Camp David

**Camp David** is the country retreat for the President of the United States. It is located in the wooded hills of Catoctin Mountain Park near Thurmont, Maryland, also near Emmitsburg, Maryland about 62 miles (100 km) north-northwest of Washington, D.C.[1][2][3] It is officially known as the **Naval Support Facility Thurmont,** because it is technically a military installation, and staffing is primarily provided by the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps.

Originally known as Hi-Catoctin, Camp David was built as a camp for federal government agents and their families by the WPA. Construction started in 1935 and was completed in 1938.[4] In 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt converted it to a presidential retreat and renamed it "**Shangri-La**" (for the fictional Himalayan paradise in the 1933 novel *Lost Horizon* by British author James Hilton, which he had jokingly referenced as the source of the Doolittle Raid earlier that year). Camp David received its present name from Dwight D. Eisenhower, in honor of his father and grandson, both named David.[5]

The Catoctin Mountain Park does not indicate the location of Camp David on park maps due to privacy and security concerns, although it can be seen through the use of publicly accessible satellite images.[3]

## Presidential Use:

* Franklin D. Roosevelt hosted Sir Winston Churchill in May 1943.[6]
* Dwight Eisenhower held his first cabinet meeting there on November 22, 1955 following hospitalization and convalescence he required after a heart attack suffered in Denver, Colorado on September 24.[7] Eisenhower met there with Nikita Khrushchev for two days of discussions in September 1959.[8]
* John F. Kennedy and his family often enjoyed riding and other recreational activities there, and Kennedy often allowed White House staff and Cabinet members to use the retreat when he or his family were not there.[*citation needed*]
* Lyndon B. Johnson met with advisors in this setting and hosted both Australian Prime Minister Harold Holt and Canadian Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson there.[9]
* Richard Nixon was a frequent visitor. He personally directed the construction of a swimming pool and other improvements to Aspen Lodge.[10]
* Gerald Ford often rode his snowmobile around Camp David and hosted Indonesian President Suharto there.[11]
* Jimmy Carter initially favored closing Camp David in order to save money. Once Carter actually visited the place, he decided to keep it.[12] Carter brokered the Camp David Accords there in September 1978 between Egyptian President Anwar al-Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin.[6]
* Ronald Reagan visited the retreat more than any other president.[13][*citation needed*] In 1984, Reagan hosted British Prime MinisterMargaret Thatcher.[14]
* George H. W. Bush's daughter, Dorothy Bush Koch, was married there in 1992, in the first ever wedding held at Camp David.[15]
* During Bill Clinton's time in office, British Prime Minister Tony Blair was among the many visitors that the President hosted at Camp David.[16]
* George W. Bush hosted dignitaries, including President of Russia Vladimir Putin, there in 2003,[17][18] and hosted British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, in 2007.[19] George W. Bush also hosted Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen in June 2006.[20]
* Barack Obama chose Camp David to host the 38th G8 summit in 2012.[21] President Obama also hosted Russian Prime MinisterDmitry Medvedev at Camp David,[22] as well as the GCC Summit there in 2015.[23]
* During his first year in office, Donald Trump visited Camp David on five occasions.

## Security Issues:

On July 2, 2011, an F-15 intercepted a small two-seat passenger plane flying near Camp David, when President Obama was in the residence. The civilian aircraft, which was out of radio communication, was intercepted approximately 6 miles (10 km) from the presidential retreat. The F-15 escorted the aircraft out of the area, and it landed in nearby Hagerstown, Maryland, without incident. The civilian plane's occupants were flying between two Maryland towns and were released without charge.[24]

On July 10, 2011, an F-15 intercepted another small two-seat passenger plane flying near Camp David when Obama was again in the residence; a total of three planes were intercepted over that July 9 weekend.[25]

## References:

1. **Jump up^** "Park Map Viewer." Catoctin Mountain Park. Retrieved on February 4, 2011.
2. **Jump up^** "Thurmont town, Maryland." United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on February 4, 2011.
3. ^ Jump up to:***a*** ***b*** "Frequently Asked Questions." Catoctin Mountain Park, Retrieved on February 4, 2011. "10. Where is Camp David? The Presidential Retreat is within the park however, it is not open to the public and its location is not shown on our park maps for both security and privacy. If you're interested in historical information, visit our Presidential Retreat webpage."
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10. **Jump up^** W. Dale Nelson, *The President is at Camp David* (Syracuse University Press, 1995), pp. 69-94.
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12. **Jump up^** https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=266&dat=19770822&id=2d0wAAAAIBAJ&sjid=\_dwFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1091,5150913&hl=en
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14. **Jump up^** File:Thatcher Reagan Camp David sofa 1984.jpg on the *English Wikipedia*
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25. **Jump up^** Weil, Martin (July 10, 2011). "Jet fighters intercept planes 3 times over weekend near Camp David". *The Washington Post*. Retrieved January 26, 2015.