Records (ca. 1976-2004) of the East Carolina Council (North Carolina) of Boy Scouts of America include minutes of the Executive Board, photographs, issues of the Tarheel Scouter newspaper, and files pertaining to awards given to scouts.
Scholars believe that Boy Scouting began around 1906 in England by General Robert Baden-Powell. He wrote a military guidebook called Aids to Scouting. The publication became extremely popular with youth. This prompted Baden-Powell to rewrite the guidebook in 1907 and test the philosophy of its contents with youth on Brownsea Island. This experiment was very successful, and Powell named the second published guidebook Scouting for Boys. Scouting quickly became popular worldwide and was brought to the United States in 1910.
The East Carolina Council was founded in Kinston, North Carolina, in 1932. It was the eighth council to form in North Carolina, in which there are thirteen that currently exist. These include the Cape Fear Council (Wilmington, 1930), Central N.C. Council (Albemarle, 1937), Cherokee Council (Reidsville, 1923), Daniel Boone Council (Asheville, 1925), East Carolina Council (Kinston, 1932), General Greene Council (Greensboro, 1947), Mecklenburg County Council (Charlotte, 1942), Occoneechee Council (Raleigh, 1929), Old Hickory Council (Winston-Salem, 1942), Piedmont Council (Gastonia, 1924), Tidewater Council (Virginia Beach, VA, 1935, encompasses several districts which are in North Carolina), Tuscarora Council (Goldsboro, 1923), and the Uwharrie Council (High Point, 1923).
The East Carolina Council itself encompasses nine districts, which include the Blackbeard, Caswell, Croatan Trails, Neuse Basin, Pitt, Tar River, Tri-County, White Oak River, and the Wilson districts. The East Carolina Council also has a Venturing and Exploring unit.
All of the information above was obtained from Jeff Snowden's article on the history of the Boy Scouts of America and from the East Carolina Council's website. For more information please see citations below.
Snowden, Jeff. "A Brief History of the Boy Scouts of America." Adventure Troop 97 Scouting Home Page. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 July 2012.
Boy Scouts of America: East Carolina Council. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 July 2012.
The records of the East Carolina Council consist of meeting minutes from the ECC board meetings (1994–2003), awards earned by scouts, photographs, and other printed materials, which includes the Tarheel Scouter newspaper (1994–1998).
The ECC's meeting minutes for the Executive Board and Executive Committee (1994–2003) include the agendas as well and describe everyday activities and plans for each specific month. Also included is the Council Nominating Committee and District Chairmen Meeting (which occurred irregularly) in 1997 and 2001.
Material related to various awards won by scouts and adult leaders in the East Carolina Council is divided into seven sections representing the different awards given from 1979 until present. These include the Silver Beaver Award for adult leaders, the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award for adult leaders, the General Lifesaving/Meritorious Action Award, the Heroism Award, the National Certificate of Merit, and the Good Shepherd Award. Documentation consists of nomination packets and press releases. Although the awards represented are not the only ones that the East Carolina Council distributes each year, they does reflect some of the most prominent and prestigious awards not only in the East Carolina Council, but in the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) organization as well.
The East Carolina Council related printed materials includes correspondence, instructional information for scout leaders, an interview with John Bush (a veteran BSA Executive), the annual banquet programs, a budget presentation to United Way, two annual reports, and related printed materials from the national Boy Scouts of America organization (1976–1995).
Photographs (1980s–present) are arranged by the event documented in the photographs. Topics include general camping photographs, scouting for food, COPE (Challenging Outdoor Personal Experience), Order of the Arrow, Cub Scout Day Camps, Pinewood Derby, the Hardee's Gold Tournament, ECC camp facilities, ECC adult leaders and executives, adult awards and youth award winners.
Printed materials includes issues of the East Carolina Council newspaper, Tarheel Scouter (1994–1998). This publication includes monthly announcements as well as brief articles about recognized scouts and adult leaders. The council currently sends the Tarheel Scouter to members via electronic mail.
Gift of H. Ray Franks, East Carolina Council, Boy Scouts of America
Processed by Austin D. Bryan, July 2012
Literary rights to specific documents are retained by the authors or their descendants in accordance with U.S. copyright law.