On January 1, 1973, the Order of the Arrow consolidated from the previous 12 regions into a 6 region system. In the course of creating this system, OA Sections replaced the previous OA Areas. This was the birth of OA Area 4, the namesake for this website. Area 4 was divided into 3 sections. Section W4A replaced Area 12-E in Southern/Central California. Section W4B replaced Area 12-A in Southern California. Section W4C replaced Area 12-F in Arizona and Nevada. There were no corresponding territory changes locally, beyond the new designations.
This was the most significant change to the local organization of Lodges since the creation of the 12 Area system in 1948.
The BSA reorganization also was the impetus for several Lodge mergers. On September 1, 1972, Tamet Lodge # 225 and Walika Lodge # 228 were merged to create Malibu Lodge # 566. On January 1, 1973, San Gorgonio Lodge # 298 and Ahwahnee Lodge # 430 merged to form Wiatava Lodge # 13. On June 1, 1973, Tahquitz Lodge # 127 and Wisumahi Lodge # 478 merged to form Cahuilla Lodge # 127. All of these mergers came from Council mergers that occurred at the time of the BSA’s reorganization.
Citations:
Rob Higgins, 12 Regions, oasections.com.