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Wapehani Girl Scout Council, Inc. records

 Collection
Identifier: MSS-107

Scope and Contents

This collection includes management records, publications, awards, certificates, public relations materials, photo albums, scrapbooks, and other materials from the Wapehani Girl Scout Council, Inc. in Muncie, Indiana ranging from 1942 to 2007 regarding the administration of the Wapehani Council, activities and events involving the Girl Scouts of the Wapehani Council, and correspondence and events with the Girl Scouts of the United States of America.

Dates

  • Creation: 1942-2007

Language of Materials

Materials in English.

Conditions Governing Access

Separated materials are restricted. Contact the repository for more information.

Conditions Governing Use

Legal title, copyright, and literary rights reside with Archives and Special Collections, Ball State University Libraries, Muncie, IN. All requests to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted to Archives and Special Collections.

Administrative History

Girl Scouting in Delaware County began in Muncie in the 1920s. The Wapehani Girl Scout Council was organized in 1956 for girls in Madison, Delaware, Tipton, Randolph, Jay, Grant (with the exception for Marion), and Henry (with the exception of New Castle) counties. Since then it has grown to include all of Grant and Henry Counties, as well as Blackford county. The council office began in Anderson but later settled for good in Daleville around 1970. Membership in the council began with 4.400 girls, and hit a peak in 1970 with over 12,000 girls and volunteers. The main council office resides in Daleville.

The Wapehani Council at one time owned six different properties: the Little Log Cabin on the Delaware County Fairgrounds (moved to Heekin Park in 1987), the Marion Girl Scout Cabin, Camp Munsee, Camp Tanglewood, Camp Windigo, and Camp Wonderland. in 1970, the Great Lodge at Camp Munsee burned to the ground, leaving only the foundation and chimney. The Girl Scouts rallied to rebuild, and in 1972 the Lycoming Lodge was christened and opened for use.

In 1989, the city of Marion asked to use the Girl Scouts' Marion Cabin for a YMCA senior lunch program. The cabin was donated to the Girl Scouts in the 1960s by William H. Braunlin. The senior citizens program, which had previously been meeting at the local YMCA, grew to be too costly and the city wished to save cost by holding the program at the cabin. Later, Ruth Cartwright (treasurer for the Braunlin Foundation, and the person in charge of the seniors program) challenged the Girl Scouts' ownership of the cabin, claiming it rightfully belonged to the city of Marion. The city courts found the Girl Scouts to be the rightful owners of the cabin, and the Girl Scouts then denied the request to move the seniors program.

In the 1930's, Arthur E. Ball donated the land now called Camp Munsee. In 1992, the Wapehani Council began to end leases on properties and had Camp Munsee appraised for sale, angering many of the council volunteers. An opposition group was formed and called itself CAMPS (Citizens Allied to Maintain and Promote Scouting). CAMPS held a cookie boycott that year, and heavily publicized the closing of Camp Munsee. At that time, CAMPS won and Camp Munsee was not sold.

The Wapehani Girl Scout Council celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2006. On January 1, 2007, the Wapehani Council merged with four other Indiana councils to become the Girl Scouts of Central Indiana, Inc. In 2012, the Girls Scouts of the United States of America celebrated its 100th anniversary.

Extent

15 Cubic Feet (17 boxes)

Arrangement

This collection is arranged in the following series and subseries:



Series 1: Wapehani Girl Scout Council documents, 1944-2007



Subseries 1.1: Wapehani Girl Scout Council administrative documents, 1944-2007

Subseries 1.2: Wapehani Girl Scout Council financial documents, 1973-2000

Subseries 1.3: Wapehani Girl Scout Council fundraising documents, 1956-2006

Subseries 1.4: Wapehani Girl Scout Council human resources, personnel and volunteer management, and other documents, 1967-2001

Subseries 1.5: Wapehani Girl Scout Council programs and services documents, 1960-2005

Subseries 1.6: Wapehani Girl Scout Council publications, 1956-2006



Series 2: Wapehani Girl Scout Council awards and certificates, 1983-1997



Series 3: Wapehani Girl Scout Council camp documents, 1955-2004



Subseries 3.1: Camp Munsee documents, 1955-1996

Subseries 3.2: Camp Tanglewood documents, 1988-1997

Subseries 3.3: Camp Windigo documents, 1961-2000

Subseries 3.4: Camp Wonderland documents, 1985-1992

Subseries 3.5: Marion Cabin documents, 1955-1998

Subseries 3.6: Other camp documents, 1956-2004

Subseries 3.7: Property task force documents, 1983-1992



Series 4: Girl Scouts of the United States of America documents, 1942-2005



Subseries 4.1: Girl Scouts of the United States of America artifacts, 1982-2004

Subseries 4.2: Girl Scouts of the United States of America documents, 1985-2005

Subseries 4.3: Girl Scouts of the United States of America publications, 1942-2005



Series 5: Wapehani Girl Scout Council albums, binders, and scrapbooks, 1949-2002



Series 6: Wapehani Girl Scout Council restricted documents, 1981-2004



Series 7: Wapehani Girl Scout Council oversize material, 1943-2002



Series 8: Wapehani Girl Scout Council electronic files, 1943-2004



Series 9: Wapehani Girl Scout Council photographs, 1994-1997



Series 10: Wapehani Girl Scout Council negatives, 1994-1997



Series 11: Wapehani Girl Scout Council oversize photographs, circa 1999



Series 12: Wapehani Girl Scout Council audio recordings, 1987-2002



Series 13: Wapehani Girl Scout Council slide collection, 1982-1987



Series 14: Wapehani Girl Scout Council videos, 1989-2003





Custodial History

This collection was received by Archives and Special Collections as a donation from Deborah Beckman on 2004/07/12, and from Susan Rodriguez on 2006/10/26.

Related Archival Materials

Materials relating to this collection may be found in the following collections in Archives and Special Collections, Ball State University Libraries, Muncie IN:

MSS.302: Mary Alice and Don Lanning Boy and Girl Scouts of America records

PSC.347: Lanning Family Boy and Girl Scouts of America photographs

SC.622: Camp Munsee [Muncie Girl Scout Camp]

Processing Information

Collection processing completed 2006 Apr. by A. Morrison. Finding aid revised 2007 Jan. by J. Gray. EAD finding aid created 2012/05/07 by Lisa Barney. EAD finding aid modified 2013/12/06 by Leslie Nellis.

Title
Wapehani Girl Scout Council, Inc. records
Status
Completed
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
Undetermined
Script of description
Code for undetermined script

Repository Details

Part of the Stoeckel Archives of Local History Repository

Contact:
Alexander M. Bracken Library
2000 W. University Avenue
Muncie Indiana 47306 USA