Whistle Categories > Scout Whistles
Where did scout whistles originate?
The scout movement was started by Sir Baden Powell in the UK, his wife started the girl scouts, and his brother the sea scouts. A surprising array of scout whistles were produced over several decades, narrowing down as time has passed. On the other hand, few manufacturers produced them, especially in the UK, notably just Joseph Hudson and Alfred De Courcy
Scout whistles circumvented the globe with various countries also having indigenous companies manufacture them, although scout whistles were marketed or sold abroad.
The scout movement started circa 1907, gaining momentum by 1909. The manufacturing of whistles to capture this movement was not only good business, but allowed for many variations during the trial and error stage of improvements. It is not unusual to see the fleur de lis with another language stamped on the whistle.
How are scout whistles identified?
All scout whistles have scouting stamped on them or at a minimum they have the fleur de lis image. A distinctive thing to look for from the UK is the pillar top that was designed by Joseph Hudson Co. in 1909 which almost always is used with very few exceptions on early scout whistles.
This later gave way to top rings and soft hollow tops for just making a hole for a loose ring. Unibody scouts have a very small boll for a knop just big enough for a loose solid ring.
Scout whistles came in tube shapes, escargot, flat and even a robust model, ornate in the shape of a fluer de lis, as well as many other models.
Why were they made?
All scout whistles were aimed at the movement itself. There is no cross use, other than perhaps for hiking with compass whistles. Apparently, the thinking is of an outdoor hiking setting where long distant communication would be essential.
The addition of a compass came much later than the initial movement and these compasses never really held up well, often coming loose.
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