The Corrections
Camp Lehman was established as one of the original Honor system camps when the Corrections Conservation Prison Camp Program was started in 1948 and housed minimum security adult male prisoners. The purpose of the Corrections Conservation Prison Camp Program was twofold. Various conservation projects under the direction of the Conservation Department (now the Michigan Department of Natural Resources or DNR) needed to be manned and prisoners provided an inexpensive and reliable source of labor. The Corrections Camp Program was granted permission to use old Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camps in exchange for prisoners to be used on these conservation projects. The Conservation Department provided employees to supervise these prisoners and vehicles to transport the prisoners to and from the assignments.