James P. Fitch

Who is James P. Fitch?

James P. Fitch was a Scouting notable in the early history of the Boy Scouts of America. He was born at Montserrat, Missouri, and attended Missouri State Normal School at Warrensburg. It was there that he met Dr. Elbert K. Fretwell of Teachers College, Columbia University, who was a summer instructor at Warrensburg, and an early leader in the B.S.A. They formed a strong friendship, and Fretwell recruited Fitch to work for the B.S.A. during its first decade.

In 1912, Fitch, a school teacher by vocation, was hired by the B.S.A. to travel on the Redpath Chautauqua circuit. Based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he spent 2 1/2 years traveling around the mid-west setting up Scout troops in the towns and cities he visited. In 1915, he was hired as Camp Master at Owasippe Scout Camp near Chicago where he was the founder of "The Tribe of Owasippe." When he was not employed at the camp, he was District Scout Executive for the North Shore District in Chicago. In 1917, Fitch was hired as the Council Scout Executive at Columbus, Ohio, and served there through 1919.

In the Fall of 1919, Fitch was appointed Region Scout Executive for Region Nine, and he served in that capacity until 1945.