Black Fraternal Societies 155African American organizations fought back. At consider-
able expense they created a network of black lawyers that
foreshadowed the subsequent work of the NAACP. In 1912,
the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Pythians in
their fi ght that had begun in Georgia, and in 1929, the high
court ruled in favor of the Shriners in their struggle that
had begun in Georgia and Texas. Th e attack on the Elks that
had begun in New York State ended when the white Elks,
tired of an expensive legal battle, accepted the existence of a
parallel African American organization.
Many black fraternal societies had distinctive and
oft en religious names, unrelated to those of white organi-
zations. Th ese black lodges typically were organized in the
South. Th ey included the United Brothers of Friendship
(founded 1861, reorganized 1868) and their female part-
ner, the Sisters of the Mysterious Ten (1878), the Mosaic
Templars (1883), and the Twelve Knights and Daughters of
Tabor (1871). Although few non-parallel African Ameri-
can societies have survived, in their prime they demon-
strated the originality of black fraternalists. For instance,
the True Reformers, founded in 1873 and reorganized in
1881, helped pioneer life insurance that went beyond provi-
sion for burial. Women eventually dominated the Indepen-
dent Order of St. Luke, founded in 1867, with Maggie Lena
Walker in charge from 1899 until her death in 1934. Both
the True Reformers and the St. Luke society operated banks
in Richmond, Virginia. Th e True Reformer bank collapsed
in 1910, but the St. Luke Penny Savings Bank survived the
Great Depression, and aft er a merger with two other black
banks, it continues today as the Consolidated Bank and
Trust Company. In the early 20th century, the True Re-
formers claimed 100,000 members, and in the mid-1920s,
St. Luke claimed a similar number. None of these societies
exists today.
Th e Knights of Peter Claver, a Roman Catholic orga-
nization founded in 1909, has a distinctive name but can
be considered a society parallel to that of a white fraternal
order, the Knights of Columbus. Although never large, the
Knights of Peter Claver and its women’s auxiliary, founded
in 1922, still exist.
By the start of the 21st century, fraternal societies had
gone out of fashion, and most of their members, black and
white, were elderly or in late middle age. Most of the societ-
ies have become purely social organizations that patronize
community philanthropies such as education and health.
Embarrassed by now unfashionably fl amboyant titles andCourt. Much of the growth in Prince Hall membership
occurred in the 20th century. Th e related Shriner philan-
thropic group, founded in 1892, attracted a membership
much smaller than its white counterpart. In contrast, the
Prince Hall women’s auxiliary, founded in 1874, was larger
and more important than white Masonry’s Eastern Star. At
present, the Prince Hall Masons claim more than 300,000
members, including those in lodges outside the United
States.
Th e second major parallel order, the Odd Fellows,
also was organized by free blacks in the North with the
help of a charter from an English grand lodge. Founded
in 1843, the Odd Fellows for many years stood out as
the largest black fraternal society. At its peak early in the
20th century, it claimed 300,000 members, about twice
the Prince Hall membership at the time, and its lodges
owned about 2 million dollars in real estate. Th e Odd
Fellows had a sizable women’s auxiliary, the Daughters
of Ruth, founded in 1857. Today the Odd Fellows claim
100,000 members.
Th e third major parallel order, the Knights of Pythias,
came into existence aft er the Civil War without the benefi t
of an English charter. Founded in 1880 in Mississippi, the
Colored Knights of Pythias off ered military-style forma-
tions for younger members who took the “uniform rank.”
Like other parallel organizations, it admitted only men,
with women restricted to an auxiliary. At one time, the
Pythians were a quarter-million strong, but by the be-
ginning of the 21st century, few if any Pythian lodges
survived.
Th e fourth major parallel order, the Elks, was founded
much later, in 1898. African American women organized
their own Elks society four years later. Like the Prince Hall
Masons, the Elks strongly appealed to the black middle
class. J. Finley Wilson, elected Grand Exalted Ruler in 1922,
and holding his high offi ce until 1953, exemplifi es the “big
man” who oft en dominated black fraternal societies. Th e
Elks played a leading role in organizing fraternal society
support for black civil rights. Th e Elks continue into the
present day with a large membership. In the mid-1970s,
there were 450,000 African American men in the Elks
order, or 7 percent of all black men.
Whites resented the similar names borne by black par-
allel orders and their related insignia, regalia, secret hand-
shakes, and the like. Court suits and state laws attacked
in particular the black Pythians, Elks, and Shriners. Th e