Tapping Out Walter, 1947
With the start of camp right around the corner, this will be the last From the News posting for awhile. We hope you’ve enjoyed the series.
This week’s post is about an OA tap-out at Boxwell in 1947. Wa-Hi-Nasa was still in its first decade at this point and tap-out ceremonies at Boxwell were common, as were day long ordeals in the middle of camp.
This article though is important though not just because it refers to an OA ceremony, but because it inducts 65 year old camp cook Walter Whitaker, who had been working at Boxwell almost since its beginning in 1921. Indeed, the facts that Whitaker is given the honor AND is referred to by his whole name in the article (instead of just “Walter”) in a time when segregation is still going strong in Tennessee and in the Boy Scouts are pretty important moments in their own way.
“Scout Society Adds 12 to Rolls,” The Tennessean, July 29, 1947, pg. 13.
OA ceremonies at the Narrows Boxwell