When the TH Foley company went out of business in 1915 the Boy Scouts contracted with the Dieges & Clust Company to manufacture the Eagle Badge.

Identification: BSA on the chest, beak is closed. The elongated knot hanging from the scroll is double knotted. It is usually the easiest indicator of the Dieges & Clust type. The ribbon is longer than most later models. It also retained the same pendant as the TH Foley eagle although the ring at the top of the pendant (the pendant ring) goes behind the eagles head. The back of the pendant lacks detail and looks more like wrinkles than a feathered eagle. A Dieges & Clust hallmark may be found on the back of the scroll but there have been some examples found with no hallmark.

There were less than 1,700 Dieges & Clust types awarded from 1916-1920 making them among the most desirable to the collector. This type was awarded to radio and television star George "Ozzie" Nelson. The medal, above right, was earned around 1916 by Donald Rockwood Hewitt, born in 1901.

Availability: Very rare. Highly sought after and prized.

At first glance this medal may be mistaken for a Dieges & Clust but it is made by the next manufacturer of the Eagle Medal: the Robbins Company of Attelboro, Massachusetts. It is virtually indistinguishable from the D&C’s. The wire knot is long but is formed into a noose instead of D&C’s characteristic double knot. The back of the pendant is now much more detailed. To make things more interesting the colors on the ribbon were wrongly installed by accidentally reversing the ribbon during installation at the factory. The eagle should always face red, not blue.

This particular medal holds interest to the collector because of its own personality. With its long ribbon and knot it could be mistaken for a Dieges & Clust. See the Robbins Company on the following page for the next generation of Eagle Badges.

 

The hallmark may be found on the back of the scroll.

The back of the pendant is similar to the Foley Eagle in that it is not detailed. It is mostly indistict. lines. Later manufacturers would quickly improve on this look. Some pendants have been found that have the word 'STERLING' stamped across the shoulders of the eagle.