Girl Scout Cookie Program ~ A Proud Legacy

1917 - The Mistletoe Troop in Muskogee, Oklahoma bakes and sells cookies in its high school cafeteria as a service project.

1920 – 1930s - Girl Scouts in different parts of the county continued to bake their own simple sugar cookies with their mothers. These cookies were packaged in wax paper bags, sealed with a sticker, and sold door-to-door for 25 to 35 cents per dozen.

1936 - The national organization, Girl Scouts of the USA, begins the process to license the first commercial baker to produce cookies that would be sold by girls in Girl Scout councils. Enthusiasm for Girl Scout cookies spreads nationwide. In 1937, more than 125 Girl Scout councils report holding cookie sales.

1942 - Girl Scout cookies are sold annually by local councils around the country until World War II, when sugar, flour, and butter shortages lead Girl Scouts to begin selling Girl Scout calendars to raise money for their activities.

1951 - Girl Scout cookies come in three varieties: Sandwich, Shortbread, and Chocolate Mints. The “Chocolate Mints” – later renamed “Thin Mints” – is without a doubt the most popular Girl Scout cookie.

1978 - GSUSA begins supplying licensed bakers with a standard cookie package layout and pictures. For the first time in history, all Girl Scout Cookie® boxes feature the same designs and depict scenes of Girl Scouts in action.

1990s - In the early 1990s, low-fat and sugar-free Girl Scout cookie varieties are added.

2005 - GSUSA licensed bakers began listing trans-fats on January 1, 2005 – one full year ahead of the FDA January 1, 2006 deadline for listing trans fats. Click here for the nutrition information on all of our cookies.

2006/2007 - For the 2006-07 season, all Girl Scout cookies are zero trans fats according to FDA guidelines.