Arthur Rose Eldred (August 16, 1895 - 1951) was an American agricultural official and executive who, as a teenager, became the first Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) on August 21, 1912, just two years after the BSA was founded in 1910. Eldred also received the Bronze Honor Medal for lifesaving, and was the first of three generations of Eagle Scouts.

Scouting
Eldred was born in Brooklyn, New York but was raised in Oceanside, Long Island, New York by his mother after his father died when Arthur Eldred was very young. Arthur’s older brother, Hubert W. Eldred, was instrumental in starting Troop 1 of Rockville Centre, Oceanside, Long Island, New York in November 1910. Their appearance impressed Chief Scout Executive James E. West and he asked Troop 1 to serve as honor guard for the visit of Lord Baden-Powell, the founder of Scouting. West paid the expenses for the troop to travel to New York on January 31, 1912. Baden-Powell inspected Troop 1 and talked to Eldred at some length.

Arthur Eldred's Eagle Scout medal, courtesy National Scout MuseumArthur earned First Class badge in March 1911. In April of 1912, he completed the 21 merit badges required for Eagle Scout (at the time, only 141 merit badges had then been earned by about 50 Scouts). As originally implemented, Eagle Scout was part of the merit badge system and simply required 21 merit badges to be earned . Thus Arthur, like several of the early Eagles, did not earn the Star or Life badges.

Eldred completed all requirements except the board of review (BOR) by April 1912. As Eldred would be BSA's first Eagle Scout, Eldred did not have a troop Board of Review, he had a thorough National Board of Rreview consisting of James E. West, Chief Scout Executive; Ernest Thompson Seton, Chief Scout; and Daniel Carter Beard, National Scout Commissioner. Eldred stated that Beard, the first National Scout Commissioner, examined him personally on several subjects. Wilbert E. Longfellow, who had written articles on life-saving and swimming in the Scout Manual, was also present and examined him on those subjects. West informed Eldred of his Eagle award in a letter dated August 21, 1912. This letter also informed Eldred of the delay in the medal, caused by the fact that the design of the Eagle Scout medal had not been finalized, so he didn't receive the medal until Labor Day, 1912.

Also in August 1912, Eldred earned another impressive Scouting award. While camping with the troop in Orange Lake, New York, Eldred and Merritt Cutler saved Melvin Daly, another Scout who was 15 and a non-swimmer, from drowning. Daly almost drowned Eldred and Cutler in the process. Eldred was awarded the Bronze Honor Medal for that action. Apparently, this was presented by Ernest Thompson Seton.

Education and career
Eldred entered Cornell University in the fall of 1912 to study agriculture, and graduated in 1916. At the university, Eldred was on the track and cross-country teams, and president of the Cornell University Agricultural Association. During World War I, he served as an enlisted man aboard a U.S. Navy submarine chaser based in Corfu, Greece. Upon his return to the United States, Eldred went to work for a dairy, and in 1921 became the agricultural agent for Atlantic County, New Jersey. During his seven years in that position, Eldred was credited with establishing the Atlantic City municipal market for farm products, as well as other accomplishments on behalf of the county's farmers.

In 1928, Eldred left his county job to become a specialist in promoting railroad transportation of produce for the Reading Railroad. As movement of produce by truck became an ever more important part of transportation, Arthur was named manager of the Motor Carrier Committee of the Eastern Railroad Association. He held this position until his death in 1951.

Adult Scouting life and descendants

(l-r) unknown, Arthur Eldred, Willard Eldred (Arthur's son), at Willard's Eagle Scout ceremony.Throughout his life, Eldred continued his interest in Scouting. In the 1920s he was a board of review examiner. He was also Troop Committee Chair for his son's Troop 77 in Clementon, New Jersey, and served as a member of the Camden County Council. He also served on the Clementon Board of Education, and was president of the Overbrook Regional School Board.

The National Eagle Scout Association chapter of the BSA's Theodore Roosevelt Council in Massapequa, New York is named in honor of Eldred.

Eldred's descendants have followed in his footsteps. Eldred was present when his son, Willard G. "Bill" Eldred, had his Eagle Scout ceremony on October 27, 1944. His grandson, Willard Eldred, is also an Eagle Scout. Three of his great-grandsons are Scouts as of 2006, working towards Eagle Scout.