FOR TWENTY-FIVE YEARS, from 1917 until 1942, Camp Carry-On provided a wilderness retreat for girls every summer. Located in Camden County (and later Mountain View), Missouri, the camp taught a variety of physical and character development skills outdoors to girls of all ages, under the direction of Captain Natalie Wilson Prussing, also known as "Captain Nat". Surviving several transitions, growing and moving as dams flooded once wandering streams, Camp Carry-On provided lasting friendships, with reunions held decades later.
Nat's friend, Max Prussing surveyed the Bagnell Dam site, built camps and, as commissioner, designed the new town of Camdenton during southern Missouri's genesis as an energy producing, recreational playground.
The Captain and the Judge-Building Camps, Forts, Dams, Bridges and Character Across the Ozarks tells the story of Camp Carry-On and the lasting love between Nat and Max, later known as "Mr. Fort Leonard Wood" the chief civil engineer managing that Army base until his retirement.
Read The Captain and the Judge and learn about the first camp for girls in the Ozarks, the creation of "the Lake" and the fascinating lives of this couple who influenced so many!
Natalie (Jr.) Prussing Halpin's intention when she began writing stories about her parents was to introduce the world to two incredibly kind and hard-working individuals who had excelled in adventurous and groundbreaking careers, never seeking recognition.
Educated in her home town and at University of Arizona in Tucson, Natalie Jr.'s journey would lead her to a fashion career in New York City and an FBI agent she would marry. Like Captain Nat and Judge Max, her path would eventually lead back to the beautiful Hurricane Hill where she grew up and the Prussing farm four miles away. She has happily exchanged "pearls and high heels" for "cowgal boots and bandanas" Natalie Jr. has recorded her memories of family stories, and also of her own upbringing. She joined the Warrensburg Writer's Circle in order to perfect her writing style so the inspiring lives of her parents might inspire others. The roots of her lifelong love of horses and the farms she still frequents will become apparent in these stories.
Lisa Irle, author of two books about the history of Warrensburg, Missouri and Johnson County, is a graduate of McPherson College and received a Master's degree (M.Ed.) from University of Missouri-Columbia. An avid reader, Lisa was a bookseller for several years. Her tenure as the curator of the Johnson County Historical Society lasted for 16 years.
In addition to caring for the collections and assisting patrons at JCHS she often served as editor of the newsletter, directed historical reenactments and worked to encourage the preservation of local history through writing, music, and drama. Natalie Jr. asked Lisa's assistance to organize her stories and design and implement the project of completing her book. This included sifting through and digitizing or transcribing ephemera of the lives of the Wilsons, Prussings, and Halpins. Lisa researched outside sources, as well, and wrote intervening passages connecting the stories and memories of this talented and beloved family.
