Scouting in Arizona facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Scouting in Arizona
Camp Lawton
Popcorn stand run by Girl Scouts at the New Year's Fair in Poston, Arizona

Scouting in Arizona has a long and exciting history, helping thousands of young people since the 1910s. It offers programs that fit perfectly with Arizona's unique environment.

How Scouting Started in Arizona

Major Burnham with a Boy Scout Troop near Carlsbad Caverns, 1941

Boy Scouting began in England with Robert Baden-Powell. An American Scout leader, Major Frederick Russell Burnham, helped bring it to the United States. William D. Boyce officially started the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) on February 8, 1910.

The first Boy Scout Council in Arizona was formed in Prescott in 1916. Major Burnham was an important figure, serving as the Honorary President of Arizona Boy Scouts until he passed away in 1947.

The very first Boy Scout troops in Arizona started in September 1910 in Prescott and Tombstone. Soon after, troops formed in Phoenix (fall 1910), Bisbee (early 1911), and in St. Joseph and Snowflake. In Tucson, the first troop was organized on April 20, 1911, by Harold Steele.

The The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) also adopted Scouting early on. In 1913, the LDS Church became the first official organization to partner with the Boy Scouts of America. This meant that many LDS Church groups in Arizona started their own Scout troops.

In 1921, several LDS troops and a Methodist troop in Mesa formed the Apache Council. Later that year, this council joined with Phoenix Scouters to create the Roosevelt Council, based in Phoenix. This council's summer camp, Camp Geronimo, is still used today by the Grand Canyon Council.

Helping Save the Bighorn Sheep

In 1936, Boy Scouts in Arizona launched a big effort to save the Desert Bighorn Sheep. Major Frederick Russell Burnham noticed that fewer than 150 of these sheep were left in Arizona's mountains. He contacted George F. Miller, a Scout leader in Phoenix, with a plan to help.

A Desert Bighorn Sheep

Burnham wanted to save these amazing animals. He believed they could even help protect domestic sheep from future diseases. Other important Arizonans joined the cause. They started a "save the bighorns" poster contest in schools across the state. The winning bighorn design was even made into neckerchief slides for 10,000 Boy Scouts! Scouts also gave talks and plays at schools and on the radio.

These efforts led to the creation of two special areas for bighorn sheep in Arizona: Kofa National Wildlife Refuge and Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge. In 1939, over 1.5 million acres were set aside. Workers also built waterholes in the mountains for the sheep. Today, the Desert Bighorn Sheep is the official mascot for Arizona Boy Scouts.

Scouting Today in Arizona

Today, there are two main Boy Scouts of America (BSA) councils in Arizona. Other councils from nearby states also serve parts of Arizona.

Catalina Council

Catalina Council (#011)
Catalina Council headquarters
Owner	Boy Scouts of America
Headquarters	Tucson, Arizona
Country	United States
President	Don Riegger, Jr. CPA
Council Commissioner	Jonathan Lang
Scout Executive	Dr. Shannon Roberts,PhD

The Catalina Council, BSA serves southeastern Arizona. This includes areas from Ajo, Arizona all the way to the New Mexico border and south to the US-Mexico border. Its main office is in Tucson, Arizona.

The Tucson Council formed in 1920 and changed its name to Catalina Council in 1922. Another council, Cochise County Council, joined with Catalina Council in 1963.

Scouting Areas

The council is divided into smaller areas called districts. These districts help support local Scout groups.

• Cochise District: Covers Santa Cruz, Cochise, and eastern Pima Counties.
• Sky Islands District: Covers Southern Pinal County and western Pima County.

Scout Camps

The entrance to Double V Scout Ranch

• Camp Lawton Scout Camp has been used by the Catalina Council since 1921. It's located in the Santa Catalina mountains outside Tucson.
• Double V Scout Ranch is about six miles southwest of Tucson. This 360-acre ranch was acquired in 1969. It's used for both Cub Scout and Boy Scout camping. The ranch has a large picnic area, restrooms, and an Olympic-size swimming pool. A cool rock formation on nearby Cat Mountain looks like an "Indian chief's" profile.

The "Indian Chief's" profile (above windmill) on Cat Mountain, overlooking Double V Scout Ranch

Grand Canyon Council

The Grand Canyon Council serves Scouts in Arizona and New Mexico. It offers programs like Cub Scouts and Scouts BSA for boys and girls aged 5 to 18. Older youth (14-21) can join Venturing for high adventure or Learning for Life for career exploration.

The Grand Canyon Council was formed in 1993 from the merger of the Theodore Roosevelt Council (Phoenix) and the Grand Canyon Council (Flagstaff).

Scouting Areas

In 2017, the Grand Canyon Council reorganized into six Community Districts:

Scout Camps

• Camp Raymond is about 30 miles outside Flagstaff, Arizona, near Sycamore Canyon. It has 18 campsites and offers many activities, including summer resident camp with 31 merit badges. Older Scouts can try C.O.P.E., climbing, and mountain biking. The camp is named after Dr. R.O. Raymond, who helped create a permanent summer camp in northern Arizona.
• Camp Geronimo is located between Payson, Arizona and Pine, Arizona, near the Mogollon Rim. It recently celebrated 50 years at its current spot. Camp Geronimo is owned by the Grand Canyon Council. This camp covers 200 acres of forest and meadows. It's mainly a one-week summer camp for Scouts BSA. It has 29 campsites, three chapels, a lake, a swimming pool, and ranges for archery and rifle shooting. Scouts can earn merit badges here. The old Spade Ranch house at Camp Geronimo is over 100 years old. It's also where the classic Mogollon Monster story is told to campers.
• R-C Scout Ranch is east of Payson. It's used for Cub Scout Resident Camp and many training programs. It also has cabins for winter camping.
• The Heard Scout Pueblo is in Phoenix, Arizona. It hosts the Grand Canyon Council Cub Scout Day Camp every summer and offers camping for Cub Scout Packs and Boy Scout Troops.
• Lake Pleasant Camp is an aquatics and nature camp at Lake Pleasant Regional Park, north of Phoenix.

The Grand Canyon Council also has an Order of the Arrow lodge called Wipala Wiki #432.

Other BSA Councils Serving Arizona

Some parts of Arizona are served by BSA councils based in other states:

• Great Southwest Council: Based in Albuquerque, New Mexico, it serves youth in northeast Arizona.
• Las Vegas Area Council: Serves Scouts in Mohave County, Arizona.
• San Diego-Imperial Council: Based in San Diego, California, it serves a portion of Arizona.

Other Scout Groups in Arizona

• 1st Arizona Baden-Powell Scouts Rover Troop 30: This is an adult Scouting group that focuses on community service and supporting youth programs.

Girl Scouting in Arizona

Girl Scouting in Arizona
Map of Girl Scout Councils in California

There are two Girl Scout councils in Arizona.

Girl Scouts started in Arizona in Prescott in 1916. The first official troop was recognized in 1918 in Ajo. The Barbara Anderson Girl Scout Museum in Phoenix shares the history of Girl Scouting, especially in Arizona.

Girl Scouts–Arizona Cactus-Pine Council

Girl Scouts–Arizona Cactus-Pine Council
Headquarters	Phoenix, Arizona
Country	United States
Chief Executive Officer	Tamara Woodbury
Website girlscoutsaz.org

The Girl Scouts–Arizona Cactus-Pine Council helps over 25,000 girls. It covers northern Arizona, parts of the Navajo Nation in Utah and New Mexico, and a small part of California.

Girl Scout Camps

• Camp Maripai: 80 acres near Prescott, Arizona, established in 1942.
• Parsons Leadership Center: 20 acres at the base of South Mountain near Phoenix, Arizona.
• Camp Stephens: 5 acres east of Kingman, Arizona.
• Shadow Rim Ranch: 40 acres in Tonto National Forest near Payson, Arizona.
• Willow Springs Program Center: 190 acres in Prescott National Forest.

Girl Scouts of Southern Arizona

The Girl Scouts of Southern Arizona council serves more than 14,000 girls. It covers Pima, Cochise, Greenlee, Yuma, and Santa Cruz counties, plus southern parts of Graham, Maricopa, and Pinal counties. It used to be called Sahuaro Girl Scout Council.

Girl Scout Camps

• Whispering Pines Program Center: 16 acres on Mount Lemmon in Coronado National Forest.
• The Hacienda Program Center: Located in Tucson.
• Camp Tucker: A "leave no trace" campground near Rimrock.

Scouting Museums in Arizona

If you want to learn more about Scouting history, you can visit these museums in Arizona:

• Otis H. Chidester Museum, Tucson, Arizona, [1]
• Arizona Scouting Museum, [2]
• Barbara Anderson Girl Scout Museum, Phoenix, Arizona