Sherman Democrat
4 July 1976
"Always American Edition"
The Denison Herald
Sunday Morning, June 25, 1972
Pg. 16B
VAN ALSTYNE HAD FIRST SCOUT UNIT
Two
Grayson County Boy Scout groups share a spot in history - Van Alstyne
which had the first unit, and Bells which held its organization
together to be the oldest continuous group.
Earlie this year,
Van Alstyne marked the 60th birthday of scouting in that city.
The first group was organized in 1912, just two years after
Scouting originated, with W.F. Barnett as Scoutmaster, making it one of
the first in Texas. The unit issued its first Eagle Scout badge
in 1930 to John Taylor followed by Rea Nunnallee.
At Bells,
Eldridge Craig, who operated a confectionery, became the first
Scoutmaster when boys who hung around his store read about the national
movement and urged him to head up a Bells unit. It was chartered
July 6, 1922.
Craig admitted that the Van Alstyne unit was the
first in Grayson County, but noted that the organization was recognized
later, causing Craig to lay claim to the oldest troop title. The
log cabin used by Bells Scouts was a landmark for years, having been
built out of cottonwood logs from Red River bottoms.
Bells History
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