Westchester–Putnam Council was a local council of the Boy Scouts of America, serving Boy Scouts in southeastern New York State. It merged with the Hudson Valley Council in January 2021 to become the Greater Hudson Valley Council.
History Before 1920, both Westchester and Putnam counties were served by many individual councils that were based in the cities of the area. Among them were Bronxville (founded 1919), Mamaroneck (1917), Mount Vernon, New Rochelle, Peekskill (1918), Pelham (1910), Rye (5/29/1913), White Plains (1918) and Yonkers Councils. On July 18, 1919, James West oversaw the merger of many of these councils into a Westchester County Council with jurisdiction over all troops not already in a Class 1 council. Its headquarters was in White Plains. The only Class 1History of BSA Local Councils councils in Westchester at the time appear to have been Mount Vernon and Yonkers.
Westchester County Council split in 1922 along east/west lines into the Siwanoy Council, serving troops along Westchester's Long Island Sound and the Hendrick Hudson Council, serving troops along the Hudson River from Hastings to Peekskill. Mount Vernon Council changed its name to the Bronx Valley Council and absorbed several inland towns including Bronxville. White Plains and the northern and eastern half of Westchester as well as the eastern portion of Putnam County were included in the James Fenimore Cooper Council. In 1958, the Bronx Valley Council merged with the Siwanoy Council, forming the Siwanoy-Bronx Valley Council. The name was later changed to Hutchinson River Council in 1962.
In northern Westchester, the Hendrick Hudson Council, which served the villages along the Hudson River Hastings north to Peekskill, and the James Fennimore Cooper Council, which served the White Plains-Bedford-Brewster area, merged to form the Washington Irving Council in 1950. The Yonkers Council was later absorbed in 1955. In 1973, the Washington Irving Council merged with Hutchinson River Council to form the present-day Westchester–Putnam Council, originally headquartered in White Plains. In 1993, the council headquarters were relocated to the current location in Hawthorne, New York.
In its final form, the Westchester–Putnam Council consisted of four Districts: Muscoot, Manitoga, Mohican, and Algonquin. At one time, there were two other districts: Wiccopee District serving Phillipstown, Putnam Valley, Peekskill, Cortlandt and Yorktown in the Westchester–Putnam area (later served by the Manitoga District) and Four Rivers District which formerly served Yonkers and was later served by Algonquin and Mohican.
Organization
The Westchester–Putnam Council was divided into five districts: Algonquin District, serving Bronxville, Crestwood, Eastchester, Edgemont, Harrison, Larchmont, Mamaroneck, Mount Vernon, New Rochelle, Pelham, Port Chester, Purchase, Rye, Rye Brook, Scarsdale, and Tuckahoe. Algonquin District Manitoga District, serving Briarcliff Manor, Buchanan, Chappaqua, Cold Spring, Continental Village, Cortlandt, Crompond, Croton, Crugers, Furnace Woods, Garrison, Jefferson Valley, Kitchawan, Lake Mohegan, Millwood, Montrose, North Highland, Nelsonville, Ossining, Peekskill, Phillipstown, Putnam Valley, Scarborough, Shrub Oak, Toddville, Van Cortlandtville, Verplanck, Yorktown, and Yorktown Heights Manitoga District Mohican District, serving Ardsley, Dobbs Ferry, Elmsford, Greenburg, Hartsdale, Hastings-on-Hudson, Hawthorne, Irvington, North White Plains, Pleasantville, Sleepy Hollow, Tarrytown, Thornwood, Valhalla, White Plains, and Yonkers. Mohican District Muscoot District, serving Armonk, Bedford Village, Bedford Hills, Brewster, Carmel, Croton Falls, Goldens Bridge, Katonah, Kent, Lake Carmel, Lewisboro, Lincolndale, Mahopac, Mahopac Falls, Pound Ridge, No. Salem, Patterson, Pound Ridge, Putnam Lake, Shenorock, Somers, South Salem, and Vista Muscoot District New Horizons District, serving in-school programs for minority and low-income residents
Camps and other properties
Curtis S. Read Scout Reservation
Curtis S. Read Scout Reservation, also known as Camp Read, is a camp located in the Adirondack Mountains in Brant Lake, New York. It consists of three camps: Waubeeka, Buckskin, and Summit Base. There are two dirt roads that make most of the camp accessible by car in the warmer months. The name Camp Read was used for several Boy Scout camps operated by the Council and its predecessors since the 1920s. The present-day Camp Read was named in 1949.
Camp Waubeeka
Camp Waubeeka, which opened in 1969, is a patrol cooking camp. When it first opened, and for the first few years of its existence, the camp was named Camp Proposed; a name derived from the words "proposed camp" on the original reservation plan. Boy Scout troops come to Camp Waubeeka to camp-out in tents and earn merit badges in a variety of disciplines: Waterfront, Scoutcraft, Ecology and Conservation (or "ECON"), and Handicraft. In order to earn the Horsemanship and Climbing merit badges, Scouts must use the in-camp transportation provided to those class locations.
In Camp Waubeeka, Scouts cook their own meals in a patrol-style cook site. Scouts pick up ingredients for each meal at the Commissary building. Food is cooked on top of cast-ironwood-burning stoves called sheepherders or on top of a half-barrel grill. No food is stored in the campsites, but utensils and condiments can be kept in large patrol boxes, called "monster boxes" which are locked at night to keep animals away from the campsites.
The camp has its own man-made lake, Waubeeka Lake, where Small Boat Sailing merit badge classes are offered and the camp-wide "Cardboard Boat Race" took place until 2012. The "water carnival" in which the cardboard boat race was a segment, has been replaced in 2013 with a trebuchet building contest. Small-Boat Sailing is made available for Scouts from Buckskin, because the Buckskin waterfront is unsuitable for this type of watercraft.
Waubeeka has a large group of staff members serving Scouts in each Merit Badge program area and in the Commissary, trading post, quartermaster's office and camp office. The quartermaster's office rations out cooking equipment weekly.
Camp Waubeeka has seven functional campsites: Cascade, Avalanche, Wolfjaw, Polaris, Sunrise, Haystack, and Hurricane. Camp Waubeeka also has three decommissioned campsites, Cobble and Skylight, which were abandoned in the mid-1990s and are currently used for nature observation. Klondike Notch, which was removed when nearby Rose Drive was constructed, has been out of existence since the 1980s. Scouts traveling on the designated trails through these areas can see old cots, platforms, fire rings, a flagpole, and an old latrine. Showers and latrines are located throughout the camp for general use. In 2010, Camp Waubeeka received a new camp shower house, known colloquially as the Wolfjaw Showers due to its location next to Wolfjaw Campsite.
Camp Buckskin
Camp Buckskin is the largest camp on the reservation where Scouts can camp out in platform tents and earn merit badges. There are fourteen different campsites, among them Teheco, Pawnee, Ranger, and Blackfoot. Throughout the course of the summer there are a variety of events and competitions. There are also opening and closing campfires every week.
Scouts eat three meals a day in Newton Hall, the main dining hall, unless they are enrolled in the Cooking merit badge program of study. The option is also available for troops to cook meals at their own campsites. The field in front of Newton Hall is known as the "parade field" where ceremonies such as the daily lowering and raising of the flag take place. The field is also used for recreational purposes, like games of Ultimate Frisbee or soccer. Located nearby are the First Aid office, Main Office, campfire area and Trading Post. At present, it is not known how much of an effect recently implemented tariffs will have on the day to day operations of the trading post.
Camp Buckskin has its own lake, known as Rogers Lake. At the waterfront, Scouts can earn aquatics merit badges, participate in instructional swim courses or just check out rowboats, canoes or other watercraft.
Campers can earn merit badges in the Scoutcraft, Handicraft, Aquatics, Ecology (known as the "ECON" Lodge for "ecology" and "conservation"), and Field Sports program areas. These different areas offer a wide variety of merit badges; including some Eagle Scout required merit badges such as Camping, Environmental Science, First Aid, Swimming, Lifesaving and Emergency Preparedness. For merit badge requirements and recreation, there are shooting ranges for shotguns, rifles, and archery. A program designed for newer Scouts helps orient them to Scouting, camping and rank advancement. Recently, this program was named the Anthony Long Rank Advancement Program in memory of a past staff member.
Showers and latrines are available around the camp. For the summers of 2008, 2009 and 2010, new latrines were built in several locations throughout camp. In 2009 and 2010 three new shower houses with private stalls were erected for usage by the Scouts and leaders.
Summit Base Summit Base High Adventure Camp is a nationally recognized and accredited Adirondack High Adventure base camp at Read Scout Reservation. Mount Stevens, a relatively small peak, is located here. Although very small by Adirondack standards, it nevertheless has at least three marked trails to the summit. Though technically not part of Camp Read, at least some have theorized that Read may nevertheless be able to lay claim to it via the doctrine of adverse possession. Mount Stevens has been used as a sort of "proving ground" where experienced voyageurs have taken new voyageurs for intense compressed training. Particular care is emphasized in cooking a perfect Denver omelette. There is a large field and a few campsites, including lean-tos for use by Scouts and adventurers. The elite portion of the staff at Summit Base, called Voyageurs, guide week-long canoe and hiking treks. On occasion the best of the best voyageurs have led two-week treks to cover the entire Northville Lake Placid trail. A climbing tower and showers are available for general use. There is also an opportunity to do combination canoe and backpack treks, which feature a midweek resupply, and sometimes even guest appearances by kitchen staff.
Voyageurs have come from diverse geographic and academic backgrounds, including a notable concentration of alumni from SUNY Buffalo during the mid-to-late 1990s, as well as participants from countries of the former Soviet Union. Alumni have gone on to careers in various fields, including publishing, law, education, and local and federal government service.
Occasionally, logistical constraints prevent Voyageurs from living on camp proper during the season. These self-styled "contract voyageurs" lead their treks during the work week and disappear into the woods of the Adirondacks on weekends and off weeks to further hone their craft.
Because there are still areas of the Adirondacks with no cell phone coverage an ingenious solution was developed for communicating with contract voyageurs. Taking a cue from the past, informal messages would be posted at locations where contract voyageurs were likely to frequent. For a contract voyageur, a trip into town not only provided camaraderie, sustenance and libations, but also a chance for further employment.