Tjaden Family. "Camp John" Scrapbook, 1913

This collection contains a scrapbook of photographs, sketches, and notes from a camping trip taken by several young men and women in June-July 1913. The group, with many members of the Tjaden family, camped at Zeller’s Point near Peoria, Illinois.

The Tjaden family lived in Peoria, Illinois, in the 20th century. In the scrapbook, John Tjaden (1875-1962) was listed as “The Boss.” Anna (1877-1959) and Elsie Tjaden (1890-1970), John’s sisters, are “His assistant” and “1st Aide-de-camp” respectively. John Tjaden married Florence Stackhouse (1884-1973) in 1916, three years after the camping trip documented in this collection. Stackhouse is listed as one of "the Little Ones," along with Zoe Meyer.

This collection contains a scrapbook with several black and white photographs, captions, and drawings. The images depict the group camping, hiking, swimming, and lounging during a trip near Peoria, Illinois, in June and July of 1913. The group was composed of eleven people, five of whom were members of the Tjaden family. The album is titled "Camp John," which is most likely a comedic reference to John Tjaden, known as "The Boss" under a "list of characters" for the trip. There are several lines from songs and poetry written into the scrapbook, including “When the Greets Gits Back in the Trees” by James Whitcomb Riley. Another poem, written by the scrapbook’s creator, tells the story of how the group’s small boat was named the Flozana, after Florence Stackhouse, Anna Tjaden, and Zoe Meyer. The scrapbook also contains a pageant program from Peoria’s historical pageant celebrating the 100th anniversary of Fort Clark, which was held over Independence Day weekend. The campers took several day trips to a farmhouse and “the old mill” and hosted visitors, pictured throughout the scrapbook. 

The Library purchased this collection in 2022 with support from the Bruce C. Creamer Fund.