Straus Wilderness Area

Straus items are much harder to find and date than Broad Creek items, so some of the dates on this page (with question marks) are simply my best guesses. Some of my logic:

• The patch labeled “60s” is among the earliest, in part because it says “Explorer Base” rather than “Wilderness Area”. Note that this is a stock BSA design; I've seen this design used for several other camps.
• For the pack-and-paddle patch I guessed 1969; it has no FDL or BSA and so is likely pre-1976, and 1970–1976 are well accounted-for. The 1974 issue is undated, but the neckerchief matches the Broad Creek neckerchief of that year.
• For 1977, 1978, 1979 and 1980 I guessed dates based on the similarity to the Broad Creek patches and neckerchiefs of those years (boot print, outlined globe, and small flying bird) and to one another. The outlined globe is similar to the 1978 Expo and Broad Creek patches and the 1979 Camporall patch, so those two years could be reversed. The patch I have listed as 1980 could be one of the earlier years as well. Pretty much any one of these patches could be any one of these years.
• The “Straus Towpath” patch from 1981 is probably an issue for a C&O Canal Trail expedition. It appears to have been hand-made abroad, unlike the official patches of the era.
• For 1985 and 1986, the designs are similar to those used at Broad Creek. The Broad Creek patches from 1984–1987 were all designed by Backwoods Outfitters of Bel Air, and the patches I list as 1985 and 1986 appear similar enough that I'm pretty sure they came from the same place.
• The dome shape is probably 1987; I worked at Oest that summer and arranged for Charlie Heibler (I believe) to grab me one when he went out to Straus for a day.
• The 1988 is pretty much a guess. The undated patches at the end are those I cannot easily slot into any year. The two with the light-blue background may well be stock BSA designs; it is even possible that they were both from the same year, since they are so similar. The Exploreree is possibly an event patch, and most likely from the 1960s or late 1950s.
• I do not know the reason for the two different sizes of the 1989 design. The larger patch has a thin outline on the state of Maryland, and the smaller patch has a thicker state outline.
• I don’t know the provenance of the segment; someone once sent me the scan. Thanks to an email from Bob Bristow, I know that Cresap’s Trail was conducted in 1984 and 1985. I'm not sure what the “Adventurer” patches were—possibly a winter activity. I have no idea why there are both a 1972 and a 1972–73 design.

Abbreviations:

• SWA: Straus Wilderness Area
• LASWA: Lill-Aaron Straus Wilderness Area
• Lil-ASWA: Lil-Aaron Straus Wilderness Area
• Lillie-ASWA: Lillie-Aaron Straus Wilderness Area
• BAC: Baltimore Area Council

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