We are always scanning web-sites and auctions for interesting pieces of Scouting memorabilia. This past week an interesting patch blanket auctioned on eBay. (An aside - You have got to love patch blankets as you wonder if there’s a pony in there somewhere. Although, as one ‘patch digger’ said “As soon as I see that the patches were sewn on to a blanket or coat, I immediately drop my offer because the person has already indicated what they think their items are worth. Not much if it can be sewn on to a blanket.”)

Back to the story - the blanket had a number of mostly 1960s era patches out of the Del-Mar-Va area. There were some older pieces but in general not very note worthy. There was an interesting, at least for us red and white collectors, homemade strip that said “The Hague/Netherlands”. If it had been US made, “Katie bar the door” as the saying goes. But, since it was hand made, its a curiousity piece and nothing more.

What was interesting though, and actually much earlier than most of the other patches was a Type 2 Scoutmaster. Destry picked up on that it seemed wierd but he was thinking about the line-in-crown issue of this patch which was used only one year. No, this is the no-line issue that was used from 1920 to 1937 but what sets it apart is the style of the eagle and the way the feathers lay-out. Also, the knot hanging from the scroll is unlike any of the other knots. The eagle’s talons stretch into the petals of the FDL. Its almost like one of those “What’s hidden in this picture” puzzles.

Here’s a picture of the patch.

Note that the top of the eagle’s wings go straight across. The standard version has the eagle feathers following the curve of the First Class badge, a different hanging knot and many other differences. See below

In talking with one expert collector, he indicated that this issue is known in both Scoutmaster (white outline) and Assistant Scoutmaster (yellow outline) but that this is only the second straight-wing variety he has ever seen. Now, he has seen a lot of patches but we do not know what people have in their collection and don’t realize it. Maybe you need to go check?

Why this variety exists, we don’t know. It is probably due to a different manufacturer. It would make sense that there must be a production run of these unless they were a manufacturer’s sample that has gotten into the mix. This style of eagle, almost a more military style eagle, does not appear on other badges of this era or later for that matter.

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This will be a first for us, and pretty much the hobby, as we’re publishing a “podcast” of an interview we recently did with Paul Myers discussing the different uniform cloth the BSA used and the badges that match them.

Some background

Paul is a leading authorty on BSA insignia as he has been a collector and researcher of this area for over forty years (boy he sure looks young!). He has published many articles and books on BSA memorabilia. His most recent is a full-color edition of Collecting Boy Rank badges. Paul has received numerous awards and recognitions for his contributions to the hobby.

Why a podcast? Well a picture they say is worth a 1,000 words so what is a moving picture and sound worth? That is, we think we can show and say more to explain things in our hobby that we could never write to paper (or computer file).

Our position within the hobby gives us access to leading collectors and authorities in the hobby. We think showcasing them and sharing their hard developed knowledge will benefit all. We’ll see how well this works. The files are huge (maybe some of our younger readers can give me some pointers here) but we think worthwhile. Please let us know what you think.

We hooked up with Paul recently at the Calumet Council TOR over the Memorial Day weekend. In this podcast, Paul talks about how in the 1920s through the 1940s the BSA made uniforms in many different types of material other than cotton khaki. These include serge, gabardine, wool and a material I’ve been wondering about ‘melton’. The uniforms were made in these materials and listed in the equipment catalogs. The question on my mind, and Paul’s as well, is “Do badges exist in these materials to match?”

 

 Paul Myers on BSA Uniform Cloth Insignia [7:37m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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