History

Founded in 1910, the Boy Scouts of America is the largest youth organization in the United States. The BSA was granted a federal charter in 1916, a prestigious national recognition of an organization.

Soon after the Boy Scouts of America organization was formed, a troop was organized in Riverside, Troop 1. Troop 1 was chartered March 31, 1917 under the auspices of the “Riverside Local Committee.” Over the next 10 years the charters showed the chartered organization under various names such as the Riverside Council, the Riverside District Committee, the Riverside Local Committee, and a Group of Citizens Riverside Council. Presumably these were all the same organization, as the names repeat randomly during this period.

The Des Plaines Valley Council archives show that on June 8, 1927, the Riverside Troop was rechartered, again by the same “District Committee” but they were now chartering Troop 24, rather than Troop 1. It’s unclear why the Troop number changed. From 1928 until 1939 the Troop 24 charters still show the chartered organization as Group of Citizens, District Committee, Riverside Townspeople, Riverside Citizens, Citizens of Riverside, and Village of Riverside. Again, presumably, this was the same group, but one that couldn’t decide exactly what to call itself.

During this early period Troop meetings were held on Wednesdays, at ‘the’ Riverside Grammar School (now Central School, which at that time was the only school in Riverside).

According to the Troop Charter for 1939, the Rev. Paul Turner of the Riverside Presbyterian Church reported that the church’s governing body had voted to become the charter organization for Troop 24, although meetings continued to be held at Central Grammar School.

Des Plaines Valley Council archives have no charter records for the period 1940-1948, although it’s clear that the Troop must have been in existence, as Eagle Scout awards were given to Eagle Scouts from Troop 24 in 1941 and 1944.

The next records available show that Troop 24 was rechartered by the Riverside Presbyterian Church on October 12, 1949, and RPC has continued to be the Troop’s Charter Organization to the present. With the support of both our Chartering Organization and the community, Troop 24 continues to be a growing, thriving organization that welcomes new boys into its ranks each year. Stay tuned for the next chapter!