Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson County first began its youth camping program in July 1925. The first 4-H camp was Camp Healthy on Point Salubrious in Chaumont. There was one week of camping for boys and one week for girls. Activities at the camp included tree identification, knot tying, health, campfire stories, boating, and games. The camp continued at Point Salubrious for three years until 1928 when it was moved to Guffins Bay near Pillar Point. The camp continued there until 1933 when the first 4-H camp at Camp Immukolee, between Adams and Lorraine, opened.
In 1944, Jefferson, Lewis, Franklin, and St. Lawrence Counties camped together and rented Camp Tousey, the YMCA camp near Theresa. Jefferson and Lewis Counties continued camping at Camp Tousey until 1950 when Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson County purchased the property now known as 4-H Camp Wabasso. Wabasso means northland, an Indian name taken from Longfellow’s poem Hiawatha. The camp was purchased for $6,000 and $38,000 was spent on improvements. The $38,000 spent on improvements in 1950 is equivalent to the most recent $300,000 goal of the 4-H Camp Wabasso Facilities Enhancement Project. One-hundred forty farm families donated $100 each and five organizations contributed $500 each to help purchase the camp and pay for the improvements.
When the camp first opened, girls slept in cabins and boys slept in large tents. Over time, more cabins were built along with a dining hall, arts and crafts building, bathhouses, and pavilions. Donations from individuals, businesses, and foundations were essential to fund the development of 4-H Camp Wabasso.