Colonel Carroll Andrew Edson (December 29, 1891 – October 15, 1986) was an influential leader in the Boy Scouts of America movement. He helped to found the Order of the Arrow (OA) along with

E. Urner Goodman Edward Urner Goodman (May 15, 1891 – March 13, 1980) was an influential leader in the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) movement for much of the twentieth century. Goodman was the national program director from 1931 until 1951, during the organiz ...

. The OA is an official program of the Boy Scouts of America designed to recognize Scouts and Scouters for their service, and to aid in the retention of older boys in the Scouting program.

Early life

Edson was born on December 29, 1891. He married Hazel Howard Partridge on 28 Aug. 1919. They had four children.

Education

Edson graduated from Dartmouth College in 1914 and was a member of

Phi Beta Kappa Society The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal ar ...

. He later received his master's degree from Columbia University in 1931.

Career

Military

Edson joined the military and attended the first officer's training camp at

Plattsburgh, New York Plattsburgh ( moh, Tsi ietsénhtha) is a city in, and the seat of, Clinton County, New York, United States, situated on the north-western shore of Lake Champlain. The population was 19,841 at the 2020 census. The population of the surrounding ...

in 1917. During World War I he served as a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

in the United States Army with the 77th Division. In 1931 he attended Infantry School at

Fort Benning Fort Benning is a United States Army post near Columbus, Georgia, adjacent to the Alabama–Georgia border. Fort Benning supports more than 120,000 active-duty military, family members, reserve component soldiers, retirees and civilian employees ...

and then in 1936 he attended the Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth. He was promoted to colonel in 1938 and recalled to active duty as an instructor at the Command and General Staff School in 1940. He served in both World Wars and was a member of

The Retired Officers Association The Military Officers Association of America is a professional association of United States military officers. It is a nonprofit organization that advocates for a strong national defense, but is politically nonpartisan. The association support ...

Scouting

Edson was hired by the

Philadelphia Council Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since 1 ...

of the Boy Scouts of America in 1915 as a Field Commissioner. He was then appointed as the Assistant Camp Director in charge of commissary at Treasure Island Scout Reservation. There he worked with the Camp Director

to create an experimental camp fraternity program called the Wimachtendienk, later known as the Order of the Arrow. After attending a speech by

Ernest Thompson Seton Ernest Thompson Seton (born Ernest Evan Thompson August 14, 1860 – October 23, 1946) was an English-born Canadian-American author, wildlife artist, founder of the Woodcraft Indians in 1902 (renamed Woodcraft League of America), and one of ...

on his Woodcraft Indians program, Edson urged that American Indian lore be incorporated into the fraternity. This was to make the organization more appealing to youth. Edson himself researched the history and language of the Lenni Lenape (the Delaware Indians) in order to make the names and culture of the program authentic. He and Goodman conducted the original rituals and the speaking roles at the public campfire were primarily done by Edson. He was the second to receive the

Vigil Honor It is important to distinguish between ''awards,'' ''honors,'' and ''membership levels'' in the Order of the Arrow – the honor camping society of the Boy Scouts of America. The Founder's Award, the Red Arrow Award, and the Distinguished Serv ...

and kept his Vigil in 1917. In 1921 Edson was hired by the Chicago Area Council as a Field Executive for the South Shore District. In that position he founded five more Order of the Arrow lodges in Chicago. He was the Chairman in 1921 for the first Grand Lodge Meeting where he ran for Grand Lodge Chieftain, but lost to Goodman. At the second Grand Lodge Meeting in 1922, Edson ran again for Chieftain, but lost to Arthur Schuck, the Grand Treasurer. Edson ran unopposed and became the Grand Lodge Chieftain in 1923 at the Third Grand Lodge Meeting. In 1927 Edson was hired to be the Scout Executive for Hudson Council (currently part of Northern New Jersey Council) in Jersey City, NJ. He remained in this position until he left Scouting around 1933. He later returned in the 1960s and became active again in the OA. He was also one of the inaugural Distinguished Service Award recipients in 1940.

Educator

In 1935 Edson served as an education program director for the Civilian Conservation Corps and an education adviser for the Fourth Corps Area Headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia.

Management

Edson then became the manager for the Social Security Administration's office in Syracuse in 1937 where he worked for twenty-five years until he retired in 1961.

Death

Carroll A. Edson died on October 25, 1986 at the age of 94. He is buried in Brookfield Cemetery in Brookfield, Vermont.

References

External links

The Founder's Award
{{DEFAULTSORT:Edson, Carroll A. Order of the Arrow Scouting pioneers 1986 deaths 1891 births People from Worcester, Massachusetts Dartmouth College alumni Civilian Conservation Corps people