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Sacramento Boy Scouts Troop 1 records
MC 50
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Table of contents
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
Sacramento Public Library, Sacramento Room
Title: Sacramento Boy Scouts Troop 1 records
Identifier/Call Number: MC 50
Physical Description:
1 Linear Feet
(1 Archival Box)
Physical Description:
.5 Terabytes
Date (inclusive): 1917-2006
Abstract: Founded in 1916, Troop 1 of the Sacramento Boy Scouts of America has prepared hundreds of Sacramento youths through outdoor
activities, leadership training and community service. This collection is comprised of records of the local organization
dating from around the time of its incorporation to the present.
In March 1916, a group of boys at First Methodist Church at 21st and J Streets in Sacramento applied to the newly-formed national
Boy Scouts of America to form the area's first incorporated scouting unit – Troop 1. W. George Spilman served as the group's
scoutmaster and First Methodist Church sponsored the group. In October 1920, the Sacramento Council formed to govern and
support troops in the area. The Council later expanded to encompass most of Northern California and was renamed Golden Empire
Council in 1937.
The 1930s was a period of great growth for Troop 1 in Sacramento. Wesley Hetherington, who served as Scoutmaster from 1932
to 1938, was instrumental in developing the troop and in 1937 oversaw the construction of Camp Cody, the troop's private encampment
in the Sierras near Echo Summit. When a new lodge was dedicated at Camp Cody in 1960, it bore his name. Camp Cody's first
director was Robert McCurry of McCurry Foto Co. in Sacramento. Both Robert and his brother, Harold McCurry, were scouts under
Hetherington and eventually went on to earn the distinction of Distinguished Eagle Scout in 1976, the first brothers to do
so. Also in the 1930s, the Troop 1 Mother's Club began hosting dinners, cake sales and shows to raise funds for scout camps
and activities.
Following a period of rapid growth, Troop 1 experienced declining membership into the late-1940s and 1950s. In 1946, Ben Ali
Temple of the Shrine took over sponsorship, and soon after, the group temporarily moved its meeting location. In the 1956,
Troop 1 celebrated its 40th anniversary with an alumni reunion featuring hundreds of former scouts and almost all previous
scoutmasters. The troop would host similar celebrations every ten years in the decades to come. Around 1958, the troop started
an Explorer Post catering to older scouts. Under the leadership of George Morrow in the early 1960s, Troop 1 began to grow
again. Morrow was awarded the Outstanding Eagle Award at the troop's centennial celebration in 2016. By then, the troop
had claimed more than 1,700 boys as members, 416 of whom earned the rank of Eagle Scout.
[Identification of item], Sacramento Boy Scouts of America Troop 1 records, MC 50, Sacramento Room, Sacramento Public Library,
Sacramento, California.
This collection is comprised of the records of Sacramento Boy Scouts Troop 1 dating from around the time of its incorporation
to the present. It includes administrative records, troop anniversary program materials; scripts and programs from investiture
ceremonies; records and ephemera from Camp Pollock and Camp Cody; issues of the troop newsletter,
Spigot; news clippings profiling Troop 1 members and activities; film reels with club activities from 1932 to 2006; and 7,606 digital
files comprised of images and oral histories covering decades of troop history.