Girl Scouts in Irvington--1943

The Girl Scouts and Irvington have a long tradition.  In fact, the very first Girl Scout troop in Marion County was formed at the Irvington Presbyterian Church in 1917 as Troop One. A few months later, the women of Irvington started Troop Two.  Today, a historic marker in front of the Irvington Presbyterian Church documents this heritage.

The organization remained strong in the neighborhood throughout the twentieth and into the twenty-first century.  In this historic image, members of Troop Ten gathered at the Irvington Presbyterian Church for a club photo in 1943.  According to Ann Hart Stewart, a member of this troop, girls learned to knit, cook, and camp.  Seventy years later, Ms. Stewart fondly recalled that the scouts made a deep impression upon her.  The young women sold cookies and one year they also offered malted milk balls!

Thankfully, we have the names of the girls in this photo courtesy of Ann Hart Stewart, one of the young women in the front row. I have also noted the addresses of some of the girls.

Pictured:  Top Row (l to r)--Mrs. Fately, Mrs. Gigax (47 Johnson Avenue), Mrs.Kettlehut (46 N. Webster Ave)

Middle Row (l to r)--P. Browning (6030 Dewey Ave), S. Emmert (5728 Beechwood Ave), R. Swartz, N. King, B. Lamb (5631 University Ave), K. Bowles (223 S. Butler Ave), C. Wigman, L. Kettlehut (46 N. Webster Ave), J. Stevenson

Front Row (l to r)--Judy Clark, Tony Corelli, Shirley Coulter, Judy Wear (635 N. Linwood Ave), Joanne Miller, Jean Scott, Ann Hart (5930 East Washington St.), Carolyn Goebel, Nancy Campbell, Phyllis Worley

Girl Scout Troop 10 at the Irvington Presbyterian Church in 1943

The first Girl Scout troop in Marion County started in Irvington