Using older Scout literature in your program

[Spiney Norman]

Yesterday I picked up a circa 1950 edition of the Patol leaders handbook. What a GREAT resource. I have spent most of my free time reading the book cover to cover.

 

I must say this book has more info than the present edition, the new scoutmaster handbook and the TLT syllabus combined. Just reading this book gets me pumped up about scouting.

 

What old literature do you use?

[UCEagle72]

My 1963 Scoutmaster's Handbook has been one of the best - especially when teaching the Patrol Method.

 

[BrentAllen]

The 3rd edition SM HB, which was the first written by William Hillcourt (aka Green Bar Bill). 1937

 

Aids to Scoutmastership by B-P, 1944

 

Rovering to Success by B-P, 1930

 

Scout Field Book by James E West and William Hillcourt, 1948 (1957 printing)

 

American Patrol Leaders' Handbook by William Hillcourt, 1929 (1938 printing)

 

Handbook for Patrol Leaders by William Hillcourt, 1955 printing

 

Patrol Leaders Handbook 1967

 

Troop Activities 1962

 

Boy Scout Games by Charles F. Smith, 1952

[allangr1024]

I have a 1942 edition of the Scoutmasters handbook. It is probably the same as the one listed by BrentAllen. It comes in 2 volumes, and was probably written by Bill Hillcourt, the same guy who wrote your Patrol Leaders handbook.

 

This book is the best I have found for describing the patrol method. This is where we learn that we are to train the youth leaders of the troop, then sit back (in a rocking chair at the back of the room) and let them lead the troop.

 

This book has chapters about training, chapters about camping, chapters about advancement, and chapters about scout games. I refer to it all the time.

 

I also have a Scoutmasters handbook from the 1960's, and the current one. Someone has pointed out that each one seems to have less and less info than the one preceeding it. I tend to agree with this. A current Scoutmaster who plans to do the job for more than 2 years should buy and read every one of these editions. I have not seen the one from the 1920's. It may be more of the same.

 

[SSScout]

1948 Fieldbook, I photocopy pages about knife and axe use for IOLS. Good illustrations (photos) of a Scout(!) chopping , sharpening, cutting down a tree.

[Eagle92]

ed Ed SMHB is one I recommend after reading it. Haven't directly applied it as a leader, although a good bit of it was done as a scout.

 

2nd ed BSFB That was a handme down and I used it so much as a scotu, that the cover tore of it it and it is stained. I brought that one out to BALOO last month, as well as some older MBPs I have.

 

Not scouting per se, but GBB did write a non scout nature book, I beleive in retirement. local library has a copy.

[Bando]

Don't forget the How Book of Cubbing and the How Book of Scouting, both fun resources for activities with the kids that stretch their imagination and creativity.

 

Frankly, I've found a lot of great ideas I wanted to do on my own as an adult in the original 1910/11 handbook and other period publications. Those Dan Beard boat plans are really quite cool!

[prairie]

Almost any Scouting book published before 1970, some of those books are very information dense, you can't just skim through, you need to stop and think through what you read. I also love the fact that many of those old books were POCKET SIZED!

[Eagle92]

Well I may be using my old Sea Scout manual this weekend. The pack is going to the USS YORKTOWN this weekend, and I'll was reviewing the 1945 Sea Scout book for language and terminology. EXCELLENT STUFF!

 

Too bad the current manual got rid of Davy Shellback.

[emb021]

"Too bad the current manual got rid of Davy Shellback."

 

They dumped him back in the 50s.

 

They also need to bring back Slim.

 

[shortridge]

Dan Beard's American Boys Handy book is an awesome resource - lots of simple fun stuff, plus the plans for homemade boats will get your Scouts salivating. The houseboat was a favorite daydream of mine as a kid.

 

I have a Fieldbook (copyright 1948) with a lot of great stuff in it. BP's original Scouting for Boys is a superb book, too.

 

A copy of Troop Activities (No. 3501, copyright 1962) has a ton of patrol activities and outing ideas.

 

And the 1950 Handbook for Patrol Leaders should be required reading for any leader, adult or youth, in today's version of the program.

[Spiney Norman]

I think one of the things I enjoy and find the most captivating about Hillcourt's writing is that I can imagine him sitting in a chair just across from me telling me all these things in calm knowing manner.

One of our scouts brought some old scouting memorabilia to last night's PLC meeting. There were plenty of patches and such from the sixties but there were also some, what looked like, magazine supplements entitled First Class, Second Class scout and another that escapes me at the moment. I recognized the writIng and the drawing immediately. Sure enough there was Bill Hillcourt's name on the bottom of the pages. There was more scoutcraft on those few pages than the entire scout book has now.

[Kudu]

The "Kudu Net" includes 2,000 pages of Traditional Scout literature.

 

Traditional Scout Games:

 

http://www.kudu.net/outdoor/games/index.htm

 

Note especially the collection of 84 Wide Games, without which the "Game with a Purpose" has no purpose

 

http://www.kudu.net/outdoor/games/wide/index.htm

 

Scouting is about adventure, and Night Games add inexpensive adventure to any program:

 

http://www.kudu.net/outdoor/night/index.htm

 

Advancement games by Charles F. Smith:

 

http://www.kudu.net/outdoor/games/smith/index.htm

 

A collection of Traditional Scoutcraft Skills:

 

http://www.kudu.net/outdoor/skills/index.htm

 

Training in Tracking (for the Centennial Tracking Merit Badge):

 

http://www.kudu.net/outdoor/skills/tracking/index.htm

 

Bando writes:

 

Those Dan Beard boat plans are really quite cool!

 

All of Dan Beard's boat plans:

 

http://www.kudu.net/outdoor/summer/boats/index.htm

 

A collection of Dan Beard books:

 

http://www.kudu.net/traditional/beard/index.htm

 

For those reading David Scott's The Scouting Party, Dan Beard's entire handbook The Boy Pioneers: Sons of Daniel Boone:

 

http://www.kudu.net/traditional/beard/pioneers/index.htm

 

And Ernest Thompson Seton's entire handbook, The Birch Bark Roll:

 

http://www.kudu.net/traditional/seton/index.htm

 

Beard's version of the history of Scouting from his autobiography, Hardly A Man Is Now Alive.

 

http://www.kudu.net/traditional/beard/scouting.htm

 

Baden-Powell's final version of "Rules on How to Play the Game of Scouting for Boys" [see especially Rule #430(9)]:

 

http://www.kudu.net/traditional/por/proficiency_badges.htm

 

A history of the "Methods of Scouting" (see especially 1947):

 

http://www.kudu.net/adult/methods/index.htm

 

To see how Baden-Powell's Patrol System works in "real life" (where a Patrol Leader is chided for always taking his Patrol on the same old eight mile hike to explore the old mill--without adult supervision, of course):

 

http://www.kudu.net/patrol/court_honor/coh_session.htm

 

Patrol Leader Training (how to train Patrol Leaders to lead a Patrol without adult EDGE supervision):

 

http://www.kudu.net/patrol/green_bar/index.htm

 

And most importantly, Baden-Powell's minimum standard for spacing Patrols apart when camping as a Troop

 

http://www.kudu.net/patrol/traditional/100_yards.htm

 

Yours at 300 feet:

 

Kudu

http://kudu.net/

 

[phips]

Hello,

 

I love old Scout literature.

I have a big collection at home and in our local Scout Archive (there we have American,Austrian, French, German Swiss and Yugoslavian Scouting Literature)

I espaicially like the Scout Fileld book and the Handbook for Patrol Leaders from the BSA from 1944 and the 1930ties.

 

BSA:

 

Scout Field Book, 1944

 

Boy Scout Handbook from the 40ties

 

Handbook for Patrol Leaders and Scoutmaster's Handbook from the 30ties

 

Canada:

 

Handbook for Canada 1930

 

Tenderfoot to Queens Scout - The Canadian Boy Scouts Handbook of Tests, 1955

 

UK:

 

E.E.Reynolds: Working with the Patrol System

 

 

B.P.:

 

Scouting for Boys

Aids to Scoutmastership

Rovering to Success

The Wolfs Cub Handbook

 

German, Swiss and Austrian books from the 40,50,60, 70 and 80ties.

[emb021]

Actually, several of Dan Beard's books are available in inexpensive paperbacks from publishers like David Godine and Dover.

 

I have

American Boy's Handy Book, reprint by David Godine

Field & Forest Handy Book, reprint by David Godine

Camp-Lore and Woodcraft, reprint by Dover Press, 2006

Shelters, Shackes & Shanties, reprint by Lyons Press

Boat-Building and Boating, reprint by Dixon/Price

American Girl's Handy Book, Lina and Adelia Beard, reprint by David Godine

 

There are a few more out there.

 

I have been scanning various older Explorer materials and putting them up on my website, www.seniorscoutinghistory.org. A lot of its is great program materials that could be used by todays Venturers and Sea Scouts (or even older boy scouts).

 

Also, look for the various Boys Life reprint booklets. Lots of great materials reprinted in them. I've been scanning some of my materials and thinking about prehaps adding it to my site.