Troop 2 InfoCenter
	The History of Boy Scouts

The Boy Scout movement was founded by British Lord Robert Baden-Powell. The name Baden-Powell is known and respected throughout the world as that of a man who, in his 83 years, devoted himself to the service of his country and his fellow men in two separate and complete lives, one as a soldier fighting for his country, and the other as a worker for peace through the brotherhood of the Scout Movement.

In 1907 he held an experimental camp on Brownsea Island, Poole, Dorset, to try out his ideas. He brought together 22 boys, some from public schools and some from working class homes, and put them into camp under his leadership. The whole world now knows the results of that camp.

'Scouting for Boys' was published in 1908, sales of the book were tremendous. Boys formed themselves into Scout Patrols to try out ideas. What had been intended as a training aid for existing organizations became the handbook of a new and, ultimately worldwide Movement. Mr. Baden-Powell's great understanding of boys obviously touched something fundamental in the youth of this and other countries.

The early American troops took their cues from Baden-Powell's Scouting for Boys because there was no semblance of a national movement in the United States. The YMCA men who started most of the early troops saw Boy Scouting merely as a promising adjunct to their programs for boys.

Millionaire Chicago publisher William Dickson Boyce became involved in Scouting in 1909. He was visiting London in August of that year. One afternoon, the city was enshrouded in pea-soup fog. Boyce lost his bearings in the murk and was approached by a boy of about 12 carrying a lantern who offered to guide him to the address he was seeking. When Boyce produced a shilling, the boy replied, "No, sir, I am a scout. Scouts do not accept tips for Good Turns."

The Unknown Scout took Boyce to British Scout headquarters. From that moment forward, Boyce's interest in Scouting grew. Boyce came home determined to start Boy Scouting in America. He apparently knew nothing of the troops already operating or of the YMCA's promotion of Scouting.

On February 8, 1910, Boyce filed incorporation papers for the Boy Scouts of America in the District of Columbia The purpose, he said, "Shall be to promote, through organization, and cooperation with other agencies, the ability of boys to do things for themselves and others, to train them in Scoutcraft, and to teach them patriotism, courage, self-reliance, and kindred virtues, using the methods which are in common use by Boy Scouts."

For more information:

BSA History - Knox Trail Council Website

Knox Trail Council Information