The picture below shows a larger view of all (7) Different Old National Grange Patrons of Husbandry Fraternal Items in this lot. Several of these items are dated and the certificates are signed. Included in this lot are the following items: The first item is a Constitution booklet. Inside there are (3) By Laws sheets from The Medford Grange No. 348. The booklet is marked on the coveras follows: CONSTITUTION FOR SUBORDINATE GRANGES PATRONS OF HUSBANDRY JURISDICTION OF MASSACHUSETTS REVISED TO FEBRUARY, 1ST 1917 Next there is a pin back button that reads: ESCUTARSIS GRANGE FAIR AND OLD HOME DAY SEPT. 15, 1956 LOWELL MAINE There's another pinback button that reads: I'M PROUD TO BE A GRANGER There is an advertising wooden nickel button. It has the Grange emblem on onebside and the other side has a phone number and a website address. Next is a Bradford Grange #238 60th Anniversary 1904 – 1964 advertising premium notebook with pen (pen no longer works). All of the pages inside are unused. There are two full calendars 1964 and 1965. There is a 1974 Grange letter on Grange letterhead that announces a 1975 Grange sponsored cruise. Thelast item in this lot is a golden ribbob with blue print. It reads as follows: THE NATIONAL GRANGE 111th ANNUAL SESSION P OF H GRANGE GREENSBORO NORTH CAROLINA NOV. 14 – 22 1977 To judge the sizes the letter measures 8-1/2'' x 11''. These items appear to range from excellent to mint condition as pictured. Below here, for reference, is some background information on the Grange that was found online: ''The National Grange of the Order of the Patrons of Husbandry was founded in Washington, D.C. on December 4, 1867, by Oliver Hudson Kelley, a Mason and a clerk with the Federal Bureau of Agriculture, and six other men. Known as ''the Farmer's Masonry,'' the order uses a seven degree ritual system, with signs, passwords, grips, and regalia. Both men and women are admitted, 14 years of age or older as equal members, since Kelley was persuaded by his niece, Caroline Hall, to admit women into the order when it was first founded. The first lodge was Grange No. 1 in Fredonia, NY.æ It was instrumental in passing the ''Granger Laws'' which put an end to various abuses by the railroad industry in the late 1800's.'' ''The order uses the Holy Bible in its ritual, which is placed on an altar in the Grange, and 43 passages from the Holy Bible are quoted in the Subordinate Grange's four degrees. The Grange Master administers vows to the candidates in each of the four degrees, and the candidate is hoodwinked in the first degree, showing Masonic influences.'' ''The county level administers the fifth degree called ''Pomona,'' while the state level administers the ''Flora'' degree. The National Grange administers the Degree of ''Ceres'' or "Demeter" which is exemplified annually. The order forbids alcohol in its meetings, and stresses temperance outside of the Grange.'' ''There was a time in the not too distant past when the local Grange Hall was the center of community life in many small towns. It was a place of social gathering, a political rallying point, an economic cooperative, a fraternal order, a service organization and an agricultural forum. It instilled love of God, family and country. It helped farmers band together to protect their mutual interests. And, more than any other institution it embodied an American way of life.'' |