The Legend of Na Tsi Hi
by Dave Wolverton, Lodge Historian
With thanks to the many Brothers whose contributions have enriched this project, especially the staff of the Voice of the Pines and the first Lodge Historian, the late Sandy Tallman.
Although Na Tsi Hi lodge 71 was first chartered in 1951, to properly understand our lodge’s history it is right to start this story almost twenty years earlier, with the first lodge 71...
The original lodge 71 was chartered to Monmouth Council on October 5, 1933 with the name Ohowa. The lodge totem was an owl. Activities of Ohowa lodge probably centered around the council’s camp. Camp Burton-at-Allaire was in the “Deserted Village of Allaire” at what is now Allaire State Park.
At that time, the Monmouth Council served the boys of both Monmouth and Ocean counties. Therefore, Ohowa lodge 71 was not only the predecessor of Na Tsi Hi lodge in Monmouth county, but also of Schiwa’pew Names and Japeechen lodges in Ocean county.
Ohowa lodge sent a contingent to the 1936 National Meeting at Treasure Island Scout Camp on the Delaware River, where five members sealed their bonds in Brotherhood. The lodge received a trophy for its participation in the 50th Anniversary parade in Manasquan. Lodge members also participated in ceremonial duties at council functions and served on the Patrol Leader Training course. There were no patches or memorabilia issued by Ohowa lodge 71. The lodge became inactive by about 1940, around the same time summer camp at Camp Burton-at-Allaire was discontinued.
In 1937 the council was renamed Monmouth-Ocean Council in recognition of the growth of the Scouting program in Ocean county. In 1940, Monmouth-Ocean Council split into two councils: Monmouth Council and Ocean County Council. At that time, the new Ocean County Council scout executive requested that lodge number 71 be assigned to Ocean County Council. However, there is no record of any Order of the Arrow activity in either council at that time. Following World War II, the lodge number was again available, and the Monmouth Council scout executive received approval to reactivate lodge 71. But again it appears that there was not enough interest at the grassroots to revive the old lodge.
In the late 1940s, Monmouth Council troops attended other council’s summer camps where they saw Order of the Arrow lodges in operation, and a spark of interest was rekindled. A small group of youth and adults gathered in December 1950 in the Pine Hollow cabin at Camp Housman on the old Allaire property just one mile from where the original Ohowa lodge 71 had been founded. The Scouts had already been inducted into the OA at other council’s camps. They formed a new lodge called Na-Tasi-Hi, which meant “in the pines”—a reference to Camp Housman’s location on the northern fringe of the Pine Barrens. The lodge’s totem would be “three pine trees” to represent the three parts of the Scout Oath and the three principles of the OA. Robert Schwab was chosen as the first Chief of Na-Tasi-Hi. Among the adults present at that first meeting was J. Townley Carr, who was Scoutmaster of Long Branch Troop 39 and who served as the first lodge Adviser. The new lodge was approved by the council’s executive board and received its National charter (re-using the old number 71) in early 1951.
Since many Monmouth Council troops used Raritan Council’s Camp Cowaw as their summer camp, the ceremonial team from Cowaw lodge 9 was called upon to help perform the first Ordeal ceremony. The induction was held at Camp Housman in the spring of 1951.
Twenty-five more Ordeal members were inducted into Na-Tasi-Hi in the autumn of 1951. This small lodge made their own costumes and thereafter held their own ceremonies, inducting more arrowmen into the lodge each year. The young lodge had many growing pains, but the members learned quickly. General membership meetings were held monthly, except during the summer. The first Father and Son Dinner was held in 1951 at the Camp Housman cabin.
During 1951, the spelling of the lodge’s name was corrected by changing Tasi to Tsi, which is the proper spelling of that syllable in the Cherokee language, resulting in the name Na Tsi Hi. (The use of hyphens in the name was inconsistent through the following 40 years. The nonhyphenated version shall be used from here on.) The lodge sent a contingent to the first Area 2C Conference, at Pine Hill Scout Reservation in 1951. The lodge continued to grow.
In 1952, Na Tsi Hi bestowed its first Vigil Honor, inducted 22 additional Ordeal members, and six members became Brotherhood. By the mid-1950s the membership exceeded the 100 mark and was growing rapidly. A bimonthly newsletter, Drumbeat, was published and member enthusiasm ran high. The Brotherhood Log was created by Tom Morley in 1957, and presented to the Chief at a picnic at the home of Vigil Honor member F. Lee Haussmann.
With the acquisition of Forestburg Scout Reservation in 1956 the lodge became very active and in 1958, they hosted the Area 2C Conference. A special Brotherhood neckerchief became available in 1958 that was limited to one per person.
Over 200 members were registered in 1960 and an ambitious Dance Team won the competition at that year’s Area Conference. The lodge published and distributed to each Scoutmaster in Monmouth Council its first Where to Go (Camping) Guide book in 1962. Lodge arrowmen raised funds in 1964-65 and built the South Look-out Lean-to at Forestburg Scout Reservation. The Area 2C Conference was held at Forestburg in 1965. During this time, OA elections and Ordeals were only held at Forestburg during summer camp, so only FSR campers became Arrowmen.
Enthusiasm dropped off in the late 1960s as the arrowmen were resting on the laurels of previous successful years. In 1967 the lodge constitution was changed and the brotherhood of cheerful service began to grow again. Dr. Carl Marchetti was appointed Lodge Adviser. A new ceremony for the annual installation of the new Chief was written by brother Robert Mayberry. Called the Gam’wing, after a comparable Lenape ceremony, it was first performed at Quail Hill in 1968.
The name of the newsletter was changed to Voice of the Pines in 1970, because the new name was unique to the lodge whereas the older name was in common use. In 1971 hundreds of Green Stamp books were collected by the members for “Operation Jolly Green Giant” which provided Forestburg Scout Reservation with a new yellow one ton truck.
Area 2C became Section NE-4B when the BSA restructured the 12 regions, moving the New Jersey councils from Region 2 to Northeast Region. The first Section NE-4B Conclave was held at Forestburg, in 1973.
The lodge celebrated its 25th Anniversary at the 1975 Spring Pow-Wow. The highlight was cutting the anniversary cake by the first and twenty-fifth Chiefs of Na Tsi Hi. The anniversary pocket flap featured a green background and yellow trees like the original 1950 patch.
As the nation prepared for the Bicentennial, councils were encouraged to develop historic trails so that Scouts would learn American history while developing their Scouting skills. The arrowmen of Na Tsi Hi created the Battle of Monmouth Historic Trail, formally dedicated on April 12, 1975. The Trail begins at Quail Hill Scout Reservation in Manalapan, traverses through the historic countryside and the Monmouth Battlefield State Park, and ends at the battle monument in colonial Freehold.
In August 1977 at the National OA Conference, the Voice of the Pines was judged as one of the six best newsletters in the nation and as the best in the Northeast Region. Arrowmen refurbished the Devlin Lodge program center at Quail Hill, which was dedicated on April 8, 1978 in memory of brother Thomas Devlin. The proceeds of the 1979 annual garage sale were used to build an additional program shelter at Quail Hill, adjacent to Scout Lodge. The section conclave was held at Forestburg in 1981.
The 1980s were a time of “firsts.” In 1982 the lodge inaugurated the council’s first Webelos Woods campout. Past Lodge Adviser Dr. Carl Marchetti was named Chairman of the National OA Committee on September 1, 1984. The lodge provided a service staff for the council’s Scout Show in 1986 on the grounds of Brookdale Community College at which “Green Bar Bill” Hillcourt was the guest of honor. In 1987 the lodge administered its Ordeal induction under the Elangomat system for the first time. January 1989 marked the first of eight Trade-o-rees hosted by the lodge.
The OA was 75 years old in 1990. That year Na Tsi Hi sent a contingent of 12 brothers to the National OA Conference, where a lodge hat was placed into the time capsule which will not be opened until the 100th anniversary in 2015. Another successful fundraising event occurred in August 1991 when the famous Koshare Indian Dancers performed at Brookdale Community College. The lodge purchased an almost-new pickup truck for Quail Hill in 1992. The lodge hosted the Section conclave in 1992 at Forestburg. The lodge ceremonial and dance teams helped the city of Asbury Park for the 30th time in 1994 reenact the arrival of Columbus in the New World.
At the January 1995 meeting of the Executive Board, Chief Will Vaughan announced that, for the first time in several years, Na Tsi Hi lodge was chartered as a National Honor Lodge (equivalent to Quality Lodge today). Again at the March 1999 meeting of the Executive Board, Chief James Phillips announced that Na Tsi Hi lodge rechartered as a Quality Lodge. (For the last 4 consecutive years, we have received Quality Lodge recognition.)
The lodge has consistently supported the council’s camping program with both thousands of man-hours of service and thousands of dollars of donations. In 1997 the lodge provided wood for the C.O.P.E. course at Quail Hill, and the Camp Promotions committee commissioned new professionally-made camp promotion videos for both Forestburg and Quail Hill. In 1998, a commercial grade lawn mower was purchased for Quail Hill, and the following year $1,500 in tools were donated to FSR. Based on this exemplary record of camp service, the lodge received the prestigious E. Urner Goodman Camping Award at the 2000 National OA Conference, one of only two awarded in each Region. The lodge provided a $10,000 facilities upgrade at the council headquarters in Oakhurst in 1999.
The lodge’s 50th anniversary was marked with a special set of patches, and by serving as the service lodge for the NE-2A Section Conclave at Forestburg. Continuing its support of the camping programs of the council, the lodge committed to a 5-year plan to raise the money to build a new year-round restroom facility at Quail Hill with an estimated cost of $65,000.
In 2003 the Where to go Camping directory was updated and issued to council Scouters on CD-ROM at the University of Scouting. The 225th anniversary of the Battle of Monmouth was marked by an anniversary patch available only for that year. A new climbing tower erected at Dan Beard camp was dedicated to the memory of Vigil Honor member Jerry Ceres III.
In 2004 the lodge received a National Service Grant of $2,250 from the National OA Committee to help pay for three new Adirondack-style lean-to shelters for a campsite in the Billett camp at Forestburg. Lodge membership swelled to over 700 paid members, and a new winter fellowship weekend at Forestburg termed the Frozen Fellowship was instituted. The lodge was recognized for its outstanding council service with the National Service Award. At the 2004 NOAC, Dr. Marchetti was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award (only the second such award ever presented), and the lodge web site was recognized as an Honor web site.
The arrowmen of Na Tsi Hi will continue to rise to the greater challenge and carry on the tradition of Brotherhood and Cheerful Service.
W W W
We are continuing to research and document the history of Na Tsi Hi lodge 71. Current and past members who would like to participate in this project are invited to contact the Lodge Historian.