What Made "U" Collect A Specific Lodge?

Patch collecting changes or evolves as interests in the field change from person to person. Ever sit back and thank how it all begin...or even how it will all end? Did you expand your collecting interests? Did you narrow your collecting interests?...perhaps a combo of both?

What made you collect a specific lodge or council? A common answer might be because you yourself were once a member in said lodge/council or now perhaps have a son in a certain council/lodge.

As collection expands so do the reasons whether they are odd or obvious. I collect Black Eagle Lodge #482 because it was the lodge I was inducted by. I collect Lodge #406 Chickasah because it was the lodge my father was inducted into. Since it merged back in 90's, I also collect the successor...Lodge #558 Ahoalan-Nachpikin. After a while, needs of the above lodges slowed down and added Lodge #52 Moswetuset to my collection interests because I liked the odd-shaped Lobster patches.

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Since the addition of Lodge #52 Moswetuset, I have added only one new lodge to my collecting interests. It is the first new lodge added to my collection since moving back to the states, at the end of 04, and it all started by chance.

I attended my first lodge function since moving from Germany with Ahoalan-Nachpikin #558 at an annual LOAC function. There I met several folks I have talked with by E-Mail for years and it was good to put faces to all the folks I have never met before. There I met Chuck Schadrack and we got talking about patches. Turns out he collects a lot of Chickasaw Council and District patches from the area and my grandfather just so happened to give a large sack full of Chickasaw patches. I told Chuck about these patches and he was excited to hear my tale. I did not bring the sack to that function because I had no idea that anyone was so interested in those kind of patches. I told him I would bring them to the next event of Lodge 558 that I could attend, and I did, but before that he told me to look through his dupes and pick up any patches that caught my interest...

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I was digging through Chuck's dupes and discovered a bunch of old Ittawamba Lodge #235 flaps. They had that old thick swiss look to them that many collectors like...*wink*. I picked up 7 or 8 of these flaps and was immediately tickled with excitement when he basically said he was glad to help. Chuck gave them to me in the hopes of getting first dibs on my Grandfather's old stuff. He got his wish and was pretty stoked like a pirate digging through a treasure chest full of booty. He had to wait almost a whole year for his side of the trade and that is something I believe most other collectors would not have done in his place.

I was shocked at the difficulty and even value held by some of these old 235 patches when I first started to research lodge #235 which has now become my latest addition to my collecting field. Lodge #235 issues more patches than I can keep up with and is proving to be quite a challenging lodge to collect and it is all thanks to a few dupes laying in Chuck's bag.

Buy Your R/W Denmark Strip for only 15¢

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The article above reads as follows...

"The Executive Board of Transatlantic Council has approved the wearing of local council shoulder insignia by the entire council membership in place of the community and state strips.

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The council strip (cat.#157) contains the name of our council and the country in which your unit is located. Council strips are now available for Italy, Libya, Spain, France, Germany, Morocco, Great Britain, Austria, Norway, Netherlands, Belgium, and Denmark. They may be ordered in any quantity at 15¢ for immediate shipment from the council office."

Of course, this article is about 40 years old. It is interesting to note that there is no mention of an England Council Strip, but Great Britain instead, which makes me question exactly when and by who created the England strip. The R/W England strip is highly sought by Transatlantic collectors. It is safe to say that the England Red and White had to be made after the 1960s.

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Both of these Red and White Council Strips easily sell for over $1000 but recent appearances of both on Ebay have seen those values exceed by more than double. Not bad for a piece of cloth that sold originally for 15¢

Did You Know...?!

I was reading through my old Transatlantic Council newsletters called, "Transatlantic Trails!" If you happened to have any historical paperwork from the council please feel free to email me. I would like to obtain a copy. The same goes for all paperwork from the lodge and chapters such as newsletters and fliers.

Below is about the oldest piece of history I have from the council. Posted for your viewing pleasure is Transatlantic Trail #1 issue from December 1955.

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Below is the first evidence I have of the council's breakdown of districts. Only one of those districts exist today by the same name.....Mediterranean District.

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Black Eagle Lodge in the early 1950's was apparently an unorganized mess. The history of the lodge can be traced back to 1952; however, the first annual lodge event did not take place until Feb 17-18 1956. The article below states...

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"The first annual meeting of the Order of the Arrow, Black Eagle Lodge, will be held on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 17-18 at Chiemsee Leave and Rest Cent.

The meeting will start at 19:30 Friday and close at 22:00 Saturday. Saturday afternoon will be free.

Resverations must be made in advance at the Council office in Heidelberg.

Order of the Arrow members from other Lodges in the States are invited to attend.

Enclosed in this issue of the Transatlantic Trail is a special notice of this meeting. Unit leaders are asked to pass this world along to any Order of the Arrow members in their Units."

Almost...But Never Was (Part 2)

Al Opstal, former lodge adviser, used to assist and take part in patch design/creation of fellowship patches for Black Eagle Lodge 482. If and when scouts did not come up with a theme or design, Al would seek the guidance of Tom Slavicek. Tom has created several fellowship patches for Black Eagle Lodge. Eventually, Al PCS'd back to the United States and the Fall Fellowship patch design for 2001 went with him. It was one of many patches Tom designed at the request of Al.

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The patch that took its place was rather unpleasant. The multi-purpose patch was used for over 3 different lodge functions. It was designed by Peter Amrphol. The lodge apparently used it as a quick fix and to keep costs down on patches.

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Sadly, after Al's departure Black Eagle really has abandoned keeping a steady theme to fellowship patches. The designs have been from mild to wild with no basis of coherent logic. In 2005, the fellowship showed signs of returning to traditional standards but it did not last. While this change is not necessarily a bad thing...it is different from that of which I remembered.

Stars and Stripes Honors Scouts with Special Edition

The Special Boy Scout Edition 1963 from The Stars And Stripes about Transatlantic Council. Pictured below are a couple snap shots from the special edition. Highlight of the article is Transatlantic Council reaching all time high in membership.

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The council use to have support from top rank generals and what seemed like unlimited military support. Today, the council takes support from anyone that is willing to offer a helping hand.

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I thought some of you might enjoy the picture of Checkpoint Charlie with various Scouters pictured above.

Are You A Flapper?

I was reading some articles from "The Totem" which is the newsletter for Black Eagle Lodge. It is only available now online. It was once taken to a press to be printed and mailed out through a list but those days are sadly gone.

I do not know who wrote this article or where it came from but I always loved it. I will post a couple of paragraphs to shorten the read.

What's A Flapper?

A "Flapper" is someone who has been Tapped Out. Gone through the Ordeal, and then forgotten about his Obligation. Maybe he has attended an OA function or two, but most probably he's never has any other dealings with the OA. Oh, you can be sure that he'll wear his Ordeal sash to all troop Courts of Honor and take it to the summer camp, but he's one of those guys who is "too busy" to join his so called Brothers when off to attend the Rededication Ceremony.

Sure, he always wears his OA pocket flap - that's how he gets his name. He wears the flap and he flaps his lips about the membership in the OA, but his words are hollow. His words are hollow because actions speak louder than words and his words are heard only by the few, while his actions are seen by all. A "Flapper" has "done his time" so when it comes to gathering firewood, cooking, cleaning up, helping young Scouts learn Scoutcraft, and providing leadership by example, you'd better look for someone else. He'll strut around like a peacock with his lodge flap and his OA sash, but he'd never stop to help his fellow Scouts and get his hands dirty.

Have you remembered your Obligation? Or are you a "Flapper"?

Treasures At Coberly's (Black Eagle Lodge Part II)

The amount of treasures that live in Coberly's home seemed almost endless. It is worthy to consider turning all those scouting goods into a personal museum if probably organized and put out on display.

Dan Coberly was generous beyond all belief and parted with a piece of Black Eagle History that I have never seen before. He gave me a Black Eagle Lodge Loincloth. The picture does not do it justice. The loincloths are made from layer and layer of cloth through a method of select cuttings, sewn patches, and various threading. It is truly a work of art. The one Coberly gave me is similar to the one pictured below with a dark purplish background but is far to big for me to scan.

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Dan was kind enough to provide the history behind these loincloths. "During the 1970's, we ordered a few loin cloths like these from using molas made in Panama CZ, similar to the ones from Chiriqui Lodge in the 1960's. They were made by Kuna/San Blas Indians and came in different designs with chapter and lodge totems." These loin cloths appeared to be originally made for the Ni'na Caw Yu Chapter for Black Eagle Lodge 482.

Truly, a unique piece of history that I plan to treasure.