Scouting magazine (The Scout Association)

This article is about the magazine published by The Scout Association in the UK. For the magazine of the same name published by Boy Scouts of America, see Scouting (magazine).

Scouting magazine is a bi-monthly publication of The Scout Association, the World Organization of the Scout Movement's recognised member for the United Kingdom. It is the national magazine of the association and includes information, resources and support for both young people and adults involved in British Scouting. It is supplied free of charge to all adult members of the association.

History

The Scout (1908-1966)

The Scout, a weekly magazine for boys, was first published by Cyril Arthur Pearson on 14 April 1908, only weeks after Scouting for Boys, the book which Robert Baden-Powell had used to launch the Scout Movement. Because Baden-Powell at first resisted the idea of any central organisation for the new movement, the editor's office of The Scout initially provided a focus for both adults and boys seeking assistance with starting and running a Scout Troop. The advice given was sometimes at variance with Baden-Powell's wishes and he was horrified at Pearson's allocation of places at "the first official Scout camp" at Humshaugh, which effectively went to the Scouts who had bought the most copies of the magazine.[1]

Less successful associated titles were also introduced; The Wolf Cub aimed at 8 to 11 year-old boys in the Cub section which had been launched in 1916 and The Trail for over 18 year-old members of the Rover Scout section which had started in 1918. The Rovers' magazine was merged with the Headquarters' Gazette in 1923 and the Cub magazine later merged with The Scout.[2] In 1939, Newnes and Pearson decided that it was not economic to continue with The Scout, however, publication was taken over by the Boy Scouts Association. Eventually, falling sales led the Committee of the Council to order the closure of the magazine and it ceased publication with the last issue on 3 September 1966. Some regular features from The Scout transferred to The Scouter.[3]

Headquarters Gazette (1909-1923)

As soon as Baden-Powell had established an office and staff, a monthly publication for adult Scouters and administrators was inaugurated under the title of Headquarters Gazette. First published in July 1909,[4] the Gazette gave Baden-Powell a direct link to the adults in Scouting that was not controlled by Pearson and he wrote a column called Outlook in almost every issue, until it was renamed in 1923.[5] It was edited from 1911 onwards by H. Geoffrey Elwes.[6]

The Scouter (1923-1971)

In January 1923, The Headquarters Gazette was renamed The Scouter.[7] The magazine was renamed Scouting in January 1971.[8]

Scouting (1971 to the present)

In October 2004, Scouting was relaunched in A5 size and sent free to all adult members of The Scout Association; it had previously been available by subscription or could be bought at a newsagent.[9] In 2013, the magazine had an average circulation of 116,700 copies.[10]

External links

References

  1. ↑ Jeal, Tim Baden-Powell: Founder of the Boy Scouts, Hutchinson, ISBN 978-0091706708 (pp. 398-399)
  2. ↑ Gordon, Alan and Brooks, Peter (editors), 75 Years of Scouting: A history of the Scout Movement in words and pictures, The Scout Association (1982), ISSN 0263-5410 (p. 57)
  3. ↑ Gordon and Brooks p. 58
  4. ↑ Cohen, Susan (2012), The Scouts, Shire Publications, ISBN 978-0-74781-151-0 (p. 13)
  5. ↑ Walker, Colin. "Scouting Milestones - Bibliography". scoutguidehistoricalsociety.com. Retrieved 23 January 2015.
  6. ↑ Walker, Colin. "Scouting Milestones - Biography: E". scoutguidehistoricalsociety.com. Retrieved 23 January 2015.
  7. ↑ Wade, E K (1935), The Story of Scouting - The Official History of the Boy Scout Movement since its Inception, C Arthur Pearson (p. 120)
  8. ↑ "The Passing Years - Milestones in the progress of Scouting" (PDF). scouts.org.uk. The Scout Association. August 2009. Retrieved 23 January 2015. (page 7 of 15)
  9. ↑ The Passing Years, page 14 of 15
  10. ↑ Scouting, December/January 2015 (p.3)
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, November 12, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.