Milestones



A book, Milestones of 100 years of Hertfordshire Scouting was published and distributed in July 2008 in the centenary year of Hertfordshire Scouting. Complimentary copies were distributed to every Group and District for Leaders to have access to and appreciate the history of our Scout County. The book traces the birth of Scouting from 1906, the relationship of Percy Everett with the Founder and how Percy became our first County Commissioner in 1908. He created, planned and developed Scouting in Hertfordshire, the first Scout County in the UK. The publication has a full index and covers the first 100 years. It takes the reader through every year of Scouting history in the County and includes where appropriate national and civil events.

 

A three-month exhibition based on the content of the book was held at the County Scout Museum in the autumn of 2008 which attracted 510 visitors.

 

Further copies of the book may be obtained direct from The County Archivist or from County Office 0208 236 0040. The price is £15 + £2.50 P&P. The book is A4 with nearly 200 pages and photographs on every page. It is ideal as a Christmas or Birthday present or as a prize in Scout competitions.

 

FRANK BRITTAIN Archivist 01727 860086 / 07850 818600

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“1911 February 4.  To make up for the disappointment to Hertfordshire for not attending their first County Rally in 1910, B-P announced he was prepared to inspect the Scouts at a Rally at Kendall Hall, Radlett.  He would be there visiting a camp at the invitation of Mr & Mrs H.Tillyer-Tatham where 32 London Scoutmasters were attending a weekend of special instruction. 
Percy Everett the CC received notification with only two weeks notice and had to work at incredible speed to communicate to all and sundry to organise and attend the event.  PWE was determined that the occasion would be a showpiece, not only to the Scoutmasters of London and B-P, but also to the public.  He invited a long list of newly found prominent people from the County with a view to impressing them.  As it was, nearly 800 Scouts from 50 Troops descended on Radlett.  It was reported that for miles around, the roads and byways were alive with Scouts on foot, bicycle and every kind of conveyance. 
The Chief was very pleased with the day and the effort put in by PWE and his staff.  In his customary way he wrote long and detailed individual letters of thanks to all concerned.  Detailed reports on this event were published in “The Scout” of 18 February and “The Scouter” of March 1911.  Kendall Hall was an historical house on a large estate in Watling Street in the Parish of Aldenham.  Jordan le Kendale lived there in 1287 and the name came from Kendal in Westmorland”.
 
"1908 21st March.  The Owl Patrol of High Barnet must be considered to be in third place as pioneers of Scouting in Hertfordshire.  The 1st High Barnet Troop had a Scoutmaster who compiled a logbook.  Roland Richardson wrote “It is a treasured memory that the Troop was started by the boys themselves, for several lads from the Christchurch School having read in the press of B-Ps ideas on Scouting decided to try the game for themselves.  On 21st March 1908, R.Sonex, R.Cole, S.Easton and E.Batty formed the Owl Patrol in Hadley Woods.”  
Later, in the Spring, they asked Roland to become their Scoutmaster.  When winter came the basement of 11 High Street, Barnet became HQ and the Patrol commenced to work steadily through “Scouting for Boys”.  All this is confirmed in “The History of the High Barnet Troop” written in 1952 by J.Dudley Pank, then District Commissioner of Barnet, Potters Bar & District.
Archivist note: (Barnet, Potters Bar & District was a large District within Hertfordshire for 57 years until the London Borough changes in 1965 when we lost the Barnet part of the District into the new Scout County of Greater London (North). Many good Groups and relationships were severed because of this.  A sad year for Hertfordshire Scouting)."
 
“16 January 1908.  The first issue of the six part series “Scouting for Boys” was published at 4d followed by part two on 30 January and the remaining parts fortnightly after that.  Percy Everett (PWE) (as yet unknown to Hertfordshire but living at Elstree), worked for Arthur Pearson the Publishers, and acted as intermediary between the printer and B-P.  PWE made frequent visits to Mill House, a cottage near to the windmill on Wimbledon Common that B-P used when writing.  He often waited until an edition was finished then hurried it to the printer to get it set to type, decide how much was to be used, read and edit the pages and carry out all the tasks of a sub-editor.  The Foreword of the first edition contained instructions on how to obtain Scouts` badges, Medals, Patrol Flags and Crests, Tracking Irons and other such items of Scouts` equipment.
It is only from this date that Scouts could get together, form themselves into a Patrol, learn the fundamentals of Scouting and make “The Oath”.  The Oath, (Promise) was the most important as no boy could call himself a Scout until he had taken “The Oath”.  Later they would search around for a Scoutmaster and a meeting place”.
 
"1940 April.  2nd.Lieutenant Ellis Edward Talbot, previously a Scout with the Elstree School Troop, was awarded the Medal of the Order of the British Empire for Gallantry.  (There were 152 holders of this award that was introduced in 1940. This and other suitable awards for Gallantry were later changed to the George Cross, introduced in 1940).  Ellis Talbot was in bomb disposal and his team was called to a bomb that had fallen at Loughor railway station in Wales.  The bomb had penetrated so deeply, they dug for 12½ hours before reaching it.  They had no way of knowing if it had a delayed action device.  If fitted these were known to activate from 5 mins to 40 hours after contact with land.  Talbot placed a rope round this relatively lightweight bomb and hoisted it carefully to ground level.  Upon examination he found it had a fuse new to him.  Calling to his men to take cover he hoisted the bomb onto his shoulder and carried it out to waste ground where he covered it with sandbags and detonated it.  A year later he was killed in action."