DuPage museum celebrates Girl Scouts’ history, collects girls’ stories

As the Girl Scouts of the United States celebrate its 100th anniversary, 39 different displays highlighting Girl Scout history will be displayed and rotated among local museums and libraries during the next 15 months.

The story will be told from the Chicago Children’s Museum at Navy Pier and the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum in Chicago to the Downers Grove Historical Museum, 831 Maple Ave. in Downers Grove, and the DuPage County Historical Museum, 102 E. Wesley St. in Wheaton.

The DuPage County Historical Museum exhibit, “Girl Scouts Our Promise: Then, Now and Forever,” will highlight the last hundred years using uniforms, photos and artifacts.

During the six-month exhibit continuing through April, the museum will collect Girl Scout stories from DuPage residents. Current Girl Scouts and alumnae are encouraged to fill out a questionnaire at the museum, which will become part of the special display.

Additional Girl Scout events at the Wheaton museum include a “Making Girl Scout History Patch Program” on Feb. 11. This event will include viewing an original recruiting film from the beginning of Girl Scouting.

At 1 p.m. March 10, Betsey Means will portray Juliette Gordon Low, founder of the Girl Scouts, at the Wheaton museum. A special celebration of the 100th anniversary will take place at that time. Special tours and programs for Girl Scout troops and alumnae are available.

The museum is free and open weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and weekends from noon to 4 p.m. For details, call (630) 510-4941 or visit dupagemuseum.org.