A.B.S.

American Boy Scouts

The American Boy Scouts (later known as United States Boy Scouts) were founded by William Randolph Hurst and incorporated in June of 1910, just four months after the founding of the B.S.A.  Hurst was a newspaper publisher and rival of Boyce, and like the latter employed thousands of news boys and was concerned with their welfare and education.

Hurst believed in universal military training for all youth, and rifle training and military drill were part of the A.B.S. program.  Notice the stack of rifles in the New Jersey camp shown in the postcard above.  Hurst resigned and removed his support from the organization before the end of 1910, citing unethical behavior and improper use of his name among the organization's fund raisers.

The A.B.S. uniform was similar to a B.S.A. uniform, the most noticeable difference being in the emblem which consisted of an eagle perched on top of a U.S. Shield. It is clearly visible in the postcard of the young Scout (above.)  It can also be seen on uniforms in the 1913 real photo postcard of the A.B.S Troop at Grant Park in Galena, Illinois.  In later commercial version of the postcard the emblems appear to have been removed via photo-retouching.

In October of 1913, at least partially in answer to charges that the A.B.S. was purposely misleading potential donors into thinking it was the B.S.A., the organization changed its name to the United States Boy Scouts.  Finally in 1919 a court order forced it to stop using the word "Scout" all together.

Notice the "A.B.S." on the front of the Boy Scout's hat on this rare card drawn by postcard artist Bernhardt Wall.

The author has found no postcards that may be identified specifically as associated with the United States Boy Scouts.