Fraternal and benevolent orders.

The Odd Fellows were not the only African-American fraternal order that found toeholds in Wilson County in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. An examination of deed books and other records yields these — some familiar, others much less so:

  • Prince Hall Masons, Mount Hebron Lodge #42, chartered in 1881.
  • Prince Hall Masons, Rocky Blue Lodge #56, chartered before 1910.
  • Prince Hall Masons, Pride of Wilson Lodge #484, chartered before 1947.
  • Knights of Gideon, Mount Maria Lodge #7, chartered before 1908.
  • Knights of King Solomon, Victoria #1, chartered in 1918. Per the Annual Report of the Insurance Commissioner of the State of North Carolina (1925), the home office of the Knights of King Solomon was in Wilson, the organization had been chartered in 1918, its president was William Pierce, and its secretary was C.F. Rich.

Wilson Daily Times, 30 December 1918.

  • Knights of King Solomon, Saint Luke Lodge #53, chartered before 1921.
  • Knights of King Solomon, Richardson Lodge #10, chartered before 1921.
  • Knights of King Solomon, Pride of Wilson Lodge #32, chartered before 1921.
  • Knights of King Solomon, Mount Zion Lodge #9, chartered before 1921.
  • Knights of King Solomon, Barnes Chapel Lodge #78, chartered before 1923.
  • Knights of King Solomon, Love Union Lodge #209, chartered before 1929.
  • Knights of Labor, Assembly #734, chartered before 1888.
  • Knights of Labor, Wilson Light Assembly #10699, chartered before 1887.
  • Knights of Labor, Saratoga Assembly #8221, chartered before 1888.
  • Knights of Labor, Pine Level Assembly #10811, chartered before 1889.
  • Improved Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, Marshall Lodge #297, chartered in 1921. Also, Daughters of the Elks Ark of the Covenant #214.
  • Grand United Order of Good Samaritans and Daughters of Samaria, chartered before 1908.
  • Royal Fraternal Organization, organized in 1910. Per the Annual Report of the Insurance Commissioner of the State of North Carolina (1925), the home office of the Royal Fraternal Organization was in Wilson, the organization had been chartered in 1910, its president was J.W. Parker, and its secretary was Cora C. Lucas.
  • Knights of Pythias, Peaceful Valley Lodge #272
  • Order of Eastern Star, Silver Star Chapter #26
  • Patriotic Order of Ethiopians of America, Inc., chartered in 1923.

More to come as I research these organizations.

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