SCOUTING HISTORY 1940 ~ 1949

1941:
Boy Scouts serve the United States from the opening minutes of World War II on December 7 to the end in 1945. Scouts fight fires and help at first aid stations in Honolulu immediately after the surprise Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Scouts collect recyclables - rubber, metal, books, clothing, wastepaper - throughout the long four years.

1941:
Emblem for the "Carolina Jubilee", a regional Boy Scout encampment at UNC-Chapel Hill. [Photo courtesy of the Camp Raven Knob Historical Association]

[Click photo for an enlargement]

September 20, 1941: "Members of Boy Scout troops of Elkin are attending a four-day Boy Scout jubilee in Chapel Hill. The jubilee...is being attended by scouts from the two Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida. Thomas Graybeal and Bob Harris will go to Chapel Hill this evening to demonstrate degree team work in the Order of the Arrow..."

Winston-Salem Journal, p.4

September 26, 1941: "Billy Brown, Boy Scout from Troop 38 this city [Mount Airy], attending the Carolina Jubilee in Chapel Hill last week...was one of the three Scouts from the more than 2,000 Scouts in attendance who was selected to escort Governor J.M. Broughton at the special Governor's Camp Fire held on the last night of the Jubilee..."

The Mount Airy News, p.4

September 7, 1941: "Troop 58 [St. Leo's Catholic Church] got back to normal this week with its first weekly meeting since last spring. The meeting was opened with a prayer led by Father Gallagher. Plans were made for a full winter program which includes the fair exhibits, Halloween party, monthly hikes, and troop projects..."

Winston-Salem Journal, p.37

1942:
In January the name of the "Winston-Salem Council" is changed to the "Old Hickory Council." The new name honors U. S. President Andrew Jackson, a Carolina native, and reflects the intent of the Council to truly serve all of northwestern North Carolina.

1942:
Richard S. Clark, who earned his Eagle Scout badge as a member of Troop 22 at Central Terrace Methodist church in 1932, dies in military service on December 1. A flagpole and granite memorial are placed on the parade ground at Camp Raven Knob circa 1956 in memory of Lieutenant Clark and his "supreme sacrifice."

1943:
The theme of the Boy Scout Anniversary Week in February is "Victory through Service." The ladies of Home Moravian Church cook for 500 Scouts and Scouters at the annual banquet - in spite of wartime rationing, transportation regulations, and the "high cost of beans."

1944:
Camp Lasater operates for only three weeks during the summer due to an outbreak of polio in North Carolina - total attendance of 138 Scouts.

1944:
Reverend I.L. File, seated, with Boy Scouts and Troop Committee members at Mount Zion Baptist Church in Winston-Salem, circa 1944. [Photo courtesy of Mr. M. C. Murray, Jr.]

[Click photo for an enlargement]

1944:
Edward M. "Tom" Holder dies of an apparent heart attack after working with Scout Kyle Barnes to rescue Scout Marshall Bryant from drowning in the lake at Camp Lasater on June 14. The following summer an outdoor chapel at Camp Lasater is dedicated in memory of Tom Holder. Boy Scout and Carnegie Awards for Heroism are presented to Kyle Barnes and the family of Mr. Holder.

1946:
Old Hickory Council Scouts and Scouters participate in the national "Shirt Off Your Back" campaign to donate Scout uniforms to boys in nations that were devastated by military action during World War II.

1947:
Members of Wahissa Lodge #118, Order of the Arrow, in their ceremonial outfits at Camp Lasater near Walkertown during the filming of a promotional film for the Winston-Salem Community Chest - now known as the Forsyth County United Way - circa 1947. [Photo courtesy of the Forsyth County Public Library Photograph Collection]

[Click photo for an enlargement]

1947:
Old Hickory Council Camporee Patch. [Photo courtesy of the Camp Raven Knob Historical Association]

[Click photo for an enlargement]