HISTORY OF COUNCILS IN THE BSA
FEATURED STATE: MICHIGAN
By
Ed Henderson
Modern
day Michigan has eleven councils within the state plus three other councils
headquartered out of the state that serve some Michigan counties. Besides
having a considerable number of scout camp properties among the councils
serving the state, Michigan also plays hosts to a number of camps from
both Indiana and Illinois.
Most
councils in the state have had their current name and territory since
the 1930's but other have seen mergers and name changes in the 1970's
including two in the last decade.
Only one Michigan based councils extend their reach into another state,
Hiawathaland Council, based in Marquette, Michigan has a few towns on
the Upper Peninsula boarder with Wisconsin but is still largely a Michigan
Council.
There
are three councils that also serve parts of the state:
* LaSalle Council based in South Bend IN serves Berrien & Cass in the Southwestern Corner of Michigan
* Voyageurs Area Council based in Hermantown serves parts of the western side of the Upper Peninsula of the state.
* Bay-Lakes Council in Menasha Wisconsin serves just one community in Michigan, Menominee. (This was also the first home for Scouter's Digest where our founding publisher, Paul Ferris, published the journal for over a decade). For a brief time from 1920 - 1924 Menominee had their own council. It was later folded into the Iron Range Area Council in 1929 after several years of inactivity.
The entire state of Michigan is in the Central Region of the B.S.A. with the regional headquarters based out of Naperville IL.
The earliest record of any Scout Council forming in the state goes back to 1912 with the formation of the Jackson Council in Jackson Michigan (Council # 269). Jackson continued to operate a council as late as late as July 1st 1993 when the Land O' Lakes Council was folded into a merger.
At one
time or another 42 different cities in Michigan have served as host
for a Boy Scout Council Service Center.
GREAT
SAUK TRAIL COUNCIL
http://www.bsa-greatsauktrail.org/ based in Ann Arbor is the result of
quite a few mergers and name changes over the past 90 years. Ann Arbor
itself has hosted a Scout Council since 1917, always with the Council
# 255 designation. The first council was known simply as the Ann Arbor
Council and lasted eight years before merger with Ypsilanti
Council (#281) which was formed in 1922. Beginning in 1925 the newly combined
council became known as the Washtenaw County Council for the next decade.
In 1935 the name changed once again to reflect newly added territory and
became known as the Washtenaw-Livingston Council. In 1951 more territory
was added, this time the name changing to Portage Trails Council, still
based in Ann Arbor and still referred to as Council # 255. 1973 saw yet
another change to the council, with the merger of the Dundee Michigan
based Wolverine Council (Council # 711). This small council has been operating
in Dundee since 1925. The newly combined council kept the Ann Arbor Council
number (255) but adopted the name of the Dundee based council and was
thereby known as the Wolverine Council # 255. In 1993 the
last merger took place, this time with the Jackson MI based Land O' Lakes
Council. As noted earlier, Jackson was able to trace its council origins
as far back as 1912, the earliest council organization in the state. The
Jackson Council of 1912 had continued on until 1926 when AREA was added
to the name. The Jackson Area Council continued on eleven more years until
1937 when its last name was adopted. Land O' Lakes Council # 269 continued
on until July 1st 1993. After a short period of time a new name was decided
upon for the combined council. GREAT SAUK TRAIL is the 2nd newest council
in the state and serves the Southeastern Corner of Michigan below Detroit
on down to the Indiana border in the following counties: Livingston, Washtenaw,
Monroe, Lenawee, Hillsdale and Jackson. The council continues to operate
a
service center in Jackson MI as well as its council headquarters service
center in Ann Arbor. Having been made up of three longstanding councils,
there are three camps in the Great Salk Trails Council. Limited information
on all three camps is available on the council website at:
http://www.bsa-greatsauktrail.org/camps/index.htm
* Camp Munhacke is council's primary camp at 120 acres. It has a Dining
Hall and is located in Gregory MI.
* Camp Muscootah is a 50 acre Short-term camp with a pool and is used
mainly for Cub Scout events. Located in Hillsdale MI.
* Camp Teetonkah is a 200 acre camp near Jackson MI has a lake and winter
camping facilities.
To see
all of the unit websites within this council visit:
Net_Roster/Boy_Scouts_of_America/Councils/council.asp?cid=159
DETROIT AREA COUNCIL http://www.dacbsa.org serves the largest city
in the state. A Geographically compact council, Detroit Area (Council
# 262) started in 1914 and today is the largest council in the state in
terms of youth served. In 1926 "AREA" was added and the council
has continued to operate in this fashion ever since. The Council has done
a great job of
chronicling their own Council History at:
http://www.dacbsa.org/DAC-history.htm
For a brief period, the town of Wyandotte had their own council from 1920
- 1924 (#290). The Detroit Area Council is starting off the new millennium
with a ground breaking for a new and expanded Council Service Center.
The Council has two camps, D-bar-A Scout Ranch is the main council camp
and is located about an hour from the City near Metamora MI. It is one
of the largest council owned properties in the BSA. The camp's website
is at:
http://www.dacbsa.org/d-a-scout-ranch.htm
The Edward N. Cole Canoe Base is located approximately 3 hours north of
the City near Alger, Michigan on the Rifle River. The Canoe Base's website
is at:
http://www.dacbsa.org/cole-canoe-base.htm
To see
all of the unit websites within this council visit:
Net_Roster/Boy_Scouts_of_America/Councils/council.asp?cid=157
TALL PINE COUNCIL http://www.gfn.org/tpc/ serves the central part
of the state northeast from Detroit. Flint has hosted a council since
1916 when the Flint Council (#264) was established. In 1927 the name was
changed to the Muscadawin Area Council before the current name was adopted
ten years later in 1937. Tall Pines has two camps as well as a 47 foot
ketch called the Prevailing Winds II which can be booked for weekend and
week-long trips on Lake Michigan. The ship's website is at:
http://www.gfn.org/tpc/general/camps/pw/index.html
The two council camps are Camp Holaka located near Lapeer MI This camp
is used year round for training functions, weekend events, Cub Day Camps
and a wide variety of local unit activities. The camp's website is:
http://www.gfn.org/tpc/general/camps/holaka/index.html.
Located near Kalkaska, MI Camp Tapico is the council's primary summer
camp/ Also known as Ta-Pi-Co Scout Reservation, the camp is on 1200 acres.
For more information visit:
http://www.gfn.org/tpc/general/camps/tapico/index.html
To see
all of the unit websites within this council visit:
Net_Roster/Boy_Scouts_of_America/Councils/council.asp?cid=164
GERALD R. FORD COUNCIL http://www.grfccouncilbsa.org/ gets the distinction
of having the newest council name in the state, in this case, choosing
to rename the council in July 1995 in honor of the only Eagle Scout ever
to serve as President of the United States. Based in Grand Rapids MI,
Council # 266 has been around since 1915 when it was known as the Grand
Rapids Area Council until 1936 when the council added territory and became
known as the Grand Valley Council. In 1975 a merger was accomplished with
the Timber Trails Council (#275) based in Muskegon MI located directly
on Lake Michigan. Muskegon had carried on as a council since 1915 when
it formed as a council of the same name. In 1927 it became known as Muskegon
Area Council before finally adopting the Timber Trails name in 1944. With
the merger of Timber Trails & Grand Valley Councils a new name was
picked: West Michigan Shores Council. The name stuck until the name change
event in May of 1995. Officially two months later, the council became
known as the Gerald R. Ford Council. (The author is uncertain what name
the council used for the months between May & July 1st of 1995 when
the new name was
adopted). For many years Holland MI also had their own council beginning
with the Holland Council in 1917. The first effort disbanded a year later
but came back in 1923, this time also with the Council # of 267. Two years
later in 1925 the Grand Haven Council (#265) which had been around for
five years was merged. The new Holland based council was called Ottawa
County Council # 717. In 1929 the name altered to the Ottawa-Allegan Council.
In 1924 the name reverted to the earlier Ottawa County Council. Two years
later, the debate apparently raged on as the council went back to the
Ottawa-Allegan Council once more until 1949 when it was merged with the
Grand Valley Council (#266 - See Above). There were two other short lived
councils within the modern day Gerald R. Ford Council. In the community
of Ionia, there was a council from 1918 to 1920 and in 1925 the Ludington
MI based Pere Marquette Area Council existed (#721) from 1925 to 1934.
The Council has a single camp: Gerber Boy Scout Camp located just down
the road from the 5000 acre Owasippe Scout Reservation of Chicago Area
Council. The camp's website is at:
http://www.grfccouncilbsa.org/camp.htm
To see
all of the unit websites within this council visit:
Net_Roster/Boy_Scouts_of_America/Councils/council.asp?cid=158
SOUTHWEST MICHIGAN COUNCIL
http://www.bsaswmc.org/ is a creation of several mergers culminating 1973.
Based in Kalamazoo, this city has hosted a council since 1915 when it
was known just as the Kalamazoo Council. The Council Number has always
been #270. In 1927 "AREA" was added to the council name. That
name stuck for only two years before the council again changed its name
to the Kalamazoo Fruitbelt Area Council. This time the name lasted eight
years before additional territory and a desire for a shorter name prompted
the council to change the name to just the Fruitbelt Area Council in 1937.
In 1973 there was a three way merger that formed the current Southwest
Michigan Council. Battle Creek MI had their own council dating back to
1915 with a council of the same name. In 1927 "AREA" was added
to the Council (always designated Council # 256). In 1956 the folks in
Battle Creek changed their name to Nottawa Trails Council which lasted
until the 1973 merger. The other component of the 1973 merger came from
the small lakefront town of Saint Joseph which had hosted the Southwestern
Michigan Council (#258) since 1941. Before that Saint Joseph had hosted
the
Berrien County Council as far back as 1919. In 1923 the name was changed
to the Benton Harbor & Saint Joseph Council and then in 1929 the name
was edited to become the Berrien-Cass Area Council. Records show the Council
ending in 1941 when its final name of Southwestern Michigan Council (#258)
was adopted. While the 1973 merger consolidated the three councils into
one, there are still satellite offices in both Saint Joseph (2717 S. State
St.) and Battle Creek (1018 North Ave, Suite 4). The name aptly describes
the council which has most of that corner of the state (with La Salle
Council in Indiana picking up two of the border counties at the extreme
lower tip of the state). Finally, there were several other early councils
of note in the town of South Haven, there was briefly an unnumbered council
from 1917 to 1918. Similarly in 1923 the town of Sturgis had the Sturgis
Council (#279) until 1929 when the name changed to Fort Hill Council,
where it lasted another two years before being merged together with the
Kalamazoo-Fruit Belt Area Council. The town of Dowagiac had a council
(#263) from 1917 to 1927 before merging with the Benton Harbor & Saint
Joseph Council. 1917 also saw a council briefly operate in Marshall MI
for one year until its demise in 1918. The council has one property, the
Rota-Kiwan Scout Reservation located close to the council service center
in Kalamazoo. At 187 acres, the reservation includes Camp Madron, which
is the long term camping facility used for summer camp. Camp T. Ben Johnston
is
the Cub facility at Rota-Kiwan. The camp's website has very limited information
at:
http://www.bsaswmc.org/camp_corner.htm,
To see
all of the unit websites within this council visit:
Net_Roster/Boy_Scouts_of_America/Councils/council.asp?cid=163
CHIEF OKEMOS
COUNCIL http://www.chiefokemosbsa.org/ is based in the capital city
of Lansing, right in the middle of the state. Council # 272 began as the
Lansing Council in 1919 before adopting the current name of the Indian
Chief in 1932. The council operates two camps: Camp Kiwanis is located
approximately four miles east of downtown Mason on M-36 at Diamond Road.
It is primarily for weekend use with pavilions, an all purpose lodge,
and picnic areas. Northwoods Scout Reservation attracts scouts from many
councils each summer. The camp itself is located in Ogemaw county on 640
acres. The camp has an Administration building with Kitchen & a dining
hall that seats 175 scouts. Unfortunately the council website is devoid
of any information on either camp.
To see
all of the unit websites within this council visit:
Net_Roster/Boy_Scouts_of_America/Councils/council.asp?cid=155
BLUE WATER COUNCIL
http://www.bwcbsa.org/, based in Port Huron is one of the smallest councils
in the state. It is comprised of St. Clair and Sanilac Counties (located
at the extreme eastern part of the state in the Thumb of Michigan) and
boasts a newly renovated Council Service Center. Port Huron has operated
a Scout Council since 1919 (Council # 277). In 1929 the name was changed
to Saint Clair Area Council. Ten years after that in 1939 the current
name of Blue Water Council was adopted. Saint Clair briefly operated their
own council in 1917 before being disbanded a year later. The council has
one camp, Silver Trails Scout Reservation. It sits upon 288 acres with
14 campsites, dining hall, cabins, and other amenities and is used for
weekend & Cub camping. There is limited information on the council
website about the camp.
To see
all of the unit websites within this council visit:
Net_Roster/Boy_Scouts_of_America/Councils/council.asp?cid=154
HIAWATHALAND COUNCIL
http://www.hiawathaland.org/ is the state's council for the UP, or Upper
Peninsula of the state. Geographically separated from the other
councils of the state by the Great Lakes, the headquarters for this council
has always been in Marquette. While the UP is not highly populated, its
distant past saw many small councils that were established in nearly a
dozen small towns during the 1920's and 1930's. In 1915 the first Marquette
MI council headquarters was established as the Marquette Council # 271.
In 1928 the Council Number was changed to the current 261 and "AREA"
was added to the council name. In 1933 the name again changed with the
addition of new territory to the Hiawatha Area Council. 1945 was a big
year for the council, this was when four councils merged and the current
Hiawathaland Council name was adopted. The councils being merged were
the Houghton MI based Cooper Country Council (#260). This council got
its start in 1918 as simply the Houghton Council. It died later that same
year before reforming as the Cooper Country Council (#260) in 1923 with
a 22 year run before ending in the four way 1945 merger. Another of the
four councils involved in the 1945 merger was one based in Escanaba MI.
At the time of the merger this was called the Red Buck Council (#263).
Red Buck had formed as a council in 1938 but there had been a short lived
Escanaba Council (#261) from 1920 to 1924. At the time of its first dissolution
in 1924 it had
merged with the Manistique & Gladstone, and Delta & Schoolcraft
Councils. Another old council that had operated in this area was one based
in Gladstone of the same name from 1922 to 1924 (no council number ever
given). The Manistique Council based in Manistique MI also operated from
1922 to 1924. From 1924 to 1926 Galdstone was headquarters for the Delta
&
Schoolcraft County Council (#261). All of these small councils of the
1920's had become a part of the Red Buck Council by the 1945 merger. A
Third council involved in the big merger of 1945 was the Chippewa Area
Council (#259). Based in Sault St. Marie, this council had its origins
in
1917 as the Sault St. Marie Council before changing names to be the Chippewa
County Council in 1920. In 1929 its final name of Chippewa Area Council
was made, lasting all the way to the 1945 merger. The last of the four
councils involved in the 1945 merger came from the opposite end of the
UP along the Wisconsin border. The Iron Range Council (#649) was based
in Stambaugh from 1938 to 1945. Before that the town of Iron Mountain
had hosted a council
beginning as far back as 1924 when it was called the Dickson District.
A year later the name had become the Iron Range Area Council, it disbanded
for a year before again running from 1928 to 1933. Briefly, from 1922
to 1926 the town of Ironwood had a Scout Council. Calumet MI also had
a council of the same name from 1915 to 1918 (unnumbered). Today the council
has one primary camp property, Camp Hiawatha. This 800 acres of wilderness
forest lend themselves well to the “Back-to Basics” format.
The council's camp website is at:
http://www.hiawathaland.org/camph/docs/default.htm
and is
mirrored at http://www.geocities.com/camp_hiawatha/.
To see
all of the unit websites within this council visit:
Net_Roster/Boy_Scouts_of_America/Councils/council.asp?cid=160
CLINTON VALLEY COUNCIL http://www.cvc-bsa.org/
is based in Pontiac MI and is just Northeast of Detroit, serving the northern
suburbs of the metro Detroit area between Flint & Detroit. Pontiac
Michigan has always hosted Council # 276, first as the Pontiac Council
in 1917. In 1929 this became the Oakland Area Council. The current name
was adopted in 1937. In 1922 Mount Clemens operated a council of the same
name (# 274) until 1925 when the name was
changed to Macomb County Council. This lasted a dozen years until 1937
when it was folded into the modern day Clinton Valley Council. Geographically,
this is a small council but serves quite a few youth. The Council has
two camp properties: Camp Agawam is located in Lake Orion North of Pontiac,
MI and West of Utica, MI. This camp was purchased in 1918 as "Camp
Pontiac", renamed in 1938. See http://www.geocities.com/cvc-bsa/agawam/
for more
info. The main camp for the council is the Lost Lake Scout Reservation
at:
http://www.geocities.com/cvc-bsa/lostlake/
on 2300 acres.
To see
all of the unit websites within this council visit:
Net_Roster/Boy_Scouts_of_America/Councils/council.asp?cid=156
SCENIC TRAILS COUNCIL
http://www.stcbsa.org/ covers a sizable chunk of the Northwestern part
of the state and is based in Traverse City MI. There has been a Scout
Council in Traverse City since 1928 when it was called the Northern Michigan
Council #273. Two years later in 1930 the current name and a new council
number (# 274) was issued to make up the current council. Briefly, in
1915 the community of Manistee MI operated an unnumbered Council until
1918. In 1971 the council did pick up some counties from the closure of
Saginaw Bay Area Council. The single camp of the council is called Camp
Greilick. On 512 acres the camp is situated between Spider, Bass &
Rennie Lakes, in the heart of the Grand Traverse region of Northern Michigan.
For more information visit:
http://www.stcbsa.org/campgreilick.html
To see
all of the unit websites within this council visit:
Net_Roster/Boy_Scouts_of_America/Councils/council.asp?cid=162
LAKE HURON AREA COUNCIL
http://www.lhacbsa.org/ has several features of its history that set it
apart from other councils in the state. This council is the result of
a number of mergers but it's current headquarters city, Auburn, is a city
that had never hosted a Scout Council previous to 1971 when the current
name was adopted (Council # 265). It is by far the largest
council in the state Geographically, serving 19 counties that make up
nearly all of Northeastern Michigan. Auburn is a small community just
north of the major city of the council, Saginaw, between Midland &
Bay City. Until 1972 Saginaw had served as the council headquarters as
far back as 1918 (Council #278) with the same name. In 1932 AREA was added
to the name. The
following year in 1933 the Council was called the Saginaw Valley Council.
In 1936 the council was called the Valley Trails Council. This name would
last until 1961, then the name was changed one last time to the Saginaw
Bay Area Council. Parts of the council were merged with the Scenic Trails
Council and a Midland MI based Paul Bunyan Council. The 1971 merger and
moving of the Council Headquarters to Auburn saw the end of the Saginaw
Valley Council. Way back in 1918 there was a council in Bay City (#257)
with a council of the same name. In 1927 this council changed its name
to Summer Trails. The Summer Trails Council lasted all the way to 1961
when it was merged into the Saginaw Bay Council. The council covers a
sizable chunk
of the Northwestern part of the state and is based in Traverse City MI.
There has been a Scout Council in Traverse City since 1928 when it was
called the Northern Michigan Council #273. Two years later in 1930 the
current name and a new council number (# 274) was issued to make up the
current council. Briefly, in 1915 the community of Manistee MI operated
an unnumbered Council until 1918. In 1971 the council did pick up some
counties from the closure of Saginaw Bay Area Council. Midland MI also
saw two councils form 25 years apart. In 1922 the Midland Council (#273)
operated. This council merged to form the Summer Trails Council. The folks
in Midland gave it another try in 1951 with the formation of the Paul
Bunyan Council (this time with the number of 259). This council lasted
for 20 years before being folded along with Saginaw Bay Area Council to
form the modern day Lake Huron Area Council as well as some areas going
to the Scenic Trails Council. The single camp of the council is called
Camp Greilick. On 512 acres the camp is situated between Spider, Bass
& Rennie Lakes, in the heart of the Grand Traverse region of Northern
Michigan. For more information visit:
http://www.stcbsa.org/campgreilick.html
To see
all of the unit websites within this council visit:
Net_Roster/Boy_Scouts_of_America/Councils/council.asp?cid=161
Besides the many camps from Michigan based councils, the state plays hosts
to a number of other Scout Camp Properties. Chicago Area Council's primary
camp is the massive 5000 acre Owasippe Scout Reservation http://www.owasippe.net/
7 miles east of Whitehall, Michigan. Indiana's Calumet Council has Camp
Frank S. Betz in Berrien Springs Michigan, on the banks of the St. Joseph
River. The camp's web page is at:
http://www.jorsm.com/calcouncil/campbetz.html
The La Salle Council based in South Bend Indiana has three camp properties, all of which are based in Michigan. The Will Welber Family Camp is a part of Wood Lake Scout Reservation just 15 miles southwest of Three Rivers, MI. Camp Tamarack located in Jones MI.
The author
maintains the links at NetRoster,
Scout
Camp Database and the ScoutCamp.org
for South Carolina. For corrections contact him at BigEd@usscouts.org
Where
would you like the staff at the Scouting E-Zine to take you next, write
us at info@honorpub.com and
tell us which state's history you want to read about in our next issue!