“Hurrah for Daisy 

Hurrah for Daisy 

Hur-rah for Daisy Low 

Started Girl Scouts in our country 

In Savannah, long ago.” 

(Sung to the tune: Oh, My Darling, Clementine) 

The Juliette Gordon Low House 

Her family nicknamed her ‘Crazy Daisy’ because they never knew what she would do next.  

Of course, what she did last was the best thing of all: Juliette Gordon Low was the founder of the Girl Scouts of the USA, and she made that happen starting right here in her home in Savannah, Georgia. 

What else should we expect from someone born on Halloween night, but to become the type of woman who would go on to live both an accomplished, story-book life, all the while living within a soap opera. 

Born in Savannah on October 31, 1860, on the very eve of the American Civil War — a day now celebrated as Founder’s Day by tens of millions of active and former Girl Scouts everywhere — Juliette ‘Daisey’ Gordon was raised in a wealthy Savannahian family.  

She attended boarding schools as a child, took painting lessons from famous artists in New York City in her teens, and after marriage in her 20s, Juliette and husband lived part of their time in Savannah, but mostly in their homes in London and Scotland. Crazy Daisy traveled extensively throughout her life. 

Her marriage to William ‘Willy’ Low in 1886 ultimately did not go well. Daisy suffered serious medical problems her entire life, which coincided with Willy’s heavy drinking, reckless gambling on the ponies, and long isolated ‘hunting’ trips with his wild set of friends. Their mutually reinforced foibles led to frequent and lengthy separations throughout their marriage, both physically and emotionally. 

However, the marriage did place her straightaway into elite English society through Willy’s glamorous circle of friends. These included the Prince of Wales; known as ‘Bertie’ to his close friends, he lived an unrestrained lifestyle at the very heart of the London smart set before becoming King Edward VII. 

A few years later, Juliette would discover a widow by the name Anna Bridges Bateman was having an affair with her husband. She took the news in stride. 

First, there was separation. And, at her insistence, the divorce process would take its time. Then, Willy died before the divorce was finalized, unveiling a will that cut her out and the widow-Bateman in. 

That, too, would be taken in stride. She ended up with plenty of cash and this house in Savannah. 

After Juliette settled her husband’s complicated affairs (pun intended!), Daisey met the founder of the Boy Scouts while living in London. In 1912, she returned to Savannah to begin the Girl Scout movement. Juliette Gordon Low: The Remarkable Founder of the Girl Scouts by Stacy Cordery tells that story well. 

In 1953, the Girl Scouts repurchased and restored the Gordon Low House; now a National Landmark. Daisey is buried in her Girl Scout uniform at the beautiful Laurel Grove Cemetery in midtown Savannah.