What is Camp David?

It’s where the world whispers…

Hidden deep within the wooded veils of Catoctin Mountain, far from the public eye, lies the most secretive sanctuary in modern history: Camp David. Known formally as Naval Support Facility Thurmont, this cloaked command post is no mere presidential retreat. It’s a stage where silence seals world-shaping deals and power reclines in stillness.

Conceived in secrecy by FDR as Shangri-La, a nod to the mythical paradise, it became a sacred space, tailored to his vision of seclusion and strength. Eisenhower later renamed it in a gesture both intimate and dynastic: Camp David, in honor of his grandson.

But what really happens behind its gates?

It’s where the D-Day invasion was conceptually planned by Churchill and FDR. Where Cold War nerves met over coffee. Where peace between Israel and Egypt was brokered not with ceremony, but with quiet conviction in forested stillness. From Vietnam to the Bay of Pigs, foreign dignitaries to covert negotiations, Camp David has heard it all, but never speaks.

It does not broadcast history, it buries it beneath pines and silence.

Camp David isn’t just exclusive, it’s elusive. And only a chosen few ever cross its threshold.

Frequently Asked Questions About Camp David

  • Camp David is the secure presidential retreat in Maryland’s Catoctin Mountains. Presidents have used it for rest, private deliberation, diplomacy and meetings with world leaders since Franklin D. Roosevelt established the retreat in 1942.

  • Camp David is located within Catoctin Mountain Park near Thurmont, Maryland, about 60 miles northwest of Washington, D.C. It is formally known as Naval Support Facility Thurmont.

  • President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the retreat during World War II as a secure place to work and rest away from Washington. He called it Shangri-La; President Dwight D. Eisenhower later renamed it Camp David.

  • Camp David is especially known for the 1978 Camp David Accords between Egypt and Israel. It has also hosted private presidential deliberations, diplomatic meetings and conversations with foreign leaders across many administrations.

  • Camp David is an active, secure presidential facility and is not open for public tours. Presidential Seclusion gives readers a documented historical tour of the retreat through archival research and Charles Ferguson’s firsthand experience as Camp David Historian.

  • Explore Presidential Seclusion for a documented history of the presidential retreat and a rare guided perspective from former Camp David Historian Charles Ferguson.