Camp Oyo was created in the spring of 1926 when a group of Portsmouth businessmen and the newly organized Scioto Council of the Boy Scouts purchased a tract of “wasteland” on the edge of the Roosevelt Game Preserve. The driving force behind Camp Oyo was Harry Wagner, who was named Scout executive in 1926 and continued to serve in that role until his retirement in 1962. The first building at the camp was a multipurpose structure that served as a mess hall and activities building. During the Great Depression, the WPA and associated agencies began construction of the cabins in 1934, and the cabins, dedicated in the summer of 1935, were built from chestnut logs killed by the blight. The 1950s were the camp’s heyday, as the boom of the atomic plant and the post-war baby boom brought camping at Oyo to new heights. Camp Oyo continues to serve scouts by providing outdoor skills and leadership training.