Good Morning Curators!

For your second assignment, we would like you to take a look at these images and see what memories they spark about your time as a Boy Scout in the Canal Zone.

• What do these photos remind you of?
• Are you (or someone you know) IN any of these photos?
• We see some of the boys in are uniform, and some are not– what are your memories of when and why you wore your scouting uniform?
• There are some big knapsacks pictured here– what kinds of things did you carry?

Any memory inspired by these images can be used to help us tell the story of scouting in the Canal Zone and may be used as an exhibit label, so please be sure to include your name!

Stay tuned for more projects to come…

As you all know, the Panama Canal Museum Collection at the University of Florida captures many aspects of life and work in the Canal Zone, from construction and maintenance to leisure and culture.

One aspect that is very present in the collection is the importance of scouting activities in the zone.  To highlight this portion of the collection, we will be creating two temporary exhibits focused on scouting in the canal zone!

The first will be here in Smathers Library– just in time for the March 12 meeting!

The second will be at the Panama Canal Society Reunion in Orlando, this July.

Curating two exhibits can be a lot of work!  Especially when we have a collection that so so rich with materials.

To that end, we would like to enlist YOUR help as co-curators of these exhibits.

We have spent the past few weeks looking through the collection and analyzing our holdings to determine what shape the exhibits might take.  We have identified 10 areas/groups that we might highlight.

Girl Scouts & Brownies
Sea Scouts
Patches
Badges
Pins
Awards
Cayuco Races
Medals
Camp / Camping
Patriotism

But we really want to know what is important to YOU! 

Please join the conversation in the comments to tell us…

What themes do you think are most important?
What types of objects are you most interested in seeing?
What was the best part of being a scout in the canal zone?
Why was being a scout important to you?

The comments you make may even be used as exhibit labels!

Also, be on the lookout for more Co-Curator posts, as we move forward with these exhibits.  There will be more opportunities to contribute content, vote, and make curatorial decisions via the blog!