Council Histories

Girl Scouts – Seal of Ohio Council's Brief History

Girl Scouts – Seal of Ohio Council has records indicating the earliest Girl Scout troops were organized prior to World War I in both Ross and Franklin Counties. During the 1930’s and 1940’s troops sprung up throughout the current 17-county jurisdiction. Seal of Ohio Council in its present from began in 1963 with the merger of a number of Girl Scout councils and lone troops. Those councils were: Ohio Trefoil Girl Scout Council (Delaware, Franklin, Pickaway Counties and lone troops from Fayette, Highland, Madison and Union counties); Seal of Ohio Girl Scout Council (Chillicothe, Ross County); Logan Girl Scout Council (Hocking County); Lancaster and Fairfield County Girl Scout Council; and Scioto Girl Scout Council (Portsmouth and Scioto County). Loan troops from Jackson, Vinton, Pike, Adams, and Gallia Counties were also merged into the new council.

The council was named Seal of Ohio because the scene depicted on The Great Seal of the State of Ohio reflects the view of Mount Logan in Chillicothe as seen from the porch of Adena, home of Thomas Worthington, an early founding father of Ohio.

Since outdoor program is a large part of the Girl Scout experience, the first property purchased for summer activities was Camp Ken-Jockety in 1929. This site was a resident camp facility and for the past several years serves as the home of the Elam Environmental Education Center which opened in 1997. Camp Molly Lauman, located north of Portsmouth was dedicated in 1929 the same year it opened as a resident camp facility. Century Cabin, located on the site, according to local historical society documents, was a stop on the Underground Railroad. Other camp locations included: Davella, north of Chillicothe; Del-A-Mingo in Delaware County; Douda Dale in Morgan County; Gipiwa near Washington Court House; Mill-O-Rock in Union County; Miska near Circleville; and Echo Hills north of Logan. The first recorded day camp was in 1940.

Seal of Ohio has hosted several Destinations, known earlier as Wider Opportunities. Those events were: “Sports Spectacular” 1983; “It’s a Wild, Wild World” 1988; and “Destination Discovery” 2002. In addition the council has organized a number of Destinations for Girl Scouts of the U.S.A. including two trips to Our Cabana, two events in Canada, one to England, and to Alaska in 2007.

During the 1990 Girl Scout National Convention in Portland, Oregon, Seal of Ohio presented a proposal to designate in perpetuity the Gold Award as the highest honor in Girl Scouting. The measure passed and the Girl Scout Gold Award will remain the highest honor for girls to achieve.

For additional information please contact the Historic Preservation Committee which actively works to preserve the council’s history.

Through this site, we will be sharing news about the activities of the subcommittees charged with moving forward the work required for a successful merger of our councils into the newly named Girl Scouts of Ohio's Heartland Council.

Girl Scouts-Heart of Ohio Council

Girl Scouts of Heritage Trails Council

Girl Scouts-Seal of Ohio