Girl Scouts of the USA and member councils celebrated the US Bicentennial with commemorative patches, special programs, and history-themed event.
The annual cookie sale also got into the spirit of 1776 with a multitude of red, white, and blue patches.
Little Brownie Bakers: Flag
For its first year as an official baker, Little Brownie Bakers offered a flag-themed patch.
For its first year as an official baker, Little Brownie Bakers offered a flag-themed patch.
Councils: Designed Their Own
Individual councils often designed their own cookie patches in the 1970s. For 1976, any combination of red, white, and blue was possible.
Burry: Gennifer Giraffe
Another official baker, Burry-Lu, continued its series of cartoon animals. Gennifer Giraffe was the poster-animal for 1976 and appeared on all of the company’s cookie patches and prizes.
I’ve only found a few Burry Giraffe patches with a Bicentennial reference.
The Mystery Campaign
But have you ever seen these images before?
These six color slide were part of a larger collection I purchased a few years ago. There was no information included.
My guess is these were designed by Saul Bass, the graphic artist who designed the old three-faces logo for the Girl Scouts in 1978.
The illustrations resemble the cookie boxes that Bass designed for Burry bakers in the mid-1970s.
Could these images be from proposed packaging or advertising for 1976? It would be a shame if these marvelous images were never made public.
The Saul Bass papers are housed at the Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, in Los Angeles. Records include a poster designed by Bass for Burry in 1976, but the content is not revolution-themed. There are other small sets of color slides, perhaps the cookie images belong with one of them.
Sounds like I need a trip to Los Angeles.
© 2026 Ann Robertson, writer, editor, Girl Scout historian, but NOT a Girl Scout employee.
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