Renton girls explore Girl Scouts’ origins

Arriving in the Peach State

Last week Troop 1776 in Renton made the trek to Savannah, GA to visit the birthplace of Girl Scouting’s founder, Juliette Gordon Low. Making this trip extra special, the girls had fundraised enough that the entire trip was paid for, including airfare, lodging and entry fees!

The girls arrived in town ready for sunshine and adventure, and were quick to start exploring before the other troops arrived. To kick off the first day, the girls decided to check out Laurie’s Restaurant, a fun little diner famous for being the place Jenny worked in the movie Forrest Gump!

With bellies full, the girls were eager to get up and move, so made their way to Forsyth Park before joining up at the Girl Scout First Headquarters. There they got to watch The Golden Eaglet, a 1918 movie all about Girl Scouts that used to be shown in movie theatres! Watching the movie was fun, since the girls got to see what’s changed and what’s the same after 100 years of Girl Scouting. (If you want to check out the movie, you can watch it here.)

Visiting Juliette Gordon Low’s Birthplace

Now that they knew the lay of the land, the girls were ready to dive into Girl Scout history. At the Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace the girls started off by learning about Victorian fashion. Since that was how Girl Scouts had to dress in the beginning, the girls were curious to try out some of the fashions. They tried on corsets and realized that even though they looked like Victorian beauties, it was really hard to move!

Afterwards, the girls learned more about the Gordon family’s history and then took a tour of the house Juliette grew up in. The house even had some of Daisy’s artwork! Once the tour was done, the girls performed their pinning ceremony, taking time to talk about how important this place is to Girl Scout history. Each of the girls received an official pin that you can only get by touring the house, which they all wore proudly.

Once they had a chance to stop and think about everything they’ve seen, the girls talked as a group and decided the Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace site isn’t just important to Girl Scouts’ history, but also to U.S. history. With this decision, the girls elected that their troop would join the Circle of Friends, so they could help preserve such an important location.

That night the girls filled up at Paula Deen’s restaurant, The Lady & Sons, where they each got to fill up on southern classics like fried catfish, collard green and yams. Yum! Finally, the girls went on a walking ghost tour – it was a little scary, but it was good to hear stories about all the history in Savannah.

The rest of Savannah – cannons and dolphins!

The next day, Troop 1176 visited Tybee Island Light Station, which is one of only a few operational 18^th century lighthouses in North America. After hopping back on the bus, the girls arrived at Old Fort Jackson and joined in for the Girl Scout Militia program. Yes, really! The Girl Scout Militia program has been specially designed for Girl Scouts who visit Old Fort Jackson. The girls can learn how to march and salute, practice signs soldiers used to use to communicate at the fort, and then get to witness a cannon firing! Additionally, the girls learned about the Civil War and how sites like Savannah played a role in the war. Later the girls got to play in the sun at Tybee Beach and took a dolphin cruise where everybody got to see dolphins frolicking in the Atlantic. The trip wrapped up with visits to the Andrew Low House and Laurel Grove Cemetery, and then it was time to head back home. What a great trip!