When people start digging into the history of Camp Scott—more infamously known in true crime circles as the setting for the 1977 tragedy—the first question usually isn't about the geography or the counselors. It’s about the kids. Specifically, how old were the girls at Mystic camp when they arrived for that fateful summer session? You might think a summer camp is just a big soup of kids aged six to sixteen, but the Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) had a very rigid structure back then. They didn’t just throw everyone together.
Camp Scott, located near Locust Grove, Oklahoma, was partitioned into specific units. "Mystic" was one of those units. If you were a Girl Scout in the late seventies, your unit wasn't just a name; it was a definition of your age, your rank, and what kind of badges you were trying to earn.
The Age Range of the Mystic Unit
The three girls who stayed in Tent 8 of the Mystic unit—Lori Lee Farmer, Michele Heather Guse, and Doris Denise Milner—were between the ages of 8 and 10. This was the standard age bracket for the Mystic area during that specific two-week session in June 1977.
Lori was 8.
Michele was 9.
Denise was 10.
It’s heartbreakingly young.
The Mystic unit was specifically designated for "Brownies" and "Juniors." In the 1970s GSUSA hierarchy, Brownies were typically ages 6 to 8 (grades 1-3), and Juniors were ages 9 to 11 (grades 4-6). Because this was a "crossover" session, the Mystic unit housed that specific transition group. Most of the girls in that area were primary school students, many of whom were experiencing their very first night away from their parents.
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Why the Mystic Unit Layout Mattered
You have to understand how the camp was built to understand why the age of these girls is so significant to the story. The Mystic unit was the furthest away from the central counselor's tent. Honestly, it was isolated. You had these girls, some as young as eight, sleeping in heavy canvas tents on wooden platforms, quite a distance from adult supervision.
The counselors for the Mystic unit were teenagers themselves. In 1977, it wasn't uncommon for "counselors-in-training" or junior counselors to be just 17 or 18 years old. So, you had 8-year-olds being supervised by 18-year-olds. It was a different era. Safety standards weren't what they are now. No fenced perimeters. No high-frequency radios. Just a flashlight and a whistle.
The Specific Demographics of June 1977
During that first session of the 1977 summer, the camp hosted around 140 girls. They were spread across several units:
- Mystic: The youngest group (8-10 years old).
- Kiowa: Slightly older juniors.
- Tashie: Older girls, often focused on more advanced wilderness skills.
The girls in Mystic were mostly from the Tulsa area. They were kids who had spent the year selling cookies and attending troop meetings in church basements. For Lori, Michele, and Denise, this was supposed to be the "big kid" experience. Denise Milner was actually the oldest of the three in Tent 8, having just finished fifth grade.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Ages
A common misconception is that the girls were teenagers or that the camp was a "high school" summer camp. It wasn't. When people ask how old were the girls at Mystic camp, they are often shocked to realize we are talking about elementary school children.
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The vulnerability of an 8-year-old in a thunderstorm—and there was a massive thunderstorm on their first night—is immense. The noise of the rain on the canvas tents was reportedly so loud that it drowned out almost everything else. When you're that age, a thunderstorm in the woods is terrifying enough without any external threats.
How the GSUSA Changed Enrollment After 1977
After the events at Camp Scott, the way the Girl Scouts handled age-grouping and "primitive" camping changed overnight. You didn't see 8-year-olds being placed in the most remote units anymore.
Security became the priority.
The "Mystic" experience—living in the deep woods with minimal light and distance from the main lodge—was re-evaluated across the country.
Actually, Camp Scott never reopened. The site was abandoned, and the woods eventually reclaimed the platforms where the Mystic unit once stood. But the records from the Magic Empire Council (now known as Girl Scouts of Eastern Oklahoma) confirm the enrollment logs. Those girls were precisely the age of children who still believe in the absolute safety provided by the adults in charge.
The Legacy of the Mystic Girls
The ages of these girls—8, 9, and 10—became a catalyst for the "Stranger Danger" movement that gripped the United States in the late 70s and early 80s. Before this, summer camp was seen as a perfectly safe rite of passage. Afterward, parents started asking much tougher questions about counselor-to-camper ratios and the physical security of the campgrounds.
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If you look at the forensic evidence discussed in the trial of Gene Leroy Hart (who was acquitted but remains the primary suspect in the eyes of many), the extreme youth of the victims was a point of focus for the prosecution. It highlighted the sheer brutality of the crime. These weren't girls who could easily fight back or even fully comprehend the danger they were in until it was too late.
Understanding the Context of 1977
To really get why they were there, you have to look at the culture of 1977. Free-range parenting was the norm. Kids stayed out until the streetlights came on. Sending your 8-year-old to a remote camp in the woods was considered "character building."
Basically, the girls at Mystic were part of a generation that was taught to be independent early.
What You Should Know If You're Researching This
If you are looking into the history of the Girl Scout murders or the specific logistics of Camp Scott, keep these factual markers in mind:
- The Unit Name: Mystic wasn't just a "spooky" name; it was a standard unit designation for that region's camps.
- The Session: This was the very first night of the two-week session. The girls had only been on-site for a few hours.
- The Supervision: There were two counselors assigned to the Mystic unit, sleeping in a tent about 100 yards away.
- The Proximity: Tent 8 was the furthest from the counselor tent, tucked behind a cluster of trees near the equipment shed.
The tragedy of the girls at Mystic camp isn't just in what happened, but in the innocence of their age. They were at that perfect window of childhood—old enough to want adventure, but young enough to need a level of protection that, unfortunately, the camp's geography didn't provide.
Actionable Insights for Historians and Researchers
If you are digging deeper into the enrollment and demographics of 1970s youth organizations, here are the best steps to take:
- Consult Local Archives: The Tulsa World archives from June and July 1977 provide the most accurate contemporary accounts of the camp's layout and the girls' backgrounds.
- Review GSUSA Historical Handbooks: To understand the "Mystic" designation, look for Girl Scout handbooks printed between 1970 and 1975. They detail the exact requirements for the badges these girls were working on.
- Visit Memorial Sites: There is a memorial for the girls in their hometowns. Researching the local impact in Tulsa provides a much clearer picture of who these children were beyond just their ages.
- Analyze Camp Security Evolution: Compare the 1977 American Camping Association (ACA) standards with modern requirements. It’s a sobering look at how much the industry learned from the failures at Camp Scott.
The reality is that Lori, Michele, and Denise were just children on an adventure. Their ages—8, 9, and 10—remain the most poignant detail of the entire Mystic camp story.