I posted photos of a group of Girl Scouts and Brownies touring The Missourian to celebrate the 100th birthday of the organization. I don’t think I’ll be around for the 200th birthday party, so I’d better get this one out early. Here’s the 1967 Girl Scout Day Camp held at The Seabaugh Farm. The following story ran on The Missourian’s Youth Page August 5, 1967. It had a three-photo combo of Scout Kim Williamson, above, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Garnet Williamson, 1333 Howell, who “overcomes her shyness, gains enthusiasm and finally exuberantly sings out during a songfest at the Cadette and Junior Girl Scout Camp this week.” (The combo earned me a credit line and 15 bucks.)
Telephone directory story
There are some stories that read like a telephone directory and this is one of them. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, an editor pointed out. “The phone book is probably the best-read book in town,” he said. “Everybody’s got one, and the first thing they do when a new one comes out is look up their name to see if it’s in there and if it’s spelled correctly. That’s one of the reasons we want lots of names in the paper. And, we want them spelled correctly.”
Camp Revolving Door
The Seabaugh Farm should be renamed Camp Revolving Door for two weeks out of the year because, only two hours after 113 Junior and Cadette Girl Scouts close their annual Day Camp, 225 Brownies and leaders will move in for another week of fun and learning.
The girls will arrive at 9 a.m. and stay until 2:30 p.m. Until 12:30 they will be assigned to unit homes; after that they will work in activity centers. First-year Brownies will participate in singing, hiking, fishing and camp crafts; second-year Brownies will work on badges. After the first day, the meal will be prepared by the girls.
Mrs. Janet Dickerson was camp director
Mrs. Jack Dickerson, camp director, asks parents to follow road signs posted near the camp to prevent congestion. Mrs. Dan Day is assistant camp director, Mrs. Bruce Reed is business manager, and Mrs. Barry Hazen is scout adviser. Mrs. Paul Dowling will be in charge of the truck. The following persons will serve as nurses: Mrs. Milton Schoss, Mrs. Jim Tiapek, Mrs. L.S. Bunch, Mrs. George Farrar and Mrs. Marvin Roberts.
Units 1 through 4
Leaders in the various units are as follows: No. 1, Mrs. A.D. Price, Mrs. Richard Dippold and Senior Scout Martha Hahs; No. 2, Mrs. Robert Guard, Mrs. Robert Restemyer and Senior Scout Ann Dippold; No. 3, Mrs. Ray Wilfong, Mrs. Orville Glueck, Mrs. Bob Drury and Senior Scout Regina Busche, and No. 4, Mrs. H.W. Benson, Mrs. Donald Terry and Senior Scout Betsy Evitts.
Units 5 through 7
Other troops and leaders include #5, Mrs. Wilfred Ressel, Mrs. Jimmy Musgraves and Senior Scout Tara Kaiser; No. 6, Mrs. Albert Hitt, Mrs. David Retherford and Senior Scout Chris House; No. 7, Mrs. F.I. Drew, Mrs. Joe Krueger and Senior Scout Betsy Foster, and No. 8, Mrs. Jack Kollker, Mrs. Earl Miller and Senior Scout Jan Seabaugh.
Older girls worked on badges
Badge and their directors are Indian Lore, Mrs. Ed Kaiser and the Misses Dippold and Busche; Dabbler, Mrs. Charles Doerge and Miss Evitts; Songster, Mrs. Donald Barklage and Senior Scout Barbara Stone; Water Fun, Mrs. Jack Rickard and Mrs. Charles Blattner; Rambler, Mrs. Dipplod and Miss Kaiser.
Crafts and other activities
Activities and their directors include Hike and Barnyard Fun, Mrs. George T. Rasmussen, Mrs. Benson, Mrs. Musgraves and Senior Scout Jan Seabaugh; Arts and Crafts, Mrs. Wm. Dunham and Mrs. Emil Dewrock; Songs and Games, Mrs. Price, Senior Scouts Hahs and Becky Bender; Camp Craft, Mrs. Guard, Mrs. Wilfong, Miss House and Miss Foster; Fishing, Mrs. Tom Cooper, Mrs. Miller, Mrs. Richard Kogge and Mrs. Bill H. Williams. Senior Scouts who will have charge of the nursery wil be Jan Brunton, Donna Dinwiddle and Linda Drew.
For the first time this year, Boy Scouts will be participating, entertaining the sons of mothers busy at the camp. They will be hiking, cooking, engaging in camp crafts and other activities.
Photo Gallery of Girl Scout Day Camp
Here’s a gallery that captured some of the excitement of the Day Camp. Click on any photo to make it larger, then click on the left or right side of the image to move through the gallery.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Fun stuff. But I went to overnight Girl Scout camps as a kid. Sooo much cooler! 😉
I suspect that you might have been a little older than these girls. They were mostly pre-teens or early teens.
Tomboy Anne would have been proud of them, though. When I was going through touching up dust spots, I noticed likes to scrapes and scratches on the girls. I thought one young woman’s socks were covered with spots I was going to have to take out, then I took a closer look and saw they were cockleburrs.
I went to Girl Scout Camp as a scout and as a Senior Scout leader. The experience was a good one. I learned a lot and developed confidence about what I was capable of doing on my own.
One thing struck me in this story. There was not a single man at this camp, but not a single married woman’s name was mentioned. Every woman mentioned was ‘Mrs. “man’s name” Somebody’.
Reading this, and then considering the current political drive to control woman’s bodies, caused the hairs on the back of my neck to stand up.
Then and now, I view Girl Scouting as a way to develop character and confidence and the courage and ability to make your personal mark in the world…to make self-reliant young women.
I was a self-aware person of the 60’s, and recognized that I was more than an extension of any male. That attitude caused ripples in my family and was part of the reason I left home in 1968 to find acceptance in a more enlightened region of the country.
I feel that many years of Girl Scouting influenced me. I hope that it continues to do that for girls going forward. And I’m glad that the journalistic style of ‘taking names’ has changed.
The times, “they were a changin’.” Just not fast enough. I’m glad you made the escape. Particularly since you escaped with me.
Lila,
I remember well all the protocols we were taught back in early school days in Cape (and everywhere, for that matter). Of course, the daily papers were especially obliged to follow such style elements, e.g. “Mrs. (husband’s first/last name)” for married women, “Mrs. (her first name, husband’s surname)” for divorced or widowed women (divorces being in fairly short supply back then, as you remember, and widows were more-or-less allowed to choose after a period of time).
If I’m not totally mistaken, it used to be considered somewhat too familiar to refer to a woman by her first name in a public forum.
Then, of course, you also had “Miss (first/last names)” for never-married women and – as I can attest – “Master (first/last names)” for boys.
Heck, I even remember the proper protocol for doing complex introductions between people……but don’t ask me what I had for lunch a couple of days ago 🙂
Agreed about at least one thing: underestimate women at your own risk! Politicians would do mighty well to heed what they should have be taught by their own mothers. And do I even need to add the statistics on how large a percentage of women vote regularly? I think not 🙂
Steve
I sure learned how to use semicolons and commas in lists from those old days. And, as you might have noted, the full name was given on the first reference, but then became Mrs. X in every use after that.
Kids were the killer. We were supposed to get full first and last names (no nicknames allowed), age, parents’ names and addresses. With today’s blended families, that would be a challenge. “Sally Jones, 10, daughter of Brenda Smith-Jones, 1234 Someplace St., and Bill Jones, 5678 Elsewhere Dr., East Podunk, IA, plays with her sister, Mable Higgins, 13, daughter of ….”
But, that’s pretty much a moot point. A former staffer of mine said he’s pretty much given up on shooting pix of kids in the wild. Either somebody sees him shooting and calls the cops or the kids run away when he approaches them to get their IDs.
The style note that drove me crazy at The Missourian was the edict that you were a pupil, not a student, until you were a high school graduate. I argued that the dividing line should be elementary school. Of course, The Missourian was so conservative that they would occasionally spike Ann Landers’ items if they were “too racy” for our readers.
Thanks Ken; That’s a great photo of my sister, Barbara in photo #14.
One thing that I noted, going through all of the names, is that in many families, both husband and wife were involved in the greater Scouting community; both Girl and Boy Scouts. Cape Girardeau was a great place to grow up because of the deep sense of community that seemed to pervade and the level of support due to strong family structures.
It is a shame that the first names of the women involved were lost in the sensibilities of the times, but that in no way negates their innate worth and the support they provided to their daughters, sons and to their husbands. Being a mother and wife is a noble, necessary, and mosttimes nearly thankless role and Mother’s Day is not the only time that they should be recognized for what they do.
Lila, it has been said that the success in man’s life most often can be attributed to a loving and very supportive wife. It is obvious to me that Ken has been very blessed to have you at his side and at his back all these years.
I think I recognize Jan Esicar and Kathy Kremer.
Kim Williamson, who is in several of your pictures, was a good friend of mine way back then. We graduated from Central in 1974 – if that helps you put an age on many of the “girls” in the picture. For what it’s worth, I went to one Girl Scout meeting with Kim and never went back. I don’t have a clear recollection of why I chose not to become a Scout…..
thanks, Ken. that’s a great photo of my wife Barbara in photo #14. she was a cute little girl scout then, a beautiful woman now.
She was a little young to catch my eye at the Day Camp, but she DOES look like she was going to grow up into a beautiful woman. I’m glad you spotted her.
I absolutely loved Girl Scout Day Camp It was the best! The Girl Scout leaders were great role models.
In the late sixties I was teaching and joined the PTA, they referred to me in publications using my husband’s name. I told them I didn’t mind taking my husband last name but would appreciate being called by my own first name. It took a few years for it to finally become the accepted practice. Another peeve I had was being called a “school teacher”. I was a teacher.
You WERE a rebel.
At least they didn’t call you a “school marm?’ Or, did they?
I found myself in two of these photos, I was eleven years old. Thanks for a trip down memory lane.
It was a different world in 1967. Back when bacon and eggs were good for you and people lived without the telephone in their pocket and left the guns at home.
So fun to see – I am the guitarist in the 13th photo – I recognize my guitar strap (which I still have). I loved sharing camp songs with the younger scouts. I also remember those outdoor Girl Scout flag ceremonies – walking so far in the dry grass to post the colors. Thanks for sharing the photos.
I remember singing with you Lea. I still remember all of the words to a song about “Two Young Brothers” that I think you taught us. Some of my fondest memories are of summer days at Girl Scout day camp.
I saw that you had posted the same message twice a minute apart. New posters have to be approved before they show up, so I deleted the duplicate. After your first post, your comments should show up immediately. We hope to hear from you frequently.
Were you part of the radioactive girls at the Arena Building? You’d probably be about that age.
I’m glad you enjoyed the account of your dirty days as a young girl.