Eagle Required Merit Badges
Over Time

The required merit badges for Eagle Scout have changed radically over the year. In 1912, there were only 5 required merit badges. From 1952-1965 the number was 16, 10 mandatory and six from groups of alternative merit badges. The current number is 12, 10 being mandatory and two being chosen from a total of 5 alternatives. Below is a listing of all merit badges that could have been used to fulfill Eagle requirements over the years. The first group are the merit badge specially named and had no alternate, that is, they were mandatory. Some of these no longer exist, such as Civics and Pathfinding, although similiar badges were later introduced such as the Citizenships and Orienteering. Following that is a listing of the alternative selections that could be use to fulfill requirements, listing all the merit badges in that particular alternative. In all cases, the dates these badges/groups were in the requirements are listed.

Mandatory Required

These merit badges had to be earned for Eagle during the years noted:

  • Athletics: 1912-1915
  • Bird Study: 1915-1951
  • Camping: 1915-1971, 1979-Present
  • Civics: 1916-1949
  • Citizenship: 1950-1951
  • Citizenship in the Community: 1965-Present
  • Citizenship in the Nation: 1965-Present
  • Citizenship in the World: 1972-Present
  • Communications: 1972-Present
  • Conservation of Natural Resources: 1967-1971
  • Cooking: 1915-1971
  • Environmental Science: 1972-Present
  • Family Life: 1994-Present
  • Firemanship: 1952-1964
  • First Aid: 1912-Present
  • Life Saving / Lifesaving: 1912-1971
  • Nature: 1952-1971
  • Pathfinding: 1915-1951
  • Personal Fitness: 1952-1971, 1999-Present
  • Personal Health: 1912-1951
  • Personal Management: 1972-Present
  • Physical Development: 1915
  • Pioneering: 1915-1951
  • Public Health: 1912-1964
  • Safety: 1932-1998
  • Soil and Water Conservation: 1965-1966
  • Swimming (although not specifically listed from 1912-1950, it was a pre-requisite for Life Saving): 1951-1972

    • Alternate Required Groups

    These are the groupings of merit badges among which a Scout could chose to fulfill an Eagle reuirement

  • 1 - Athletics or Physical Development (1916-1951)
  • 2 - One of eight from Outdoor Sports: [Archery; Athletics; Cycling; Fishing; Hiking; Horsemanship, Marksmanship, Skiing]: 1952-1964
  • 3 - One of seven from Conservation Group: [Animal Industry; Dairying; Forestry; Rabbit Raising; Sheep Farming, Soil and Water Conservation, Wildlife Management]: 1952-1964
  • 4 - THREE of four from Citizenship Group: [Citizenship in the Home; Citizenship in the Community; Citizenship in the Nation, World Brotherhood]: 1952-1964
  • 5 - One from any of the following groups (1 of 42 possible merit badges, 1952-1964):
  • Animal Husbandry [Animal Industry; Beekeeping, Beef Production; Dairying; Dog Care; First Aid to Animals; Hog and Pork Production; Pigeon Raising; Poultry Keeping; Rabbit Raising; Sheep Farming];
  • Plant Cultivation [Agriculture; Citrus Fruit Culture; Corn Farming; Cotton Farming; Fruit Culture; Grasses, Legumes, and Forage Crops; Gardening; Landscape Gardening; Nut Culture; Small Grains]
  • Communication [Bugling; Journalism; Printing; Radio; Signaling];
  • Transportation [Automobiling; Aviation; Railroading; Seamanship];
  • or Building [Chemistry; Electricity; Farm Home and Planning; Farm Layout and Building; Farm Mechanics; Home Repairs; Machinery; Masonry; Metalwork; Painting; Plumbing; Woodwork]
    •
  • 6 - Personal Fitness or Swimming or Sports (1972-1998)
  • 7 - Emergency Preparedness or Lifesaving (1972-Present)
  • 8 - Cycling or Hiking or Swimming (1999-Present)

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    Last Updated: January 17, 2005
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