The Odd Fellows was once the largest fraternal organization in the world. When new lands were still being explored and new nations were forming, as governmental policies were being formulated, and pioneers began to conquer new lands, the Odd Fellows were an important part of that evolution. In fact, Odd Fellowship contributed greatly in the development of many towns, cities, states, provinces and countries.Moving westward with their pioneer wagons, the early Odd Fellows built the largest buildings in new communities which soon became social centers where people met to relax and to exchange the latest news and ideas. Lodges also provided help to members during those times when governments provided little social and welfare assistance. On the other hand, lodge rituals taught the important lessons of civic responsibility and equality before laws existed to help maintain social order. Many of the early members were the pioneer leaders of several towns, cities, states, provinces and nations. Eventually, membership included Presidents, Prime Ministers, Senators, Congressmen, Governors, mayors and notable people in their respective fields. They were there to speak out on issues of international, national and local interest. They were forerunners in building homes for the aged and establishing the first orphanage homes. The Odd Fellows is also the predecessor of the Social Security System and National Health Insurance when it literally touched the lives of millions of people through its tenets "to visit the sick, relieve the distressed, bury the dead, and educate the orphan". The organization survived many wars and major world challenges. It existed during the time of the first railroad, the first automobile, the first movie, the first radio and television broadcasts, the first submarine, the first guided missile, the first miracle drug, the first airplane, the first space ship, the first computer, and the introduction of the internet. It served communities, long before the proliferation of other service clubs and modern charitable foundations. Odd Fellowship rose to its most glorious time when members were active in the growth of communities and nations.

New York Times bestselling author Emily Winfield Martin brings a strange and wonderful place to life with her unique style of both art and writing. What do an onion-headed boy, a child-sized hedgehog, and a tattooed girl have in common? They are all orphans at Oddfellow's Orphanage! This unusual and charming chapter book tells an episodic story that follows a new orphan, Delia, as she discovers the delights of her new home. From classes in Cryptozoology and Fairy Tale Studies to trips to the circus, from Annual Hair Cutting Day to a sea monster-sighting field trip, things at Oddfellows are anything but ordinary . . . except when it comes to friendships. And in that, Oddfellows is like any other school where children discover what they mean to each other while learning how big the world really is.

The Odd Fellows' Primer is a work cut from the same cloth as the great 19th century manuals written by luminaries such as Rev. Aaron Grosh and Paschal Donaldson, designed to give the initiate everything they need to practice and live Odd Fellowship in the lodge and beyond. This comprehensive work explores and explains concepts of fraternalism and parliamentary procedure and the deeper spiritual and ethical facets of this ancient and venerable tradition. Richly and beautifully illustrated by Ainslie Heilich and written by Michael Greenzeiger, the Odd Fellows' Primer is designed to both inform and inspire. It is sure to become a treasured addition to any fraternal library.

“There’s an inspiring and wacky solemnity in these organizations—high values reinforced through pageantry and performance in an ecumenical social setting—which deep down must also have been a whole lot of fun. Now it’s as if that foundational Other America, that underpinning of the America we know, has gradually eroded, and here we remain, living in a world that is a mere shell, a movie set, of the world that made our world manifest, that brought it into being, and all we have left are these perplexing masks, banners, and costumes to puzzle over.” —David Byrne, from the foreword Featuring more than two hundred outstanding objects gathered from private and public collections, As Above, So Below provides the first comprehensive survey of the rich vein of art created during the “golden age” of the American fraternal society. By the turn of the twentieth century, an estimated 70,000 local lodges affiliated with hundreds of distinct American fraternal societies claimed a combined five and a half million members. It has been estimated that at least 20 percent of the American adult male population belonged to one or more fraternal orders, including the two largest groups, the Freemasons and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. The esoteric knowledge, visual symbols, and moral teachings revealed to lodge brothers during secret rituals inspired an abundant and expressive body of objects that form an important facet of American folk art. Lynne Adele and Bruce Lee Webb introduce the reader to fraternal societies and explore the function and meaning of fraternal objects, including paintings and banners, costumes and ceremonial regalia, ritual objects, and an array of idiosyncratic objects that represent a grassroots response to fraternalism. Setting the art in historical context, the authors examine how fraternal societies contributed to American visual culture during this era of burgeoning fraternal activity. Simultaneously entertaining and respectful of the fraternal tradition, As Above, So Below opens lodge room doors and invites the reader to explore the compelling and often misunderstood works from the golden age of fraternity, once largely forgotten and now coveted by collectors.

The aim is to create a 21st century reference book of the basic essentials of a Lodge and Grand Lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. This book hopes to acquaint the candidates and members with its origin and history, philosophy and purposes, degrees, teachings, symbols, regalia, jewels of office and organizational structure. But this does not aim to teach the rituals itself or any of its signs and passwords. This does not also aim to supplant the Code of General Laws but only to highlight some of the generally accepted rules within the IOOF. Evolving from the traditions of the English craft guilds and journeymen associations nearly 300 years ago, the name Odd Fellows refers to a number of fraternal orders , friendly societies and service organizations existing in more than 30 countries today. Our branch, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows (IOOF), was established by Thomas Wildey and four members from England on April 26, 1819 in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. The IOOF received its charter from its parent organization, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows Manchester Unity. The IOOF is also known as the "Three Link Fraternity", referring to its "Triple Link Chain" symbol which represents its motto: "Friendship, Love and Truth."Irrefutably, membership education is an important prerequisite for a successful and growing non-profit organization. But a survey study conducted in 2012 and participated by exactly 2,120 members from all over North America, Latin America, Europe and Southeast Asia showed that Odd Fellowship lacked the needed modern literature to educate and mentor its members. The last manual and guide about the IOOF was published more than 100 years ago. With modern technology, access to historical documents has also become easier. A lot of new evidence is coming to light, which calls for a need to re-visit and re-write the origins and history of Odd Fellowship. This means that most of the manuals published many years ago have become outdated. This book is an attempt to fill that gap.

In this study of American 19th-century secret orders, the author argues that religious practices and gender roles became increasingly feminized in Victorian America and that secret societies, such as the Freemasons, offered men and boys an alternative, male counterculture.