SeattleScouting.org

1930's Events

1935 Australian National Jamboree

The first Australian Jamboree was held in Frankston, Victoria, southeast of Melbourne, from December 27, 1934 - January 13, 1935. The site held rolling hills, shrubs and woods, and beach access. Participants were treated to expansive sea and mountain views.

Four Scouts and one Scouter from the Seattle Area Council were part of the American delegation. Their fourteen week trip took them to Japan, China, the Philippines (Manila), British New Guinea, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji (Suva), Samoa, and Hawaii.

1935 World Rover Moot

A few people from the Seattle Area Council went to the 1935 World Rover Moot in Sweden. Described as an "all-summer" trip, the Scouts and Scouters who attended toured England, France, Holland, Germany, and all the Scandinavian countries before returning to Seattle. The group journeyed by third class travel on steamers and European railroads to keep the cost as low as possible.

1935 BSA National Jamboree

The very first BSA National Jamboree was set to be held August 21-30, 1935. It was scheduled to be held in Washington, D.C., on the National Mall.

The Seattle Area Council planned to send a contingent to the Jamboree. The council had a limit of 240 delegates, and each troop in the council was allowed to send at least one Scout who had attained First Class rank, had been a Scout for at least one year, and who had satisfactory camping experience. Plans were made for five possible train routes to reach the Jamboree, four through the United States and one through Canada, and all with sightseeing in the national parks and major cities along the way. Depending upon the route, the cost of the Jamboree trip was budgeted for $112.00 to $135.00.

The preliminary training camp was held at Camp Parsons June 25-27. There the Jamboree contingent, comprised of 46 Scouts and leaders, was divided into troops and patrols, and unit leaders were appointed. The group took their own tents and personal equipment.

Two weeks before the Jamboree was going to begin, it was cancelled due to an outbreak of polio in Washington, D.C. The Seattle Area contingent toured other parts of the east coast instead.

1937 BSA National Jamboree

After the disappointing cancellation of the 1935 National Jamboree, plans were made for a Jamboree in 1937, again to be held in Washington, D.C.

The Seattle Area Council prepared three tours that Scouts could choose from. The first was to go through the Canadian Rockies, making stops at Lake Louise, Toronto, Niagara Falls, Ottawa, and Montreal before entering the U.S. to see New York and then the Jamboree. The return trip would go through Akron and Chicago. The second option stayed in the U.S., seeing Minneapolis and Chicago before the Jamboree. Afterwards, that group was to see New York, Boston and other New England places, then Detroit and Chicago before returning to Seattle. The last option, a "budget" choice, included Niagara Falls, New York, Akron and Chicago. Options one and two included overnight lodging in Pullman cars between Seattle and Toronto or Chicago, while Scouts choosing option three would take their own sleeping gear on the trains. Travel around the east coast was by bus, with overnight stops scheduled for Scout camps. The first two options cost about $150 and $165 and lasted for more than four weeks. The third option cost $127.75 and took slightly less than four weeks.

The first touring option was later changed to a big loop around the United States. Their actual route went south along the coast, to Los Angeles, then east through the South before the Jamboree. On the return, they went to New York City and Detroit, where the public relations director for Ford Motor Company gave them a tour of the plant.

At the Jamboree, the Seattle troops camped in Section F, on Columbia Island on the west side of the Potomac River. Scouts not only enjoyed the Jamboree program but also seeing the sights in Washington, D.C. One Scout reported that they had a lot of fun getting around, for the taxis gave them a special rate of a dime if there were eight Scouts sharing the ride.

1937 World Jamboree

The 1937 World Jamboree was held in Holland.

The United States contingent included over 30 Scouts and adults from the Seattle Area Council. They went to the 1937 BSA National Jamboree for their shakedown campout and then travelled on to Europe for the World Jamboree. Sightseeing stops included England, Holland, Germany, and France, plus an optional side trip into Italy. After nearly three months away, they sailed back with the Scouts from Portland, Ore., on the Empress of Britain, which was at that time the largest and fastest trans-Atlantic steam ship operating.