From the Chief: Remembering the Legend

I met William “Green Bar Bill” Hillcourt when I was a Scout on staff at junior leader training. For a young person, getting a chance to talk for a few minutes to a Scouting icon was pretty exciting. If you aren’t familiar with Green Bar Bill, turn to page 30 for a detailed portrait of the man.

Bill always made an impression. He was inspirational with an infectious love for Scouting. He is a Scouting legend who got his nickname writing for Scouting and Boys’ Life magazines and had a big hand in shaping our movement, from the way the handbook is written to how Scout troops are structured. Bill had a big impact on the BSA — and on me personally.

Many years after our first meeting, while I was serving in Syracuse, N.Y., I had the chance to get to know Bill pretty well. We’d drive to and from Scouting events where he was a speaker, and he’d occasionally stay for visits at our camp facilities. Whenever we were together, Bill and I would talk about Scouting history. During his lifetime, Bill was active in our movement for more than 80 years — so, needless to say, he told me several stories you can’t find in books!

Later, when I was serving as a program director, we built the William Hillcourt Scouting Museum at Camp Woodland in New York. I will never forget the hot July night when the facility was dedicated. Green Bar Bill gave his famous “Serendipity” speech. I could never do it justice, but here’s a very short summary: Serendipity is a gift for finding valuable things one is not seeking, and a serendipitist is the person who does the finding. Bill proclaimed himself a serendipitist and explained that Scouting was one of the treasures he had found in life. Bill enraptured the crowd for the better part of three hours, which was a true feat, as it was probably 100 degrees in the room all evening. Bill took great pride in our movement’s history and had strong faith in its future. Passion like that is enthralling.

Bill was truly one of the thought leaders of our movement in many areas, but particularly in troop and patrol structure and training. Helping us understand how Scouts interact and can lead their peers while working collaboratively with adult advisors was a true gift he gave to the BSA. His contributions to the development of training at the youth level are immeasurable, and his legacy lives on today. Scouting has become known as the premier leadership development movement for young people, and that is in many ways thanks to Green Bar Bill. 

It was my honor to count Bill as a friend, and most importantly, a true mentor. I miss him every day.

Yours in Scouting,

Michael Surbaugh

Chief Scout Executive


5 Comments

  1. A great story, and a tribute to our “ONONDAGA COUNCIL” as it was called. Need a story now on William “Bill” Wadsworth who was camp director at Camp Woodland, Sabbatis, and National director of camping and director at Philmont back in the 60’s. He was great on winter camping. He was one of the few men i know , who could walk into a room and in 2 minutes have complete order and thing running smoothly.

  2. My three brief meetings with GBB and a few minutes spent chatting with Lady Baden-Powell are the highlights of my 65 years in Scouting.

  3. It was a privilege to know Bill when he was living in Manlius and a bit before he moved here. When I directed Brownsea II (a program GBB wrote for BSA) at Camp Woodland. Hiawatha Council in early 1980’s Bill came out to meet the Staff and encourage them on. The adult staff appreciated his visit, but for the Boy staff it was living history! Many fond memories of GBB.

    Spent many nights under a Wadsworth Tab Tent while a scout in Troop 10 Onondaga Council. Syracuse, NY

  4. We need to locate a Wadsworth Tab Tent to add to the display at the Hillcourt Museum, at Camp Woodland. We already have a Wadsworth pack frame and a Wadsworth sleeping bag for the exhibit. Both standard equipment among the scouts of Onondaga Council during the 1950’s.

  5. A Wadsworth Tab Tent is now part of the exhibit, donated by Joe Mercurio. Also, there is a selection of photos of the tab tent erected in several configurations. They include winter usage.

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