The Scout Jamboree of 1949

The summer of 1949 was a memorable highlight for the Berwick Boy Scouts, as this was the year of the First National Canadian Scout Jamboree.

This was an event for Boy Scouts who were between the ages of 14 and 17-and-a-half that had attained their First Class Grade badge. The majority of the troop had never traveled very far from home before, and the invitation that would take them across and beyond the province was very much looked forward to.

Sponsored by the Berwick Board of Trade, and all arrangements for travel, sleeping quarters and meals worked out well in advance, the young men made preparations from a list of what they were to bring: wool blankets, a rubber ground sheet, eating utensils, enamel-only cup, bowl and plate, a sewing kit, three handkerchiefs, candle and matches, but also a book called “Tenderfoot to King’s Scout.”

Initially the Nova Scotia contingent had suggested a good flannel shirt be packed and kept clean for the jamboree, but several leaders complained the cost of flannel was too high, so cotton was allowed, but preferably green, so that everyone matched. Extra underwear and “stockings” were also suggested.

There was much to do before the trip even began. The Boy Scouts were sent a drawing of the type of costume they would need to join a pageant, a 5’6” staff they had carved themselves was required for a competition and the words and music to three particular “sea chanteys” were expected to be learned.

James Daniels and Gerald M. Morse were among the Berwick Boy Scouts that assembled with more than 100 Boy Scouts from Nova Scotia at the Central Nova Scotia Exhibition grounds in Truro for “training camp” that opened July 9. Depicting how Nova Scotia got her flag was one of the themes for displays in the pageant, and, along with displays representing Newfoundland, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island; the pageant ended with a Scotch reel performed by trained Scout members to the sound of bagpipes. Sleeping in canvas tents and cooking their meals over campfire was not a new experience for the Scouts, but these activities combined with many other events were a great deal of fun, as they knew acquaintances from all over the Maritimes.

Training camp ended July 15 and was followed by the Boy Scouts from all Maritime provinces making the journey to Ottawa, Ontario, headquarters for the Canadian Boy Scouts organization. There were many rules to follow, among which were no tampering with train or bus equipment, no unsightly appearances in half-uniform and no carving of initials.

The Canadian Jamboree in Ottawa began July 16, 1949. Maritime Boy Scouts were joined by Scouts from Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia as well as those listed under the Salvation Army, La Federation and the United States. It was an amazing turn-out of more than 3,000 Boy Scouts that celebrated the organization in Connaught Camp on the Ottawa River on the outskirts of Ottawa. There were all kinds of events and competitions enjoyed at the camp, along with free movies in the evening, bonfires at night and a day of sightseeing in Ottawa.

The jamboree came to an end July 24, and the Berwick troop returned to Truro the next day before making their way home to Berwick with stories and adventures that would last them a lifetime.