Discovering Old Florida: Celebrating 100 years of Boy Scouts in Manatee County

Scouts salute the American flag on Friday

PALMETTO -- Boy scouts and leaders gathered Friday evening at the Palmetto Historical Park to celebrate their centennial anniversary. Miniature American flags lined the roundabout and scouts of all ages saluted the flag as the National Anthem played in the background.

Each building at the historical park exhibits a different aspect of this significant organization. The display will last until October 2, 2010. In the collection are items chronicling the evolution including old uniforms, knives, tomahawks and a complete model camp site.

The early days of scouting Photo:Manatee Historic Archives

Although the association has evolved over the last century, it still teaches participants the same principles it did in the beginning.

”I think they learn responsibility and they learn respect and they learn to set some goals and work on things to earn their accomplishments,“ said long-time member Roberta Omlor. ”Scouting requires things back from the boys but gives them a lot of opportunities.“

The Boy Scouts of America was founded by Chicago publisher William Boyce on February 8, 1910. At that time in the US, there were several other loosely structured outdoor-oriented youth organizations, some using the name Boy Scout and some using other names. Although it wasn’t the easiest place to get to, there is evidence that the earliest troop in Florida was in Bradenton.

Pitching a tent at Camp Flying Eagle Photo:Manatee Historic Archives

”We have scouting records that the first troop was formed on the corner of Ninth Street and 14th Avenue in September of 1910. That is why we are doing this exhibit at this time of the year,“ said Jim Thielen, Southwest Florida Council Family Chair.

Back then, they were known as the Southwest Florida Council. Data suggests that another troop formed in the Village of Manatee (now east Bradenton) in June of 1911 shortly after the first.  In Arcadia in July of that same year yet another troop formed. An article in the Arcadian features a complete roster of members. Within the next three years, Palmetto and Sarasota also jumped on the bandwagon.

”Back then, there were only about 3,000 people in the whole county – and that included Sarasota,“ said BJ ”Reddog“ Mayanrd, 39-year member of the BSA and an instrumental contributor to the exhibit.

Campsite display at Carnegie Library

In 1925, a group of one hundred scouts of Manatee and Sarasota Counties met at the Carnegie Library in Palmetto – the same location they had the reception on Friday night -- with officials to be recognized officially by the BSA. The organization approved the measure and The Sunny Land Council was adopted. The council consisted of 14 troops, six in Sarasota, two in Manatee, three in Palmetto and three in Bradenton.

Now established, the Sunny Land Council decided that these campers would need a place to practice the outdoor activities of which they were learning. They found the perfect spot shaded by giant live oaks and nestled on a crook of the coffee-colored upper Manatee River. In 1929 they purchased 140 acres of land, naming it Camp Flying Eagle after one of Florida’s most appreciated animals. It is the oldest Boy Scout Camp in the State of Florida.

At Camp Flying Eagle Photo:Manatee Historic Archives

The council hit a couple of hang-ups along the camping trail. Because they weren’t incorporated, they couldn’t secure the loan they needed to purchase the land. They came up with the idea of creating a private organization that would secure the loan and hold the title – they called it the Manatee County Boys Development Association. It received a state charter in 1929 and the next day the council bought the property for $2,000 from Miss Minnie Harris. The Sunny Land Council sold individual acres to donors in order to pay off the loan.

There was a lot to be done in order to get the camp ready for scouts. Since Upper Manatee River Road was only a trail at that time, construction materials were transported by way of a river barge.  

The first building to go up was the dining hall. At this time there was no electricity, so a second-hand walk in refrigerator had to be run off a generator. A 600-foot-deep artesian well provided the camp with a steady flow of water. Cooking for hungry campers was done on a wood-burning stove.

The original dining hall is still present today and is the oldest building on the property.

Camp Flying Eagle Photo:Manatee Historic Archives

The first camp was conducted from July 1-12 in 1929. One of the main activities during the camp was the construction of canoes for the Canoe Merit Badge classes. A total of 14 were built the first year and in the following years one was constructed each summer. The outline of the canoe was marked on the floor of the dining hall as a pattern – today one can still see the faint outline.

During WWII, each camper was required to bring his own ration book and a quarter pound of sugar. Buying food for the camp involved taking stamps to ”every grocery store within a ten mile radius“ to get enough food for scouts.

The last summer camp was held in 1994. Today 15,000 scouts use the facility, which has expanded to 195 acres. Cub Scouts attend a day camp in June and it as used as a weekend camp for the rest of the year.

One only has to take a tour through the historical park in Palmetto to relive these past events and to see why the BSA has survived so long.

”(BSA) is really great. It teaches you a lot about camping and survival,“ said 11-year-old Sawyer Pasco. ”I would recommend it to anyone who is outdoorsy.“

The exhibit is on display until October 2.