Troop 849
Manhattan Beach, CA
Boy Scouts of America

Home
New Members
Calendar
Scout Pages
Advancement
Special Awards

Summer Camp

Backpacking
 Weekend
 Advanced
 Longterm

Hikemaster
 Weekend
 Longterm

Ceremonies

Search
Site Map
Navigation

About us
Contact us

History

Troop 849 was founded in mid 1956 in Manhattan Beach, California. A brief history follows.

Activities

Troop 849 has always been heavily involved in backpacking. Favorite weekend destinations are in the San Gabriel and San Bernardino Mountains. Week-long backpack trips have been a staple since the Troop's inception. Most week-long backpacking trips have been in the Sierra Mountains including several treks up Mt. Whitney, the tallest mountain in the continental United States. So far, the Troop has been involved in more than 400 backpacking trips. Besides backpacking, the Troop has also been involved in many other activities, including:

• shooting off model rockets
• rock climbing
• attending the Fall and Spring Camporees
• participating in Veteran's Day and Memorial Day ceremonies
• shotgun shooting
• deep sea fishing
• kayaking at Santa Cruz island
• week long treks to Philmont Scout Ranch
• participating in the National Jamboree
• canoeing on the Colorado River
• a week long canoe trip to Minnesota
• participating in the Los Angeles County Fair
• participating in the annual Scout Parade
• trips to Disneyland
• trips to Mexico
• attending many summer camps

Summer Camp

Summer camp is an annual occurrence that is always enjoyable. At one time Christmas decoration sales were held to help pay for summer camp fees. Over the years, various camp destinations have been chosen to provide a varied experience. Some of the camps the Troop has attended are:

• Camp Chawanakee at Shaver Lake
• Lost Valley
• Emerald Bay, Catalina
• Cherry Valley, Catalina
• Camp Kern at Huntington Lake
• Camp Pitches at Lake Arrowhead
• Camp Whitsett near Kernville
• Camp Pepperdine at Lake Arrowhead
• Camp Madaguay in San Diego county
• Camp Lost Valley near San Diego

Court of Honor

Each year the Troop puts on several formal Courts of Honor to acknowledge the accomplishments of the Scouts. Over the years, Courts of Honor have been held at:

• American Martyrs Church
• Manhattan Beach Community Church
• Joslyn Center
• Manhattan Beach Middle School
• the Scouthouse
• North American Field (on Imperial Highway)
• Center School
• Pacific School

Scouthouse

The Scouthouse was built in the 50's on city property with donated labor and materials. It started out as one large hall but was subsequently divided into its current configuration of one large meeting room, two small meeting rooms, a kitchen, a bathroom, and a storage room.

Meetings were originally held on Saturdays until April 5, 1966, when they were changed to Tuesday nights.

In the late 60's the Troop had the unpleasant experience of being locked out of their own Scouthouse. Fortunately, this situation was quickly remedied.

Re-Organization (1999-2003)

During the last half of 1999, with nearly 100 registered scouts, the Scouthouse was not big enough to hold effective meetings. In September, a new troop concept divided us into two groups, called the green group and the blue group (as in forest and sky, in honor of our outdoor emphasis). Each group had multiple Patrols, a senior Patrol leader, two assistant senior Patrol leaders, instructors, scribe and quartermaster. An Assistant Scoutmaster was appointed for each group to act as the Scoutmaster for that group. Other Assistant Scoutmasters that provide special leadership jobs (e.g. long term hike leader, summer camp coordinator, etc.) were shared between both groups.

Every other Tuesday evening the green group met at the Scout House for a normal troop meeting. On the "off" Tuesday evenings, the green group's individual Patrols held separate Patrol meetings (at a location other than the Scouthouse) to focus on advancement. The blue group had the "reverse" schedule.

Both color groups were together for outings, courts of honor, and trip preparation meetings.

In 2004 the two group concept was abandoned in favor of the traditional one large group.

Sponsoring Organization

Troop 849 was originally sponsored by the South Bay Exchange Club. Today it is sponsored by Manhattan Parents for Scouting, an independent organization of parents in the South Bay Area.