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Knights of the Golden Eagle, Castle No. 244 (Lansdale, Pa.) minute books
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Held at: Lansdale Historical Society [Contact Us]137 Jenkins Ave., Lansdale, Pa., 19446
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Lansdale Historical Society. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.
Overview and metadata sections
Founded in 1873 by John Emory Burbage, the Knights of the Golden Eagle (K.G.E.) is a fraternal organization with rituals based on those of the Crusaders. Members pass through three stages: Pilgrim, Knight, and Crusader. The society's motto is "Fidelity, Valor, and Honor," and rituals reflect the emphasis placed on the word of the Bible. In addition to giving moral and intellectual guidance, the society provides relief to sick or unemployed members and gives survivor benefits to widows and orphans. The female auxiliaries are known as "Ladies of the Golden Eagle."
At its height in 1900, the K.G.E. was active in twenty states with approximately 20,000 members. Membership began to decline with the onset of World War II. As of 2012, the organization has approximately 2,000 members, and is functioning in only three states: New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware.
The Lansdale, Pennsylvania chapter of the Knights of the Golden Eagle, Castle No. 244, was established in 1888; its first meeting was held in February of that year. Castle No. 244 was one of the more wealthy Castles of Pennsylvania. The K.G.E was the first fraternal organization to own its own meeting space in Lansdale; its Hall was located in the heart of Lansdale's business district.
Bibliography:
"25th Anniversary Knights of Golden Eagles." The Reporter, February 12, 1913.
Mill Valley Lodge #356 (Mill Valley, Calif.). "Knights of the Golden Eagle (KGE)." Accessed November 26, 2012. http://mill-valley.freemasonry.biz/marin_knights_golden_eagle.htm
The collection contains eight minute books, 1888-1946, and includes the first volume.
Summary descriptive information on this collection was compiled in 2012-2014 as part of a project conducted by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania to make better known and more accessible the largely hidden collections of small, primarily volunteer run repositories in the Philadelphia area. The Hidden Collections Initiative for Pennsylvania Small Archival Repositories (HCI-PSAR) was funded by a grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
This is a preliminary finding aid. No physical processing, rehousing, reorganizing, or folder listing was accomplished during the HCI-PSAR project.
In some cases, more detailed inventories or finding aids may be available on-site at the repository where this collection is held; please contact Lansdale Historical Society directly for more information.
Organization
Subject
Place
- Publisher
- Lansdale Historical Society
- Finding Aid Author
- Finding aid prepared by Celia Caust-Ellenbogen and Faith Charlton through the Historical Society of Pennsylvania's Hidden Collections Initiative for Pennsylvania Small Archival Repositories
- Sponsor
- This preliminary finding aid was created as part of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania's Hidden Collections Initiative for Pennsylvania Small Archival Repositories. The HCI-PSAR project was made possible by a grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
- Access Restrictions
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Contact Lansdale Historical Society for information about accessing this collection.