Lone Oak Campsites Provides Quality Recreation
By Colleen Gundlach

Bucky Brown, center, flanked by his sons, Peter and Barry, is the
patriarch of a well-known East Canaan family, and founder of Lone Oak Campsites.

Abraham (Bucky) Brown was a farmer in East Canaan when he read a magazine article
back in 1964 about turning farmland into campgrounds. Today his former farmland on
Route 44 provides fun, fellowship and recreation to hundreds of people every year and is
one of the most popular campgrounds in Connecticut. It is a true family saga, spanning
two businesses and two Canaan families.
According to Bucky Brown’s daughter-in- law, Jacolyn Brown, the relationship of the
families of Lone Oak and that of Freund’s Farm are intricate, to say the least. She
explained that Bucky is the son of Joseph Brown, who had five children, including Bucky
and his sister Esther. Joseph Freund, a neighbor , had three children, two of whom were
Eugene and Rosalie. Eugene married Esther and began Freund’s Farm in East Canaan.
Bucky married Rosalie and began Lone Oak Farm in the same town, about a tenth of a
mile apart.
The story doesn’t stop there, however. Eugene and Esther had five children, two of
whom are Ben and Matthew, the current owners of Freund’s Farm. Matthew married
Theresa Hanlon, and they now live in the Freund farmhouse. Matthew operates Freund’s
Farm and also Cowpots, a business that makes plant pots out of cow manure. Theresa
Freund owns and operates Freund’s Farm Market and Bakery.
In the meantime, two of Bucky and Rosalie’s sons, Peter and Barry, purchased Lone Oak
Campsites from their father. Incidently, Barry is married to Jacolyn Hanlon, who happens
to be Theresa Freund’s sister. Barry and Jacolyn live in the old farmhouse where Bucky
and Rosalie once lived.
Once Bucky had made the decision to turn fields into campsites, he found that he had
started a business that had a life of its own. From a few tent sites in the woods to close to
500 sites today, Lone Oak Campsites has lived up to their slogan of “Quality Recreation
through Family Camping.” Many of the people who visit the campground now came
with their parents years ago. “People bring their children for years. When the kids reach
their teenage years they sometimes don’t want to come camping with their parents
anymore,” says Jacolyn Brown. “But we find that once those teenagers become adults,
they are back here with their spouses and their own kids.”
Some campers come as they are passing through the area, or stay at Lone Oak while
exploring northwest Connecticut or the Berkshires. Some come to spend the weekend,
and still others rent seasonal sites and make the campground their summer home. Often
the weekenders or seasonal people actually live in this corner of Connecticut. “Even
though they are close to home, it’s a fun place to go,” says Brown. “Some people think
our fenced-in area next to Route 44 is the campground, but that’s just our storage area..
People are pleasantly surprised when they drive in.”
Recreation at Lone Oak takes the form of organized activities such as softball, volleyball
or soccer games, sand castle building. arts and crafts, bingo, or hayrides. It may also

consist of individual activities such as swimming in one of the two pools, relaxing in the
hot tub, or playing in the video arcade. On weekends, there is almost always a band or a
disk jockey and an outdoor movie theater (bring your own popcorn.)
Ice cream, hot dogs and other treats can be purchased at the Chipmunk Market. For the
adults, the Hayloft Lounge located above the market is a full service bar for ages 21 and
older, and is open on weekends. In addition to campers who bring their own tents or
recreational vehicles, Lone Oak has lodges, cabins and park model trailers for rent.
These accommodations usually include microwaves, stoves, cable television, and all the
comforts of home.
A look around the grounds reveals impressive landscaping and maintenance as well as
immaculate cleanliness. “We have a staff that loves what they are doing,” says Brown.
She reports that when the Brown family travels to Disney World, they “spend more time
looking at how they do things there than riding the rides. We try to reach toward the
Disney standard. Why reinvent the wheel?”
Last spring, the Browns purchased 100 acres of an adjoining farm. They are in the
process of clearing the land for some new recreation fields. “We have a lot of kids here.
They needs space to run around,” says Brown. There are no definite plans at this point
for the new land, she says, but they are thinking of adding a few more sites, and possibly
an area for campers aged 55 and over.
Bucky Brown sold his campground dream to his sons in 1993, but can still be seen now,
at 83 years old, walking his dog along the roads of Lone Oak. The lone oak tree for which
the business is named is still standing, across Route 44 from the campsites, on Brown’s
Lane.
For more information about the campground, visit www.loneoakcampsites.com.