Vintage 1940s Girl Scout Handbook circa 1948 - Intermediate Girl Scouts
Scouting has been called the "greatest band of knights ever to be mustered since the ancient days of King Arthur..." Edith Ballinger Price, Trail of the Trefoil
{HISTORY}
First started in the US by Juliette Gordon Low (1860-1927) in Savannah, GA in 1912, the Girls Scouts of America was originally called The Girl Guides and was modeled after the Boy Scouts started by Lord Robert Baden-Powell in England in 1908.
With emphasis on kindness, courtesy, loyalty and duty to one's family, friends, and country, The Girl Scouts program operated much like the Boy Scouts in sentiment and endeavor. Girls between the ages of seven and eighteen participated in a wealth of activities to become capable, kind, and helpful stewards at home and in their communities. From cooking lessons to homekeeping, nature hikes to safety courses, arts and crafts to sports and everything in between, girls who grew up within the scouting community learned how to become resourceful thrifty, sociable, and mannerly while also acquiring a wide range of useful life skills. Since its inception, just like the Boy Scouts, the Girl Scouts became one of the world's most popular organizations for young people. Still going strong today, the Girl Scouts of America now boast an annual membership of over 1.5 million girls nationwide.
This copy of the Girl Scout Handbook was published in 1948 and was intended for the Intermediate Program (girls between the ages of ten and fourteen). Beginning with the Girl Scout Promise and the Girl Scout Laws, this handbook covers everything an early teen Girl Scout would need to know including the history of the program. membership requirements, troop info, uniforms, badge definitions/proficiency requirements, and life skills in the following fields:
- agriculture
- arts and crafts
- community life
- health and safety
- homemaking
- international friendship
- literature and dramtics
- music and dancing
- nature
- out of doors activities
- sports and games
On the kitchen front, there is a host of discussions and activities surrounding cooking, kitchen hygiene and safety, picnicking, camping and cooking outdoors, menu planning, table setting, farming, and vegetable gardening.
Kind of like having an activity coordinator in your pocket, this handbook is a fascinating look into what teenagers were taught and what was expected of them in the late 1940s. Education and encouragement guide the tone throughout with the intention to make each scout feel confident, capable, and prepared to live life in the most pleasant and noble of ways. It's called the Girl Scout Handbook but it also could be titled How to Be A Good Human in the World - wisdom and advice that was just as important in 1948 as it is today.
{SPECIAL FEATURES}
- Published in January 1948, the second impression of the 1947 edition
- Contains 527 pages
- Hardcover
- Illustrated throughout with line drawings by Jessie Gillespie Willing
{CONDITION}
In lovely vintage condition, the coverboards are clean and bright and the spine is tight. There is a little bit of light staining and paper rippling on some pages (mostly likely caused by water) which is to be expected for a book that is over 75 years old and meant to be studied both indoors and outdoors by kids. A previous owner's sticker is pasted on the front inside cover and there are a few pencil notations scattered randomly in the badge proficiency section mostly noting tasks completed in order to gain a specific badge. All pages are intact. Please see photos.
{SIZE}
Measures 6.5" inches (length) x 4.5" inches (width) x 1.25" inches (thickness) and weighs just under 1 lb.
{FOR THE SCOUT OF ALL AGES}
Find a series of vintage Boy Scout books in the shop here.