By Lori McKay - The Weekly News
About half of the Girl Guides, Pathfinders and Brownies in HRM will be getting a "guided" tour of the Dartmouth Heritage Museum over the coming weeks.
Last month, the museum launched its latest exhibit, "I Promise... 100 years of Guiding in Canada."
"We have over 20 Girl Guide groups booked over the next two months to tour the exhibit," said museum curator Crystal Martin. "That's almost half of all the Girl Guides in the area."
Once a guider herself, Martin said this was a fun exhibit to put together.
"There was definitely a lot of stuff to sort through, but the Guiding community was willing to help out with loaning things and helping with the tours."
To date, Martin has given about 10 tours, that's more than 200 girls. She said so far the Guides have been attentive and generally interested in the long history of the organization.
"The pathfinders, in particular, seemed to love trying on the dress-up clothes, which were included in the museum portion of the tour."
Exhibits like this one also help draw people, who wouldn't otherwise visit, into the museum.
"It's a select audience, but even if you weren't in Guides, everyone knows someone who was. It's interesting to see the evolution."
The "I Promise" exhibit tells the story of the Girl Guide movement and is illustrated through historical photographs, clothing, badges, camp blankets, and documents.
Pictures show groups of girls, clad in rugged, yet feminine uniform dresses, racing in cardboard boxes along the shore of Lake Banook. There's also historical photos of girls camping, skipping and hiking on McNabs island.
"I Promise ... 100 years of Guiding in Canada" will run until April 24. The museum is located at 26 Newcastle St., Dartmouth. For information, visit www.dartmouthheritagemuseum.ns.ca.
lmckay@hfxnews.ca
History
Dartmouth Heritage Museum curator Crystal Martin notes one of the interesting facts about Girl Guides that many people don't know is that Boy Scout founder Lord Baden-Powell's sister Agnes Baden-Powell first started the program for girls, not his wife Olave, who tends to get much of the credit.
"It was at a scouting rally in 1909 that a bunch of girls snuck in by only using their first initial. Powell suggested his sister start something, so she did. Poor Agnes never gets any of the credit," said Martin.
Baden-Powell met and married his wife Olave in 1912. He was 55 and she was 23. The pair shared the same birthday, which is celebrated on Feb. 22 in scouting communities all over the world as Thinking Day. Local Dartmouth groups partook in a Thinking Day event last month at Prince Andrew School auditorium with speeches, songs and skits.
Olave became Chief Guide for Britain in 1918 and was elected World Chief Guide in 1930. She visited 111 countries during her life, attending Jamborees and national Guide and Scout associations. Between 1919 and 1970 she visited Canada 14 times, which included numerous trips to Halifax and Dartmouth.
"They would have Girl Guide rallys and make a really big deal out of her visits," said Martin.
History of the famous Girl Guide Cookies
Everyone knows Girl Guide cookies, but did you know that the first cookies were homemade and not at all like today's cookies?
A Saskatchewan Guide leader baked and boxed cookies for her girls to sell, as a simple way to raise money for uniforms and camping equipment.
*1927 - The first GGC cookies, rich in fruits, nuts and spices, were sold in Regina, Sask.
*1929 - GGC starts selling cookies
*1946 - Vanilla cream, maple cream and shortbread cookies are introduced
*1953 - Classic chocolate and vanilla cookies made their first appearance
*1960 - A special box commemorates the 50th Jubilee of GGC
*1966 - The classic vanilla and chocolate cookies return
*1967 - GGC centennial cookies are sold
*1991 - During the Gulf War, every Canadian soldier was given a box of GGC cookies upon arrival in Saudi Arabia
*1992 - Canadian astronaut Roberta Bondar, a former member, carries GGC cookies into space
*1995 - The chocolate-mint cookies are sold in all provinces
*2003 - All classic chocolate and vanilla and chocolate-mint cookies are produced in a tree nut-free and peanut-free bakery
*2008 - GGC introduced a bright new look for the chocolate mint and classic cookie boxes to highlight the camaraderie, teamwork and variety of activities that Guiding offers
*2009 - GGC launches first national cookie-selling rewards initiative
- Cookie All Stars
http://www.girlguides.ca/cookie_story
