Alumnae Story
'Great Merriment' From a Pair of Yellow Terrycloth Pants

By Gwen Purcell, as told by Esther Burditt
Evansville, Ind.
formerly of Red Rose Patrol

My mother, Esther, and her twin sister, Evie, were Girl Scouts from 1934-1938. Their troop met at the Evangelical Church and it was led by two sisters in their early 20s.

They remember attending a ceremony for a girl receiving her Golden Eaglet award where they also celebrated the 25th anniversary of Girl Scouting. They invited their whole troop to dinner while earning the hostess badge and they participated in a hobby fair. They remember taking the streetcar to visit the zoo and a park in Evansville.

But both agreed that their favorite memory concerned a camping trip. They were asked to purchase some pants to wear while camping and hiking on some of the new trails that had just been created by the Civilian Conservation Corps. Pants were not often worn by women in the 1930s and there were not many clothing stores within walking distance, so Evie had to settle for a pair of bright yellow terry cloth pants, which was the only pair in her size. As they were hiking, she tripped and rolled down a little hill. The pants picked up leaves, twigs and sand as she went! In her words, “The girls found this a source of great merriment!”

I wish I had photos of them in their uniforms, but there was a flood in Evansville in 1938 and the family lost almost all of their family photos. Evie, who has now passed away, married an Eagle Scout in 1949 who had also been a troop leader until he went off to war. They spent many years hosting reunions for his scout troop. Esther, my mother, is presently living in an assisted living center in Pennsylvania.

I am so glad that I interviewed them about their scouting careers for the 90th anniversary of Girl Scouting.