The First Women

To our knowledge, there have been several “firsts” concerning women and Boxwell’s program. The first woman on staff at Boxwell Reservation was cook Norma Cardiff (1960 and 1961). The longest serving female staff member was cook Pearl Schleicher (1962-1994). The first woman on Parnell staff was Judi Eubank, serving as Kitchen Director in 1974. The first female program director was Elizabeth Nicholson at Camp Murrey (1960). The first female area director was Diane Gregory, Field Sports (1997).

But the very first female on Boxwell Staff appears to date all the way back to Rock Island. Nashville Banner “Scout correspondent” Louis Hine reported in June 1951 that two women had joined the Rock Island staff. Mrs. Jean Murdock and Mrs. Tom Pedigo joined cook Ike Davis and dish-washer Jim (possibly Davis). The two women were considered “Senior Staff” and planned the camp’s meals. Murdock in particular was a dietitian.

And that’s all we know. We don’t know their full names. We don’t know how many summers they served. We don’t know what they looked like as we have no photos of them. All we know for sure is they appeared in this article in the Nashville Banner and appear to be the very first women on Boxwell staff.

Louis Hines, “100 Boy Scouts Enjoy Activities at Scenic Boxwell Reservation,” Nashville Banner, June 28, 1951, pg. 15

Washing Dishes…1929 style

Camp Boxwell at Linton was different from modern Boxwell in just about every way possible. And that even includes how dishes were washed.

Camp Cook Walter Whittaker prepared all the food and Scouts ate in a “dining hall.” While there was no “kitchen staff,” the way there is today, the pots and pans used to prepare the meal still had to be cleaned. How was this done? In the river.

After the meal, pots and pans were taken down to the Little Harpeth river and cleaned, as shown here. Utensils were scalded in boiling water. The kitchen stands in the background as Whittaker directs Scouts–not staff, Scouts–to clean the kitchen dishes.

The caption reads: “Above–Walter, camp cook for many seasons, directs a little dish-washing. The Little Harpeth forms the first water water supply. Later the kitchen utensils are scalded.”

Photos by C. J. Burnell. From “Boy Scouts Learn to be ‘On Their Own’ at Camp Boxwell,” Nashville Tennessean, July 7, 1929, Rotogravure Section.