The Tradition of Scouting's Spirit Ashes

Legend has it that lord Baden-Powell would always take a small amount of cool ashes from the night before's campfire and spread them into the next campfire as part of its opening. This tradition began during his days in the British Army. He did this until his death on January 8^th, 1941. Its purpose, he said, was to bring all scouts and scouters the international aspect of the world brotherhood of scouting.

Other scouts and scouters would place the end of their staves in the fire's embers to hold on to the spirit felt there and help them remember the event. Some feel that the ashes themselves contain the essence of the scout spirit they felt as the campfires' brilliant flames turned to glowing embers.

Thus, ashes taken from a campfire and sprinkled into the flames of the next could have a written pedigree through scout spirit and brotherhood.

It is traditional that only those present at the campfire ceremony carry those ashes, when stirred and cooled, to the next fire. If, by chance, more than one scout or scouter brings ashes to the same campfire, the pedigree lists are pooled, with all dates and places recorded and passed on. In many places all those who wish to participate or carry away ashes must each bring a small stick, pinecone or acorn for the fire.

A charge should be included in the ceremony when these old ashes are sprinkled into the new flames of your fire. Any ceremony or charge can be used. Click here to see example charges which may be used.

My Spirit Ash Project

I want to bring many lists together to form the biggest list world wide. I want to do this by swapping ashes with you. Any size list, even just two or three campfires will add to what I already have.

If you wish to swap ashes with me, request my mail address. Please send me your ashes first for many Scouters have not retuned any ashes as they said they would. Do not send them in glass or baggies because of the breakage; a film canister works great.

In this way we can gather and combine all scouting campfires, making the list truly world and U.S. wide. The following states are needed so that we can have campfires represented from all 50 of the United States in our pedigree; Alaska, Delaware, Maine, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota. Many, many countries are still needed. See list of those included with the pedigree.