Edgar Rice Burroughs in Lake Geneva

Edgar Rice Burroughs, the man who created such memorable characters as John Carter of Mars and Tarzan of the Apes, was born on September 1, 1875.  Burroughs' influence on gaming is profound, but few realize that he also once visited Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.

Those wargamers who lack imagination, those who don’t care for Burroughs’ Martian adventures where John Carter is groping through black pits . . . will not be likely to find DUNGEONS & DRAGONS to their taste. But those whose imaginations know no bounds will find that these rules are the answer to their prayers.

Gary Gygax, from the forward to OD&D v1: Men and Magic

Burroughs' first sale "Under the Moons of Mars" was published in 1912, followed by over two dozen additional tales in the pulps over the next five years alone.  Originally from Chicago, he spent several months in southern California before returning to Illinois in April, 1917.

Intensely patriotic, much of Burroughs' writing during World War I involved wartime sentiments.  Tarzan battles German soldiers in East Africa in "Tarzan the Untamed".  The Caspak Trilogy, starting with "The Land That Time Forgot", was also written during this period.

Having prior military experience, Burroughs was able to obtain a commission as captain in the Illinois state militia, Company A, Second Infantry on July 19, 1917, taking his oath of allegiance as a captain in the reserves on May 3, 1918.

Camp Steever, Lake Geneva, Summer 1918.  Source: wikimedia commons

That summer, Burroughs and his company participated in military training from August 12-26 at Camp Steever, Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.  While there, he wrote to his daughter, Joan:

Young Men's Christian Association of Camp Steever
Lake Geneva, Wisconsin ~ Military Training Camp for Boys

Tuesday*

My dear little daughter -

I have a few minutes before next drill period so I thought I would write you, Mamma & the boys; but as I will have time for but one letter this must be for all of you.

They called us out at ten last night and instructed us in night operations across country. We got back at 12:15 am. All pretty tired as we had had bayonet fighting & hand grenade throwing in the after noon -- the former very strenuous.

I think we have trench work this afternoon; but am not sure.

I hope you had a pleasant trip home

 *undated, but probably August 13 or 20, 1918

Upon his return to Oak Park, Burroughs related his experience to lifelong friend Bert Weston in a letter dated August 28, 1918, stating "I put in an interesting and profitable two weeks..."

Ed returned to Camp Steever shortly thereafter, wishing "to see the battalion from the outside." after which he wrote another letter to Weston, dated September 4:

Geneva is a deep, clear-water lake. The water is never warm and the swimming is fine. It is one of the deepest lakes of its size in the country and goes right off within a few feet of the shore into deep water. At one place Government soundings show it to be 1027 ft. deep but I did not go down to verify the report. I derived considerable benefit from the training, especially in the matter of the new spirit of military instruction. I believe three months intensive training in an officer's training camp would make me a regular guy again as I feel that I was after my five years at Orchard Lake. I notice in the new draft law that bald headed men with three children are to be put into A-1 class so I suppose you and I will soon be in the front line trenches.

Excerpt from: Cohen, Matt (Ed.)  Brother Men: The Correspondence of Edgar Rice Burroughs and Herbert T. Weston.  Duke University Press, Durham and London, 2005.

In September, Burroughs was promoted to major and assigned to the command of the First Battalion, Second Infantry, making the cover of The Oak Parker.  After the war, he returned to California, where he would spend the next major phase of his life.

It's doubtful whether Gary Gygax or anyone in Lake Geneva knew that Edgar Rice Burroughs participated in military training in their town during World War I - but it makes for an interesting footnote in the history of role playing games, nevertheless.