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History of the BSA Highlights

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1910

• The Boy Scouts of America was incorporated
• February 8, 1910
• Under the laws of the District of Columbia
• Thirty-four national representatives of boys’ work agencies met, June 21
• Met in a temporary national headquarters in a YMCA office in New York
• Developed organization plans
• Founders of Scouting: (click here to learn more)
• William D. Boyce, incorporator
• Colin H. Livingstone, president
• Daniel Carter Beard, national Scout commissioner
• Ernest Thompson Seton, Chief Scout
• James E. West, Chief Scout Executive
• President William Howard Taft, honorary president
• Former President Theodore Roosevelt, honorary vice president and Chief Scout Citizen

1911

• National Council office opened, January 2
• 200 Fifth Avenue, New York City
• 7 employees
• First annual meeting
• At the White House, Washington, D.C.
• Addressed by President Taft
• The Scout Oath, Scout Law, badges, and fundamental policies were adopted
• National Court of Honor presented the first awards for heroism: 22 Bronze Medals

1912

• First Eagle Scout, August 12
• Arthur Eldred
• First national civic Good Turns were performed
• Promotion of a safe and sane Fourth of July
• Sea Scouting began
• Boys’ Life became the official BSA magazine

1913

• First local council charters were issued
• Scouting became the official magazine for volunteers

1914

• First Scout Sunday was celebrated
• First tree-planting project was held in New York
• Training for Scout leaders was developed
• First William T. Hornaday gold medal for the conservation of wildlife

1915

• National office to train all Scouters was established
• Fifty-seven merit badge pamphlets were issued
• The Handbook for Scoutmasters was issued
• The Order of the Arrow began

1916

• Constitution and bylaws were adopted
• The first college course in Scouting began at Teachers College, New York

1917

• Scouting’s full resources were placed at the service of the government
• Slogan: ‘‘Help Win the War’’
• The first winter camp was held by Chicago Scouts

Scouts’ War Effort: 1917–1918

• Sold Liberty bonds and war savings stamps totaling more than $355 million.
• Collected 100 railroad cars full of nutshells and peach pits for gas mask manufacturing
• Distributed more than 300 million pieces of government literature
• Aided in food and fuel conservation projects
• Planted 12,000 Boy Scout war gardens

1918

• BSA adopted the slogan ‘‘The War Is Over, but Our Work Is Not’’
• Scouts rendered nationwide service during the influenza epidemic

1919

• First four Gold Medals were awarded by the National Court of Honor for saving a life at the risk of the rescuer’s own
• U.S. Bureau of Naturalization invited Scouts to aid in its Americanization program
• President Woodrow Wilson established National Boy Scout Week

1920–1929

• First World Jamboree, 1920
• London, England
• 8,000 Scouts from 34 countries were present
• 301 BSA members attended
• The international left handclasp was adopted, 1923
• Northern Tier high-adventure base began offering canoe adventures, 1923
• Every Scout a Swimmer program began, 1924
• Second world jamboree, 1924
• Copenhagen, Denmark
• 56 BSA members attended
• First Silver Buffalo Awards for distinguished service to boyhood were awarded, 1926
• Twenty-two awards given
• The first was awarded to Baden-Powell
• The second was presented in the honor of the unknown Scout whose Good Turn brought Scouting to America
• National office was moved to 2 Park Avenue, New York City, 1927

1930–1939

• Cub Scout program was formally launched, 1930
• 5,102 Cub Scouts by the end of the first year
• First Silver Beaver awards for distinguished service to boyhood within a council, 1931
• President Roosevelt called for help from the Scouts for the distressed and needy, 1934
• Nationwide Good Turn
• Collected 1,812,284 items of clothing, household furnishings, foodstuffs, and supplies
• Silver Jubilee of Scouting, 1935
• Membership passed 1 million, 1935
• Proposed national jamboree was canceled because of an infantile paralysis epidemic, 1935
• First national jamboree, 1937
• Washington, D.C., at the invitation of President Roosevelt
• 27,232 attended, representing 536 councils
• Philturn Rockymountain Scoutcamp established
• Gift from Waite Phillips, 1938
• 35,857 acres of land near Cimarron, New Mexico

1940–1949

• Philmont Scout Ranch established
• Additional gift from Waite Phillips, 1941
• Residence and ranch buildings
• Livestock and operating ranch equipment
• Contiguous to former Philturn Rockymountain Scoutcamp
• Total combined acreage: 127,000
• First Silver Antelope Awards for distinguished service to youth within a region, 1943
• Councils and campsites by 1949
• 543 councils
• 831 campsites
• 288,545 acres

Scouts’ War Effort: 1941–1945

• Included 69 specific requests from the government
• Collected 30 million pounds of rubber during a two-week drive
• 20,000 Scouts earned the Gen. Douglas MacArthur Medal for Victory Gardens
• Distributed pledge cards for war bonds and savings stamps
• Distributed stamp posters
• Collected aluminum, wastepaper, and salvage
• Conducted defense housing surveys
• Distributed air-raid posters
• Served as messengers and dispatch bearers
• Assisted emergency medical units
• Served as fire watchers

1950–1959

• Second national jamboree, 1950
• Valley Forge, Pennsylvania
• 47,163 Scouts and leaders attended
• First Boy Scout stamp issued by the U.S. Post Office Department, 1950
• 2 million pounds of clothing collected for domestic and foreign relief, 1952
• Distributed more than a million posters and 30 million Liberty Bell doorknob hangers in the Get-Out-the-Vote campaign, 1952
• 20-millionth member joined, 1952
• Third national jamboree, 1953
• Irvine Ranch, California
• 45,401 Scouts and leaders attended
• Boys’ Life circulation passed 1 million, 1954
• National office moved to New Brunswick, New Jersey, 1954
• More than 100,000 units, 1954
• More than 1 million adult volunteers, 1954
• Fourth national jamboree, 1957
• Valley Forge, Pennsylvania
• 50,100 Scouts and leaders attended
• 15 millionth copy of the Handbook for Boys, 1957

1960–1969

• Scouting’s Golden Jubilee, 1960
• Fifth national jamboree, 1960
• Colorado Springs, Colorado
• 53,378 Scouts and leaders attended
• Johnston Historical Museum
• Dedicated June 4, 1960
• New Brunswick, New Jersey
• Sixth national jamboree, 1964
• Valley Forge, Pennsylvania
• 52,000 Scouts and leaders attended
• 500,000th Eagle Scout honored, 1965
• 40 millionth member registered, 1965
• BSA hosted the 12th world jamboree, 1967
• Farragut State Park, Idaho
• 12,000 Scouts and leaders from 107 countries attended
• First female Explorers, 1969
• Seventh national jamboree, 1969
• Farragut State Park, Idaho
• 35,000 youth and leaders attended

1970–1979

• Scouting Keep America Beautiful Day
• June 5, 1971
• Scouts collected more than a million tons of litter
• National Eagle Scout Association formed, 1972
• Eighth national jamboree at two sites, 1973
• Moraine State Park, Pennsylvania
• Farragut State Park, Idaho
• 64,000 youth and leaders attended
• Ninth national jamboree, 1977
• Moraine State Park, Pennsylvania
• 28,600 Scouts and leaders attended
• National office moved to Irving, Texas, 1979

1980–1989

• 30 millionth Cub Scout, 1980
• Florida National High Adventure Sea Base was opened for Scouts, 1980 
• 10th national jamboree, 1981
• Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia
• 30,000 Scouts and leaders attended
• The 1 millionth Eagle Scout, 1982
• Alexander M. Holsinger
• 75th anniversary, 1985
• Theme: “Pride in the Past ... Footsteps to the Future"
• 11th national jamboree, 1985
• Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia
• 32,615 Scouts and leaders attended
• First Scouting for Food National Good Turn, 1988
• More than 60 million food items were collected
• 12th national jamboree, 1989
• Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia
• 33,000 Scouts and leaders attended

1990–1999

• Learning for Life established, 1991
• Character-building program for the classroom
• 700,000 youth participated in the first year
• 13th national jamboree, 1993
• Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia
• 33,000 Scouts and leaders attended
• 13th national jamboree, 1993
• Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia
• 26,000 Scouts and leaders attended
• 14th national jamboree, 1997
• Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia
• 35,000 Scouts and leaders
• Coed program, Venturing, was launched for youth 14 to 20 years old.

2000–2009

• The 100-millionth youth member, 2000
• Mario Castro
• 15th national jamboree, 2001
• Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia
• 40,000 youth and leaders attended
• National Scouting Museum was built, 2002
• 50,000-square-foot facility
• Next to the national office in Irving, Texas
• 16th national jamboree, 2005
• Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia
• 43,000 Scouts and leaders attended
• ArrowCorps5, 2008
• In cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service
• 3,600 Scouts and adult volunteers participated
• $5.6 million worth of improvements made to national parks
• The 2 millionth Eagle Scout, 2009
• Anthony Thomas
• The Summit Bechtel Family National Scout Reserve, 2009
• The single largest gift ever made to the BSA
• Near Beckley, West Virginia
• Future home for:
• Scouting Leadership and Training Center
• National Scout Jamboree

2010-

• Scouting's 100th Anniversary, 2010

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