Scouting in North Carolina

Scouting in North Carolina has a long history, from the 1910s to the present day, serving thousands of youth in programs that suit the environment in which they live.

Early history (1910-1950)

The Boy Scout program began in England under the leadership of Robert Baden-Powell. Baden-Powell gained fame in Britain through his leadership of British troops during the siege of Mafeking during the Boer War in South Africa in 1899-1900. Following this event a military training manual he wrote called "Aids to Scouting" gained popularity amongst boys in Britain. In the early 1900s Baden-Powell began developing the concepts of scouting and he put his theories to the test during the summer of 1907. He took a group of 22 boys to Brownsea Island where he conducted the first Boy Scout camp. He divided the boys into four groups and established the "patrol method". In 1908 Baden-Powell published "Scouting for Boys", the first Boy Scout handbook.

Scouting came to the United States a short time later. There were already boy organizations in the US under the leadership of Daniel Carter Beard (Sons of Daniel Boone), Ernest Thompson Seton (Woodcraft Indians) and the YMCA. Chicago publisher William D. Boyce learned about Scouting during a visit to London in 1909. A young boy assisted Mr. Boyce to his destination and declined a tip offered to him saying that he was a Scout. Boyce was impressed by the young man and visited the London headquarters of the Boy Scouts. He studied the British model and felt that boys in the US could benefit from this program. On February 8, 1910 the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) was incorporated. A National Office was established in New York City and James E. West was hired to lead the new organization.

Boy Scout troops were formed in North Carolina as early as 1910. Troops were formed at schools and churches in Greensboro, Raleigh, Burlington, Durham, Charlotte, Winston-Salem, and other communities. Adult volunteers in each area worked with boys in teaching outdoor skills, first aid, athletics, swimming, citizenship and leadership. These troops registered with the BSA and as communities established multiple Boy Scout troops the volunteers began seeking professional leadership. Boy Scout Councils were chartered through the BSA as "Scout Executives" were hired.

Initially, Scouting groups in the major cities formed councils. There was the Greensboro Area Council (1918), Winston-Salem Council (1919), Raleigh Council, and Durham Council. Over the next few years as Scouting spread throughout the counties the small councils consolidated and changed their names. By 1950 North Carolina was served by thirteen Boy Scout councils:[1]

Council NameHeadquartersDate Formed
Cape Fear CouncilWilmington1930
Central NC CouncilAlbemarle1937
Cherokee CouncilReidsville1923
Daniel Boone CouncilAsheville1925
East Carolina CouncilKinston1932
General Greene CouncilGreensboro1947
Mecklenburg County CouncilCharlotte1942
Occoneechee CouncilRaleigh1929
Old Hickory CouncilWinston-Salem1942
Piedmont CouncilGastonia1924
Tidewater CouncilVirginia Beach, VA1935
Tuscarora CouncilGoldsboro1923
Uwharrie CouncilHigh Point1923

Camping was an emphasis for the councils from their formation. Each council purchased or leased land for establishing Boy Scout camps. During the summer each camp was open for several weeks with a trained staff of older boys and adults to teach the Scouts various Scouting skills. In the mid-1930s most councils began holding annual "camporees." These events were held over a weekend with Scouts camping by troop with their patrols competing and demonstrating various Scouting skills.

Boy Scouts of America in North Carolina today

There are eleven Boy Scouts of America (BSA )councils in North Carolina.

Cape Fear Council

Served by the Order of the Arrow through Klahican Lodge 331

Counties served: Bladen, Brunswick, Columbus, Hoke, New Hanover, Pender, Robeson, and Scotland.

Central North Carolina Council

Served by the Order of the Arrow through Itibapishe iti Hollo Lodge 188

  • Anson District
  • Concord District
  • Kannapolis District
  • Montgomery District
  • Richmond District
  • Rowan District
  • Stanly District[2]
  • Union District

Counties served: Anson, Cabarrus, Montgomery, Richmond, Rowan, Stanly, and Union. [2]

Daniel Boone Council

Served by the Order of the Arrow through Tsali Lodge 134

Counties served: Avery, Buncombe, Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Macon, Madison, Mitchell, Swain, Transylvania, and Yancey.

East Carolina Council

Served by the Order of the Arrow through Croatan Lodge 117

Counties served: Beaufort, Bertie, Carteret, Craven, Craven, Edgecombe, Greene, Halifax, Hertford, Hyde, Jones, Lenoir, Martin, Nash, Northampton, Onslow, Pamlico, Pitt, Tyrrell, Washington, and Wilson.

Mecklenburg County Council

Served by the Order of the Arrow through Catawba Lodge 459

Counties served: Mecklenburg.

Occoneechee Council

Served by the Order of the Arrow through Occoneechee Lodge 104.

Counties served: Chatham, Cumberland, Durham, Franklin, Granville, Harnett, Lee, Moore, Orange, Vance, Wake, and Warren.

Old Hickory Council

Served by the Order of the Arrow through Wahissa Lodge 118.

Counties served: Alleghany, Ashe, Forsyth, Stokes, Surry, Watauga, Wilkes, and Yadkin. Alleghany District was merged into Laurel District in late 2010. Piedmont and Salem Districts were combined into the new Wachovia District serving Forsyth County in 2015.

Old North State Council
Main article: Old North State Council

The Old North State Council serves the Piedmont Triad region of North Carolina. The council's name is taken from the state's official song, The Old North State. Old North State Council's Order of the Arrow counterpart is Tsoiotsi Tsogalii Lodge (#70).

Counties served: Alamance, Caswell, Davidson, Davie, Guilford, Person, Randolph, and Rockingham.

Piedmont Council

The Piedmont Council is in the Piedmont Foothills region of North Carolina. It serves Scouting in Alexander, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Cleveland, Gaston, Iredell, Lincoln, McDowell, Polk, and Rutherford counties. The mission of the Piedmont Council is to serve youth by instilling Scouting values that will prepare them to make ethical choices in achieving their full potential in life.

Camps

Camp Bud Schiele is a Scouts BSA camp owned by the Piedmont Council. Summer camp programs were first officially held on the reservation in 1981 and was called Camp Natomi. In 1982 Camp Bud Schiele opened.

The reservation is settled in rural Rutherford County, North Carolina, and easily accessible from both Highway 64 and 221. Prior to Camp Bud Schiele the Piedmont Council #420 held its summer camps at the Schiele Scout Reservation in Tryon, North Carolina.[3]

Organization
  • Battleground
  • Chimney Rock
  • Foothills
  • Gemstone
  • Heartland
  • Lakeland
  • Lake James
  • Two Rivers

Order of the Arrow

Served by Eswau Huppeday Lodge, 560

Tidewater Council
Main article: Tidewater Council

The Tidewater Council serves southeastern Virginia and north-eastern North Carolina. This region is often referred to as South Hampton Roads or the Tidewater or Tidewater Virginia area; hence the name of the council. Its Order of the Arrow counterpart is the Blue Heron Lodge, which was founded in 1946 when a team from Octoraro Lodge in Pennsylvania inducted the first members of Blue Heron Lodge.

Counties served: Camden, Chowan, Currituck, Dare, Gates, Perquimans, and Pasquotank.

Tuscarora Council

Serving the youth of Duplin, Johnston, Sampson, and Wayne Counties.

Districts:

  • Coharie District - Sampson & Duplin Counties
  • Neusiok District - Johnston County
  • Torhunta District - Wayne County

Served by the Order of the Arrow through Nayawin Rar Lodge 296

Scouts BSA camps in North Carolina

The following Scouts BSA camps are in North Carolina:

Council NameCamp NameDate Started
Cape Fear CouncilCamp BowersJune 5, 1982
Central North Carolina CouncilCamp John J. Barnhardt1966
Cherokee CouncilCamp Cherokee1924
Daniel Boone CouncilCamp Daniel Boone?
Oconeechee CouncilCamp Durant1964
East Carolina CouncilCamp Boddie (Formerly Camp Bonner)1969
East Carolina CouncilCamp Sam Hatcher?
Mecklenburg County CouncilCamp Grimes1976
Mecklenburg County CouncilBelk Scout Camp (Formerly Clear Creek Scout Camp)1987
Occoneechee CouncilCamp Durant1980
Old Hickory CouncilRaven Knob Scout Reservation1954
Old North State CouncilCherokee Scout Reservation1968
Piedmont CouncilCamp Bud Schiele1982
Tidewater CouncilPipsico Scout Reservation1958
Tuscarora CouncilCamp Tuscarora1923

Girl Scouting in North Carolina

Girl Scouts of the USA was formed in 1912 by Juliette Gordon Low after she met Lord Baden-Powell and was inspired by the Boy Scouts and Girl Guides in England.[4] It is believed that the first Girl Scout troop in North Carolina was started in 1914, though it is not clear where it was located.[5] Another early North Carolinian troop was started in 1918 in Southern Pines, and its main purpose seemed to be aiding the war effort during World War I.[5] Girl Scouts spread quickly throughout North Carolina during the 1930s, and the first councils were organized around urban centers.[5] Eventually, these small councils merged into eight.[5] Because of a nationwide consolidation of Girl Scout councils in the late 2000s, there are now four Girl Scout councils in North Carolina.[6]

Girl Scout Council of Colonial Coast

This council serves over 15,000 girls in southeast Virginia and northeast North Carolina, and has 6,500 volunteers. In North Carolina, it serves the counties of Hertford, Gates, Camden, Currituck, Pasquotank, Chowan, Bertie, Washington, Tyrrell, Manteo, Perquimans, Hyde, and Dare.[7] This council's only camps are located in Virginia.

Headquarters: Chesapeake, Virginia
Website: http://www.gsccc.org/

Girl Scouts - North Carolina Coastal Pines

Girl Scouts - North Carolina Coastal Pines was formed by the merger of Girl Scout Council of Coastal Carolina and Pines of Carolina Girl Scout Council on October 1, 2007. It serves over 32,000 girls and has nearly 10,000 adult volunteers in the counties of Beaufort, Bladen, Brunswick, Carteret, Chatham, Columbus, Craven, Cumberland, Duplin, Durham, Edgecombe, Franklin, Granville, Greene, Halifax, Harnett, Hoke, Johnston, Jones, Lee, Lenoir, Martin, Moore, Nash, New Hanover, Northampton, Onslow, Orange, Pamlico, Pender, Person, Pitt, Richmond, Robeson, Sampson, Scotland, Vance, Wake, Warren, Wayne, and Wilson.[8] It operates service centers in Raleigh, NC, Fayetteville, NC, Goldsboro, NC, and Wilmington, NC.[9]

Headquarters: Raleigh, North Carolina
Website: http://www.nccoastalpines.org/

Camps:

Girl Scouts Carolinas Peaks to Piedmont

Girl Scouts Carolinas Peaks to Piedmont officially began on October 1, 2009. It was created from the merger of four councils in western North Carolina: Girl Scout Council of the Catawba Valley Area, Girl Scouts, Tarheel Triad Council, Girl Scouts of the Pioneer Council, and Girl Scouts of Western North Carolina, Pisgah Council. The council operates service centers in Asheville, NC, Colfax, NC, Gastonia, NC and Hickory, NC. It serves the counties of Alamance, Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Buncombe, Burke, Caldwell, Caswell, Catawba, Cherokee, Clay, Cleveland, Davidson, Davie, Forsyth, Gaston, Graham, Guilford, Haywood, Henderson, Iredell, Jackson, Lincoln, Macon, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, Polk, Randolph, Rockingham, Rutherford, Stokes, Surry, Swain, Transylvania, Watauga, Wilkes, Yadkin, and Yancey.[10]

Website: https://www.girlscoutsp2p.org

Camps:

Girl Scouts, Hornets' Nest Council

The Girl Scouts, Hornets' Nest Council is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. It was chartered in 1935.[16] It serves 19,000 girls in the counties of Anson, Cabarrus, Mecklenburg, Montgomery, Rowan, Stanly, Union and York, South Carolina.[16]

Website: http://www.hngirlscouts.org

Camps:

See also

References
  1. Hook, James; Franck, Dave; Austin, Steve (1982). An Aid to Collecting Selected Council Shoulder Patches with Valuation.
  2. http://www.stanlycountync.gov/
  3. Camp Bud Schiele - official site
  4. "Juliette Gordon Low".
  5. http://ncpedia.org/girl-scouts-usa
  6. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-02-21. Retrieved 2015-02-21.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. "About Girl Scouts-GSCCC".
  8. "About Our Council | Girl Scouts of NC Coastal Pines".
  9. "Contact Us | Web-to-case Template".
  10. "About Us".
  11. "Keyauwee Program Center".
  12. "Camp Pisgah".
  13. "Camp Pisgah".
  14. http://www.camplikeagirl.org/wp-content/uploads/Camp_Book_2016_Web.pdf
  15. "Camp Ginger Cascades".
  16. [http://www.hngirlscouts.org/about/council-overview}
  17. "Camp Holly Hut".
  18. "Dale Earnhardt Environmental Leadership Campus at Oak Springs".
  19. "GSHNC Service Center/POD Village".
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