The Gun Club boys of Lakeport

In Short

Set in an eastern state during the early twentieth century, Edward Stratemeyer’s outdoor story follows a group of small-town youths who form a shooting club and build a winter camp on a secluded island. What starts as a simple holiday excursion of tracking deer and ice fishing quickly expands into a series of wilderness emergencies and local conflicts. The boys contend with severe blizzards, aggressive wildlife, trespassing rivals, and a ring of wandering thieves. The book’s lasting appeal lies in its detailed mix of practical woodsman lore, buoyant adolescent comradeship, and unpretentious action.

The Story

The narrative opens around the town of Lakeport, where brothers Joe and Harry Westmore return home from a nutting trip only to be ambushed by tramps who steal a valuable pocket watch. With the assistance of Andy Dugan, a hearty local farmer, and his sons, the thieves are pursued, though they temporarily escape. Soon after, as winter settles over the lake, Joe, Harry, and their accident-prone friend Fred Rush decide to form the Gun Club of Lakeport. Accompanied by Joel Runnell, a veteran outdoorsman who knows the regional forest, the boys organize an extended camping trip to Pine Island.

Upon reaching the island, the party converts an old shelter into "Snow Lodge," hauling in heavy loads of provisions, cutting firewood, chopping holes through sixteen inches of lake ice to fish for pickerel and pike, and exploring the mainland on snowshoes. The wilderness trip is far from tranquil. While tracking deer in the snow-choked forest, Joe and Harry find themselves treed by a pack of hungry wolves and must improvise a gunpowder explosive wrapped in venison scraps to scatter the beasts. Later, an unexpected black bear wanders directly into their cabin, forcing Joe to defend himself with flaming firebrands until Joel Runnell can shoot the animal from the window.

Alongside nature’s dangers, the boys face human hostility. Hiram Skeetles, a miserly and sharp-dealing real estate agent, claims ownership of Pine Island and tries to evict the party using Dan Marcy, a local bully, to enforce his threats. Skeetles and Marcy attempt to starve out the camp by taking their deer meat, but the boys and Runnell hold their ground through a massive snowstorm. When the storm subsides, the party expands their living quarters, joining forces with other young friends—Link Darrow, Bart, and Teddy Dugan—to build a sturdy snow-covered shelter and hunt pine martens and big game.

The climax shifts from survival to justice. While trailing a large moose, the group discovers an abandoned house in the woods occupied by the same tramps who stole Harry’s watch and swindled an old hermit. Joining forces with Constable Peabody, the boys surround the hideout and capture the thieves, recovering the stolen watch. Furthermore, among the tramps' loot, they uncover missing legal papers that expose Hiram Skeetles' fraudulent land claims, restoring valuable property to the Westmore family. Their winter camp concluded, the boys return home in triumph with their game and pelts, fully hardened into capable young hunters.

How It Unfolds

The initial encounter Joe and Harry Westmore are ambushed by tramps while returning from a outing, losing a prized watch before seeking help at Andy Dugan's farm.

Organizing the club The local youths form the Gun Club of Lakeport, gather camping equipment, and haul two heavily loaded sleds out across the frozen lake to Pine Island.

Establishing Snow Lodge Guided by the old hunter Joel Runnell, the boys repair an abandoned cabin, chop firewood, lay down pine-bough bunks, and cut through thick ice to fish.

Trapped by wolves While retrieving hung deer meat in the forest, Joe and Harry are cornered in a tree by eight snarling wolves and must craft a gunpowder fuse to blow a hole in the pack.

An unwelcome visitor A wild bear wanders into the cabin while Joe is alone, forcing him to fight off the beast with burning sticks until Runnell fires through the window.

Confronting the land grabber Hiram Skeetles and Dan Marcy attempt to drive the boys off the island and steal their stores, but the boys use their leverage to make the pair eat humble pie.

Expanding the camp Joined by Link, Bart, and Teddy, the party labors for two days to build a second winter shelter out of pine limbs, snow, and an outdoor fire pit.

Cornering the tramps The group tracks missing meat to an old house in the woods, where they assist Constable Peabody in surrounding and handcuffing the tramp gang.

Triumphant return With the stolen watch recovered and documents found that expose Skeetles' land fraud, the young hunters haul their moose meat back to Lakeport.

The People

• Joe Westmore is the practical, steady leader of the group. Elected president of the Gun Club, he faces tight situations—such as a bear in the cabin or a wolf pack at the tree base—with a calm head and quick resourcefulness.
• Harry Westmore is Joe’s brother, an enthusiastic hunter who carries a camera along on the expedition. He wants to capture sharp photographs of wild game, though he often finds himself taking accidental tumbles in the deep snow.
• Fred Rush is the son of the town hardware dealer. He is irrepressibly cheerful and full of fun, yet remarkably prone to small disasters, from firing both barrels of a shotgun at once to taking snowballs in the face.
• Joel Runnell is the experienced hunter who serves as the group's guide. Wise in woodcraft and patient with the boys, he teaches them how to build shelters, track game, and survive extreme cold without losing his temper.
• Hiram Skeetles is a lean, tobacco-chewing real estate agent with yellowed teeth. Greedy and deceitful, he tries to bully the boys off the island and fabricate claims to local property.
• Dan Marcy is the heavy-handed town bully who allies with Skeetles, attempting to intimidate the younger boys until he is soundly outwitted.

In Its Own Voice

Before the boys ever reach their island wilderness, they learn that local country life carries its own distinct characters and practical hospitality.

“Sure, an’ where did you b’ys spring from?” said Dugan, on opening the door. “’Tis a likely walk ye are from town.”

When the party prepares for their long winter trek, they realize that wilderness recreation requires serious physical labor long before the sport begins.

“It is going to be no easy work transporting that load to Pine Island,” observed Harry, gazing at the stores as they lay in a heap on the barn floor at his parents’ place.

Once out in the deep woods, the realities of forest life mix unexpected danger directly into their hunting routines.

“We are in a pickle now, and no error!” groaned Harry. “What in the world are we to do next?”

What It's Really About

Underneath its fast-moving wilderness adventures, the story explores the transition from boyhood play to adult self-reliance. It argues that physical recreation is valuable not merely for sport, but for building character, patience, and practical discipline. Chopping wood, enduring sub-zero temperatures, and cooking basic meals require the boys to abandon comfort and take full responsibility for their well-being. Furthermore, the book contrasts the clean, cooperative ethic of the young hunters with the petty dishonesty of figures like Hiram Skeetles and the tramps. True competence in the wilderness, Stratemeyer suggests, goes hand-in-hand with honesty, respect for nature, and loyalty to one's companions.

Why Read It Today

The Gun Club Boys of Lakeport offers a clear, unvarnished window into turn-of-the-twentieth-century juvenile fiction. Readers who enjoy classic survival literature, historic outdoor lore, or traditional boy-scout-style adventures will appreciate its detailed descriptions of ice fishing, shelter building, and snowshoeing. Stratemeyer writes with a direct, energetic pace that keeps the story moving steadily from one winter challenge to the next.

Modern readers should be aware of a few period details. The narrative reflects the early 1900s view of wilderness conservation, where hunting game is viewed purely as sport and self-sufficiency, though the author notes in his preface that large forest animals were already fast disappearing due to development. Additionally, the dialogue contains phonetically written regional accents—such as Irish immigrant dialect—which were common literary conventions of the period. For those interested in early American youth fiction, the novel remains an engaging, lighthearted snapshot of outdoor life, woodcraft, and small-town camaraderie.