WHAT IS GRANGE?
MAPLEWOOD GRANGE PRESENTS:
GOIN GRANGING!
The Order of the Patrons of Husbandry, better known as the Grange or the Grangers, was founded in 1867 as a fraternal trade society for small farmers and their families in the United States. Those from 5 to 14 years of age could join the Junior Grange. The organization publishes National Grange — Washington Update (weekly), Grange Newsletter (monthly), and View from the Hill (monthly). There are approximately 300,000 members. The National Grange was founded in Fredonia, New York, by a member of the freemasons, Oliver Hudson Kelley and 7 of his associates. Designed partly to help the South to recover from the Civil War the grange was a new secret society, although the secrecy necessary after the civil war has become mostly symbolic. The Grange was arranged on more or less Masonic lines, dedicated to promoting rural life but open to all, in contrast to many other organizations of the time that were restricted along gender or racial lines. The Grange rituals, as Kelley devised them, consisted of seven degrees, first through fourth and then Pomona, Flora and Ceres. Full membership in the Grange comes from completing the fourth degree; those who have taken only the first degree are known as provisional members. The three higher degrees are named for Roman deities of considerable antiquity. Pomona was a goddess of fruit and gardens, Flora was the goddess of flowers, Ceres was the goddess of food plants. These higher degrees are given at the county, state and national level. The ritual of the degrees borrows from Freemasonry, as do most fraternal organizations.
The altar in the lodge room bears an open Bible, and various agricultural impediments, such as the pruning hook and the shepherd’s crook, decorate the place. An American flag is prominently displayed. A blindfold symbolizes the passage from outer darkness to inner light, and all manner of trade implements are invested with symbolic meaning.
Taking the oath of membership involves promising to obey the laws of the state and the nation, as well as the orders of Grange superiors as long as those do not conflict with law or religious belief. While the rituals are of Christian derivation, the Grange is open to members of all religions and makes a point of deferring to an individuals religious convictions.
The Grange has a powerful educational and self-help component. It also had great political significance. Grangers were instrumental in founding the Populist Party. Not only did the Grange lobby for the establishment of a secretary of agriculture (before 1889, there was no such post), but when a secretary of agriculture was finally appointed, he was a member of the Grange. Since then, the Grange legacy has included agricultural colleges, agricultural research stations, the FFA organization for students and the expansion of the rural delivery network operated by the U.S. Postal Service.
The structure of the organization begins with the Subordinate Granges, numbered in the thousands, and the Pomona Granges, which are district or county associations of Granges and are numbered in the hundreds. Both Subordinate and Pomona Granges send delegates to the State Granges and the State Granges in turn send delegates to the National Grange in Washington, D.C.
Currently the Grange lobbies at the national and state levels for many charitable and agricultural causes, mostly centered on promoting family life and family farms. It also contributes to community life by maintaining the grange halls, used for many purposes, especially in smaller communities, and by contributing to many charitable causes.
GOIN GRANGING!
The Order of the Patrons of Husbandry, better known as the Grange or the Grangers, was founded in 1867 as a fraternal trade society for small farmers and their families in the United States. Those from 5 to 14 years of age could join the Junior Grange. The organization publishes National Grange — Washington Update (weekly), Grange Newsletter (monthly), and View from the Hill (monthly). There are approximately 300,000 members. The National Grange was founded in Fredonia, New York, by a member of the freemasons, Oliver Hudson Kelley and 7 of his associates. Designed partly to help the South to recover from the Civil War the grange was a new secret society, although the secrecy necessary after the civil war has become mostly symbolic. The Grange was arranged on more or less Masonic lines, dedicated to promoting rural life but open to all, in contrast to many other organizations of the time that were restricted along gender or racial lines. The Grange rituals, as Kelley devised them, consisted of seven degrees, first through fourth and then Pomona, Flora and Ceres. Full membership in the Grange comes from completing the fourth degree; those who have taken only the first degree are known as provisional members. The three higher degrees are named for Roman deities of considerable antiquity. Pomona was a goddess of fruit and gardens, Flora was the goddess of flowers, Ceres was the goddess of food plants. These higher degrees are given at the county, state and national level. The ritual of the degrees borrows from Freemasonry, as do most fraternal organizations.
The altar in the lodge room bears an open Bible, and various agricultural impediments, such as the pruning hook and the shepherd’s crook, decorate the place. An American flag is prominently displayed. A blindfold symbolizes the passage from outer darkness to inner light, and all manner of trade implements are invested with symbolic meaning.
Taking the oath of membership involves promising to obey the laws of the state and the nation, as well as the orders of Grange superiors as long as those do not conflict with law or religious belief. While the rituals are of Christian derivation, the Grange is open to members of all religions and makes a point of deferring to an individuals religious convictions.
The Grange has a powerful educational and self-help component. It also had great political significance. Grangers were instrumental in founding the Populist Party. Not only did the Grange lobby for the establishment of a secretary of agriculture (before 1889, there was no such post), but when a secretary of agriculture was finally appointed, he was a member of the Grange. Since then, the Grange legacy has included agricultural colleges, agricultural research stations, the FFA organization for students and the expansion of the rural delivery network operated by the U.S. Postal Service.
The structure of the organization begins with the Subordinate Granges, numbered in the thousands, and the Pomona Granges, which are district or county associations of Granges and are numbered in the hundreds. Both Subordinate and Pomona Granges send delegates to the State Granges and the State Granges in turn send delegates to the National Grange in Washington, D.C.
Currently the Grange lobbies at the national and state levels for many charitable and agricultural causes, mostly centered on promoting family life and family farms. It also contributes to community life by maintaining the grange halls, used for many purposes, especially in smaller communities, and by contributing to many charitable causes.
