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Importing Wikidata short description: "Form of oral storytelling performed around an open fire at night"
 
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{{Short description|Form of oral storytelling performed around an open fire at night}}
[[File:29RCCMAK_-_Campfire_at_base_camp_Susunia_Hill.jpg|right|thumb|400px|A campfire at night.]]
[[File:Deakin Edwin Campfire-In-the-Redwoods--LagunnaArtMuseum.jpg|thumb|upright=1.35| ''Campfire in the Redwoods'' by [[Edwin Deakin]] (1876), Laguna Art Museum.]]
⚫
In North America, a '''campfire story''' is a form of oral [[storytelling]] performed around an open fire at night typically in the wilderness, largely synonymous to the telling of stories, in such a setting, with [[Ghost story| supernatural motifs]] or elements of [[urban legend]]. Whereas the activity is not incomparable to nor mutually exclusive from indigenous practices should not be confused with each other in a contemporary context.

⚫
In [[North America]], a '''campfire story''' is a form of oral [[storytelling]] performed around an open fire at night, typically in the wilderness, largely connected with the telling of stories having [[Ghost story| supernatural motifs]] or elements of [[urban legend]]. Whereas the activity is not incomparable to, nor mutually exclusive from indigenous practices, they should not be confused with each other in a contemporary context.


== History ==
== History ==
The modern campfire story is an invention of the [[late modern period]] and may have arisen among soldiers or frontiersmen who utilized storytelling as a nightly means to stay awake while acting as camp lookouts.<ref name="towanda">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=A Camp-Fire Story |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84024558/1861-11-21/ed-1/seq-1/ |publisher=Bradford Reporter |location=Towanda, PA |pages=1 |date=21 November 1861 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref>
The modern campfire story is an invention of the [[late modern period]] and may have arisen among soldiers or frontiersmen who utilized storytelling as a nightly means to stay awake while acting as camp lookouts.<ref name="towanda">{{cite news |title=A Camp-Fire Story |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84024558/1861-11-21/ed-1/seq-1/ |publisher=Bradford Reporter |location=Towanda, PA |pages=1 |date=21 November 1861 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref>
In North America, as early as the 1840s,<ref name="alexandria">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=A Camp-Fire Story, Early Military Discipline in Texas |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn85025007/1843-04-19/ed-1/seq-1/ |publisher=Alexandria Gazette |location=Alexandria, D.C. |pages=1 |date=19 April 1843 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref> the term "camp-fire story" was used to describe wartime exploits such as those told in a [[Military camp| military encampment]].<ref name="alexandria"></ref><ref name="independence">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=A Camp-Fire Stories |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84027186/1871-06-02/ed-1/seq-1/ |publisher=Buchanan County Bulletin |location=Independence, IA |pages=1 |date=2 June 1871 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="grandrapids">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=An Adventure of the War, A Camp Fire Story |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn85033078/1884-12-25/ed-1/seq-1/ |publisher=Wood County Reporter |location=Grand Rapids (Wisconsin Rapids), WI |pages=1 |date=25 December 1884 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="omaha2">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=Some Camp Fire Stories |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn99021999/1886-01-07/ed-1/seq-7/ |publisher=Omaha Daily Bee |location=Omaha, NE |pages=7 |date=7 January 1886 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="indianapolis">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=Camp-Fire Stories |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn82015679/1886-02-17/ed-1/seq-4/ |publisher=Indianapolis Journal |location=Indianapolis, IN |pages=4 |date=17 February 1886 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="perrysburg">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=Camp-Fire Stories, Payable on Demand |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn87076843/1890-03-22/ed-1/seq-7 |publisher=Perrysburg Journal |location=Perrysburg, OH |pages=7 |date=22 March 1890 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="perrysburg2">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=Camp-Fire Stories, Heroic Johnny Clark |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn87076843/1890-04-12/ed-1/seq-3/ |publisher=Perrysburg Journal |location=Perrysburg, OH |pages=3 |date=12 April 1890 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="perrysburg3">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=Camp-Fire Stories, Wounded Unto Death |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn87076843/1890-04-19/ed-1/seq-3/ |publisher=Perrysburg Journal |location=Perrysburg, OH |pages=3 |date=19 April 1890 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="delta">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=Campfire Stories, Sleeper Tells of Release |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn86063206/1912-06-07/ed-1/seq-7/ |publisher=Delta Independent |location=Delta, CO |pages=7 |date=7 June 1912 |accessdate=20 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="ordway">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=Campfire Stories, Battle in Cypress Swamps |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn90051033/1912-11-08/ed-1/seq-6/ |publisher=Ordway New Era |location=Ordway, CO |pages=6 |date=8 November 1912 |accessdate=20 September 2020}}</ref> In the late 1800s, advertisements, for journals and lectures, providing the inclusion of "camp-fire stories" began to appear.<ref name="washington">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=The Soldiers' Best Paper, The Grand Army Journal |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84026753/1871-09-21/ed-1/seq-4/ |publisher=New National Era |location=Washington, D.C. |pages=4 |date=21 September 1871 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="portland">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=3 Months Free ! |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83016025/1876-08-14/ed-1/seq-3/ |publisher=Portland Daily Press |location=Portland, ME |pages=3 |date=14 August 1876 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="chicago2">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=CENTRAL MUSIC HALL, Camp-Fire Stories! |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84031492/1881-03-17/ed-1/seq-3/ |publisher=Chicago Daily Tribune |location=Portland, ME |pages=3 |date=17 March 1881 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref> Contemporaneously, fraternities and other organizations would arrange reunions among veterans who then continued the tradition in peacetime and even outside the confines of a camp.<ref name="bradford">{{cite news |first= |last=Watchman |title=Re-Union of the Old Eighth |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84022552/1873-09-05/ed-1/seq-3/ |publisher=National Opinion |location=Bradford, VT |pages=1 |date=5 September 1873 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="stpaul">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=The first of a series of six sociables was given in Odd Fellows' hall... |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn90059522/1885-10-04/ed-1/seq-10/ |publisher=St. Paul daily Globe |location=Saint Paul, MN |pages=10 |date=4 October 1885 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="burlington">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=Underhill |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn86072143/1874-02-13/ed-1/seq-3/ |publisher=Burlington Weekly Free Press |location=Burlington, VT |pages=3 |date=13 February 1874 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="montpelier">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=Northfield |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84023209/1880-02-04/ed-1/seq-3/ |publisher=Green-Mountain Freeman |location=Montpelier, VT |pages=3 |date=4 February 1880 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="omaha">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=The Soldiers Reunion |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn99021999/1881-08-06/ed-1/seq-4/ |publisher=Omaha Daily Bee |location=Omaha, NE |pages=4 |date=6 August 1881 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref> The term likewise began to be applied to encounters with large or dangerous game,<ref name="canton">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=In the Embrace of a Bear, A Camp-Fire Story That Might Be Sprinkled All Over With Exclamation Points |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84028490/1885-02-05/ed-1/seq-1/ |publisher=Stark County Democrat |location=Canton, OH |pages=1 |date=5 February 1885 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="richmond">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=Dr. Carver, 'The Dead Shot' |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84024738/1878-07-19/ed-1/seq-4/ |publisher=The Daily Dispatch |location=Richmond, VA |pages=4 |date=19 July 1878 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="wheeling">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=Camp Fire Stories |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn86092523/1887-12-04/ed-1/seq-5/ |publisher=Wheeling Sunday Register |location=Wheeling, WV |pages=9 |date=4 December 1887 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="abilene">{{cite news |first= |last=Fort Keogh (M.T.) Cor. N.Y. Times |title=Gigantic Bears |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84029385/1888-02-09/ed-1/seq-2/ |publisher=Abilene Reflector |location=Abilene, KS |pages=9 |date=9 February 1888 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="canton2">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=Camp-Fire Stories, Three Snake Stories |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84028490/1890-03-13/ed-1/seq-7/ |publisher=Stark County Democrat |location=Canton, OH |pages=7 |date=13 March 1890 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="chicago">{{cite news |first= |last= |title=Sporting Adventures |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84031492/1880-02-21/ed-1/seq-9/ |publisher=Chicago Daily Tribune |location=Chicago, IL |pages=9 |date=21 February 1880 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref> such as bears,<ref name="canton"></ref><ref name="wheeling"></ref><ref name="abilene"></ref><ref name="chicago"></ref> buffaloes,<ref name="richmond"></ref> panthers or snakes.<ref name="canton2"></ref>
In North America, as early as the 1840s,<ref name="alexandria">{{cite news |title=A Camp-Fire Story, Early Military Discipline in Texas |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn85025007/1843-04-19/ed-1/seq-1/ |publisher=Alexandria Gazette |location=Alexandria, D.C. |pages=1 |date=19 April 1843 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref> the term "camp-fire story" was associated with wartime exploits such as those told in a [[Military camp| military encampment]].<ref name="alexandria"></ref><ref name="independence">{{cite news |title=A Camp-Fire Stories |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84027186/1871-06-02/ed-1/seq-1/ |publisher=Buchanan County Bulletin |location=Independence, IA |pages=1 |date=2 June 1871 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="grandrapids">{{cite news |title=An Adventure of the War, A Camp Fire Story |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn85033078/1884-12-25/ed-1/seq-1/ |publisher=Wood County Reporter |location=Grand Rapids (Wisconsin Rapids), WI |pages=1 |date=25 December 1884 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="omaha2">{{cite news |title=Some Camp Fire Stories |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn99021999/1886-01-07/ed-1/seq-7/ |publisher=Omaha Daily Bee |location=Omaha, NE |pages=7 |date=7 January 1886 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="indianapolis">{{cite news |title=Camp-Fire Stories |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn82015679/1886-02-17/ed-1/seq-4/ |publisher=Indianapolis Journal |location=Indianapolis, IN |pages=4 |date=17 February 1886 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="perrysburg">{{cite news |title=Camp-Fire Stories, Payable on Demand |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn87076843/1890-03-22/ed-1/seq-7 |publisher=Perrysburg Journal |location=Perrysburg, OH |pages=7 |date=22 March 1890 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="perrysburg2">{{cite news |title=Camp-Fire Stories, Heroic Johnny Clark |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn87076843/1890-04-12/ed-1/seq-3/ |publisher=Perrysburg Journal |location=Perrysburg, OH |pages=3 |date=12 April 1890 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="perrysburg3">{{cite news |title=Camp-Fire Stories, Wounded Unto Death |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn87076843/1890-04-19/ed-1/seq-3/ |publisher=Perrysburg Journal |location=Perrysburg, OH |pages=3 |date=19 April 1890 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="delta">{{cite news |title=Campfire Stories, Sleeper Tells of Release |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn86063206/1912-06-07/ed-1/seq-7/ |publisher=Delta Independent |location=Delta, CO |pages=7 |date=7 June 1912 |accessdate=20 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="ordway">{{cite news |title=Campfire Stories, Battle in Cypress Swamps |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn90051033/1912-11-08/ed-1/seq-6/ |publisher=Ordway New Era |location=Ordway, CO |pages=6 |date=8 November 1912 |accessdate=20 September 2020}}</ref> In the late 1800s, advertisements, for journals and lectures, providing the inclusion of "camp-fire stories" began to appear.<ref name="washington">{{cite news |title=The Soldiers' Best Paper, The Grand Army Journal |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84026753/1871-09-21/ed-1/seq-4/ |publisher=New National Era |location=Washington, D.C. |pages=4 |date=21 September 1871 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="portland">{{cite news |title=3 Months Free ! |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83016025/1876-08-14/ed-1/seq-3/ |publisher=Portland Daily Press |location=Portland, ME |pages=3 |date=14 August 1876 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="chicago2">{{cite news |title=CENTRAL MUSIC HALL, Camp-Fire Stories! |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84031492/1881-03-17/ed-1/seq-3/ |publisher=Chicago Daily Tribune |location=Portland, ME |pages=3 |date=17 March 1881 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref> Contemporaneously, fraternities and other organizations would arrange reunions among veterans who then continued the tradition in peacetime and even outside the confines of a camp.<ref name="bradford">{{cite news |last=Watchman |title=Re-Union of the Old Eighth |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84022552/1873-09-05/ed-1/seq-3/ |publisher=National Opinion |location=Bradford, VT |pages=1 |date=5 September 1873 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="stpaul">{{cite news |title=The first of a series of six sociables was given in Odd Fellows' hall... |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn90059522/1885-10-04/ed-1/seq-10/ |publisher=St. Paul daily Globe |location=Saint Paul, MN |pages=10 |date=4 October 1885 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="burlington">{{cite news |title=Underhill |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn86072143/1874-02-13/ed-1/seq-3/ |publisher=Burlington Weekly Free Press |location=Burlington, VT |pages=3 |date=13 February 1874 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="montpelier">{{cite news |title=Northfield |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84023209/1880-02-04/ed-1/seq-3/ |publisher=Green-Mountain Freeman |location=Montpelier, VT |pages=3 |date=4 February 1880 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="omaha">{{cite news |title=The Soldiers Reunion |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn99021999/1881-08-06/ed-1/seq-4/ |publisher=Omaha Daily Bee |location=Omaha, NE |pages=4 |date=6 August 1881 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref> The term likewise began to be connected with encounters with large or dangerous game,<ref name="canton">{{cite news |title=In the Embrace of a Bear, A Camp-Fire Story That Might Be Sprinkled All Over With Exclamation Points |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84028490/1885-02-05/ed-1/seq-1/ |publisher=Stark County Democrat |location=Canton, OH |pages=1 |date=5 February 1885 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="richmond">{{cite news |title=Dr. Carver, 'The Dead Shot' |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84024738/1878-07-19/ed-1/seq-4/ |publisher=The Daily Dispatch |location=Richmond, VA |pages=4 |date=19 July 1878 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="wheeling">{{cite news |title=Camp Fire Stories |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn86092523/1887-12-04/ed-1/seq-5/ |publisher=Wheeling Sunday Register |location=Wheeling, WV |pages=9 |date=4 December 1887 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="abilene">{{cite news |last=Fort Keogh (M.T.) Cor. N.Y. Times |title=Gigantic Bears |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84029385/1888-02-09/ed-1/seq-2/ |publisher=Abilene Reflector |location=Abilene, KS |pages=9 |date=9 February 1888 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="canton2">{{cite news |title=Camp-Fire Stories, Three Snake Stories |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84028490/1890-03-13/ed-1/seq-7/ |publisher=Stark County Democrat |location=Canton, OH |pages=7 |date=13 March 1890 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="chicago">{{cite news |title=Sporting Adventures |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84031492/1880-02-21/ed-1/seq-9/ |publisher=Chicago Daily Tribune |location=Chicago, IL |pages=9 |date=21 February 1880 |accessdate=19 September 2020}}</ref> such as bears,<ref name="canton"></ref><ref name="wheeling"></ref><ref name="abilene"></ref><ref name="chicago"></ref> buffaloes,<ref name="richmond"></ref> panthers or snakes.<ref name="canton2"></ref>


With the formation of youth groups, such as [[Girl Scouts of the USA|Girl Scouts]] and [[Boy Scouts of America]], came the adoption of practices already established by organizations of the day. Consequently, campfire stories came to be an integral part within such organizations nearly since their inception. In the first edition of the official handbook for the Boy Scouts of America, chapter three on "Campcraft" provides many notes for campfire entertainment including those on storytelling. While the example story provided is an adaptation of [[Native American]] [[oral tradition]], the criteria for stories given is as follows: "Indian legends, war stories, '''ghost stories,''' detective stories, stories of heroism, the history of life, a talk about the stars."<ref name="bsa">{{cite book |last=Boy Scouts of America |first= |date=1911 |title=Boy Scouts of America The Official Handbook for Boys |location=New York |publisher=Doubleday, Page & Company |page=161 |url=http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/29558}}</ref> It is among these early youth groups that the understanding of a campfire story came to be broadened and signaled a major shift in audience from veterans to a more general public. Likewise, the very nature of such organizations present factors conducive to stories of the supernatural, namely, the introduction of younger groups of listeners far more impressionable to stories of a frightful or fantastic nature. In time, the popularity of the latter would come to be predominant and greatly eclipse other genre stories.
With the formation of youth groups, such as [[Girl Scouts of the USA|Girl Scouts]] and [[Boy Scouts of America]], came the adoption of practices already established by organizations of the day. Consequently, campfire stories came to be an integral part within such organizations nearly since their inception. In the first edition of the official handbook for the Boy Scouts of America, chapter three on "Campcraft" provides many notes for campfire entertainment including those on storytelling. While the example story provided is an adaptation of [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]] [[oral tradition]], the criteria for stories given are as follows: "Indian legends, war stories, '''ghost stories,''' detective stories, stories of heroism, the history of life, a talk about the stars."<ref name="bsa">{{cite book |last=Boy Scouts of America |date=1911 |title=Boy Scouts of America The Official Handbook for Boys |location=New York |publisher=Doubleday, Page & Company |page=161 |url=http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/29558}}</ref> It is among these early youth groups that the understanding of a campfire story came to be broadened and signaled a major shift in audience from veterans to a more general public. Likewise, the very nature of such organizations present factors conducive to stories of the supernatural, namely, the introduction of younger groups of listeners far more impressionable to stories of a frightful or fantastic nature. In time, the popularity of the latter would come to be predominant and greatly eclipse other genre stories.


==Camping activity==
==Camping activity==
Campfire stories hold a strong association with camping as a form of recreation. Author William W. Forgey in the introduction to his 1984 book ''Campfire Stories... Things That Go Bump in the Night'' noted that in his ten years of service as a scout-master the most requested campfire event were stories that evoke fear. Forgey further identified a number of elements that should go into the telling of a campfire story:
Campfire stories hold a strong association with camping as a form of recreation. Author William W. Forgey, in the introduction to his 1984 book ''Campfire Stories ... Things That Go Bump in the Night,'' noted that in his ten years of service as a scoutmaster, the most requested campfire event were stories that evoke fear. Forgey further identified a number of elements that should go into the telling of a campfire story:


# Enjoy the practice
# Enjoy the practice
Line 17: Line 19:
# Set a "quiet mood" prior to the story
# Set a "quiet mood" prior to the story
# Utilize the energy of the audience
# Utilize the energy of the audience
# Maintain a campfire
# Maintain the [[campfire]]
# Forgo props or scare tactics, these distract from the story
# Forgo props or scare tactics, these distract from the story
# Use different vocal inflections
# Use different vocal inflections
# Start sessions with believable tales to lend credibility<ref name="forgey">{{cite book |last=Forgey |first=William |date=1985 |title=Campfire Stories ...Things That Go Bump in the Night |location=Merrillville, IN |publisher=ICS Books, Inc. |pages=1-4 | isbn=0934802238}}</ref>
# Start sessions with believable tales to build credibility<ref name="forgey">{{cite book |last=Forgey |first=William |date=1985 |title=Campfire Stories ...Things That Go Bump in the Night |location=Merrillville, IN |publisher=ICS Books, Inc. |pages=1–4 | isbn=0934802238}}</ref>


⚫
Forgey's points emphasize an important distinction of the campfire story as a practice rather than a genre, as is the case with ghost stories or urban legends. The campfire story, while having a strong association with horror or the supernatural, is not a subset or class of tales but an outdoor activity, as much so as hiking, rock climbing or swimming. It is also for many a [[rite of passage]] into the years directly proceeding preadolescence.


==See also==
==See also==
* [[Storytelling]]
* [[American folklore]]
* [[Canadian folklore]]
* [[Folklore of the United States]]

⚫
Forgey's points emphasize an important distinction of the campfire story as more of a practice rather than a genre of tales such is the case with ghost stories or urban legends. The campfire story while owing a strong association with the horror and supernatural genre is not a subset of tales but an outdoor activity, as much even as is hiking, rock climbing or swimming, and for many a [[right of passage]].


==References==
==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Reflist}}


{{American tall tales}}
[[Category:Storytelling]]
[[Category:Oral tradition]]
[[Category:Outdoor recreation]]

Latest revision as of 12:14, 15 August 2024

Campfire in the Redwoods by Edwin Deakin (1876), Laguna Art Museum.

In North America, a campfire story is a form of oral storytelling performed around an open fire at night, typically in the wilderness, largely connected with the telling of stories having supernatural motifs or elements of urban legend. Whereas the activity is not incomparable to, nor mutually exclusive from indigenous practices, they should not be confused with each other in a contemporary context.

History

[edit]

The modern campfire story is an invention of the late modern period and may have arisen among soldiers or frontiersmen who utilized storytelling as a nightly means to stay awake while acting as camp lookouts.[1] In North America, as early as the 1840s,[2] the term "camp-fire story" was associated with wartime exploits such as those told in a military encampment.[2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11] In the late 1800s, advertisements, for journals and lectures, providing the inclusion of "camp-fire stories" began to appear.[12][13][14] Contemporaneously, fraternities and other organizations would arrange reunions among veterans who then continued the tradition in peacetime and even outside the confines of a camp.[15][16][17][18][19] The term likewise began to be connected with encounters with large or dangerous game,[20][21][22][23][24][25] such as bears,[20][22][23][25] buffaloes,[21] panthers or snakes.[24]

With the formation of youth groups, such as Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts of America, came the adoption of practices already established by organizations of the day. Consequently, campfire stories came to be an integral part within such organizations nearly since their inception. In the first edition of the official handbook for the Boy Scouts of America, chapter three on "Campcraft" provides many notes for campfire entertainment including those on storytelling. While the example story provided is an adaptation of Native American oral tradition, the criteria for stories given are as follows: "Indian legends, war stories, ghost stories, detective stories, stories of heroism, the history of life, a talk about the stars."[26] It is among these early youth groups that the understanding of a campfire story came to be broadened and signaled a major shift in audience from veterans to a more general public. Likewise, the very nature of such organizations present factors conducive to stories of the supernatural, namely, the introduction of younger groups of listeners far more impressionable to stories of a frightful or fantastic nature. In time, the popularity of the latter would come to be predominant and greatly eclipse other genre stories.

Camping activity

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Campfire stories hold a strong association with camping as a form of recreation. Author William W. Forgey, in the introduction to his 1984 book Campfire Stories ... Things That Go Bump in the Night, noted that in his ten years of service as a scoutmaster, the most requested campfire event were stories that evoke fear. Forgey further identified a number of elements that should go into the telling of a campfire story:

  1. Enjoy the practice
  2. Maintain eye contact
  3. Keep in close contact with audience
  4. Do not obsess over details
  5. Set a "quiet mood" prior to the story
  6. Utilize the energy of the audience
  7. Maintain the campfire
  8. Forgo props or scare tactics, these distract from the story
  9. Use different vocal inflections
  10. Start sessions with believable tales to build credibility[27]

Forgey's points emphasize an important distinction of the campfire story as a practice rather than a genre, as is the case with ghost stories or urban legends. The campfire story, while having a strong association with horror or the supernatural, is not a subset or class of tales but an outdoor activity, as much so as hiking, rock climbing or swimming. It is also for many a rite of passage into the years directly proceeding preadolescence.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "A Camp-Fire Story". Towanda, PA: Bradford Reporter. 21 November 1861. p. 1. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  2. ^ a b "A Camp-Fire Story, Early Military Discipline in Texas". Alexandria, D.C.: Alexandria Gazette. 19 April 1843. p. 1. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  3. ^ "A Camp-Fire Stories". Independence, IA: Buchanan County Bulletin. 2 June 1871. p. 1. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  4. ^ "An Adventure of the War, A Camp Fire Story". Grand Rapids (Wisconsin Rapids), WI: Wood County Reporter. 25 December 1884. p. 1. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  5. ^ "Some Camp Fire Stories". Omaha, NE: Omaha Daily Bee. 7 January 1886. p. 7. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  6. ^ "Camp-Fire Stories". Indianapolis, IN: Indianapolis Journal. 17 February 1886. p. 4. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  7. ^ "Camp-Fire Stories, Payable on Demand". Perrysburg, OH: Perrysburg Journal. 22 March 1890. p. 7. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  8. ^ "Camp-Fire Stories, Heroic Johnny Clark". Perrysburg, OH: Perrysburg Journal. 12 April 1890. p. 3. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  9. ^ "Camp-Fire Stories, Wounded Unto Death". Perrysburg, OH: Perrysburg Journal. 19 April 1890. p. 3. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  10. ^ "Campfire Stories, Sleeper Tells of Release". Delta, CO: Delta Independent. 7 June 1912. p. 7. Retrieved 20 September 2020.
  11. ^ "Campfire Stories, Battle in Cypress Swamps". Ordway, CO: Ordway New Era. 8 November 1912. p. 6. Retrieved 20 September 2020.
  12. ^ "The Soldiers' Best Paper, The Grand Army Journal". Washington, D.C.: New National Era. 21 September 1871. p. 4. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  13. ^ "3 Months Free !". Portland, ME: Portland Daily Press. 14 August 1876. p. 3. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  14. ^ "CENTRAL MUSIC HALL, Camp-Fire Stories!". Portland, ME: Chicago Daily Tribune. 17 March 1881. p. 3. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  15. ^ Watchman (5 September 1873). "Re-Union of the Old Eighth". Bradford, VT: National Opinion. p. 1. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  16. ^ "The first of a series of six sociables was given in Odd Fellows' hall..." Saint Paul, MN: St. Paul daily Globe. 4 October 1885. p. 10. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  17. ^ "Underhill". Burlington, VT: Burlington Weekly Free Press. 13 February 1874. p. 3. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  18. ^ "Northfield". Montpelier, VT: Green-Mountain Freeman. 4 February 1880. p. 3. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  19. ^ "The Soldiers Reunion". Omaha, NE: Omaha Daily Bee. 6 August 1881. p. 4. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  20. ^ a b "In the Embrace of a Bear, A Camp-Fire Story That Might Be Sprinkled All Over With Exclamation Points". Canton, OH: Stark County Democrat. 5 February 1885. p. 1. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  21. ^ a b "Dr. Carver, 'The Dead Shot'". Richmond, VA: The Daily Dispatch. 19 July 1878. p. 4. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  22. ^ a b "Camp Fire Stories". Wheeling, WV: Wheeling Sunday Register. 4 December 1887. p. 9. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  23. ^ a b Fort Keogh (M.T.) Cor. N.Y. Times (9 February 1888). "Gigantic Bears". Abilene, KS: Abilene Reflector. p. 9. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  24. ^ a b "Camp-Fire Stories, Three Snake Stories". Canton, OH: Stark County Democrat. 13 March 1890. p. 7. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  25. ^ a b "Sporting Adventures". Chicago, IL: Chicago Daily Tribune. 21 February 1880. p. 9. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  26. ^ Boy Scouts of America (1911). Boy Scouts of America The Official Handbook for Boys. New York: Doubleday, Page & Company. p. 161.
  27. ^ Forgey, William (1985). Campfire Stories ...Things That Go Bump in the Night. Merrillville, IN: ICS Books, Inc. pp. 1–4. ISBN 0934802238.


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