Scouting's history goes back to the turn
of the 20th century to a British Army officer, Robert Stephenson Smyth
Baden-Powell. While stationed in India, he discovered that his men did
not know basic first aid or the elementary means of survival in the
outdoors. Baden-Powell realized he needed to teach his men many frontier
skills, so he wrote a small handbook called Aids to Scouting,
which emphasized resourcefulness, adaptability, and the qualities of
leadership that frontier conditions demanded.
After returning from the Boer War, where
he became famous by protecting the small town of Mafeking for 217 days,
Baden-Powell was amazed to find that his little handbook had caught the
interest of English boys. They were using it to play the game of
scouting.
Baden-Powell had the vision to see some
new possibilities, and he decided to test his ideas on boys. In August
1907, he gathered about 20 boys and took them to Brownsea Island in a
sheltered bay off England's southern coast. They set up a makeshift camp
that would be their home for the next 12 days.
The boys had a great time! They divided
into patrols and played games, went on hikes, and learned stalking and
pioneering. They learned to cook outdoors without utensils. Scouting
began on that island and would sweep the globe in a few years.
The next year, Baden-Powell published his
book Scouting for Boys, and Scouting continued to grow. That
same year, more than 10,000 Boy Scouts attended a rally held at the
Crystal Palace; a mere two years later, membership in Boy Scouts had
tripled.
About this same time, the seeds of
Scouting were growing in the United States. On a farm in Connecticut, a
naturalist and author named Ernest Thompson Seton was organizing a group
of boys called the Woodcraft Indians; and Daniel Carter Beard, an
artist and writer, organized the Sons of Daniel Boone. In many ways, the
two organizations were similar, but they were not connected. The boys
who belonged had never heard of Baden-Powell or of Boy Scouts, and yet
both groups were destined to become Boy Scouts one day soon.
But first, an American businessman had to
get lost in the fog in England. Chicago businessman and publisher
William D. Boyce was groping his way through the fog when a boy appeared
and offered to take him to his destination. When they arrived, Boyce
tried to tip the boy, but the boy refused and courteously explained that
he was a Scout and could not accept payment for a Good Turn.
Intrigued, the publisher questioned the
boy and learned more about Scouting. He visited with Baden-Powell as
well and became captured by the idea of Scouting. When Boyce boarded the
transatlantic steamer for home, he had a suitcase filled with
information and ideas. And so, on February 8, 1910, Boyce incorporated
the Boy Scouts of America.
The "unknown Scout" who helped him in the
fog was never heard from again, but he will never be forgotten. His
Good Turn is what brought Scouting to our country.
After the incorporation of the BSA, a
group of public-spirited citizens worked to set up the organization.
Seton became the first Chief Scout of the BSA, and Beard was made the
national commissioner.
The first executive officer was James E.
West, a young man from Washington who had risen above a tragic boyhood
and physical disability to become a successful lawyer. He dedicated
himself to helping all children to have a better life and led the BSA
for 32 years as the Chief Scout Executive.
Scouting has grown in the United States
from 2,000 Boy Scouts and leaders in 1910 to millions strong today. From
a program for Boy Scouts only, it has spread into a program including
Tiger Cubs, Cub Scouts, Webelos Scouts, Boy Scouts, Varsity Scouts, and
Venturers.