| Top row,
left to right: Fred Bennett (ASM), Ranger;
Erwin Addy, III, Cisco; Jay Timmins, Brownwood; Len
Cedars, Stephenville; Joe Shaw, Brownwood; Floyd
Toleston, Brownwood; Roland "Rody" Smith, Brownwood;
Jim Childress, Goldthwaite; Phil Duren, Goldthwaite;
Don Walske, Brownwood; Eddie Devery, Brownwood; Tom
Duren, Goldthwaite; Dr. Wade Andrews (SM),
Stephenville; and Walter "Wally" Walske (ASM),
Brownwood. Second row, left to right: Tyson Clemons, Comanche; Jimmy Ratliff, Ranger; John Yantis, Brownwood; Thomas A. Brashier, Ranger; Jerry Jackson, Stephenville; Skippy Anderson, Breckenridge; Bill Wright, Cisco; Dennis Moreland, Goldthwaite; Billy Summy, Goldthwaite; Mike Pope, Monahans; Bill Baxley, SPL, Stephenville; Owen Yarborough, Goldthwaite; David Self, Stephenville Bottom row, left to right: Gary Bennett, Ranger; Pat Rominger, Breckenridge; Robert Benningfield, Goldthwaite; David Locker, Brownwood; John Cunyus, Stephenville; James Dixon, Ranger; (holding sign) Mark Gordon, Brownwood; Ross Wolfe, Stephenville; Jimmy Gerhardt, Brechenridge; Robert Whitman, Breckenridge; William G. "Bud" Arnot, Breckenridge; Mike Conradt, Goldthwaite; and John Mark Cauley, Comanche. |
| Dr. Wade Andrews, Stephenville, Scoutmaster
Fred Bennett, Ranger, ASM/Program Walter "Wally" Walske, Brownwood, ASM/Arrangements Ervin Addy III, Cisco, JASM/Program Bob
White Patrol Eagle
Patrol |
Bill Baxley, Stephenville, Senior Patrol
Leader Phil Duren, Goldthwaite, JASM/Arrangements David Self, Stephenville, Troop Scribe Don Walske, Brownwood, Troop Quartermaster Flaming
Arrow Patrol Hawk
Patrol |
 We thank Bruce Shelley for providing us a picture of this neckerchief. By John Yantis We were Troop 68, camped in Section 25, from Region 9. Our Tour Group was 928. The site was between the Pennsylvania Turnpike to the South (centered on the Thomas Road exit), and the Schuylkill River to the North. Subcamp 25 was on the Southwest corner of the site, near Scoutcraft Area 2. I have the July 18, 1963, minutes of the Council Jamboree Committee. The members present were: Dr. Allen J. Spence, Brownwood, Chairman; Tom Yantis, Brownwood; Jack Merrill, Breckenridge; and John H. Pound, Scout Executive, Secretary. Other members were: Reecie Jones, Stephenville; Ed Devery, Brownwood; Bill Black, Breckenridge; Dr. T.C. Graves, Goldthwaite; and Jimmy Ratliff, Ranger. The stated purpose of the committee was to promote boy participation, select the adult leadership for the contingent, and to set general policies on equipment, transportation, tours, etc. The committee's promotion plans were: 1) Direct mail to boys using a folder from National BSA and a supplement sheet, giving the contingent's specific plans; 2) articles in the Council bulletin, and in the local press; and 3) making films of the 1957 and 1960 Jamborees available for unit and public showings. The total fee would be $315.00, payable as a $52 reservation fee, $100 due November 1, 1963, $100 due February 1, 1964, and $63 due April 1, 1964. The committee set the following criteria for selecting adult leaders: 1) Need outstanding men, not necessarily now serving as unit leaders. 2) Men who have previously attended Jamboree shall be given secondary consideration as it is felt this "once in a lifetime" experience should be given to as many different men as possible. 3) All leader costs, except personal uniforms and equipment, shall be borne by the boy participants. 4) Nominations are requested for the three adult leaders. A shakedown camp was held at the Camp Bowie Rifle Range the weekend of May 29-31, 1964. The agenda was: Friday,
May 29 Saturday,
May 30 Sunday,
May 31 We didn't yet have our official Jamboree neckerchiefs, so for the shakedown camp, we had to make contingent neckerchiefs. They were white, with orange edge piping, and an orange triangle on the back with "Troop 68" printed in black ink. The tour agenda for the contingent was: Thursday,
July 9, 1964 Friday,
July 10 Saturday,
July 11 Sunday,
July 12 7:30pm
Depart Washington, DC, on Pennsylvania RR Train #166
Monday,
July 13 Tuesday,
July 14 Wednesday,
July 15 Friday,
July 24 Saturday,
July 25 Sunday,
July 26 I remember that the train trips were long and very uncomfortable. We had a reserved coach car, but no sleeping accommodations -- we tried to sleep in the bench seats and on the floors, but I remember not getting much rest. It was a hot summer, and quite often we had no air conditioning. We also spent long hours motionless, waiting for the tracks ahead to clear. We did eat in the dining car, where the food was pretty good. We had one boy that was a constant source of disruption and un-Scout-like behavior, who was sent home early (my memory's a little hazy about whether it was during the Jamboree, or as we departed.) As we arrived at the Jamboree site the afternoon of Wednesday, July 15, it was very hot and humid, and as we began unloading the truck that had our shipment of equipment, I collapsed with heat exhaustion. I was taken to the Infirmary, where I was given fluids, shade, and rest. That evening, I rejoined the contingent, and was in good health the rest of the trip. The next evening, I received a "radio-gram" from the on-site Amateur Radio Station K3BSA -- they had been contacted by my Father, also an Amateur Radio Operator ("Ham"), at 10:58pm EST. Later in the week, I got to tour the BSA's "Ham" station. I'd like to think that this set the stage for my participation on the BSA Staff of the 2005 National Scout Jamboree -- as Chairman of Daily Activities, one of the areas for which I was responsible was Amateur Radio Station K2BSA! Yours in
the Spirit of Scouting, The Comanche Council group left Brownwood by bus, transferring to a passenger train in Ft. Worth. It was a 4-day trip on the Rockin' Rock Island line. And the group wasn't in a sleeper car - they slept on the bench seats that they rode in all day. And the air conditioning mostly didn't work. They spent a full day in Washington, D. C. and two days in New York City. While in New York City, they spent a full day at the World's Fair. They also spend half a day touring the historic downtown area of Philadelphia prior to arriving at the 1964 National Jamboree held at Valley Forge. PA. Some 300 Boy Scouts and leaders from West Texas were at the Jamboree. Leaders of the Comanche Trail Contingent were Dr. Wade Andrews, Stephenville, who served as Jamboree Scoutmaster; Fred Bennett, Ranger, Assistant Jamboree Scoutmaster in charge of program features and Walter "Wally" Walske, Brownwood, Assistant Scoutmaster in charge of Arrangements for the Jamboree. Dr. Andrews and Walske had both attended the 5th National Jamboree in 1960. Mike Conradt, Goldthwaite, hit 15 bullseyes without a miss at the rifle and shut gun range. He admitted to Army Sgt. Lawrence Jackson of the 101st Airborne Division that he's had a little practice back home. The Jamboree began with an aerial bomb exploding high in the sky to signal the raising of 1,800 flags by the 52,000 participating scouts and leaders standing at attention. Joseph A. Brunton, Jr., Chief Scout Executive, looked over the city of 30,000 tents and said "This really represents what's good about America." President Lyndon B. Johnson addressed the participants at one of the campfires. He declared that, "Government is not to be feared or attacked. It is to be helped as long as it serves the country well, and changed when it doesn't."
The trading tents were jammed with hundreds of Scouts from every state in the nation and form many of the 44 foreign countries. They sat cross-legged on the grass floor or crowded around wooden tables. They had cigar boxes, shoe boxes, paper bags, stuffed with neckerchiefs, shoulder patches, lapel pins, stuffed turtles, rattlesnake rattlers, oyster shells, rocks and metal rings. A story appeared in the July 26, 1964 issue of the Brownwood Bulletin about this group returning from the Jamboree. We are still looking for additional information and the names of those who went to this Jamboree from Comanche Trail Council. Boy Scouts Return Today From Valley Forge Jamboree "Thirty-seven boy scouts and three adult leaders of Comanche Trail Council who attended the sixth national jamboree of Boy Scouts of America at Valley Forge are due to return to Brownwood today. "According to John Pound, scout executive, the council, which included nine Brownwood scouts, will arrive by chartered bus here at approximately 11 a.m. "The group left the jamboree, held July 17-23, at 8:30 a.m. Friday and was to have traveled to Washington, D. C., said Pound. "At the capital, according to Pound, the council was to have had a three-hour layover before boarding another train enroute to Chicago. The scouts and leaders invaded the 'windy city' at 7:20 a.m. Saturday, he said. "In Chicago, reported Pound, the delegation ate breakfast, visited the Museum of Science Industry and then boarded a train for Fort Worth. The group is due at Fort Worth at 8:50 a.m. today. "From Fort Worth, continued Pound, the council will travel by chartered bus to Stephenville, where six Stephenville scouts and Dr. Wade Andrews, scoutmaster will get off. "The bus will then leave for Brownwood and should arrive between 11 a.m. and noon today, said Pound. "Included in the delegation from the Comanche Trail Council are nine scouts form Goldthwaite, two from Comanche, two from Cisco, four from Ranger and six from Stephenville. "Besides Dr. Andrews, the two other adults who attended the jamboree were Walter Walske of Brownwood and Fred Bennett of Ranger. "Dr. T. C. Graves of Goldthwaite served as health-lodge superintendent for the council. Marty Lehnis of Brownwood and J. Robert Bird of Lampasas also attended." We want to thank John T. Yantis, one of the youth participants, for providing us with the names of the participants in Jamboree Troop 68 and for information on their trip. For the 2005 National Jamboree, Yantis served on the National Staff as Chairman of Daily Activities. He was responsible for 5 program areas (Radio Station K2BSA, DisAbilities Awareness, Arts & Science Expo, Brownsea Island, and America's First Scout Camp) staffed by 200 volunteers. The attendance for those areas during the Jamboree was over 105,000. Last
Updated: September 15, 2005
|
Show to the
right is the contingent of Canadian Scouts who
participated in the Jamboree. The
Scouts participated in a "Showcase of Scouting" with
demonstrations of camping and other Scoutcraft
skills, fellowship and activities designed to help
"Strengthen the America's Heritage." Saturday,
July 18, the Jamboree Scouts and leader took part in
patriotic ceremonies, campfires, demonstrations and
historical hikes at Valley Forge. The
Strengthen America's Heritage program was used in
order to "provide a fuller personal understanding
and appreciation for America's rich heritage of
freedom - to find ways to enrich the heritage and
pass it along to future generation - and to
contribute to the understanding of all Americans the
values of American's heritage."