James E. West (Scouting)
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Dr. James E. West (May 16, 1876 – May 15, 1948) was a lawyer and an advocate of children's rights, who become the first professional Chief Scout Executive of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), serving from 1911-1943. Upon his retirement from the BSA, West was given the title of Chief Scout.
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[edit] Early life
His father died around the time of his birth in Washington, D.C.[1] His mother was hospitalised with tuberculosis in 1882 and young Jimmie was placed in the Washington City Orphan Home– she died later that year. In 1883, he was diagnosed with tuberculosis, and by 1885 he was crippled, with one leg shorter than the other. At the orphanage, Jimmie was put to work with the girls, sewing and caning chairs. He became a voracious reader and took charge of the orphanage library. After convincing the staff that he could continue his chores (stoking the furnace and caring for chickens) he entered public school at the fifth grade. In 1895, he graduated with honors from Business High School, where he had edited the school newspaper, was business manager of the football team and had acted as a substitute math teacher.
In late 1896, West was out of the orphanage and working as a tutor and as a bicycle mechanic. He attended National Law School while working as the assistant to the general secretary of the YMCA, and during the Spanish-American War, he acted as general secretary. He later worked as a clerk in the War Office. He received his Bachelor of Laws in 1900 and Master of Laws in 1901 and was admitted to the Washington, DC bar. President Theodore Roosevelt appointed him to the Board of Pension Appeals in the Department of the Interior in 1902. He was instrumental in establishing the juvenile court system, pushing a bill through Congress.
West was a Mason and a member of the Knights of Pythias and the Sunday School superintendent for the Mount Pleasant Congregational Church. In the early 1900s, he was the finance chairman for the Boys Brigade and the secretary of the Washington Playground Association, later the Playground Association of America. He later served as secretary of the National Child Rescue League, responsible for placing orphaned children into homes. West was then the secretary of the White House Conference on Dependent Children, pushing for reforms in the management of orphanages.
He married Marion Speaks on June 19, 1907, and James Ellis West was born on December 25, 1909. In 1910, West was looking to open a private law office. Edgar Robinson, the current managing secretary of the BSA wanted to return to his full time position at the YMCA, so Colin Livingstone, the president of the BSA put out inquiries. Ernest Bicknell of the American Red Cross wrote to Luther Gulick, president of the Playground Association of America and recommended West for the position. After much persuasion West finally accepted the position temporarily for six months, and moved to New York City.
[edit] Scouting
The new BSA office on 5th Avenue opened in January of 1911 with West at the helm and the movement began to grow at a rapid pace. West was instrumental in expanding the third part of the Scout Oath:
“
To help other people at all times; to keep myself physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight.”He also pushed to add three parts to the Scout Law: brave, clean, and reverent. He then pressed article III of the consistution of the BSA, now known as the religious principle:
“
Boy Scouts of America believes that no member can grow into the best kind of citizen without recognizing an obligation to God.”West pushed through a change in his title, and in November of 1911 he became the Chief Scout Executive.
Many did not like to work with West. Also, he was not beyond embelishing a story for the good of the cause, such as the legend of the Unknown Scout.[3]
In spite of these problems, West persevered in building the BSA into a large, highly respected national organization, that either absorbed or outgrew the similar competing organizations in the early days of Scouting in America. Without his skills, this would not have happened.
After James E. West retired as Chief Scout Executive, he was succeeded by Dr. Elbert K. Fretwell.
Dr. West served on the World Scout Committee of the World Organization of the Scout Movement from 1939 until 1947. West was honored by international Scouting with the Bronze Wolf award. He is buried in a grave in Kensico Cemetery, Valhalla, New York.
[edit] Partial list of works
- Lone Scout of the Air. (1927)
A biography of Charles Lindberg
- The Boy Scout's Book of True Adventure, Fourteen Honorary Scouts, with Foreward By Theodore Roosevelt and Biographical Notes By James E. West. Published by G. P. Putnam's Sons, New York (1931) --
Essays include: "Scouting Against the Apache" by Frederick R. Burnham, "How I Learned to Fly" by Orville Wright, "An Arctic Mirage" by Donald B. MacMillan, "Adventurous Hunting" by Kermit Roosevelt, "In the Arctic" by Lincoln Ellsworth, "A Tobacco Trade" by George Bird Grinnell, "The Black Ghosts of the Tana River" by James L. Clark, "My Flight Over the Atlantic" by Richard E. Byrd, "In the Jungles of Cochin-China" by Theodore Roosevelt, "Shipwreck" by Robert A. Bartlett, "Written in the Air" by Charles A. Lindbergh, "Tiger! Tiger!" by Merian C. Cooper, "The First Crossing of the Polar Sea" by Lincoln Ellsworth, "Bandits" by Clifford H. Pope, and "Adventure" by Stewart Edward White. All 13 photo plates of the honorary Scouts are present; both Roosevelts in the same photo.
- The Boy Scout's Book of Honor edited by James West, (1931)
- He-who-sees-in-the-dark; the boys' story of Frederick Burnham, the American scout, by James E. West and Peter O. Lamb; illustrated by Lord Baden-Powell. (1932)
- Making the Most of Yourself (1941)
Collection of his Boys' Life columns.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ 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.
- ^ a b Hillcourt, William (1964). Boy Scout Handbook, Sixth edition, Boy Scouts of America, Page 359.
- ^ Rowan, Dr. Edward (2006). "James E. West and the History of the Boy Scouts of America". International Scouting Collectors Association Journal (ISCA Journal) 6 (1): 11-15.
