Daniel Carter Beard

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Daniel Carter Beard

Born June 21, 1850(1850-06-21)
Cincinnati, Ohio
Died June 11, 1941 (aged 90)
Suffern, New York
Resting place Brick Church Cemetery, Spring Valley, New York
Other names "Uncle Dan"
Occupation Illustrator, author, and social reformer
Known for Founding pioneer of the Boy Scouts of America
Awards and Honors
Silver Buffalo Award
Honorary Alpha Phi Omega brother
Daniel Beard in later life
The American Boy's Handy Book, by Daniel Beard
Captain Jinks, Hero, from the 1902 book of the same name, illustrated by Beard
Beard's frontispiece for Twain's A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

Daniel Carter "Uncle Dan" Beard (June 21, 1850– June 11, 1941) was an American illustrator, author, and social reformer who founded the Sons of Daniel Boone in 1905, which Beard later merged with the Boy Scouts of America (BSA).

Contents

[edit] Early life

Beard was born in Cincinnati, Ohio into a family of artists.[1] As a youth, he explored the woods and made sketches of nature. He lived at 322 East Third Street in Covington, Kentucky near the Licking River, where he learned the stories of Kentucky pioneer life.

He started an early career as an engineer and surveyor. He attended art school in New York City. He wrote a series of articles for St. Nicholas magazine that later formed the basis for the American Boy's Handy Book. He was a member of the Student Art League, where he met and befriended Ernest Thompson Seton in 1883. He illustrated a number of books for Mark Twain, and for other authors such as Ernest Crosby.

Beard became the editor of Recreation magazine and wrote a monthly column for youth. He founded the Sons of Daniel Boone in 1905, basing it on American frontier traditions. He later moved his column to Women's Home Companion. After conflicts with a new editor, he moved to the Pictorial Review. Since Women's Home Companion retained the rights to the name, he simply renamed the organization to Boy Pioneers of America.[2]

[edit] Scouting

He merged his organization into the Boy Scouts of America when it was founded in 1910. Beard became one of the first National Scout Commissioners of the Boy Scouts and served it for 30 years. The work of both Beard and Ernest Thompson Seton are in large part the basis of the Traditional Scouting movement.[3][4]

Beard also helped his sister organize the Camp Fire Girls and became president of the Camp Fire Club of America. Beard was a Freemason in a New York Lodge, and an award for Masonic Scouters has been named in his honor.

Beard founded Boy Scouts Troop 1 in Flushing, New York, which is believed to be the oldest continuously chartered Boy Scout Troop in the United States.[citation needed]

Beard was also involved with the Culver Academies' summer camp program for many years, which used his "Sons of Daniel Boone" program. This program still exists as the Academy's Culver Woodcraft Camp.

Prior to the establishment of the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award, Dan Beard was recipient of the first and only "gold Eagle badge" awarded at the Second National Training Conference of Scout Executives held in 1922 in Blue Ridge, North Carolina.[1]

Beard died on June 11, 1941, shortly before his 91st birthday at his home (named Brooklands) in Suffern, New York.[5] He was buried near his home at the Brick Church Cemetery in Spring Valley, New York.[6] The National Program Director of the Boy Scouts of America, E. Urner Goodman, was selected to be in charge of the beloved youth leader's funeral in Suffern, New York. An estimated 2,000 people lined the funeral route to the cemetery in Monsey, New York, where 127 Boy Scouts formed an honor guard and assisted with traffic control.[7]

The Daniel Carter Beard Bridge, which carries I-471 across the Ohio River, was named for him. A life-size bronze statue of Daniel Carter Beard and Boy Scout, created by world-renowned sculptor Kenneth Bradford, stands in Covington, Kentucky. The nearby Daniel Carter Beard Boyhood Home is now a National Historic Landmark in the Riverside Drive Historic District.[8]

At the Philmont Scout Ranch in the Western Region, there is a staffed campsite named after him. At that campsite scouts work on low impact camping and participate in team building activities. The campsite is also on the edge of the Valle Vidal, and much vegetation around it is burned down due to many fires.

The J.H.S. 189 Daniel Carter Beard School in Flushing, New York carries his name, also a park near by the school also has the same name. In addition, Daniel Carter Beard School in Chicago, Illinois bears his name. A framed portrait of the old Scout greets all visitors as they enter the school.

The more camping-intensive half of the Forestburg Scout Camp in Forestburg, NY is named after Dan Beard.

[edit] Bibliography

  • The American Boy's Handy Book, 1882, 1903 (still in print)
  • The American Girl's Handy Book, 1887 (still in print)
  • A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, 1889 (illustrator, still in print)
  • The American Boy's Book of Sport, 1890
  • Moonlight and Six Feet of Romance, 1892 (still in print)
  • The Outdoor Handy Book, 1896 (still in print)
  • Jack of All Trades, 1900, 1904?
  • Field and Forest Handy Book, 1906 (still in print)
  • Handicraft for Outdoor Boys, 1906
  • Animal Book and Campfire Stories, 1907
  • Boy Pioneers and Sons of Daniel Boone, 1909
  • Boat Building, and Boating, 1912 (still in print)
  • Shelters, Shacks, and Shanties, 1914 (still in print)
  • The American Boy's Book of Bugs, Butterflies and Beetles, 1916
  • The American Boy's Book of Signs, Signals and Symbols, 1918
  • The American Boy's Book of Camp-Lore and Woodcraft, 1920 (still in print)
  • The American Boy's Book of Wild Animals, 1921
  • The Black Wolf-Pack , 1922,
  • American Boy's Book of Birds and Brownies of the Woods, 1923
  • Do It Yourself, 1925
  • Wisdom of the Woods, 1926, 1927?
  • Buckskin Book For Buckskin Men and Boys, 1929
  • Hardly A Man is Now Alive, 1939 (his autobiography)

[edit] See also

Scouting portal

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b Rowan, Edward L. (2005). To Do My Best: James E. West and the History of the Boy Scouts of America. Las Vegas International Scouting Museum. ISBN 0-9746479-1-8. 
  2. ^ Scott, David C. (June 2006). "Ernest Thompson Seton and BSA - The Partnership Collapse of 1915". International Scouting Collectors Association 6 (2): 10. 
  3. ^ "Traditional Scouting". American Traditional Scouting. Retrieved on 2007-07-18.
  4. ^ Rowan, Edward L. (December 2006). "Dan Beard, Founder of the First Boy Scout Society". International Scouting Collectors Association 6 (4): 28-29. 
  5. ^ June 12, 1941, New York Herald Tribune
  6. ^ Brick Church Cemetery aka Reformed Church Cemetery, Beard Family Plot - (Section D, Division 1, Plot 1, Grave 6),221 Brick Church Rd (Brick Church Rd and Hwy 306), Spring Valley NY 10977, 845-354-6785
  7. ^ "Scouts Officiate at Beard Funeral", The New York Times (June 16, 1941). Retrieved on 2008-01-15. 
  8. ^ "Beard, Daniel C., Boyhood Home". National Historic Landmarks. National Park Service. Retrieved on 2007-07-18.

[edit] External links

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Boy Scouts of America
v • d • e
Scouting Topics
 
Founders, pioneers, and notable leaders
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