Favorite Object: National Constitution Center

Grace Cable's Girl Scouts Registration Card

1919

Pen on Paper

Unknown/ Grace Cable

During this week's visit to the Constitution Center, I finally got to see the 100 Years of Girl Scouting Exhibit that I had on my "to do" list since moving here in May. In my first post on this blog, I wrote about my bear scare bracelet, an object I acquired from my many years of attending Girl Scout Camp. Girl Scouting has been a large part of who I am and has made me the individual I am today. I joined a Girl Scout troop when I was in the third grade, and stayed in a troop until I started high school. Although I quit troop camping, I still stayed a registered Girl Scout and continued to volunteer for council and work for summer camps as an adult Girl Scout. When I was 18 I was an assistant troop leader for a brownie troop. From ages 19-21 I was a camp counselor. While most women are considered to be former Girl Scouts, it was a part of their youth, Girl Scouting for me was something I continued as an adult, and it continues to have some sort of role in my life, even though I currently am not a registered Girl Scout anymore. 

This being said, I definitely had an emotional connection with the exhibit and found it very interesting. All the objects on display were things I can relate to and had sense of familiarity with. All the objects dealing with summer camp had the most impact on me, therefore the case "Summer Camp Memories" was my favorite. The registration card is something I had never seen before and found the most interesting. I believe it is an overall Girl Scout registration card, and not a summer camp registration card. The document was filled out in 1919. It included information about the Girl Scout: name, address, school, date of birth, and religion. Religion was unusual to me, but for the time period, and the history of the Girl Scouting stating God in the law and promise, it then made sense to me. What is really interesting about this document are the types of badges being earned. Some of them are subjects that are associated with women, and roles that women held in that time period, such as cook, gardener, home nursing, housekeeper, laundress, and needlewoman. What is more surprising is the amount of activities that are not ones that are always associated with women in the household. Automobiling, boatswain, clerk, farmer, workmanship, and woodcraft, are all activities that I at least find unexpected for the time period for women to be achieving. However, this is why I like this object so much. Girl Scouting is a very proactive and pro-woman organization, and from the very beginning did not adhere to women stereotypes. Some of the more amusing activities on the list include telegraphist, ambulance and laundress. Not sure if girls today would want to earn their badges in "laundry skills". 

Zoomed in image of Registration Card to Show Badges

This object was acquired by a private lender. I presume it is someone who knew Grace Cable. The record at one time had belonged to her. The object is on display in a case with other objects from Ms. Cable, including a camp smock from 1921 with two years of signatures from fellow campers and a box of feathers. The sign board explains that she left no indication of what the feathers were or what their meaning was, but I can relate all too well as to what significance they must have held to her. My bear scare bracelet being a key example, and the boxes of random things I have held from camp are also kept in my closet. I shared with my friend, a fellow camper and co-worker with me at camp about this exhibit and the mention about the unexplained feathers, and we both agreed "That's just what you do at camp". Everything has some sort of significance, no matter how small. Also nearby on the wall are pictures of girls at camp. 

To learn more about this object, I could learn more in depth about the history of Girl Scouts, especially during the early 1920's. I am familiar with some of the terminology being used on the document, however some words are unfamiliar to me such as Tenderfoot Test and how progression through some of the ranks had worked back then in comparison to how it works today. 

Individuals who would not be interested in this object are those who are not interested in Girl Scouting, or their messages. Also those who have not experienced Girl Scout camp or Scouting in general and have little understanding of how badges and Scouting works. 

Opposing views would argue that this document showed a much more rigid Girl Scouting regimen and that it was taken far more seriously. They could argue that the activities being done in the past were done more as life skills rather than for interest and pursuing new fields of study. Also some, such as one particular Indiana State Representative, may argue that Girl Scouts are radical feminists and are secretly plotting to destroy the youth of America.

Other objects in this exhibit did a great job of engaging viewers with this object. There was a camping tent, uniforms, songbooks, and other memorabilia throughout the decades to gather an understanding of what Girl Scouting has been about throughout the last 100 years. Experiences one can partake in to gain more knowledge and interest in this object is attending a troop meeting, going to summer camp, partake in Thinking Day, or attending the annual GirlScout Rock the Mall in Washington DC. 

Happy 100th Anniversary Girl Scouts!