Boy Scout Handbook

''Scouts BSA Handbook'' is the official handbook of Scouts BSA, published by Scouting America. It is a descendant publication of Baden-Powell's original handbook, ''Scouting for Boys'', which has been the basis for Scout handbooks in many countries, with some variations to the text of the book depending on each country's codes and customs.

The handbook opens by introducing the Scout Oath, the Scout Law, the Scout Motto, and the Scout Slogan. There are currently two editions of the ''Scouts BSA Handbook'', one for girls and one for boys, but other than photographs, the content is essentially the same.

The original edition of the handbook was based on Baden-Powell's work. Ernest Thompson Seton combined his Woodcraft manual, the ''Birch Bark Rolls'', with Baden-Powell's ''Scouting for Boys''. Subsequent works were done by other authors. William "Green Bar Bill" Hillcourt wrote the 6th, 7th, and 9th editions. Frederick L. Hines wrote the 8th, and Robert Birkby the 10th, 11th and 12th editions.

Purpose of the Handbook

Since its first edition, the ''Boy Scout Handbook'' was published to be the primary reference for Scouts. It was used by Scouts at a time when the internet was not available and included practical information a Scout needed. It also was designed as a moral compass. It was and still is brought out of the classroom and into the field including on camping outings. Many copies did not survive these years of use in harsh environments and very few early examples have survived to this day in good conditions.

Editions

1910 Original Edition Handbook

The first ''Official Handbook'', subtitled ''A Handbook of Woodcraft, Scouting, and Life-craft'' was published from July 1910 until March 1911 and appeared in eight distinct variations. It was written by Ernest Seton and drew greatly on Baden-Powell's ''Scouting for Boys'', it included information on the organization of Scouting, signs and signaling, and camping, as well as Scouting games and a description of several Scouting honours. Notably, this book did not place emphasis on first aid, knife and axe use, or map and compass work, as later editions would. Because this edition was intended solely as a temporary guide until an authoritative handbook could be made, it is now known as the ''1910 Original Edition Handbook''. The cover art was an illustration by Baden-Powell. There were about 28,000 copies printed, not 68,900 as previously thought.

First Edition

''The Official Handbook for Boys'' was published in June 1911. In this edition, the American Scouting program was standardized, albeit with many omissions and mistakes (cf. external links). As with the ''Original Edition'', many now-standard Scouting skills were passed over, including knife and axe use and map and compass work.

The book describes many Scout-like virtues and qualifications. After a lengthy section on what a Scout should know, including chivalry, history, and national issues, it is noted that "in short, to be a good Scout is to be a well-developed, well-informed boy."

On June 17, 2005, a re-print of the First Edition was published by Dover Publications. The book contains all the original material in 448 pages.

Scouts BSA

The Boy Scouting program began admitting girls in 2019 and was renamed Scouts BSA. The handbook was renamed the ''Scouts BSA Handbook'' for the 14th edition. It is available in two editions with identical content but one with photos of boys and one of girls. The board of directors wanted to make sure that male and female scouts alike would see themselves within the pages of the Handbook. The text however is identical in both version including the requirements and program elements remaining unchanged from the 13th edition. The boys' version has a green with lettering and First Class Rank Emblem in metallic gold cover, while the girls' version is tan with the same lettering and First Class Rank Emblem in metallic green cover.

All Editions

Dates and names of the various editions are:
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**; an extract of the standard handbook for use as a temporary advancement record
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Appearance

Finish

Most of the handbooks were soft cover usually made of heavy paper. However, some very limited runs also used leather, vinyl and oilcloth. The paper used was always off-white with black ink with the exception of the 3rd edition that was printed using green ink. The first editions were printed in black and white. Later on, full color printing was used in the handbook itself.

The binding used until around 1970 was stitched signatures (as seen in most hardcover books). Starting at the end of the 7th edition, the cheaper ''perfect binding'' was used where each page is glued to the spin (as in a paper pad). This resulted in most Handbooks falling apart even faster, especially with the abuse scouts put them through in the field. Some coil-bound versions were introduced to resolve this issue but were sold at a higher price. Finally, the 13th edition was made available only in the coil-bound version, as is the current 14th edition.

Cover artwork

The Handbook has gone through 17 covers over the years:
* 2 line drawings
* 1 color sketch
* 1 plain cover
* 4 photo montages
* 9 paintings

Four of these covers only were not full color: Original 1910, 1st Edition, early 8th and the 14th Boy and Girl editions.

Various artists contributed to the artwork on the cover including Don Ross, the former BSA art director who is responsible for both covers of the 5th edition and Norman Rockwell who painted the 3rd, 4th, 6th and 9th editions. However, only the 6th edition was painted specifically to be a Handbook cover. The other three were originally used on the Brown & Bigelow annual Scout calendars.

Content

The content of the Handbook has varied from year to year and covered a wide range of subjects essential for scouts.

For example, the 1911 First Edition included the following content:

The handbook has changed over time to reflect the evolution of the Boy Scouts of America program, including the implementation of the Youth Protection program and the admission of girls in the program. While many of the resources are now available online, all youth involved in Scouts BSA today still uses the Scout BSA Handbook as a reference and to track their journey in the program.

Firsts

The following subjects were first addressed in the following editions:

Advertising

From 1911 to 1964, advertising was found in the Handbook and helped subsidize the cost of production. The advertising stopped after 1964 with the exception of the 1975/1976 printing of the 8th Edition that also contained advertising.

Advertising was provided by companies primarily focused on categories that appealed to boys including camping-related goods, sports equipment, clothing and food products. Food products included chewing gum, canned sardines, pancakes, shredded wheat, chocolate, and baked beans. However, most ads were for rifles and ammunition. Among well-known brands that advertised in the handbook were Coca-Cola, Life Savers, Mercurochrome, Kodak, Wrigley Gum, Harley-Davidson and Aunt Jemima.

Variations in Content

¹Early prints only

²Late prints only

^* International Handshake

^**Boy Scouts of America Handshake

References

External links

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*Peterson, Robert (September 1999)
The Perfect Book for a Desert Island
''Scouting Magazine''.
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* (1911 first edition)

{{Portal bar, Scouting

1910 non-fiction books
Literature of the Boy Scouts of America
Handbooks and manuals
Ernest Thompson Seton