The Boone and Crockett Club is an American nonprofit organization that advocates fair chase hunting in support of habitat conservation. The club is North America's oldest wildlife and habitat conservation organization, founded in the United States in 1887 by

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...

and George Bird Grinnell. The club was named in honor of hunter-heroes of the day,

Daniel Boone Daniel Boone (, 1734September 26, 1820) was an American pioneer and frontiersman whose exploits made him one of the first folk heroes of the United States. He became famous for his exploration and settlement of Kentucky, which was then beyo ...

and

Davy Crockett Colonel (United States), Colonel David Crockett (August 17, 1786 – March 6, 1836) was an American politician, militia officer and frontiersman. Often referred to in popular culture as the "King of the Wild Frontier", he represented Tennesse ...

, whom the club's founders viewed as pioneering men who hunted extensively while opening the

American frontier The American frontier, also known as the Old West, and popularly known as the Wild West, encompasses the Geography of the United States, geography, History of the United States, history, Folklore of the United States, folklore, and Cultur ...

, but realized the consequences of

overharvesting Overexploitation, also called overharvesting or ecological overshoot, refers to harvesting a renewable resource to the point of diminishing returns. Continued overexploitation can lead to the destruction of the resource, as it will be unable to ...

game. In addition to authoring a famous " fair chase" statement of hunter ethics, the club worked for the expansion and protection of

Yellowstone National Park Yellowstone National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States located in the northwest corner of Wyoming, with small portions extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd U ...

and the establishment of American conservation in general. The club and its members were also responsible for the elimination of commercial market hunting, creation of the

National Park A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...

and National Forest Services,

National Wildlife Refuge The National Wildlife Refuge System (NWRS) is a system of protected areas of the United States managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), an agency within the United States Department of the Interior, Department of the Interi ...

system, wildlife reserves, and funding for conservation, all under the umbrella of what is known today as the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation. The club is headquartered in Missoula, Montana, which is also the home of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation.

Background

Key members of the club have included

, George Bird Grinnell, Madison Grant, Charles Alexander Sheldon,

William Tecumseh Sherman William Tecumseh Sherman ( ; February 8, 1820February 14, 1891) was an American soldier, businessman, educator, and author. He served as a General officer, general in the Union Army during the American Civil War (1861–1865), earning recognit ...

, Boies Penrose,

Gifford Pinchot Gifford Pinchot (August 11, 1865October 4, 1946) was an American forester and politician. He served as the fourth chief of the U.S. Division of Forestry, as the first head of the United States Forest Service, and as the 28th governor of Pennsyl ...

Frederick Russell Burnham Major (rank), Major Frederick Russell Burnham Distinguished Service Order, DSO (May 11, 1861 – September 1, 1947) was an American scout and world-traveling adventurer. He is known for his service to the British South Africa Company and to t ...

, Charles Deering and

Aldo Leopold Aldo Leopold (January 11, 1887 – April 21, 1948) was an American writer, Philosophy, philosopher, Natural history, naturalist, scientist, Ecology, ecologist, forester, Conservation biology, conservationist, and environmentalist. He was a profes ...

. Today the club continues its role as a think-tank, known to the public primarily for maintaining a scoring and data collection system by which native North American big game animals are measured and tracked as a gauge of successful wildlife management. The structure of the club consists of 17 staff members, 100 Regular Members, 159 Professional Members, and thousands of Club Associates.

Club history

In December, 1887, Theodore Roosevelt proposed the formation of the Boone and Crockett Club at a dinner at his residence in New York City. In January, 1888, the club was organized with the following officers and members: * President:

* Secretary: Archibald Rogers * Members: Albert Bierstadt, Heber R. Bishop, Benjamin F. Bristow, J. Coleman Drayton, D.G. Elliott, George Bird Grinnell, Arnold Hague, James E. Jones, Clarence King, Wm. H. Merrill Jr, Thomas Paton, John J. Pierrepont, W. Hallett Phillips, E. P. Rogers, Elliott Roosevelt, J.E. Roosevelt, J. W. Roosevelt, Rutherfurd Stuyvesant, W. A. Wadsworth, Bronson Rumsey, Lawrence Rumsey and W.D. Pickett. The Club set out with the goals of promoting skill with hunting firearms, exploring the wilderness of the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, preservation of native big game animals, observing and recording wildlife, and engaging in discourse about opinions and ideas pertaining to exploration, hunting, and travel.

Education

The Boone and Crockett Club offers many educational camps and workshops through the Boone and Crockett Club Education Programs held at the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Ranch in Dupuyer, Montana. These education programs at the TRM Ranch are not federally funded. They are supported by the Boone and Crockett Club and by private foundations committed to K–12 education. The club's Lee and Penny Anderson Conservation Education Program is located on the club's 6,060-acre working cattle ranch, the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Ranch (TRMR) and bases out of their 5,000-square-foot Rasmuson Wildlife Conservation Center (RWCC). RWCC's typical operating season is from April 1 to October 31. A variety of educational programs are offered during this time, including but not limited to: K–12 Conservation Education-related field trips, the Boone and Crockett Club's own Outdoor Adventure Camps (five-day residential camps for middle school- and high school-aged youth), a nationally accredited

Boy Scouts of America Scouting America is the largest scouting organization and one of the largest List of youth organizations, youth organizations in the United States, with over 1 million youth, including nearly 200,000 female participants. Founded as the Boy Sco ...

High Adventure Camp called MOHAB (Montana High Adventure Base), a series of hunter education courses, shooting sports events and is available for rental to public, private, NGO, agency and other groups.

References

External links

Boone and Crockett Club's Official WebsiteBoone and Crockett Club's Historical Records
(University of Montana Archives)
Philip L. Wright's Boone and Crockett Club Papers, 1902-1997
(University of Montana Archives) {{Authority control Environmental organizations based in Montana Hunting in the United States Hunting records Non-profit organizations based in Montana Organizations based in Missoula, Montana 1888 establishments in Montana Territory Cultural depictions of Davy Crockett Cultural depictions of Daniel Boone

Background

Club history

Education

See also

References

External links