This County History is divided into five sections.  This page gives a brief overview of the development of the County since its foundations in 1927.  We also have a page on the Waterford Scout County Mountain Pursuit Challenges since 1996; on the Waterford and South Kilkenny Regional Camps since 1982, Regional Competitions, Regional participation in the Melvin Trophy and Regional Staff.  This is very much a work in progress and all amendments, additions and photos would be gratefully received at .

Above: The 3rd and the 7th De La Salle Scout Troops in 1938.
(Click to view a larger image)

Waterford and its surrounding areas have always had a strong Scouting background. Officially, Scouting in Waterford began only several months after the founding of CBSI by Tom and Earnest Farrell in Dublin in 1927. The 1^st Waterford troop were the pioneers, founded by Fr. Crotty, a curate of Ballybricken in Waterford City. Within a year more troops were founded in and around Waterford. In 1928 the 3^rd Waterford troop was founded in De La Salle, followed by the 7th De la Salle in 1933. In the 1930's the 4^th Waterford Abbeyside troop was founded in Dungarvan and it was at that point that those troops and several others came together to form a region. Since the Catholic Church had a large influence on Scouting around Ireland most of the Regions in the country were based on the Church Diocese.

This was the case in Waterford and the region was set up in the Diocese of Waterford and Lismore. The Diocese was run by a Diocesan Council, which consisted of a Commissioner and representatives from each unit. There were several events Held each year by the Diocese. One of which was the Diocesan Shield, the forerunner to the Regional Shield. The trophy was called the O'Farrell’ Cup and over the years was largely dominated by the 4^th Waterford who were also successful in winning a number of Melvin Trophies. This began a long tradition of huge success by Waterford troops in the Melvin.

Above: The team from the 13th De La Salle on the Melvin in 1994.

In 1967 the Diocese held a National Camp in Lismore which was attended by almost 2500 scouts from around Ireland. There were also several Diocesan Camps just for local troops. The Diocese of Waterford and Lismore was thriving but there were problems. The region was simply too big to control and for diocesan events troops had to travel very long distances. In those days to do that on a regular basis was just not practical. At a Diocesan meeting in Carrick-On-Suir on November 19^th 1976 it was decided to abolish the Diocese of Waterford and Lismore and the former Diocese then split into three different regions:

• The Cois tSiure Region which was the area North of Carrick-On-Suir.
• The Deise Region which was the area around Dungarvan.
• The Waterford Region which soon became the Waterford and South Kilkenny Region, which controlled scouting in and around Waterford City.

  

  Above: The 1996 Troop of the Year, the 10th Kilkenny Kilmacow with the Chief Scout and the Deputy Mayor of Waterford.

The new region was run by a Regional Commissioner and his Regional Council. Louis Murphy was the first Regional Commissioner. Louis died in office in May 1977 but the Louis Murphy Memorial cup ensured that his name lives on in the memory of all scouts in the region. He was a great character and as one leader said:

Over the years the region became larger and larger. When it started there were only four units and since then the region has seen 13 different units. The region was also developing fast and numerous regional events were organised. In place of the Diocesan Shield a Regional Shield Competition was organised and for younger Scouts the Louis Murphy Memorial Competition. From these competitions the standard of scouting in the region increased dramatically and the region became one of the most successful in the country.

Above: A Regional Fun Weekend Campfire in 1999.

With the establishment of the new association of Scouting Ireland on the 1st of January 2004, the Waterford Scout County came into being. The component groups are the 3rd/7th/13th Waterford De La Salle, 4th Waterford Abbeyside, 8th Waterford Tramore, 10th Kilkenny Kilmacow, 11th Waterford Dungarvan, 12th Waterford Stradbally, 15th/25th Waterford Sacred Heart, 16th Waterford Cappoquin, 17th/20th Waterford St. Paul's, 18th/26th Waterford Ferrybank, 19th/29th Waterford Ballygunner, 27th Waterford Butlerstown, 31st Waterford Faithlegg, 35th Waterford, 1st Waterford Port of Waterford and the 2nd Waterford Dunmore East.  It is expected that the new Waterford Scout County will ensure the continued strength and success of scouting in Waterford City and County.

Above: The 19th Ballygunner Cub Scouts, winners of the Macaoimh Quiz in 1997.

Recent History

Above: Members of Tramore and Abbeyside on the 2007 County Challenge Weekend.

The County in 2006/2007 are pictured below. The programme coordinators were Mary Winter and Anne Sinnott for the Beavers, Brian Fanning and Anthony Purcell for the Macaoimh, Eoin McMahon and David Kenny for the Scouts and Tom O'Neill for the Venturers. It was a very active year for the County as exemplified by the Scout programme which was run that year which can be viewed here. In 2008 Tom O'Neill stepped down and was replaced by Brian Fanning as County Commissioner.

Tom O'Neill - County Commissioner	Paschal Guilfoyle - County Programme Coordinator
Eoin McMahon - Scout Programme Coordinator	Brendan Doherty - County Treasurer

Above: The Patrol Leaders from each troop on a County Challenge Weekend.

Camps History | Staff History | Competitions History | Melvin History

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