Camp Nelson, California

Camp Nelson is a census-designated place in Tulare County, California. Camp Nelson is east of Springville. Camp Nelson has a post office with ZIP code 93208. The population was 109 at the 2020 census, up from 97 at the 2010 census. Camp Nelson can be reached from Porterville by 33 curvy miles on California State Route 190 with an elevation gain of 4,439 feet.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP covers an area of 1.2 square miles (3.2 km), all of it land.

Climate

This region experiences warm (but not hot) and dry summers, with no average monthly temperatures above 71.6 °F. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Camp Nelson has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csb" on climate maps.

Demographics

The 2020 United States census reported that Camp Nelson had a population of 106. The population density was . The racial makeup of Camp Nelson was 92 (86.8%) White, 0 (0.0%) African American, 6 (5.7%) Native American, 3 (2.8%) Asian, 0 (0.0%) Pacific Islander, 3 (2.8%) from other races, and 2 (1.9%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3 persons (2.8%).

The whole population lived in households. There were 69 households, out of which 11 (15.9%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 31 (44.9%) were married-couple households, 5 (7.2%) were cohabiting couple households, 18 (26.1%) had a female householder with no partner present, and 15 (21.7%) had a male householder with no partner present. 23 households (33.3%) were one person, and 13 (18.8%) were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 1.54. There were 42 families (60.9% of all households).

The age distribution was 4 people (3.8%) under the age of 18, 1 people (0.9%) aged 18 to 24, 14 people (13.2%) aged 25 to 44, 39 people (36.8%) aged 45 to 64, and 48 people (45.3%) who were 65years of age or older. The median age was 63.3years. There were 46 males and 60 females.

There were 361 housing units at an average density of , of which 69 (19.1%) were occupied year round, all by homeowners, and 292 (80.9%) were used seasonally.

Annually, the town hosts the summer Mountain Festival in the Camp Nelson Meadow, which was established through th
John M. Nelson conservancy
Apart from the annual festival, visitors come to Camp Nelson to see th

near Belknap campground.
A smal
tungsten mine
operated in the area until the 1950s.

History

In 1886, John Nelson began to homestead land above Porterville that became Nelson’s Camp. This became a popular stopover spot for cattlemen, sheepmen, hunters, and fishermen. Nelson soon enlarged his house and remodeled it into a two-story hotel. Afterwards, a few cabins were added and the spot became known as Nelson’s Camp. John Nelson died August 3, 1909, aged 79. With his death, his daughter, Emma, and her husband took over the operation. In 1922, a road suitable for automobiles was completed to the camp. The camp was sold in 1937 and operated by different families over the years. Electricity reached Camp Nelson in 1951 and in the mid-1960’s, the road was upgraded to all year access. From 1976 to 1979, the Civil War Re-Enactment Society held Civil War skirmishes in Nelson Meadow with a "Blue and Grey" ball later at the Lodge.

After some complicated financial dealings, the property and business were sold to Jim and Bonnie Hood in June 1987. In a case that attracted national attention, Bonnie Hood was murdered August 19, 1990 as she slept at the lodge. Bruce Beauchamp, an employee of Jim Hood, was acquitted of her murder on March 29, 1991. Jim Hood later shot Beauchamp to death and he was convicted of that murder in a second trial.

Later, Jim Hood deeded the Lodge to his attorney, Philip Bourdette. Ron Peterson, who held the mortgage on the Lodge, foreclosed and won the proceedings. Ron Peterson sold the Lodge to Steven Huth and Mike Quatacker. The Lodge and motel were later sold to Len Aten. Aten held a few conferences and special events in the Lodge, but it was never open to the general public.

The John M Nelson Conservancy (a California non-profit public benefit corporation) was created in 1985 due to the breakup of the Camp Nelson Resort properties. The primary aim of the Conservancy was to acquire the six and a half acre Camp Nelson meadow. After raising $85,000 in public donations, the Conservancy acquired the meadow in December, 1997. Special events are held in the meadow from time to time.

In September, 2020, Camp Nelson was spared the destruction of other small communities in the area by the naturally sparked Sequoia Complex Fire (SQF Complex)

References

External links

John M Nelson Conservancy

{{authority control

Census-designated places in Tulare County, California
Census-designated places in California