Norman Rockwell (American, 1894-1978) The Daily Good Turn (Scout Helping Gentleman Cross Street), 1918 Oil on canvas 30 x 22 inches (76.2 x 55.9 cm) Signed lower right: Norman / Rockwell EXHIBITED: National Scouting Museum, Murray State University, Murray, Kentucky, n.d. LITERATURE: "Boys Will Be Men: Four Boy Scout Paintings by Norman Rockwell," The Red Cross Magazine, New York, November 1918, vol. 13, p. 34, illustrated; Boys' Life Magazine, The Boy Scouts of America, New York, February 1919, cover; W. Hillcourt, Norman Rockwell's World of Scouting, New York, 1977, pp. 28-29, illustrated; M. Moline, Norman Rockwell Encyclopedia, Indianapolis, Indiana, 1979, p. 12 (as Scout helping man cross street); L.N. Moffatt, Norman Rockwell: A Definitive Catalogue, Vol. II, Stockbridge, Massachusetts, 1986, pp. 734-35 no. S464, illustrated; J. Csatari, Norman Rockwell's Boy Scouts of America, New York, 2009, pp. 11, 42, illustrated. Norman Rockwell's The Daily Good Turn gives visual form to one of the foundational legends of the Boy Scouts of America: the chance encounter on the streets of London that led to the movement's establishment in America. In the autumn of 1909, American publisher William D. Boyce, lost in the dense London fog, was guided to his destination by an unknown British Scout who refused a monetary reward, explaining that he was "doing a good turn." This anonymous figure—remembered as the "Unknown Scout"—became a central figure in Scouting lore, his quiet act of service enshrined as the moral origin of the movement. As later recounted by William Hillcourt, "it was a Good Turn that brought Scouting to the United States," a moment that so impressed Boyce that he sought out the organization's founders and, upon returning home, established the Boy Scouts of America in 1910" (Norman Rockwell's World of Scouting, New York, 1977, p 29). The present work reimagines this theme of the "Unknown Scout" with characteristic narrative clarity and emotional resonance. Set not in an English metropolis but in a modern American cityscape, the composition translates the anecdote into a contemporary idiom, presenting a uniformed Scout guiding an older gentleman through a bustling street at dusk. The composition is animated by a stream of purposeful commuters, including an elegantly dressed woman who strides with resolve among the pack, and another passerby clutching briefcase in hand, moves briskly across the crowded crossing. Amid this ensemble, the boy's presence is steady—his posture alert, his expression earnest—he embodies the ethos of quiet service encapsulated in the Scout slogan "Do a Good Turn Daily." By relocating the scene, Rockwell universalizes the story, suggesting that the values of Scouting transcend time and place, rooted not in a single historical moment but in an enduring moral ideal. Created for Boys' Life magazine, the official publication of the Boy Scouts of America, the present work stands as both illustration and origin myth, reinforcing the narrative that shaped the identity of the organization. In transforming this brief act of kindness into a compelling visual narrative, Rockwell not only commemorated the founding legend of American Scouting but also affirmed the centrality of individual character and selfless service in the broader cultural imagination of early twentieth-century America. HID12401132022 © 2026 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved www.HA.com/TexasAuctioneerLicenseNotice

National Scouting Museum, Murray State University, Murray, Kentucky, n.d.

Condition report available upon request.
Framed Dimensions 34 X 26 Inches