Patch placement on vintage uniforms?

[Knight]

My son bought a 1970's shirt (olive, no collar, says "SCOUT BSA" above the right pocket) and wants it to have all of his current insignia on it. I'm trying to put the present-day patches in the proper places. Should the rank patch, the OA pocket flap, the office patch, the religious knot, the world crest and the arrow of light patch all go in the same places as they do on a present-day shirt?

[UCEagle72]

Yes ma'am!

[Knight]

Who are you calling "ma'am", sailor?!

 

LOL - My wife chuckled at this.

 

Thank you.

[sherminator505]

Do not sew on the shoulder loops. I've actually seen that happen, and it's just wrong.

[Stosh]

When did the world crest come about? I don't remember that from my OD shirt of the early 60's.

 

Some of the earlier shirts had the flag over the right pocket instead of the right sleeve.

 

Pick a date, then find the scout book for that time period and match to that time period.

 

My OD shirt is early '60's and has the appropriate SM patch, community and state strip on and has the flag over the pocket.

[desertrat77]

I think the world crest started ramping up early/mid 80s. Never saw widespread use prior to that, unless they were US military folks who were in scouting overseas and had partcipated in a joint camp or such with scouting from another nation. Admittedly, my memory is a little hazy on that point.

 

Personally speaking, I think shoulder loops are just wrong, period! Don't folks have a position patch to ID their level of service? Do we really need extra geegaws to tell the world "I work at such/such level?" Awfully vain uniform items, those loops.

 

Digression over. I have a few of the old shirts, and love the simplicity.

[infoscouter]

At one time (until 1991) the World Crest had to be earned, which was why overseas Scouts & Scouters had it more often - they had chances to complete the requirements, which were similar to the current requirements for the International Activity Patch.

 

See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Scout_Emblem

[Eagle92]

This post is in referecne to the World Crest. Since August 1, 1989, all members of the Boy Scouts of America have been authorized to wear the WC to show being apart of WOSM. prior to August 1 1989, you either A) had to visit a forieng country on a scout function for a minimum period of time, or B) host a visiting scout on for a minimum period of time.

 

I earned the WC in 1987, and would have earned it a 2nd time when we were told in the middle of Canada trip that BSA was now letting everyone wear it. Lots of upset scouts on that one. Luckily the contigent made up for it: insead of the American version, we all got the Canadian version which has a velvet background.

 

I beleive that the WC goes back to the 1950s in it's current form.

 

EDITED: Someone beat me to it, but the Wiki article has the incorrect dates, as well as the source it's comign from. I've emailed Black Eagle about that a few times.(This message has been edited by eagle92)

[prairie]

Quote: I'm trying to put the present-day patches in the proper places.

 

If you can, try to find rank patches for that same era, if you leave the Scout BSA strip on you need the first style oval patches, these had a different background color for each rank. I'm not sure both changes happened at the same time but they did come about near each other.

 

I really like the patches used just before the ovals came out, but then the shirt should have a strip that says "BOY SCOUTS of AMERICA" instead. This is the era I have collected.

[Eagle92]

In referecne to the International Activity patch, it has been around since at least 1987, as a group from my troop did a Canadian trip that year and all got the patch, hat, necker, and slide, and there are no national requirements for the IA stuff as each council sets their own criteria. Oh and they all also earned teh WC. Some councils use the old WC criteria for the IA stuff b/c for a brief period of time (maybe that's where everyone is getting 1991 date from?)nothing was created to replace the WC requirements. Other councils will sell it to anyone. In fact the coucnil I work in is oneof those if anyoen wants a patch

 

The item that replaced the WC nationally is the International Youth Exchange Emvblem and info can be found here http://www.scouting.org/scoutsource/International/Highlights/22-323.aspx

 

and Macscouter has an image here

http://www.usscouts.org/advance/IntYouthExch.asp

 

Nice patch BTW, I picked one up

[eaglescout1996]

I don't know how long the WC has been around, but I earned mine in late July 1989 at summer camp at Camp Baden-Powell in England...I even still have my card to prove it.

[UCEagle72]

For those of us who grew up on the US-Canadian border, and were active in Scouts in the 1960-70s, the WC was common as most of us spent time on "International" events. I know I did my first International event back in 1971.

(This message has been edited by UCEagle72)

[Eagle92]

'96,

From Infoscouter's link, the current WC was created in 1955, adn BSA scouts first earned it at the 1956 WSJ.

[eaglescout1996]

Thanks '92....(it sounds like we're in an old "Get Smart" episode)

 

 

[emb021]

FWIW-

 

Pretty much ALL scouting associations have their members wear the World Crest on their uniforms as a standard item (some probably even include it already on the uniform), as a symbol that all are members of the World Scout Movement.

 

The BSA, for whatever reason, choice to instead put requirements on it that limited who could wear it. IMO, that was a mistake. If they wanted to create some kind of recognition item for those who participated in foreign scouting events, they should have created something else (the International Activity patch does that nicely, IMO).