1920s Wilderness Kit: Authentic Camping Gear from the Golden Era! 

Me at 74 also, your series keeps my past alive, it never ceases to amaze me. Thank you

At 74, you always take me back to my childhood memories. At the ripe old age if 6, 7, maybe 8, myself and a couple buddies befriended the elderly widow next door. Keep in mind this was country life so next door was a quarter mile down the road. We would make a point of visiting her every few weeks to enjoy stories of her younger years. There were usually cookies involved and on rare occasions a visit to her attic where she stored precious memories of her husband and grown son who lived in Minneapolis 150 miles away. Her son was a collector of model cars and I believe her husband was an avid fisherman and outdoors enthusiast. I remember his wicker fishing creel and assorted fishing rods, reels, and tackle that were all period correct for this series. Good memories for sure.

You should do a 1950's kit . Same as the 20's kit , but now you would have WW2 bring backs from those guys . Like the german M31 mess kit , things like that . A lot of those guys would slice up potatos , salt and pepper them , then eat them raw . They got used to it from being an infantryman in WW2 . I tried it , it was actually not bad .

I love it! Great basic kit, no cell phone, GPS or electronic toys, nothing synthetic. Just all practical.

Yes sir, that's everything you would need to head out for a nice bit of time exploring the woods. simple and functional. Really dig the items you're getting together. There's something exciting about seeing stuff from that time period and how much sense it makes. Thank you James!

The potato is also great for burns. I've been using the method for more than 40 years and the family use it too now. Burns (skin not broken), peel potato and scrape a right good mush. We're not looking for a thin spread, but a pile covering the burn. Use anything to hold in place. Even folded kitchen roll and masking tape do the job. The pain goes almost instantly. Leave in place as long as possible, preferably overnight, as it also promotes healing. Can't speak highly enough of this. You'll be very surprised if you ever need it.

My grandpa had a tin similar to the one shown. He carried flour and salt in it along with a bottle of vegetable oil and we would make Bannock bread wrapped like a snake around a stick and baked over the campfire when we would go into the UP of Michigan to hunt. Like a marshmallow. If you have never had bread off a stick… you never went camping with my Grandpa. Lol. He’s also the one that taught me you could throw spam or hash in cans (with a hole poked in them) directly into the fire pit and fish them out with sticks to get some hot food quickly when it’s freezing cold and you don’t have any proper cookware. My Grandpa said he learned that trick in the Army with C rations and being stationed at Fort Drum (I think) in New York in the winter. At that time they only had a bonfire, P38 can opener, and frozen c rations… so they made do. He also said invariably some people would forget to poke a hole in the can and the whole thing would explode before they could fish the cans out. Thanks for the video. Loved it.

Excellent video. I’m totally enjoying the Hobo video series. Thank You!

I like how vintage military surplus is used in retro or even current hiking. I recently caught a video of a Russian RU-vidr utilizing a WWII German gas mask can as a meat storage container while visiting his remote cabin. The meat was wrapped in paper.

Awesome leatherwork and design for the canteen cover. That’s really cool. I might have to make one of those.

Very nice My folks didn't transport salt pork or bacon very often because they didn't really travel much of anywhere besides to town every blue moon, or to church or to school. But when they did, the pork would be wrapped in cheesecloth or cotton cloth from feed and flour and sugar sacks, or in the waxed paper of the era. Nothing like what we have now. More like brown butcher paper that was waxed. The climate here necessitated the meat needed to "breathe" so it wouldn't get moldy ( even though it was heavily salted) They might have carried tea, but more likely coffee or yaupon. If they were on a fishing trip or something like that when crops didn't need babysitting, they could gather wood sorrel and poke salad and such at the destination Thanks for the video

You have such excellent kits. I love the vintage items!

The canteen and cover are BEAUTIFUL ! 😁😁😁

Sir you always put on one hell of a good show. Hats off to you. Nice kit.

the condaments kit is an amazing idea.

I have an UNBELIEVABLE bushjacket - it has six pockets, two of which are HUGE. It has a shoulder and top of the back flap like a coach man's cloak. Its thick and warm and a tad too big for me but it was given to me by my friends husband. He's a farmer and ever year at Christmas he gets gifts from firms that he's done business with during the year - quite often jackets like the one he gave me.

Hi James, You know when you say "Always carry a Survival kit even when you take an Hour Walk". Today, the news reported of a hiker that got rescued after 10 days. He planned a 3 hour hike but got lost for 10. He had on him: his shirt, pants, boots and a Hat. He was drinking water using his boots. I hope that he didn't have Athlete foot disease. Moral : "Always be prepared" like the Scouts. Just sharing how easily a person, beginner or professional, can get lost in the wilderness. Thanks

By examining the past we can learn so much that better prepares us for our future. In the Roaring Twenties life was good for many Americans. The stock market was rising, prosperity was booming, and companies started mass production of consumer goods. The electrification of America was finally happening and women gained the right to vote. People back then were very resilient, because they had learned from the generations before them to take care of themselves. Here, your 1920s personal camping kit sure looks similar to the items listed in a modern 10 C’s of preparedness/survival kit. Excellent content here Mr. James Bender. Great information about the early American past that is still useful to us today. I greatly appreciate your commitment and your authenticity. - Tennessee Smoky

'Tis a brave man that wanders out wearing argyle socks for all the world to see. There were always bouillon cubes in my Dad's kit. Cook frogs, salamanders, and newts (tastes like chicken) and mix in some Indian Cucumbers for a quick and easy soup.

Wow. So cool. Im into bushcraft and now hikers training. This old school i love the most. Makes me realize what pioneers did.

I love these trips back into better times.....

Moin moin.. What a nice Kit ..! Sorry for my Englisch. Sehr Gut 👍 Genau sowas versuche ich mir , Für Heute , mit geringen Mitteln und aus meiner bescheidenen Sammlung , zusammen zu stellen. Deine Videos sind einfach Genial, bin Ein großer Fan davon. Weiter so und viele Grüße, Stephan aus Kiel , North Germany 👍😁🤘

James is a walking museum, love it thanks.

I've been doing this for over 30 years. Over that period it's difficult to find new information. The double sided tin is awesome.

What a wonderful walk through history. 👍🏼👍🏼

Cool kit James. I love your passion for the hobo. I'm from WV. Seen a lot of hobos in the hobo jungle back in the day. They would run us off from back in there. We thought they were A-holes but now I know why some of them did that James. Some of them didn't have the best of intentions man

James, an old waterproofing that I still use on boots and was thinking you could use on that haversack, is a mixture of neetsfoot oil and beeswax. Just heat and melt the beeswax and stir in some oil and then pour in a tin and let semi-harden. If put too much oil, it wont harden enough. Then just rub it on to waterproof and works very well.

Nice outfit, kit & video.

Very nice vintage kit. I love the bacon tin. First time seeing one. I've seen a few other comments asking for a 1950s kit. I would also love to see that video.

Thank you, Mr. Bender, for both the nostalgia and the innovative ideas. My late parents had an, often used quote, "Necessity is the Mother of invention". In times past, not everything was "ready made" so innovation was a necessary part of life. Stay well & safe. Cheers.

Love that estwing

The way you manage to acquire so much mint condition vintage and antique items is truly impressive. You amaze me.

We I greatly appreciate you taking us back in time.

Love Mercator lock knives, really sturdy for a folder.

Thanks James! Really nice body gear and story that Follows.

I truly admire your love of the craft, especially in these retro videos. I love History and these videos are fantastic. I love your hobo series, and especially love your 1790's series.

Thank You For Sharing, James ! Excellent Presentation, As Usual.

Great content as usual. Makes me want to leave home and become a hobo, however, my wife said no, so I'll just keep enjoying your vids. Thanks!

Great load out.

again, one of the BEST channels on youtube.

Great video as usual. Lots of great content. Thanks for showing all the neat stuff you carry. I love all period items you use.

I love the vintage and antique items and the way many of them are repurposed. So simple and functional. Good times and good memories. I think your channel is of very good quality.

Ich finde eure zusammen Arbeit mit Felix Immler super !

These videos are always a welcome part of the day. Thank you so much!

Very cool, thank you

that cool condonement container

I always respect and enjoy your historical knowledge!

Many Thanks James !!!

I really enjoy that you are as authentic as possible on your period videos. 62 & watching in Montana.

nice old time kit.

That was an awesome video !! Thank you James 👍

Love the antique equip.ent, skills videos!

You have some very cool gear in your collections. Thanks for sharing them with us.

Pretty cool set, thank you.

Another great video! I absolutely love these old-school approaches, just my cup of tea:) Thank you very much.

Excellent video. Thank you for bringing us a bit of history. I am always learning something from them 👍

Informative and entertaining post as usual! Keep them coming.

Nice kit , great vid James thank you for all the research you do to bring this kind of vid to us

Very cool kit and video! Thanks for the video and for sharing your experience with us James.

Thank you once again 🙏

Such a great no-nonsense kit. 😀 Thank you for educating us with this great video series. Much appreciated.

You always have such interesting items.

Another fantastic video James. I love the view back in time and it brings to remembrance items my grandparents had around. Thank you!!

I really enjoy watching all your videos, thanks and have a great week , your friend Brian.

Your delivery and enthusiasm are great. Really appreciate these videos. 2 thumbs up

Wow you find the coolest stuff!

James Very good video really enjoyed it 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

James another outstanding video and thank you for caring and sharing! I always learn something from you. Take Care and God Bless.

Good stuff, James!

👍🏼 Thank you for this Video 🥰

Always a pleasure to see your treasures James . Naturally I love the bacon tin . Have a great day

Nice items. I like vintage stuff.

It's called "looking dapper" my grandfather always dressed dapper! And he's the one that taught me to always carry chapstick a hankey and a pocket knife. I do to this day! I'm 52 now.

Excellent kit James! I love these old school videos ypu do, as well as your other content! I really liked that hatchet!

I love your videos. Keep them up. I learn something new every time I watch them. Thank you and God Bless 🙏🏼

Great video James Makes me want to head out. After it cools off

Sometimes the old ways seem better to me nice video again thanks for sharing👌👍

Yes your spice is coming very handy even for hunting

You knocked it out of the park again, James! Great video. I've seen a ton of bushcraft survival vids and I like your series so much. What a great idea to tie some of the old (and tried and true) with the new. For example, your vid on rain gear..nothing better than tried and true rubber or tough denim/canvas. None of the new tech stuff could hold up to tough understory.

Geniales videos llenos de historia!!! Saludos desde Durango, Dgo. México

A bunch of old fogies here! Glad to see some are still active!. We gotta fighure how to pack our "old stuff" up and pass in on to our grandkids.

Fantastic, and loving the comments here.

Another great one, James; as well as another walk down Memory Lane. My grandfather served in France in WW I, & as I indicated previously, I have a WW I military cnateen but not a nice leather case like yours. Grandaddy & my beloved grandmother married shortly after the War & my Daddy was born in 1922. He & Mamma were very familiar with the period which you represent in this video. AsI i mentioned previously, I have several items appropriate for periods which you portray. Thank you. God bless you; & to God be the glory!

I really enjoy your videos!!

Awesome video.

Another awesome video. Cups are another one of those things were you have to chose between small and easy to pack or larger with more capability. I’m currently running a reproduction WW2 British cup from What Price Glory and am enjoying it.

Always good stuff.

This is a really nice old time Set!Thanks for showing 😉

James, love your kit videos. The basics of preparedness never change, and it never hurts to be prepared for the extremely unlikely, but nevertheless possible and unexpected. When venturing into the wilderness, especially an unfamiliar wilderness, ALWAYS take enough gear and provisions with you to find your way back or enable you to hole up for a while should you need to. As the great Daniel Boone (supposedly) said, "I've never been lost, but I was mighty turned around for three days once!" If it could happen to someone like him, remember...you ain't Daniel Boone!

Great video, enjoy all your reenactments

When i saw your pocket knife it reminded me of a pocket folding mariners knife/fid i used to carry in my flight vest when i was an aircrewman. It was the only piece of personal gear i carried along with the navy issue survival gear. Nice vid... thanks

Nice kit. When it comes to the wandering stick, I recommend one about shoulder height but with a crook on the top. It makes pulling branches full of fruit to within reach much easier. I'd also recommend embedding a nail into the bottom it greatly improves traction and aids in self defense.

Thank you this was interesting 😊

Thanks James😊

Another interesting video! 👍👍👍👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼😀🌸🍀

Great video.I have about a dozen estwing hatchets,hammers and 1 axe.I don't have that one.I keep thinking about how much more wilderness there was in the 20s and 30s. THANKS

That’s interesting I always thought the whole pocket fishing kit was a little more modern. Learn something new everyday! I appreciate the research and effort you go through to make these videos. Great job.

Wonderful video James, thanks for sharing YAH bless brother !

Man I don't know where you find all that neat old stuff, but its really cool. Thx for the vid James

Thanks James