About Us...

Center:
The Clyde Austin 4-H Center is a service of the University of Tennessee Extension.

Spread over 75 acres, the 4-H Center offers campers a wide variety of activities including: Swimming, Archery, Riflery, Softball, Basketball, Sand Volleyball, canoeing and fishing.  During the summer, 4-H campers also enjoy woodworking, leather craft and wildlife classes.

The 4-H Center's modern air-conditioned and  winterized lodgings accommodate up to 336 people for year round scheduling.  The large, air conditioned dining hall is an exceptional gathering place for large meetings or you can use our flexible meeting rooms for smaller groups.  From hamburgers to filet mignon our professional food services provide a full line of menus to meet your group's needs.  

Location:
Our facilities are 7 miles southwest of Greeneville, Tennessee.  Centrally located in the heart of the Eastern Region, we are easily accessible from Knoxville, Asheville or the Tri-Cities.  For directions to our facilities click here!

History:
The first community efforts to establish a local 4-H camp came in 1935 when approximately 55 children camped at the Research and Education Center at Greeneville (formerly UT Tobacco Experiment Station, located over the hill from today's center.  They slept in barns and swam in the creek. Some paid their way by bringing vegetables and chickens.

Beginning in 1947, Clyde Austin spearheaded a drive to establish a permanent 4-H camp.  As part of the drive, he himself donated 23 1/2 acres as the site.  With some buildings purchased and moved from what was then Camp Forest, a location used to house returning World War II soldiers, the camp officially opened in the summer of 1949.  Campers that first year where presented with a recreation/dining hall that could seat 300; two dormitories, each built in the shape of an "H", and a swimming pool.  

Facilities began to show wear after 30 years and thousands of kids.  Many buildings were outdated and in need of extensive repairs or remodeling.  Accordingly, the camp was closed for renovation in 1979.  Scheduled to be closed for a year, the final renovation process took three years.  Under the supervision of Jess Francis, a new kitchen, dining hall, three dormitories, and a 200,000 gallon swimming pool were built.  Andy Seals, who had served on the camp staff from 1972-74 moved to Greeneville with his wife Cheryl and daughter Amanda, and became the Center manager in 1981.

Over the last several years the camp has seen continued growth and improvement.  A demonstration kitchen was completed in 1986.  A freedom shrine, a collection of historical document replicas dating back to the Revolutionary War, was presented by the Greeneville Exchange Club in 1987.  A three acre lake has been added to provide campers with canoeing and fishing.  In 1997, a pavilion area was dedicated in honor of Frank and Pearl Litz.  Woodmen of the World donated a new flag pole in 1998 after the original flag pole was destroyed in a storm.  In 1999, a new camp office complex was completed, providing administrative offices and a new interactive television classroom.  In 2002, central heat and air conditioning was installed in the dormitories and recreation hall.  A roof was added over the patio of the recreation hall as well.  A paving project was undertaken to provide better access and more parking for the center.

An environmental study area and wetland have been developed from the 4.6 acres of land donated by Tom Austin, son of Clyde Austin.  In the fall of 2001, Camp Explore began.  It is an Environmental Character Camp serving the counties of the Smoky Mountain District.  Several other expansion projects are currently under consideration.

Other Area Points of Interest:
Northeast Tennessee is home of many interesting destinations just minutes from the 4-H Center.  Greeneville is the home and burial place of the 17th President, Andrew Johnson.  Visitors may tour his former home, a replica of his birthplace, or spend time enjoying the view from his hilltop burial site.  Greene County is also the birthplace of Davy Crockett.  The Davy Crockett State Park is only a few miles northeast of Greeneville.  Cherokee National forest covers several thousand acres in Greene County and is a wonderful place to visit, especially in the fall.

Jonesborough is Tennessee's oldest town and is located only 30-40 minutes from the 4-H Center.  This historical town is great for tourists and is home to the National Story Telling Festival and Museum.

Only an hour from the 4-H Center are the towns of Sevierville, Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg.  Nationally known as vacation getaways, these towns are home to several attractions such as: Great Smoky Mountain National Park, Dollywood, Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies, Ober Gatlinburg, and countless factory outlet malls just to mention a few.