America's First Eagle Scout - Baden-Powell Was There
Arthur Eldred was America's very first Eagle Scout, passing his Eagle Board of Review on January 31, 1912. The Boy Scouts of America was founded on February 8, 1910, so clearly Eldred was a speed demon.
What's really cool is that Lord Robert Baden-Powell sat in on the Board, as did Ernest Thompson Seton and Daniel Carter Beard, three of the giants of early Scouting history. Baden-Powell happened to be in America at the time on an inspection visit, and so he was invited to participate in Eldred's Board.
Although lots of details about this very first Eagle Board were already known and published, some new details about dates recently came to light, which prompted Scouting Magazine to revisit the event. By the way, in addition to an Eagle badge, Eldred also received a Bronze Honor Medal for saving a boy from drowning.
Now Easier for New Eagle Scouts to Earn Palms
Note: This change applies only to Scouts who pass their Eagle boards on or after August 1, 2017.
The change: When the new Eagle receives his badge at his Eagle Court of Honor, he may also receive one or more eagle Palms at the same time.
For example, assume that your over-achiever attends his Eagle Board of Review with 41 merit badges on his sash; that is, 20 more than the 21 needed for Eagle. At his Court of Honor, he will receive an Eagle badge + silver palm + bronze palm!
Any palms due to merit badges earned after his Board will have to wait for three months, which is in line with the portion of the palm requirements that have not changed, BUT...
But the additional 3-month post-Board palms have also gotten easier to earn. No palm Board of Review is required, and the "be active for 3 months" requirement has also gotten easier. Here's a link to a Scouting Magazine article with lots of details.
By the way, a related article talks about the non-intuitive silver palm is better than a gold palm. Just be happy that, as in the Olympics, a gold Journey to Excellence award is better than a silver.
