Eagle Scout Class of 2013, by the numbers

Anyone who attended an Eagle Scout court of honor last year knows 2013 was a great year for Eagle Scouts.

The same is true when you step back to look at the nationwide picture of young men who became Eagle Scouts in 2013. And today I learned exactly how many earned Scouting’s highest honor last year.

That magic number: 56,841.

That’s the second-highest number of Eagle Scouts in a single year in the 101-year history of the award. It’s bettered only by 2012’s total of 58,659, set during the 100th anniversary of the Eagle Scout award. You may remember that Scouts who earned the rank in 2012 got a special badge.

The 56,841 number is impressive, but it’s even more striking when you realize what it means. It means 56,841 young men are now prepared to become great leaders, great husbands and fathers, and great Americans because they chose Scouting.

But the Eagle Scouts themselves aren’t the only ones bettered by the journey. The 9.3 million service hours 2013’s Eagle Scouts recorded during their Eagle projects means their communities are forever changed, too.

Let’s look at even more numbers. This year I got more data than in past years, including a breakdown of Eagle Scout awards earned by region, total project hours and the average age of the young men who became Eagle Scouts in 2013. Find that info after the jump.

2013 Eagle Scouts by region
  • Northeast: 10,670
  • Southern: 15,407
  • Central: 11,450
  • Western: 19,314
Total number of Eagle Scout Service Project hours
  • Northeast: 1,993,867 hours
  • Southern: 2,458,892 hours
  • Central: 1,747,469 hours
  • Western: 3,146,719 hours

Total: 9,347,047 hours

Average age of 2013 Eagle Scouts
  • Northeast: 17.5
  • Southern: 17.18
  • Central: 17.28
  • Western: 16.99

Overall average: 17.24

Number of Eagle Scouts per year, recent years
  • 2010: 56,176
  • 2011: 51,473
  • 2012: 58,659
  • 2013: 56,841

eagle-project-hours-2013


Big thanks to Michael Lo Vecchio, program assistant with the BSA’s Advancement Team, for this info.


About Bryan Wendell 3282 Articles
Bryan Wendell, an Eagle Scout, is the founder of Bryan on Scouting and a contributing writer.