More than 36 million copies of The Boy Scout Handbook have been printed since the first edition in 1910, which included an illustration of a Boy Scout helping an elderly woman cross a street. One requirement to become a First Class Scout at the time: be able to stop a runaway horse. Later editions of the manual were also representative of their times, as the following examples show:
| 1945 |
| Merit badges emphasize World War II-era interests, such as airplane structure, signaling, and seamanship. Advertisements in the back of the manual promote Remington and Winchester rifles for achieving a marksmanship merit badge. Scouts were advised to seek advice on sexual matters from “wise, clean, strong men.” |
| 1977 |
| Multiculturalism abounds in drawings. Text discusses pollution, conservation, and how to “Go Metric.” Merit badges include atomic energy, space exploration, and computers: “Show how your name and address would be punched on a card. |
| 1998 |
| The new “Prepared for Life” section includes warnings on safe Internet use and sexual responsibility: “AIDS and other diseases spread by sexual contact can ruin your life and that of others.’' Elective merit badges include cinematography, disabilities awareness, and snow sports. |
