Boy Scouts of America

Founded in 1910, the Boy Scouts of America grew out of the early scouting movement and is commonly linked to publisher William D. Boyce, who helped bring the idea to the United States. Over time, the organization became one of the country’s best-known youth programs, centering its activities on outdoor skills, citizenship, leadership, and community service.

Its history also includes important turning points. The organization expanded and changed across the 20th century, and in recent years it has gone through especially visible transitions, including welcoming girls into more programs and later adopting the name Scouting America. Those changes reflect an effort to preserve the core experience of scouting while opening it more broadly to young people today.

The story of the organization is not only about policy and structure, but also about the culture it built: campfires, merit badges, service projects, and a strong sense of shared tradition. For many readers, that mix of adventure, discipline, and public service is what has made scouting such a lasting part of American life.