Howard Fox

An individual who helped in many ways was Howard Fox. Howard was an assistant professor at the University of Illinois (and longtime Scout leader). He was also a resident forester and was the manager of the Sinnissippi Forest for many years. Much of the development of the camp had been dependent upon the encouragement and support of Howard.

Howard would come to camp and mark trees that needed to be thinned. The resulting logs provided the lumber for construction of the rifle range, docks at the waterfront, and other projects (latrines, etc.)

His son Ronnie served on the 1955 camp staff. Dave Bates recalls,

Howard Fox impressed me with his knowledge of flora and fauna. In the fall of 1957 and 1958, Tom Johnson, Jim Morris, and I worked weekends assisting troops with preparations for the Black Hawk Trail Hike and their checkout following the hike. There were 15 trees along the trail that were marked with numbers which hikers were to identify. Howard had labeled the trees, a few of which were quite challenging to identify correctly. As I recall Scouts were supposed to correctly identify ten trees which some of them failed to do. They were given remedial training before being awarded the Black Hawk Trail medal.

In 2010, the Boy Scouts of America is publishing a Philmont Field Guide - a compilation of the natural and cultural history of Philmont Scout Ranch and northern New Mexico. With the help of botanists, we have identified more than 300 different species of wildflowers and plants. My wife, Susan, and I have worked on this during the past three years and a number of people have shared their expertise with various aspects of the book. It was Howard Fox, more than 50 years ago, who sparked my interest in plant life and wildlife. He was an inspiring teacher.

Russ Sarver recalls,

I served on the 1958 and 1959 staffs and met with Howard Fox on a number of occasions. He was highly respected and was very knowledgeable about forestry and plant life. He was outgoing with the youth camp staff members as well as the adult leaders. Howard was very helpful and lent his expertise to a number of projects at camp.

Even after his retirement, Howard has been a volunteer in countless ways. He was available for nature hikes, consultation, forest sawmill visits, and information. In the early 2000s, Howard Fox and Rod Mathias laid out the Bradley Nature Trail. Howard Fox passed away in 2016.