Former Twin Oaks Camp

GPS 37.552266, -92.799605

The Camp eventually included a gas station, cafe, and several tourist cabins and a small water tower. In the early 1960s a service garage was added behind the gas station. The garage was later converted to apartments and the cafe was converted to a home. The little building in the middle of this photo was the water tower. The building on the right was the cafe and the building in the background was the garage.

About 1927 Sadie began hosting a community picnic which grew to become the Twin Oaks Annual Picnic over the years. This was no small picnic, by the early-30s it was often attended by several thousand people.

Fortunately McMenus owned a bunch of land across the road from the camp because with that many people the "picnic" needed more space. In 1933 the picnic spanned 3 days and included entertainment by high school bands from Marshfield, Conway and Lebanon as well as an orchestra from Springfield.

Some later years included "shows, rides, concessions" almost like a county fair, for example: the 1940 picnic included "seven shows, a ferris wheel, a tilt-o-whirl, sea planes, a merry-go-round, chair-o-plane and 35 concessions, beauty contests, popularity contests and fireworks. Attendees were sure to enjoy seeing the octopus (live?) and sea planes. All of the provided by Mac's Caravan Shows.

A 1941 newspaper ad promoted the "14th Annual Twin Oaks Picnic", that's the last mention of the annual picnic I've found.

By that time the land across from the camp was an official roadside park with picnic tables etc. Maude donated the land for the roadside park.

Sadie McMenus sold the property to J. E. Snyder and his Daughter Maude in 1936. J.E. Snyder died in 1947 and Maude continued to run the business until she died in 1953.

The property was sold at an estate auction in 1955. In mid-1959 a later owner began running an ad trying to sell the place that described it like this "Twin Oaks Grocery, gas, 3.2 per cent beer by the drink, package liquor, modern home - except heat, 23 acres. Good local busines. Highway 66, 12 miles west of Lebanon.". I think the effort to srll the place was still going on in mid-61.

Photo(s): 2023