Sunday School Union split the Roseburg field between the Eugene Field and the Medford Field and the southern area became known as the Southern Oregon Field. Missionary Goddard was transferred to Eastern Washington. Camps combined in 1964 and were held at Fir Point renting from the Friends Meeting. While the Friends owned Fir Point, they logged it extensively, improved fire roads, planted many trees (all those along the road to the chapel), built a new kitchen (part of the present kitchen), and built the restroom facility behind the dining hall.
Garland Shinn's "Daily Detail of Missionary Work" for August 24, 1964, shows that the Shinns and Kenton and Betty Adams (then pastor of Forest Acres Community Church, Central Point), looked at a possible campsite to purchase, feeling that so much more could be done if the Southern Oregon Field owned its own camp. Both the Adams and the Shinns continued to have this vision, to pray much about it, and to look at other sites available mostly in the Tiller and Butte Falls areas.
During this time time, in 1965, Garland needed a new tire (a frequent occurance as he drove an average of 40 - 50,000 miles a year covering the field which extended from the ocean to the Oregon and Idaho borders and North to Bend and Burns.) He was sent by Bob Sanderson of Steve Wilson Company to Southern Oregon Tire and Supply Company to pick up a tire since none were available in the right size at Steve Wilson (an unusual occurrence). As Dick Krupp (who attended the Friends Church in Medford) changed Garland's tire, Dick said, "We are thinking about selling Fir Point." Garland questioned, "Are you serious?" Dick answered that he was pretty sure his church board was serious.
After much prayer and consideration
An offer was made; earnest money of $500.00 was secured; and the purchase of Fir Point was begun. An agreement to purchase Fir Point for $29,000 was reached and they were given $500.00 then. In January of 1966 the Friends were given $4500.00 more (from a few loans and many small gifts), along with a note that they would be given $15,500 more on acceptance of title and delivery of deed on August 15. The Medford Monthly Meeting of Friends Church would then carry a mortgage on the property at 6% for ten years with interest to be paid semi-annually. The Friends at this time honored their commitment made to Dr. Howard years before to resell only to a Christian Camping Group although they could have sold the 240 acres for more on the open market.
In faith, the Friends allowed Steve and Helen Simer to move to Fir Point as caretakers in December of 1965 where they lived in the lodge and began to work hard to improve the grounds.
At the same time the purchase was being made, Fir Point Bible Conference was being incorporated as a non-profit organization in the state of Oregon. This was completed on January 13, 1966. At this time the Sunday school representatives were working on constitution and by-laws. Ned Nay was elected as corporation president, Garland Shinn as vice-president, Elward Smith as secretary, and Kenton Adams as treasurer.
1968
Saw Melrose Church installing electrical hookups and spaces for trailers near the restrooms. Darrell Stanley brought his cat up and leveled the ball diamond and in front of the dining hall. Bob Dunn then seeded both areas. The new trailer area was a wonderfully appreciated thing for the Shinn family as they were then spending at least five weeks of every summer at Fir Point. This enabled their family to stay together in the new trailer park. Their four children loved their times at Fir Point both in camp and just being there with their parents. They have many great memories of good times had at Fir Point.
In 1969 a fund for a new chapel in memory of D.D. Randall was begun. Larry and Linda Swift moved into the trailer as new caretakers.
In 1971 much work was completed on Randall Chapel and A frame number two built. That summer saw a total enrollment of over 660 at Fir Point for ASSU camps including staff. Twenty-seven decisions were made for Christ. In September of that year, Garland and Roberta Shinn resigned as missionaries with the American Sunday School Union, a very painful experience for them as they left friends and moved to Onecho Bible Church in eastern Washington so that they could spend more time with their family. (Garland was at that time away more and more of the time serving the then largest field in the District..) The summer of 1972, Pastor Dale Cundall of Pine Grove Church directed the camps. The next year Curt and Mary Ellen Christian came on field as missionaries and have ably carried on the camping ministry, and very ably the development of Fir Point into the wonderful facility it is today.