The Mid-America Council of the Boy Scouts of America offers programs in 58 counties in Nebraska, Iowa and South Dakota. The Mid-America Council was formed from a merger of the Covered Wagon Council and the Southwest Iowa Council in 1965. The first recorded Council in the area was in 1918 as the Omaha Council. In 2000 the council merged with the Prairie Gold Council that had been located in Sioux City, Iowa. The first recorded Scouting activity was a 1917 potato harvest by Troop 42, still in existence, reported on by the Omaha World-Herald.

History

In 1917, the

Hartington Council The Mid-America Council of the Boy Scouts of America offers programs in 58 counties in Nebraska, Iowa and South Dakota. The Mid-America Council was formed from a merger of the Covered Wagon Council and the Southwest Iowa Council in 1965. The firs ...

was formed, closing in 1918. In 1915, the

Omaha Council The Mid-America Council of the Boy Scouts of America offers programs in 58 counties in Nebraska, Iowa and South Dakota. The Mid-America Council was formed from a merger of the Covered Wagon Council and the Southwest Iowa Council in 1965. The firs ...

(#326) was formed, changing its name to the

Covered Wagon Council The Mid-America Council of the Boy Scouts of America offers programs in 58 counties in Nebraska, Iowa and South Dakota. The Mid-America Council was formed from a merger of the Covered Wagon Council and the Southwest Iowa Council in 1965. The firs ...

(#326) in 1930. The Mid-America Council (#326) was formed from a merger of the

(#326) and the Southwest Iowa Council (#175) in 1965. In 2000 the council merged with the

Prairie Gold Area Council The Mid-America Council of the Boy Scouts of America offers programs in 58 counties in Nebraska, Iowa and South Dakota. The Mid-America Council was formed from a merger of the Covered Wagon Council and the Southwest Iowa Council in 1965. The ...

(#179) that had been located in Sioux City, Iowa. In 1920,

LeMars Council The Mid-America Council of the Boy Scouts of America offers programs in 58 counties in Nebraska, Iowa and South Dakota. The Mid-America Council was formed from a merger of the Covered Wagon Council and the Southwest Iowa Council in 1965. The ...

(#182) was created, merging into the

Sioux City Area Council The Mid-America Council of the Boy Scouts of America offers programs in 58 counties in Nebraska, Iowa and South Dakota. The Mid-America Council was formed from a merger of the Covered Wagon Council and the Southwest Iowa Council in 1965. The firs ...

(#185) in 1926. In 1918,

Sioux City Council The Mid-America Council of the Boy Scouts of America offers programs in 58 counties in Nebraska, Iowa and South Dakota. The Mid-America Council was formed from a merger of the Covered Wagon Council and the Southwest Iowa Council in 1965. The firs ...

(#185) was created, changing its name to the

(#185) in 1926. In 1939, Sioux City Area changed its name to the Sergeant Floyd Area Council (#185) in 1939. Sergeant Floyd Area merged into

(#179) in 1972. In 1919, Fort Dodge Council (#179) was created. In 1942 the council changed its name name to

(#179). In 1920, the

Shenandoah Council The Mid-America Council of the Boy Scouts of America offers programs in 58 counties in Nebraska, Iowa and South Dakota. The Mid-America Council was formed from a merger of the Covered Wagon Council and the Southwest Iowa Council in 1965. The firs ...

was founded, folding in 1921. In 1919,

Council Bluffs Council The Mid-America Council of the Boy Scouts of America offers programs in 58 counties in Nebraska, Iowa and South Dakota. The Mid-America Council was formed from a merger of the Covered Wagon Council and the Southwest Iowa Council in 1965. The firs ...

(#175) was created. In 1926 the council changed its name name to Waubonsie Boyer Council (#175). It chnaged it name again to the Southwest Iowa Council (#175), eventually merging into the Mid-America Council in 1965.

Organization

The Council is separated into twelve districts. * Black Hawk District * Diamond Dick District * Goldenrod District * Iron Horse District * Northwest Iowa District * Ohwahnasee District * Petah La Shauro District * Thundercloud District * Trailblazer District * Twin Lakes District * Wagon Wheel District * War Eagle District

Camps

Mid America Council operates four camps. Its Boy Scout summer camp is located at Camp Cedars, near Fremont, Nebraska while its Cub Scout resident camp is located at Little Sioux Scout Ranch near

Little Sioux, Iowa Little Sioux is a city in Harrison County, Iowa, United States. The population was 166 at the time of the 2020 census. The city is most known for Little Sioux Scout Ranch of the Boy Scouts of America. History Little Sioux was laid out in 1855. ...

. Other council camps include Camp Eagle, near Fremont, Nebraska and Camp Wa-Kon-Da,

Bellevue, Nebraska Bellevue ( French for "beautiful view"; previously named Belleview) is a suburban city in Sarpy County, Nebraska, United States. It is part of the Omaha–Council Bluffs metropolitan area, and had a population of 64,176 as of the 2020 Census, m ...

. The council formerly operated Camp Wakonda near Griswold, Iowa, in operation from 1948 until 1978. The Little Sioux Scout Ranch was heavily damaged by a tornado on June 11, 2008, which killed four Scouts and hospitalized 40 of 93 Scouts and Scouters attending a leadership development event. Camp Butterfield is currently being sold for private hunting and recreation purposes.

Little Sioux Scout Ranch

The Little Sioux Scout Ranch is a

Scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement **Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom **Scouts BSA, sectio ...

reservation operated by the Mid-America Council of the Boy Scouts of America. It is located in

, approximately sixty miles north of Omaha, Nebraska in Iowa's

Loess Hills The Loess Hills are a formation of wind-deposited loess soil in the westernmost parts of Iowa and Missouri, and the easternmost parts of Nebraska and Kansas, along the Missouri River. Geology The Loess (, , or ) Hills are generally located bet ...

and is approximately 15 minutes east of Interstate 29. Hiking trails cover the heavily timbered camp, along with mowed meadows and several remote campsites. There are also four cabin shelters and a lake. The Mutual of Omaha Administration Building was completed in 2000, and two years later the MidAmerican Energy Pavilion was finished, seating 300 at picnic tables. Individual packs, troops and posts use the facility, along with Order of the Arrow conclaves, district and council camporees. Pahuk Pride, a weeklong National Youth Leadership Training event, was held annually at this camp. The camp was the site of a tornado that killed four

Boy Scouts Boy Scouts may refer to: * Boy Scout, a participant in the Boy Scout Movement. * Scouting, also known as the Boy Scout Movement. * An organisation in the Scouting Movement, although many of these organizations also have female members. There are ...

and injured 48 others on June 11, 2008.

Camp Cedars

The Mid-America Council's summer camp is located at Camp Cedars, located on the Covered Wagon Scout Reservation (CWSR) near the village of Cedar Bluffs in Saunders County, Nebraska. Perched on a bluff above the Platte River, the camp has of deciduous woods, prairie, and river bottoms. Facilities include a heated outdoor pool, shower houses, the Thomas Equestrian Center, an air-conditioned dining hall seating over 500 and an amphitheater with seating for over 1,000 audience members, as well as four renovated, air-conditioned cabins and three air-conditioned lodges. Cedars features an extensive Challenging Outdoor Program Experience, or COPE, course a zip line, a tall rappelling tower and climbing walls. There is also a shooting sports facility, a nature center, and an equestrian center. Twelve campsites provide 264 permanent tent platforms, including a wheelchair-accessible campsite, for Scouts and leaders. It has been the site of archeological digs. Following the tragedy at the Little Sioux Scout Ranch, Camp Cedars built tornado shelters in response. In addition to Little Sioux, Cedars plays is an important site for the Kit-Ke-Hak-O-Kut Lodge of the Order of the Arrow,"History of the Vigil in our Lodge"
Kit-Ke-Hak-O-Kut Lodge.

Kit-Ke-Hak-O-Kut Lodge

The Order of the Arrow Scouting's national honor society is represented in the Mid-America Council by the Kit-Ke-Hak-O-Kut Lodge. The lodge is administratively divided into chapters corresponding to the council's districts. The Kit-Ke-Hak-O-Kut Lodge is part of Section G5, in the Gateway Region. Home of Steven Buer Jr., the 2022 National Vice Chief of the Order of the Arrow.

References

External links

Mid-America Council website

from

WOWT-TV WOWT (channel 6) is a television station in Omaha, Nebraska, United States, affiliated with NBC and owned by Gray Television. The station's studios are located on Farnam Street near downtown Omaha, and its transmitter is located on a "tower farm ...

, Omaha, Nebraska
Remembering the Boy Scouts
at NPR.org {{Scouting Local councils of the Boy Scouts of America Central Region (Boy Scouts of America) Youth organizations based in Nebraska 1965 establishments in Nebraska