If you've ever heard older Pathfinders talk with a gleam in their eye about Oshkosh, know that it's no exaggeration. For one week, every five years, tens of thousands of Pathfinders from more than a hundred countries would land on an airfield in the state of Wisconsin, in the United States, and raise there one of the largest temporary tent cities in the world. The International Pathfinder Camporee — the great camporee of the North American Division — became synonymous with the place that hosted it for so long. Drawing on official Adventist sources, we've put together what actually happened in Oshkosh, why it became so famous, and what has changed recently.
So what exactly is the Oshkosh Camporee?
Oshkosh is the affectionate nickname by which the International Pathfinder Camporee became known — the great international camporee organized by the North American Division of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. The name comes from the city of Oshkosh, in the state of Wisconsin (USA), which hosted the event for five editions in a row.
The exact site was the property of the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) — the same massive airfield that hosts one of the largest air shows in the world. For one week, instead of airplanes, the grounds filled up with tents, stages, campfires, and thousands of uniformed young people marching, singing, and taking part in events and activities.
Although many call it the "world camporee," the more accurate description is that it's an international division camporee: it's put on by the North American Division, but it draws clubs from dozens of countries, which gives it global reach.
How it all started (before Oshkosh)
The history of these great international camporees didn't start in Oshkosh. According to the Encyclopedia of Seventh-day Adventists (ESDA), the first major camporee of the North American Division took place in 1985, at Camp Hale, a former military camp in the mountains of Colorado, drawing about 16,000 participants.
Other gatherings followed before the Oshkosh era: in 1989, at Mount Union, Pennsylvania, and in 1994, the "Dare to Care" Camporee in Morrison/Denver, Colorado, which brought together just over 12,000 Pathfinders from more than 20 countries — cementing the event's international character.
It wasn't until 1999 that the Camporee found in Oshkosh the home that would make it world-famous. From that year on, the EAA grounds hosted the event every five years.
Five editions that made history
From 1999 to 2019, Oshkosh hosted the Camporee every five years — and with each edition the event grew. The numbers below come from the official history pages of the Camporee itself (camporee.org) and show an impressive jump in attendance over two decades.
It was during this period that the Camporee became legendary: honor fairs, evening programs with Bible dramatizations on giant screens, mass baptisms, community service projects, and even world records. At the 2019 "Chosen" edition, Pathfinders set two Guinness World Records — the largest human cross and the largest scarf/woggle in the world.
The combination of scale, organization, and spirituality made Oshkosh a benchmark for Pathfinders around the world — including clubs from Brazil who dreamed of taking part in an edition.
"More than 21,000 Pathfinders were in attendance, coming from 53 countries."camporee.org, on the 1999 edition
Why Oshkosh became so famous around the world
Three factors explain Oshkosh's fame. The first is scale: few Christian youth events in the world bring together tens of thousands of teenagers camping at the same time, with the infrastructure of a city — water, power, security, medical care, and food for a multitude.
The second is its international character. With clubs from more than a hundred countries in 2019, Oshkosh became a meeting point of cultures: different uniforms, flags, languages, and traditions coexisting on the same grounds, united by the same faith and the same ideals of the Pathfinder Club.
The third is spiritual depth. More than the events and competitions, the Camporee has always centered on its evening programs, moments of worship, and the invitation to a decision of faith — with hundreds of baptisms at every edition. For many young people, Oshkosh was the place of a decision that changed their lives.
Heads up: the Camporee left Oshkosh and returns in 2029
Here's an essential, up-to-date piece of information, to avoid any confusion: the 2019 edition ("Chosen") was the most recent one held in Oshkosh. In 2024, the event was held in Gillette, Wyoming (USA), at the Cam-Plex complex. And in 2029 it returns to Oshkosh: in September 2026, the North American Division confirmed the EAA grounds as the host of the "Stand Strong" edition, August 20-26, 2029.
The 2024 edition, called "Believe the Promise," ran from August 5 to 11 in Gillette and, according to the North American Division, drew more than 60,000 participants, a record for the North American international series. The next edition, in 2029, keeps the five-year cycle going and returns to the EAA grounds, which have been expanded since 2019.
So when someone talks about "going to Oshkosh," the phrase becomes literal again in 2029. While the event was in Gillette, the name lived on in a fond, historical sense, the same way people say they "went to an Oshkosh."
"As the International Camporee grew, so did our desire to make each edition better than the last."Organizing committee, announcing the move to Wyoming