BSA Troop 46
Glen Ellyn, IL
History
A History of Troop 46
Troop 46 was first chartered in 1938, the same year that WWII got started as Nazi Germany invaded Poland. Gas cost 10 cents a gallon, a loaf of bread cost 8 cents; it was certainly cheaper to be a scout back then. The Wizard of Oz came out as a popular movie about adventuring through a wilderness. Scouts most likely walked to the Glen Theatre to watch the film.
Troop 46 was formed in 1938, as an expansion of Glen Ellyn’s Troop 41 originating in 1920. According to archives, Troop 46 has always met at the First Presbyterian Church in Glen Ellyn. The church itself had not been built at the time the Troop was formed, so meetings took place in various homes. In 1944, the church building at 550 North Main Street was completed. This structure is now called the chapel and is part of a larger and more modern complex. Troop 46’s Eagle Scout ceremonies traditionally are held in this chapel. The first members of the troop included nine boys, ages 12 to 14.
Troop 46 no doubt played an important role in serving their country during the 1940s. Scouts across the country collected aluminum foil and distributed air raid posters. In one two-week period, Boy Scouts everywhere collected 30 million pounds of rubber. By 1945, the U.S. government had made 69 official requests to the BSA for war service. In 1940, Henry Borbour became Troop 46’s first Eagle Scout.
Scouting had phenomenal growth in the 1950s and Troop 46 was no exception. Within 15 years, it had more than tripled to 31. By 1955, Scouting units in the United States had numbered 100,000. Financing was meager by today’s standards, though. Troop 46 had $198.10 in the bank in 1951 and a year later it had grown $45.80. In 1953, the Troop had ordered 30 balsam wreathes for $1.50 each; wreath sales continue as the Troop’s largest fundraising effort. It’s probably safe to say that none of the Scouts in the Troop were watching color TV with sets starting at $1,175. Instead, the Apache, Paul Bunyan, Raven and Rattlesnake Patrols of Troop 46 were entertained at the Troop’s Halloween party with donuts and cider.
Boy Scouts of America celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1960. A typical family of a Troop 46 Scout paid $12,700 for their home and 25 cents a gallon for gas. By 1965, over 40,000,000 Americans had been registered in Scouting since 1910 and the 500,000th Eagle Scout badge had been awarded. A Scout in Troop 46 had a good chance of being named Michael, David, John, James, Robert, Mark, William, Richard, Thomas or Jeffrey. Troop 46 had 18 Eagle Scouts in the 1960s.
Troop 46 joined Scouts across America to collect one million tons of litter on June 5, 1971, as part of “Keep America Beautiful Day”. At that time, the Troop attended Camp Gerber near Fremont, Michigan each summer at a cost of $27 per person for one week. The camp packing list, however, remains almost the same as today’s. All of Scouting celebrated the bicentennial in 1976. In 1979, the Troop experienced High Adventure at McGhies Wilderness Camp in Ontario, which included remote lake fishing reached via bush plane and motor boat.
Troop 46 was formed in 1938, as an expansion of Glen Ellyn’s Troop 41 originating in 1920. According to archives, Troop 46 has always met at the First Presbyterian Church in Glen Ellyn. The church itself had not been built at the time the Troop was formed, so meetings took place in various homes. In 1944, the church building at 550 North Main Street was completed. This structure is now called the chapel and is part of a larger and more modern complex. Troop 46’s Eagle Scout ceremonies traditionally are held in this chapel. The first members of the troop included nine boys, ages 12 to 14.
Troop 46 no doubt played an important role in serving their country during the 1940s. Scouts across the country collected aluminum foil and distributed air raid posters. In one two-week period, Boy Scouts everywhere collected 30 million pounds of rubber. By 1945, the U.S. government had made 69 official requests to the BSA for war service. In 1940, Henry Borbour became Troop 46’s first Eagle Scout.
Scouting had phenomenal growth in the 1950s and Troop 46 was no exception. Within 15 years, it had more than tripled to 31. By 1955, Scouting units in the United States had numbered 100,000. Financing was meager by today’s standards, though. Troop 46 had $198.10 in the bank in 1951 and a year later it had grown $45.80. In 1953, the Troop had ordered 30 balsam wreathes for $1.50 each; wreath sales continue as the Troop’s largest fundraising effort. It’s probably safe to say that none of the Scouts in the Troop were watching color TV with sets starting at $1,175. Instead, the Apache, Paul Bunyan, Raven and Rattlesnake Patrols of Troop 46 were entertained at the Troop’s Halloween party with donuts and cider.
Boy Scouts of America celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1960. A typical family of a Troop 46 Scout paid $12,700 for their home and 25 cents a gallon for gas. By 1965, over 40,000,000 Americans had been registered in Scouting since 1910 and the 500,000th Eagle Scout badge had been awarded. A Scout in Troop 46 had a good chance of being named Michael, David, John, James, Robert, Mark, William, Richard, Thomas or Jeffrey. Troop 46 had 18 Eagle Scouts in the 1960s.
Troop 46 joined Scouts across America to collect one million tons of litter on June 5, 1971, as part of “Keep America Beautiful Day”. At that time, the Troop attended Camp Gerber near Fremont, Michigan each summer at a cost of $27 per person for one week. The camp packing list, however, remains almost the same as today’s. All of Scouting celebrated the bicentennial in 1976. In 1979, the Troop experienced High Adventure at McGhies Wilderness Camp in Ontario, which included remote lake fishing reached via bush plane and motor boat.
