Seeking to  establish a society for the recognition of the most meritorious campers, Carrol A. Edson and E. Urner Goodman founded the Order of the Arrow at Treasure Island Scout Camp in Pennsylvania.

          According to Ken Davis’s Brotherhood of Cheerful Service: A History of the Order of the Arrow, influences of the ceremonial portion of the Order are derived from college fraternities, the Lenni Lenape, and freemasonry.

         In 1922, the Order was recognized as an experiment program by the Boy Scouts of America. The National Council adopted the Order into its program in 1934, and the Order was fully included by 1948.