| Juliette Gordon Low is one of Savannah's most | | | | to a head when in 1911 she met Sir Robert |
| cherished gifts to the world. She overcame a hearing | | | | Baden-Powell. It was a fateful meeting because |
| handicap and failed marriage to distinguish herself as | | | | Baden-Powell was founder of the Boy Scouts. She |
| Founder of the Girl Scouts. | | | | drew inspiration from him to do the same thing for |
| Happy Childhood | | | | girls. In about a year she was back home in America |
| Early in life, Juliette Gordon Low showed a flair for | | | | and at that time made the phone call to a distant |
| fine arts that she later put to good use in structuring | | | | cousin in which she uttered the now historic words: |
| the Girl Scouts. She trained herself in the art of paint | | | | Girl Scouts Organized |
| and sculpture. She was sensitive and gifted in | | | | "Come right over! I've got something for the girls of |
| sketching, poetry, and drama. | | | | Savannah, and all of America, and all the world, and |
| She had a happy childhood, but went through a | | | | we're going to start it tonight! Immediately Juliette |
| "mid-life crisis" that led to the founding of the Girl | | | | recruited 18 girls and on March 12, 1912 formed the |
| Scouts. Failure of her 20-year marriage was the | | | | first troop of "American Girl Guides". The following |
| climactic event. | | | | year they reorganized under the name of Girl Scouts. |
| Mid-Life Crisis | | | | Juliette Gordon Low wanted girls to step out into |
| Savannah was the scene of her betrothal to a | | | | lives of active citizenship. |
| well-to-do Englishman, but they took up residence in | | | | She sought to teach self-reliance and resourcefulness |
| Britain. Juliette Gordon Low was out-of-country a lot | | | | to girls from all social classes by introducing them into |
| and felt called to America during the | | | | the out-of-doors. |
| Spanish-American War to help her mother at a | | | | Beyond her wildest dreams, the little band of 18 girls |
| hospital for wounded soldiers. | | | | from the original troop, multiplied to its current 3.7 |
| When she returned to Britain after the War, her | | | | million members. Girl Scouts is the world's largest |
| marriage was in a shambles. It ended abruptly when | | | | educational group for girls, having influenced more |
| her husband died of a stroke in 1905. His will left | | | | than 50 million girls over the past hundred years. |
| most of the fortune to his mistress, which left Mrs. | | | | For More Information |
| Low in a state of depression. | | | | To learn more about the Girl Scouts on Hilton Head |
| Juliette Gordon Low took to the road and did a lot of | | | | Island, America's #1 vacation destination, follow the |
| soul searching for the next five years. Things came | | | | links below. |