OA History Museum Explores the Order's Origins

To the delight of Arrowmen waiting to enter, the OA History Museum opened Sunday with over 105 tables of memorabilia filling over 6,000 square feet of exhibit space. It is estimated that the museum contains more than 50,000 different items--many irreplaceable.

Among the more unique items on display in the museum were lodge totem pins and medallions from the early days of the Order and Scout uniforms from the early twentieth century. The museum also contains artifacts from the Order's and Scouting's founders including a uniform worn by Dr. E. Urner Goodman, Carol A. Edson's Distinguished Service Award, and a uniform of Green Bar Bill--considered by many to be the Scoutmaster to the World due to his prolific writings and teachings in the areas of troop and patrol structure and training. 

Some of the many exhibits in the OA History Museum include a nearly complete lodge flap collection, the most complete set of Eagle Scout medals known to exist (with medals from1910 to current day), and an interactive station where Arrowmen can stop and listen to an address given by Dr. Goodman at the 1977 national conference.  The recording of the Founder's voice provides a tangible connection for younger Arrowmen allowing them to see into the mind of the man who started the Order.

Open at NOAC only for a few days, Arrowmen will stand in long lines to see this incredible collection of memorabilia.