This Minnesota troop’s Scout hut is a former train depot

I’ve always been fascinated by the concept of a Scout hut.

That’s the term for a standalone building whose sole purpose is hosting Scout meetings and storing Scout stuff.

Growing up, my troop met every Sunday in a large conference room on the second floor of the city municipal building where my dad worked. We were lucky to have such a large, well-appointed, easily accessible space for our meetings. But it’s impossible to make such a space feel like your own when it’ll be used the next day for government business.

That’s where Scout huts like the one owned by Troop 228 of New London, Minn., really shine. Their building once was the train depot in the town that sits two hours west of Minneapolis.

Some old buildings get a second life as a Scout hut, while others are built strictly for that purpose. Some Scout huts, like this unique one in the basement of a Buffalo, N.Y., church, are part of larger buildings. Many of our Sea Scouting friends, meanwhile, have floating Scout huts. They meet aboard the same ships they use for excursions.

Troop 228 got its Scout hut in an interesting way — and for a price you won’t believe.

A former Scoutmaster made arrangements to purchase the old train depot for $1, and a local church (not Troop 228’s chartered organization) leased the troop the property for $1.

A local resident later donated his cabin to Troop 228, and it was joined “Frankenstein-style” to the depot. Inside you’ll find a veritable Scouting museum: old uniforms, photos, awards, Scout books and merit badge books.

Everyone in town knows the building as the “Scout hut,” and it has seen more than 40 boys earn their Eagle Scout award.

Check out some photos:

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Let me see your unit’s Scout hut

Does your pack, troop, team, post, ship or crew meet in an interesting location? Send me an email with details and some photos. I might blog about it some day!


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