The Forefathers Monument
Tucked away in a residential neighborhood, a short distance from downtown Plymouth, affectionately known as “America’s Hometown,” can be found the largest granite statue in the United States. The statue is called the “Forefather’s Monument.” It was often overlooked and even unknown to locals and tourists alike. But thanks to the efforts of Leo and Nancy Martin who run the Jenny Museum, Pastor Paul Jehle of the Plymouth Rock Foundation, the documentary “Monumental” narrated by actor Kirt Cameron, and Michelle Gallagher of Proclamation House to name a few, this incredible monument to commemorate the Pilgrims and the faith that sustained them has enjoyed a rebirth of interest.
( Leo Martin of the Jenney Museum with actor Kirt Cameron at the base of the monument)
This granite monument was conceived by the Pilgrim Society, which was formed in 1820 to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the Pilgrim landing. In 1849, the Pilgrim Society held a competition for a design and offered a $300. prize. The society chose the architectural firm of Zucker and Asborth of New York. However, the accomplished architect Hammatt Billings of Boston offered a design which the Pilgrim Society approved. Billings’ initial design was over 150 feet, which included an observation tower and a museum at its base. Billings’ other works include Wellesley College and the Boston Athenaeum.
Billings launched a national fund-raising campaign, with President Abraham Lincoln among the donors. The cornerstone of the monument was laid on August 2, 1859. It was attended by thousands of people, where public prayers were offered and a letter from President James Buchanan was read. The Civil War and the nation’s postwar economy led to a decrease in donations. As a result, Billings designed a smaller model, 81 feet, without an observation tower and museum. It still was a massive design. Billings didn’t live to see his project completed. He passed away in 1874. On August 1, 1889, the monument was dedicated with a crowd of over 12,000 on hand.
The monument’s central figure is “Faith,” depicted as a woman who stands at the top of the monument with a Bible in one hand and her other hand pointing to Heaven. Four statues underneath Faith are “Morality” holding the Ten Commandments, “Law,” “Education,” and “Liberty.” The monument also contains the names of the Mayflower passengers, a marble bas relief of the signing of the Mayflower Compact, and bas reliefs of “Justice,” “Mercy,” “The Embarkation,” “Evangelist,” “Youth,” “Wisdom,” and “Tyranny.”
“Monumental: In Search of America’s Treasure”:
In 2012, the documentary “Monumental: In Search of America’s Treasure” was released, leading to a renewed interest in the monument. From the documentary’s website,
Monumental is the story of America’s beginnings. Presented by Kirk Cameron, the 90-minute true story follows this father of six across Europe and the U.S. as he seeks to discover America’s true “national treasure” – the people, places, and principles that made America the freest, most prosperous, and generous nation the world has ever known. Long regarded as “the land of opportunity,” there’s no question the tiny band of religious outcasts who founded this country hit upon a formula for success that went way beyond what they could have imagined. What formula did they discover? What motivated them to come here in the first place? More importantly, how can we apply these same foundational truths today? Monumental is heralded as “inspiring,” “beautifully executed,” “powerful,” and “one meant to teach.”
The Jenney Museum:
In 2001, Leo and Nancy Martin founded the Jenney Museum and began giving tours of the monument. Tours are available from April 15 to November 29.
In 2021, Michelle Gallagher of Proclamation House wrote and published Forefathers Monument Guidebook. Michelle conducted a presentation at our annual family camp.
Teaching the next Generation in New Hampshire and beyond:
There is a recently created New Hampshire-based organization called The Matrix Coalition of New Hampshire, whose mission is to teach the state’s students about the Forefathers Monument. Led by Deb Roux, the group’s goal is to introduce the Forefathers Monument Guidebook and posters of the monument to public and private schools, hosting tours of the monument and Freedom Walks, the next one being on September 13 at the New Hampshire State House.
Both Camp Constitution and The Matrix Coalition are hosting tours of the Forefathers Monument Saturday October 11—1:00 PM and Saturday October 18—10: AM. To register or for more information, please email me at campconstitutuion1@gmail.com
The Weekly Sam: America Started with Educational Freedom By Samuel L. Blumenfeld
One of the reasons why the United States of America got off to such a great start is
because we had total educational freedom. When the Constitution was written, there was
already by then a great variety of teaching institutions. The Dames Schools were colonial
preschools in which children were taught the three R’s in preparation for going on to an
academy. The academy was a private school run by an educational entrepreneur. It
prepared students for higher learning or a trade or profession. They were considered the
most appropriate educational institution for a free people. Their responsibility was to the
parents who put their children in the academy.
Home tutoring was also very common in those days. There was no such thing as
“compulsory school attendance.” Parents were free to provide their children with any
fonn of education which met their needs. Children were taught to read and write in the
Dames Schools, which were keenly aware that Biblical literacy was an absolute necessity
in a society based on the teachings of the Bible.
In New England, laws had been passed requiring parents to educate their children. This
spurred the creation of Common Schools throughout the region. Towns hired teachers to
run such schools. Their main function was to prepare the students for future studies in
the colleges. They were owned and operated by the local folks who usually paid the
schoolmasters with commodities rather than money.
The beauty of this high degree of freedom was that education was practical, its
foundation based on reality. Whatever was taught was intended to improve the
knowledge, skills, and aptitudes of the students. The community’s basic purpose in
education was to pass on to the future generation the knowledge, wisdom, religion and
morals of the previous generation. There was no such thing as religious neutrality. The
United States was a Christian nation and all agreed that children should be inculcated in
the tenets of Christianity. And anyone who went into the education profession knew its
spiritual purposes.
But then the question arises: why did Americans give up educational freedom so early in
their history when its benefits were so obvious? Believe it or not, it had nothing to do
with economics or poor teaching. Literacy was very high and education was available to
everyone. There were even excellent charity schools that provided education for the
children of the poor. There was no need for the government to get involved in education.
.
But in Boston, the government did get involved in establishing the Boston Latin School,
an elite school to prepare students for Harvard. It was funded by the city even though the
parents of the students could easily have paid its costs. But the liberals in Boston were
already looking to government to establish an elite institution separated from the church.
What happened to create this state of mind? It was the rise of the Unitarian heresy at
Harvard among the descendants of the Puritans. Intellectual pride became the spearhead
of religious Liberalism.
The Unitarians no longer believed in the Trinity or in the divinity of Christ. If Christ was
divine it was in the sense that we are all divine. But while Christ was considered a great
teacher, he was not considered to be the source of salvation. The Unitarians also rejected
Calvin’s view of man as being innately depraved who needed to be saved by Jesus Christ.
The Unitarians believed that man was basically good, and that all he needed was a good
secular education to achieve moral perfectibility.
And so the Boston Unitarians launched a strong campaign to create government primary
schools in which Calvinist teachings would be eliminated. They were successful because
they learned how to influence the press, control the legislature, and get what they wanted.
As the public school movement grew, the orthodox were in a dilenuna as to whether or
not to support it. In 1849, the orthodox General Association of Massachusetts decided in
favor of support with this very important stipulation. They wrote:
“If after a full and faithful experiment, it should at last be seen that fidelity to the
religious interests of our children forbids a further patronage of the system, we
can unite with the Evangelical Christians in the establishment of private schools,
in which more full doctrinal religious instruction may be possible.”
There is no question that the “full and faithful experiment” has been a colossal failure,
and that millions of Christian children have been spiritually harmed. While many parents
have taken their children out of the public schools, and hundreds if not thousands of
church schools have been founded, the vast majority of Christian parents still put their
children in these anti-Christian public schools. In other words, we have still to learn the
lessons of history.
The Blumenfeld Archives is a free on-line educational resource: http://blumenfeld.campconstitution.net/main.htm
Liberty Counsel and Liberty University Launch Supreme Court and Appellate Clinic
A news release from Liberty Counsel:
Aug 12, 2025
In 2005, Liberty Counsel and Liberty University School of Law launched the Constitutional Litigation Clinic. The clinic has been in operation for 20 years and will continue to be open to up to five students per semester. Previous students in this clinic worked on Shurtleff v. City of Boston, a Liberty Counsel case that begin in 2017 and resulted in a 9-0 win at the U.S. Supreme Court in May 2022.
The Supreme Court and Appellate Clinic will be an advanced clinic focused on specific Supreme Court and Appellate cases. Under supervision and instruction from experienced Liberty Counsel’s Supreme Court practitioners, the students will have weekly class instruction, case rounds, and gain clinical experience with active cases. The clinic is designed to give students valuable practical experience in Supreme Court advocacy through researching and drafting certiorari petitions, merits and opposition briefs, reply briefs, and amicus briefs.
Liberty University School of Law Dean and Professor of Law Dr. Timothy M. Todd said, “We are thankful for the partnership with Liberty Counsel. This clinic will emphasize the development of practical skills while fostering a deep understanding of the substantive law and procedure relevant to practice before the United States Supreme Court and federal appellate courts.”
Liberty University School of Law is also home to a one-of-a-kind replica of the U.S. Supreme Court bench designed by Mat Staver during his tenure as Dean and Professor of Law.
Liberty Counsel Founder and Chairman Mat Staver said, “We are excited to partner with Liberty University School of Law to educate and train students to practice at the highest levels of the U.S. Supreme Court and appellate courts. Law students in our previous clinics contributed to our 9-0 victory at the U.S. Supreme Court in Shurtleff v. City of Boston in 2022. The Supreme Court and Appellate Clinic will offer students the invaluable experience of working on high profile cases that will shape legal precedent for decades. Liberty Counsel is resolved to develop the next generation of constitutional law advocates.”
Liberty Counsel provides broadcast-quality TV interviews via Hi-Def Skype and LTN at no cost
Patriot Camp August 4-6, 2025 Rockland, Maine Report
Patriot Camp 2025 was a three-day summer camp designed to introduce young participants, ages 5–14,
to the principles of American government through engaging, age-appropriate activities centered around
the founding documents of the United States.
This year, we welcomed 15 enthusiastic campers. The 5–8-year-old group spent their days learning
about America’s Constitutional Republic, the three branches of government, and the First and Second
Amendments. The 9–14-year-olds focused on U.S. civics questions in preparation for the final contest
held on the last day of camp. The Civics Savvy Contest questions were read by Camp Constitution’s
Director, Hal Shurtleff. The contest featured two teams—the Eagles and the Werewolves—with the
Eagles taking the win. An addition to this year’s camp had a portable air rifle range which gave camper’s the opportunity to learn marksmanship skills.
The camp ran from August 4th through August 6th and was a great success in fostering civic
knowledge and patriotism in a fun, interactive environment.
We owe this year’s success to the gracious host, Littlefield Memorial Baptist Church, and to all of the
dedicated volunteers.
The camp concluded with a well-attended family picnic, where campers had the opportunity to share
their experiences and successes with parents and siblings.
John Adams on Government: Christian Virtue Necessary for Liberty – American Minute with Bill Federer
& the Need for Christian Virtue – American Minute with Bill Federer The Wisdom of John Adams: on Liberty Tyranny
Download as PDF …
John Adams was born October 30, 1735. A Harvard graduate, he was admitted to the bar and in 1764, married Abigail Smith, the daughter of a Congregational minister.
In 1765, Britain enacted the Stamp Act, which would be equivalent to a modern-day Internet tax, online censorship or government surveillance of emails.
John Adams wrote:
“It seems very manifest from the Stamp Act itself, that a design is formed to strip us in a great measure of the means of knowledge, by loading the press, the colleges, and even an almanac and a newspaper, with restraints and duties.”
In resisting the Stamp Act, Adams wrote instructions to representatives from town of Braintree being sent to the Massachusetts General Court:
“The late acts of Parliament … divest us of our most essential rights and liberties … The Stamp Act … a very burdensome, and… unconstitutional tax, is to be laid upon us …
We are subjected to … penalties, to be prosecuted, sued for, and recovered, at the option of an informer, in a court of admiralty, without a jury …
Business … would be totally impossible … That Act … would drain the country of its cash, strip multitudes of all their property, and reduce them to absolute beggary …
No freeman should be subject to any tax to which he has not given his own consent.”
John Adams explained in A Dissertation on the Canon and Feudal Law, 1765, that it was Christian principles, brought to America by the Puritans, that resisted tyranny:
“The desire of dominion … when … restraints are taken off … becomes an encroaching, grasping, restless, and ungovernable power … contrived by the great for the gratification of this passion …
Originally formed … for the necessary defense … against … invasions … yet … tyranny, cruelty, and lust … was soon adopted by almost all the princes of Europe …
The people were held in ignorance … till God in his benign providence raised up the champions who began and conducted the Reformation.
From the time of the Reformation to the first settlement of America, knowledge gradually spread in Europe, but especially in England; and in proportion as that increased and spread among the people … tyranny … lost … strength.”
He continued:
“It was this great struggle that peopled America … by a sensible people … the Puritans …
This people had been so vexed and tortured by the powers of those days, for no other crime than their knowledge and their freedom of inquiry … they at last resolved to fly to the wilderness for refuge …
After their arrival here, they … formed their plan, both of ecclesiastical and civil government, in direct opposition to the canon and the feudal systems …
I always consider the settlement of America with reverence and wonder, as the opening of a grand scene and design in Providence for the illumination of the ignorant, and the emancipation of the slavish part of mankind all over the earth …”
Adams added:
“Tyranny in every form, shape, and appearance was their disdain …
They saw clearly, that popular powers must be placed as … a control, a balance, to the powers of the monarch … or else it would soon become the man of sin, the whore of Babylon, the mystery of iniquity, a great and detestable system of fraud, violence, and usurpation.
Their greatest concern seems to have been to establish a government of the church more consistent with the Scriptures, and a government of the state more agreeable to the dignity of human nature, than any they had seen in Europe …
To render the popular power in their new government as great and wise … as human nature and the Christian religion require it should be, they … had an utter contempt … of hereditary, indefeasible right … of passive obedience and nonresistance …
They thought all such slavish subordinations were … inconsistent with … that religious liberty with which Jesus had made them free …”
Adams explained further:“Original … government was … despotic … arbitrary, lawless power …
But knowledge diffused generally through the whole body of the people … their civil and religious principles …
For this purpose they laid very early the foundations of colleges, and … seminaries … They made it a crime for such a town to be destitute of a grammar schoolmaster …
Education of all ranks of people was made the care and expense of the public, in a manner that I believe has been unknown to any other people ancient or modern …
A native of America who cannot read and write is as rare … as a comet or an earthquake …
Liberty must at all hazards be supported. We have a right to it, derived from our Maker …”
Adams continued:
“Liberty cannot be preserved without a general knowledge among the people, who have a right … to knowledge, as their great Creator, who does nothing in vain, has given them understandings, and a desire to know …
Rulers are no more than … trustees for the people; and if the … trust is insidiously betrayed, or wantonly trifled away, the people have a right to revoke the authority … and to constitute abler and better … trustees …
The jaws of power are always opened to devour, and her arm is always stretched out, if possible, to destroy the freedom of thinking, speaking, and writing …
Be not intimidated, therefore, by any terrors, from publishing with the utmost freedom, whatever can be warranted by the laws of your country …
I hope in God the time is near at hand when they will be fully convinced of your understanding, integrity and courage …
Let us not suppose that all are become luxurious, effeminate, and unreasonable, on the other side the water, as many designing persons would insinuate.
Let us presume, what is in fact true, that the spirit of liberty is as ardent as ever among the body of the nation …
Let us dare to read, think, speak, and write.”
Adams stated in A Dissertation on the Canon and Feudal Law:
“Let us study … the great examples of Greece and Rome … the conduct of our own British ancestors, who have defended for us the inherent rights of mankind against foreign and domestic tyrants and usurpers, against arbitrary kings and cruel priests, in short, against the gates of earth and hell …
Let the pulpit resound with the doctrines and sentiments of religious liberty …
Let us hear the dignity of his nature, and the noble rank he holds among the works of God,
– that consenting to slavery is a sacrilegious breach of trust, as offensive in the sight of God as it is derogatory from our own honor or interest or happiness,
– and that God Almighty has promulgated from heaven, liberty, peace, and goodwill to man!”
When the Revolution started, John Adams recommended that George Washington be the Commander-in-Chief and that Thomas Jefferson pen the Declaration.
In Novanglus: A History of the Dispute with America, from its Origin, in 1754, to the Present Time, published February 6, 1775, John Adams wrote:
“It is the duty of the clergy to accommodate their discourses to the times, to preach against such sins as are most prevalent, and recommend such virtues as are most wanted …
If exorbitant ambition and venality are predominant, ought they not to warn their hearers against those vices?
If public spirit is much wanted, should they not inculcate this great virtue?
If the rights and duties of Christian magistrates and subjects are disputed, should they not explain them, show their nature, ends, limitations, and restrictions, how much soever it may move the gall of Massachusetts.”
John Adams authored the Massachusetts Constitution, 1780, described as the world’s oldest functioning written constitution, a model for the United States Constitution. It stated:
“The happiness of a people and the good order and preservation of civil government, essentially depend upon piety, religion and morality;
and as these cannot be generally diffused through a community, but by the institution of the Public worship of God …
the people of this commonwealth … authorize … the public worship of God, and for the support and maintenance of public Protestant teachers of piety, religion and morality …
And every denomination of Christians, demeaning themselves peaceably, and as good subjects of the commonwealth, shall be equally under the protection of the law …
The Governor shall be chosen annually; and no person shall be eligible to this office, unless … he shall declare himself to be of the Christian religion …
Any person chosen governor, lieutenant governor, counselor, senator or representative, and accepting the trust, shall … make … the following declaration, viz.-
“I, A. B., do declare, that I believe the Christian religion, and have a firm persuasion of its truth.”
John Adams was U.S. Minister to France, where, together with Benjamin Franklin, John Jay, and David Hartley, he signed the Treaty of Paris, September 3, 1783, officially ending the Revolutionary War:
“In the name of the Most Holy and Undivided Trinity.
It having pleased the Divine Providence to dispose the hearts of the most serene and most potent Prince George the Third, by the Grace of God, King of Great Britain, France, and Ireland, Defender of the Faith …
and of the United States of America, to forget all past misunderstandings and differences …
Done at Paris, this third day of September, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and eighty-three.”
While U.S. Minister to Britain, John Adams met with his former king, George the Third.
Adams helped ratify the U.S. Constitution by writing Defense of the Constitution of the Government of the United States, 1787-1788.
Initially, Presidential elections designated the President as the one who received the most votes, and the Vice-President was the one who received the second most votes.
John Adams was so popular that he was elected Vice-President twice, serving under George Washington.
When George Washington insisted on only serving two terms, John Adams was elected the 2nd U.S. President in 1796.
He established the Library of Congress and the Department of Navy.
His son, John Quincy Adams, became 6th President.
After Abigail Adams died in 1818, Adams wrote to Jefferson:
“I do not know how to prove physically, that we shall meet and know each other in a future state; nor does Revelation, as I can find, give us any positive assurance of such a felicity.
My reasons for believing it, as I do most undoubtedly, are that I cannot conceive such a Being could make such a species as the human, merely to live and die on this earth.
If I did not believe in a future state, I should believe in no God.
This Universe, this all would appear, with all of its swelling pomp, a boyish firework.
And if there be a future state, why should the Almighty dissolve forever all the tender ties which unite us so delightfully in this world, and forbid us to see each other in the next?”
In 1819, John Adams wrote to Jefferson:
“Have you ever found in history, one single example of a nation thoroughly corrupted that was afterwards restored to virtue? …
And without virtue, there can be no political liberty …
Will you tell me how to prevent luxury from producing effeminacy, intoxication, extravagance, vice and folly? …
No effort in favor of virtue is lost.”
In Paris, John Adams wrote in his diary, June 2, 1778:
“In vain are schools, academies, and universities instituted, if loose principles and licentious habits are impressed upon children in their earliest years …
The vices and examples of the parents cannot be concealed from the children.
How is it possible that children can have any just sense of the sacred obligations of Morality or Religion if, from their earliest infancy … their fathers (are) in as constant infidelity to their mothers?”
On June 21, 1776, John Adams wrote:
“Statesmen, my dear Sir, may plan and speculate for liberty, but it is Religion and Morality alone, which can establish the principles upon which freedom can securely stand.
The only foundation of a free Constitution is pure virtue,
and if this cannot be inspired into our people in a greater measure, than they have it now, they may change their rulers and the forms of government, but they will not obtain a lasting liberty.”
—
American Minute is a registered trademark of William J. Federer. Permission granted to forward, reprint, or duplicate.
The Weekly Sam: Eugenics and the Making of a Black Underclass
The late Sam Blumenfeld wrote a monthly newsletter from 1986 to 1999 and all of them are available in PDF format on the Sam Blumenfeld Archives. One of his most important and still timely was his June 1987 newsletter titled “Eugenics and the Making of a Black Underclass.” In this newsletter, Sam gives us a history of the racist roots of the I,Q. test, and how the “progressive educators worked together to promote their agenda in government schools. We put it back in print and make them available on our on-line store: https://campconstitution.net/product/eugenics-in-american-education-and-the-making-of-a-black-underclass-by-sam-blumenfeld/
And a link to a PDF version:
http://blumenfeld.campconstitution.net/1987/BEL%2002-06%20198706.pdf
The Blumenfeld Archives
The Weekly Sam: Education and Food Back in the Old Days By Samuel L. Blumenfeld
I was born in 1926, which makes me probably older than anyone reading this magazine.
Which means that I have a sense of history, that is, an understanding of cause and effect,
that most young people lack these days. Is it important? As Sarah Palin would say,
“You betcha.” In other words, I know history intimately because I have lived through it:
the Great Depression, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and the current
wars. That’s a lot of history to know first-hand.
Although I was born less than ten years after World War One, that war seemed as remote
to me as if it had never taken place. That’s the way the memory works, and that’s why I
can understand why so many people today cannot know what it was like to live through
World War II or the Korean War, or even the Vietnam War. And I have no idea how the
schools teach these wars these days.
I was born on Manhattan Island in the world’s greatest metropolis, the most expensive
and legendary piece of real estate on the planet. I was born in one of those tenements in
East Harlem which was filled with new immigrant families and their new American
children.
At age five I was sent to kindergarten at the neighborhood elementary school, P.S.
Number something or other. Of course, I walked to school. A very nice policeman at the
corner helped us cross the avenue. In those days kindergarten was play time. Formal
education started in the first grade. I remember the name of my first-grade teacher, Miss
Sullivan. Or was it Miss Murray? She taught us to read with phonics and to write in
cursive. So our little brains were totally activated to become lovers of books and
writing. There was no such thing as dyslexia in those days, and certainly no such thing
as Ritalin.
The classrooms were pretty clean and bare back then. Just a portrait of George
Washington hanging on the wall, and a cursive writing chart over the blackboard. We
sat in desks bolted to the floor. Today, kids sit around tables facing one another,
coughing into each others faces, pestering one another. Back then you faced the back of
a fellow pupil’s head and you did not chat. You were quiet and attentive. The teacher
was the focus of attention. She wasn’t a facilitator. She had your attention, so you
couldn’t possibly get attention deficit disorder.
Back in those days we went home for lunch. My mother usually prepared a fried egg
sandwich and a glass of milk. Then I walked back to school. On Sundays my mother
would make a herring and onion sandwich on a roll which I loved. She would buy a
salted herring out of a barrel at the appetizer or fish store and that would be our Sunday
breakfast and lunch. They were delicious. That was Eastern European fare.
Your taste in food is developed very early in life by what your parents feed you. So I’ve
always liked fried egg sandwiches. Today, schools serve breakfast and lunch, so parents
have less of an influence on what a child gets to eat. Once, during a school outing, we
were served tuna-fish sandwiches and tomato soup. I had never had that at home, and I
liked them. My sister, two years older than I, had friends who introduced her to foods
my mother was unfamiliar with, such as mayonnaise. Once we discovered mayonnaise,
it became a household favorite. My sister also introduced me to chow mein in the local
Chinese restaurant. I’ve loved Chinese food ever since.
For some reason tomatoes tasted better in those days. That’s probably because the taste
hadn’t been altered by so much special scientific breeding. But you can’t stop progress.
And so the advent of the supermarket with its myriad of packaged and frozen foods and
the rise of so many fast-food franchises has made it easier for Americans to feed
themselves with as little fuss and time as possible.
As for education, progress in the public schools has seemed to go in the opposite
direction. Despite all of the computers and new textbooks, reading skills have declined.
According to Reading at Risk, a report issued by the National Endowment of the Arts in
2007, American literacy is in serious decline. Dana Gioia, chairman of the Endowment
stated: “This is a massive social problem. We are losing the majority of the new
generation. They will not achieve anything close to their potential because of poor
reading.”
In short, instead of getting smarter, our kids are getting dumber. High tech executives
complain that young Americans lack the basic skills that are needed in today’s high tech
industries.
And that is why home-schooling is where you find real progress in education: high
literacy, enhanced academic skills, interest in technology, government, history,
geography, and most important of all, Biblical religion.
If you want to see what educational progress looks like in the 21st century, just attend one
of the many home-school conventions that now take place every spring across America.
You’ll see parent-educators in droves listening to lectures, examining books and
curricula, making sure that what they do at home will enable their kids to become the best
educated young adults in America.
The Blumenfeld Archives
Are Anchor Babies Constitutional? A Presentation by Pastor David Whitney
Camp Constitution instructor Pastor David Whitney of the Institute on the Constitution gives a presentation on the subject of “Anchor Babies” and the U.S. Constitution. This presentation was conducted at our 17th annual family camp held at Singing Hills Christian Camp Plainfield, NH July 13-18, 2025.
Pastor Whitney refutes the notion promoted by the Left that the babies of illegal or legal aliens born in the United States are automatically U.S. citizens.
Camp Constitution’s Six-Month Report for 2025
We are a little late with this report:
Camp Constitution Ladies Annual Spring Fling
We had our largest turnout for the Ladies “Spring Fling held for the 2nd year at the Alton Bay Christian Conference Center in early May Our guest speakers were Karen Testerman, author and gubernatorial candidate, and Sue Ianni, a January Sixer. The ladies also took a field trip to the Belknap County Sportsmen’s Club to do some marksmanship training.
Camp Constitution in the News
The publisher of the Rochester Voice, an on-line news for Greater Rochester, NH gave us a monthly column.-the Camp Constitution Report. Our monthly article now runs in four media outlets “The Boston Broadside” ‘The Weirs Times.” “The Granite Grok” and “The Rochester Voice.”
Our lawsuit “Shurtleff v Boston” continues to be mentioned in media outlets around the country especially during “Pride” Month. “Shurtleff v Boston” lawsuit was decided but it continues to be mentioned in the news around the country. Our case was recently cited in a decision by the University of Massachusetts Amherst when the “Pride” flag was removed from a building, and in February our case was mentioned in a controversy at the Marblehead, MA High School.
Camp Constitution on the Air
We were return guests on the Duke Pesta Show, The Sentinel Report hosted by Alex Newman, The Chuck Moscowitz Show, and the Tamara Scott Show. And first time New Hampshire Gospel Radio
The Camp Constitution Report
We did twelve shows including interviews with Jody Underwood of New Hampshire Educational Options, Karen Siegmund, President of the American Freedom Alliance, Woodrow Johnson, CEO of Revere Solutions, Michelle Gallagher, author of The Forefathers Monument Guidebook, Elena Barbera, producer and director of the documentary “American Groomer. This show airs on our YouTube Channel, Rumble, Podomatic, Spotify, and about five other podcast formats: https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/shurtleffhal/episodes/2025-05-22T05_29_44-07_00
Special Projects
We had a float in Lexington. MA’s 250 Anniversary Celebration of the Battle of Lexington. The evening before, we hosted our 3rd Annual Patriot’s Day Overnight at the Lane House where we took in the reenactments of the Midnight Ride of Paul Revere and the Battle of Lexington. We had information tables at six New Hampshire Education Options expositions. The Freedom Project Academy led by our friend Dr. Duke Pesta sponsored an essay contest for his students and offered three families free tuition at Camp Constitution’s annual family camp. We had the opportunity to conduct an on-line class for a group of students both national and international. The topic was the U.S. Constitution. We did a video for the Potomac Tea Party that was aired on Independence Day.
Camp Constitution Media
We made a short video on Declaration of Independence signer General William Whippple, the Memorial Day Parade in Alton, NH sponsored by the American Legion and a presentation .by Dr. Chris Gnanakan of Liberty University and a presentation by our friends at Camp Sentinel.
YouTube, Rumble and Bitchute
We finally got over 17,000 subscribers early in February but struggled to get overt 17,030. In late June, we started getting some momentum. We had 62.2 thousand views this year giving us 2.1 million since we created the channel. Our most popular video continues to be “Republic vs Democracy. If you aren’t already a subscriber, here is a link to our channel where you can
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCN7ME18Q1xiqcrPEn5h5FbA
Our Rumble channel received 3,643 views the first six months of the year. views. We have uploaded some documentaries including “Operation Keelhaul” and “MAAFA 21 Black Genocide in the 2oth Century” as well as some classic anti-communists movies.
https://rumble.com/account/content?type=all
We have A Bitchute channel but haven’t uploaded many videos. We were happy to discovered that we are getting thousands of views of our videos and will be uploading more videos in the future: https://www.bitchute.com/profile/kiuIedaV8Erk
Camp Constitution Report on Podomatic and Other Platforms
We have received 204 plays and 1,333 downloads of our shows. We continue to be in the top ten for the category of conservative-right. In addition to our weekly show, we have uploaded some classic interviews and speeches by Dan Smoot, Gary Allen, and E. Merrill Root. A link to our show: https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/shurtleffhal
Camp Constitution Press
We reprinted in an 81/2” x 11” format, the free market classic “Frogs and Freedom”:
A link to purchase copies of these: https://campconstitution.net/product/frogs-and-freedom-free-market-classic/
Speakers Bureau
We were the keynote speaker at the Berkshire (MA) Republic Committee’s annual Lincoln-Reagan where we gave a presentation on our Christian flag law suit to a very receptive group. Rev. Steve Craft was a speaker at an event sponsored by the Massachusetts Republican Assembly in late March.
Website
We have received 6.4 thousand views with 3.7 thousand visitors. We published fifty-four articles on our blog. https://www.campconstitution.net
Sam Blumenfeld Archives
We received 179,983 views. 631 Alpha-Phonics downloaded. 333 “Alpha-Phonics” instruction manuals downloaded, 507 How to Tutor books, and surprisingly 981 downloads of Sam’s “So You Want to Marry A Rockefeller” article/
The Blumenfeld Archives
The Blumenfeld Archives
Facebook Page
We have close to 3.2 thousand likes l and over 3,600 following our page. We also manage six other groups and one other page-all of them growing in members
Stopping An Article V Convention
We helped defeat an Article V Convention resolution and a “faithful delegate bill in New Hampshire.” We are part of a nationwide movement to protect the Constitution from an Article V Convention. Thousands have read our articles, blogs and videos on the subject as well as downloaded our on-line resources.
Looking into the next quarter
We concluded our 17th annual camp-a report went out last week. We have a number of events in August, and September which include co-sponsoring a Patriot day camp in Maine, information tables at numerous events, a float in the Alton Old Home Week, and presentations in Northern Maine.
How You Can Help
Continue to pray for our nation.
Attend or help someone attend our 17th annual family camp
Make a monthly donation or a one-time donation. Donations may be made via our PayPal account accessed from our website’s homepage https://www.campconstitution.net
If you own a business or are involved with a non-profit, consider a sponsorship for a minimum of $100. A year.
Thank you for helping to make Camp Constitution possible.
Blessings.
Hal Shurtleff, Director
Camp Constitution
Alton, NH
Camp Constitution’s 17th Annual Family Camp Report
Camp Constitution’s 17th annual family camp ended last Friday July. While our numbers were down from last year’s camp, we still had an excellent turnout with attendees coming as far as Alaska, Wyoming and Utah.
Returning instructors included Professor Willie Soon, one of the world’s top atmospheric scientists, who attended with his family, Pastor David Whitney of the Institute on the Constitution, Rev. Steve Craft who serves at the camp chaplain, Mrs. Catherine White of the Constitution Decoded, Dr. Felecia Nace, author of several books, and author and host of the Liberty Sentinel program, Alex Newman. Guest instructors included Michelle Gallagher, author of A Guide to the Forefather’s Monument, Mr. Kurt Hyde, an expert of election fraud, and Mr. Chris Burke who taught an optional class on the use of HAM Radios. A link to our YouTube playlist of classes and activities at our camp:
https://studio.youtube.com/playlist/PL7jnzBzBiNYDeD_94loNG8mUcUMFM2m2N/videos
Sunday, we held out staff and camper orientation, a hearty dinner and our nightly campfire. We start our first full day with an optional run and/or swim at 6:30. Wake up is 7:00 and morning devotions and flag-raising at 7:50. As he has for the past few years, veteran camper Franklin Soon plays “Reveille” https://youtube.com/shorts/cefjwGuxiRs?si=P5TJ7Gissmv
After a hearty breakfast, the camp conducts three 45-miniute classes
During the first class, Head Counselor Chris Kalis conducts room inspection where we look for cleanliness, as well as a Patriotic and Christian theme. Chris will give the room points towards the room inspection contest where the occupants of the winning room get treated to free pizza on Thursday after campfire. . The daily inspection results are posted in the camp’s daily newspaper, “Camp Constitution Journal” distributed in the evening. The paper, edited Mark Affleck, also has articles written by campers about the daily activities and classes. A link to PDFs of the camp paper: https://s3.amazonaws.com/camppictures/CampArchive/Journals/Camp%20Constitution%20Journal%2017-1%202025.pdf
From Monday to Wednesday, attendees were treated to a rendition of The National Anthem led by world renowned clarinetist Jonathan Cohler and “The Camp Constitution Band”: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/_rbhDHwabNo
Mr. George Dewhurst conducted an optional martial arts class Monday afternoon: https://s3.amazonaws.com/camppictures/2025/Classes/index.html#02%2520Mon%2520Self%2520Defense%252004.MP4
For the third year in a row, Mr. Keith Hansom of Critical Dynamics conducted optional marksmanship classes on Tuesday afternoon with help from Pastor David Whitney and Mr. Jonathan Cohler:
On Wednesday afternoon, we took an optional field trip to the Calvin Coolidge Homestead in Plymouth, VT:
In the afternoon, attendees had plenty of recreational opportunities including volleyball, chess tournaments, swimming, gaga, basketball, and much more:
Teaching the junior campers ages 5-11 were Mrs. Edith Craft (5-8) and Mrs. Jessica Whitworth (9-12) with help from Donna DeSantis, Mrs. Roberta Stewart, and Mrs. Kathy Mickel:
On Thursday morning, junior campers paraded around the camp dressed in colonial attire:
At our closing ceremonies, the Super Camper Award went to first-time camper Melanie Shrader and veteran camper Eamon Westrick They both get a free tuition for next year’s camp for themselves or a sibling or friend. Westrick. Runner-up honors were Annaliese Westrick, Nyah Johnson and David Tyuvin. Videographer Mert Melfa was awarded the Super Staffer Award, and Pastor David Whitney received the Super Instructor Award.
Next year’s camp will run from Sunday July 12 to Friday July 17, 2026, at the same venue.
Thanks to all who helped to make this event happen.