The Republican journal., 1882-07-13
Odd Fellowship.
SOMETHING ABOUT THE EARLY HISTORY OF
THEORDER. IT'S INTRODUCTION INTO MAINE.
PORTLAND ODD FELLOWSHIP. THE ORDER
INVALID COZ MY. NEW LODGE AT UNITY

The institution of Il Lodge of Odd Fellows
in Unity, on Thursday evening of last week, is
the third lodge of the order in Waldo county
which has been instituted within the past five
years. AS the order is likely to extend in the
vicinity we propose TO give 4 brief history of
its existence, its aim and teachings.
Odd Fellowship is of English origin, and to-
day it numbers over 100000 members in the
| United Kingdom. The English branch is more
of an Insurance association than its American
namesake. and has no utilization with il, the two
orders becoming separate about 1910.
| American Odd Fellowship, oras it is called the
Independent Order of Odd Fellows, was form
ed at Baltimore, Nd, on the 10Th of April 1919
| by five Englishmen who self instituted Wash
| ington Lodge No |. The founder was Thomas
| Widely, q coach spring maker who imm grated
| from England to Baltimore some time in 1917.
| The war with England had Just closed, in which
| Baltimore and Washington had been attacked.
1t followed that England was much hated by
our countrymen. and nowhere was this hatred
more intense than in Baltimore. An English
| man at that time was almost ostracized from
| society. Wildey received the degrees Of odd
| Fellowship in England before cmigrating and
finding himself almost Stunned at Baltimore
naturally longed to meet with his brother odd
| Fellows, where he felt sure of being rccogniz-
| ed. He was surprised to learn that there was
| not i lodge i'll Baltimore, and indeed none in the
whole United States. He made the acquaintance
of another brother Englishman. John Wrlch Il
| ship painter, who had also received his degrees
i'll the old country. The two determined TO in
troduce the order into America. ON the 18th Of
Feb. 1919, Wildcy inserted the following nd
Vertisement in the Baltimore American
NOTICE TO ALI ODD FELLOWS \ few
! members of the society of Odd Fellows will be
glad to meet their brethren for consultation
upon the subject of forming a lodge The meet
| ing will be held on Friday evening, the ID of
| March. 1870"
At the day appointed two other English odd
Fellows put in an appearance John Duncan
and John Chatham. As il required five men,
bers to form Il lodge and only four were found,
Wildcy on the 9th of March again published
his call in the newspaper. This brought the
fifth one-Richard BossWorth. and on the 10Th
of April 1919, Washington Lodge 40. | was
| instituted at the Seven stars Tavern OH the
south side of Second street. between First street
and Market square. Wildey was the first Noble
| Grand and John Wech Vice Grand. From
this humble beginning did odd Fellow ship be-
| gin in America. From that time to the present
| no institution ever grew rapidly and per
mancntly The order spread over the United
| States, crossed the border into Canada. oNel
| the ocean TO Europe, Australia, South America
and finally settled down in London side by side
with its English parent. The American order
now numbers over 1000 lodges and half d
million members, disbur>ing for charity alone
$2.000,0 900 annually. The character of TIL,
institution grew also, until from the little
band of five English laborers the order reached
its summit in 1877 when Past Grand from
| Ohio was inaugurated President of the nted
States Rutherford B Hayes.
odd Fellowship isa benevolent and charitable
| institution, having system Of dues and hrnt.
| fits. a member in good standing, if i'll. draws
| from the lodge Il stipulated sum weekly, and at
death his family receive 4 funeral benefit OF
from 80 to 800. The motto Of the order i
eve command You to visit the Sick relieve III,
distressed, bury the dead, and educate the on.
Tphan." No better illustration of the benefits
of LODGE can be shown than the follow INC
| which occurred i'll the State of Indiana. \
brother died after an illness of tcrutl-fc realy
| For Il period of 100 weeks he had been puit
his weekly benefits of s., the whole sum a4gre
eating $1,000, and this without murmlr from
his Lodge. Fifty Noble Grand> had been elect
ed and made daily official visits in this long pc
Rod of wears. When at last the old man died
he was buried by the Lodge Us was his wife
| who followed her husband the next DAY. Ii tie
Old man had not been an odd Fellow he Woul,
have died paupcr, at 4 large expense to tht
town, and at last would have rested in Il Pot
ter'S field. 1t will be Sotn that Lodge of thi>
kind is IL direct benefit To amy community ant
| should be encouraged by all Glasses. In til,
city of Belfast, four members have died within
u few years. the families of whom have rrceiy
| ed between $4,000 and 81 900. In the past lift
| years the order has expended for charity S3l .
O00,0oo for the sick, the widowed, and the or
phaned, and to bury the dead. Nine hundrt,
and forty-sX thousand brothers, and one hun
drcd and twenty thousand families have
been relieyed ninety-one thousand brothers hay,
been buried, and many orphans have been cloth
ed and educated. Verify, is not this school OF
Christian charity, prcSerN ing in its purity an,
activity the very religion of the master Founder
| himself?
odd Fellowship was introduced into Maine ii
August, 1913, when Maine Lodge no.. | was in
stituted at Portland There are now in the stat,
over 80 Lodges, and about 10000 members
The city of Portland ranks the highest n TIL,
world in odd Fellowship. She has SIX Lodges
with membership of over $500. Every fourth
man over twcnty-one years Of age is al Ode
Fellow, and they include the very best Of he1
citizens. The late Hon. William Pitt Fe>scl
den, one of the abeSt men who ever sat in tn.
| |. ,. Senate. was an earnest member of a Port
land Lodge. Gen. >heplcy. gallant soldier ant
eminent .iurSt was another. The list might b,
extended. The Portland Lodges own Il fund o
| Sl65, 900, and eNprnd annually for charity 81 ,
600 In the past five years these Lodges hay,
expended S220,0o0.
The order was frs introduced into Waldo
county on the 10Th of June, 1914. when PasSa
EaSsaWakcag Lodge was instituted at Belfast
1t surrendered its charter in 1896. In August
1874, it was again introduced here and now ha,
one live Lodge-W of nearly 200mcmbers
Sears Lodge at SearSport was instituted one yeal
ago, and is in very prosperous condition.
| NEW LODGE Al UNITY.
| Several weeks ago twelve gentlemen from
| Unity came to this city and Were initiated into
Waldo Lodge for the purpose of becoming
| charter members for a new Lodge. The mum.
| Der included some of the best citizens of tht
place, the principal mover being the Hon. James
! X. Taber, State Senator for Waldo county The
! others comprise professional men and Well-to
| do farmers and traders. Unity is a pleasant
little village Sandy stream, one miic from
| Lake Ninnecook, one of the finest sheets of WA.
| ter in Maine. The town of nitv agricultural
| ly speaking, is the Eden of Waldo county. com
prising some of the best farming land iii the
State. The Sandy stream furnishes excellent
water power, driving planning mills and grist
mills. An extensive pillow manutactory is stu
atcd i'll this town. The population of Unity is
something over 900, but the neighboring towns