Troop One Scout House
1935

The year 2010 marks the 100th anniversary of the Boy Scouts of America and Hingham’s own Troop One. One of the first Boy Scout Troops to be chartered in the United States, Troop One has guided generations of Hingham’s youth on their journey to adulthood through exceptional character building, leadership development, and community service.

To celebrate this wonderful legacy, Troop One is kicking off a fundraising campaign for the restoration of the Troop One Scout House, located on Leavitt Street. Built by the community and donated to Troop One in 1935, it is one of the few free-standing scout house buildings found in New England. Despite regular annual upkeep, significant repairs are required if the Scout House is to serve Troop One for the next 100 years of scouting.

Floor Plan/Support Detail

Repair Details

The following is needed:

1. Site Work:
   a. Remove some trees which threaten the structure and cause maintenance issues
   b. Lower the grade at the north end of the building where settlement has allowed the sill to sink to touch the ground
   c. Grade around building to ½ inch per foot away from base of hut and add French drain at rear to take advantage of site slope to shed water away from structure
   d. Regrade the driveway
   e. Re-set boulders which border the driveway and which have fallen into the neighbors yard
   f. Add crushed stone material or reconstitute in re-graded areas
2. Floor Work:
   a. Repair rotted sill, as needed, at the northeast corner once it is exposed during regrading
   b. Set a level on the floor. Jack and re-shim the floor deck at the pile supports as needed to get the building back to near level
   c. Replace any piles that appear to be structurally inadequate
3. Weather Tight Shell:
   a. Once the floor and walls have been set back to near level the work on the shell can begin.
   b. Remove and replace roof shingles with 50 year architectural type over asphalt paper.
   c. Remove and replace wood shakes
   d. Remove and replace trim boards and fascia
   e. Paint trim as required
   f. Chimney flashing and cricket: Chimney cricket is undersized and causes rot at chimney; need to divert more water away from this area with larger cricket or water diverter along roof
4. Interior:
   a. Build small office area with insulated walls and ceiling and safety glass interior window walls for sound proofing and good visibility
   b. Replace existing noisy industrial style gas heaters with a more quiet system
5. Electrical:
   a. Some of the wiring needs to be reviewed and replaced; especially exterior wiring
6. Water and Sewer:
   a. It is not likely a septic system is possible at the site due to cost constraints and ledge at the site
   b. However it would be advantageous to have cold tap water (an outside spigot with drain for winterizing) which could be used primarily for camping trip water tank fill-ups.
   c. A composting toiler would be helpful, if allowed by Code, to allow for limited use bathroom breaks during meetings. Currently, the Hingham Public Library is used.
7. Materials:
   a. Roofing: 50 year architectural type shingles and underlayment: Approximately 20 square
   b. Siding: Red Cedar Shakes, underlayment and nails: Approximately 18 square
   c. Trim Boards and Fascia: Approximately 400 LF 3/4×6; Aztek or other rot resistant.
   d. Crushed stone or reconstitute material for graded areas: approximately 15 Cu yd (3” thick on drive and north side of building)