Since I haven't been able to camp much lately due to the demands of school and jobs (sigh), I've been reading a lot of "classic" camping manuals. Bushcraft/primitive skills/whatever-you-call-it is another interest of mine, so I've been particularly looking for old camping manuals (old as in, pre-1910). I stumbled across "Prairie Traveler" today - this is a manual published in 1859 by the Army Signal Corps to help travellers moving west. It covers paths to take, supplies, choosing a spot to overnight, and lots of other topics (including how to make mule steak more palatable). I thought it might be interesting to some of the folk here. Here's the link to the PDF:
http://www.bushcraftuk.com/downloads/pdf/prairietraveler%5B1%5D.pdf
Woodcraft and Camping by George W. Sears (who wrote under the pen-name Nessmuk) is also available from the same source.