Beyond the South End

The Grange Movement

Recent efforts by the Maine Coast Heritage Trust to bring farmers together to explore cooperative efforts and how they can all work together more profitably have been well received by farmers in Knox, Lincoln and Waldo counties.

A February 6 story I found on Village Soup, “Small farms ‘not only practical, but necessary’ for Midcoast’s future,” by Sarah E. Reynolds, reports on meetings organized by Aaron Englander of Erickson Fields Preserve, owned by Maine Coast Heritage Trust (MCHT). He likens the possible collaboration of local farmers to that of the Grange of a century or more ago. It looks like there is some great possibilities for cooperation in the future through discussions and meetings such as the ones Englander organized. Please see that complete story on Village Soup. I assume the same story will be included in a recent edition of The Courier also.

I thought it might be interesting to bring some of the history of The Grange to you. Though not as active as it once was, we in Maine have a soft spot for the Grange and for the people who attend Grange even if it is only for a “family, or community” baked bean supper. Though my folks were not farmers, they became members of the local grange in Owls Head later in life. It was open then and is open today to anyone who would like to become a member.

 

This is a picture of the North Somerset Grange Hall in Solon, Maine, circa 1910 which I found on Wikipedia.

The picture above is called, “I feed you all!” a lithograph by American Oleograph Co., Milwaukee, ca. 1875. (Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division). I found this picture at the site called The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. Please go to www.gilderlehrman.org/history-by-era/populism-andagarian-discontent/resources/grange-m for the complete history of this lithograph.

Besides the farmer and his plow and horses, other pictures include a lawyer “I Plead for All;” President Ulysses S. Grant, “I Rule for All;” an officer, “I Fight for All;” a clergyman, “I Preach for All;” a ship owner, “I Sail for All;” a shopkeeper, “I Buy & Sell for All;” a doctor, “I Physic You All.” Don’t you love that last one?

How and Why Did the Grange Begin?

The official name of the Grange is The National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry. It was organized as a fraternal organization in the United States to bring families together to promote the economic and political well-being of the community and agriculture. At its height, the Grange was the center of farming life and was also a big influence in Congress in Washington, D.C.

The first Grange was founded in Fredonia, N.Y. in 1867 by seven men and one woman: Oliver Hudson Kelley, William Saunders, Francis M. McDowell, John Trimble, Aaron B. Grosh, John R. Thompson, William M. Ireland, and Caroline Hall. It’s interesting to note that women were encouraged to participate and the organization rules required that four of the elected positions could be held only by women. The organization did indeed support suffrage. Susan B. Anthony even made her last public appearance at the National Grange Convention in 1903.

President Andrew Johnson got the ball rolling by commissioning Oliver Kelley to collect data to improve Southern agricultural conditions. Because it was just after the Civil War, southerners were leery of any northerners interfering with their business be it farming or other endeavors. Therefore, Kelley enlisted the help of the Masons in the southern areas he visited, which ultimately allowed the Grange to be organized for the good of both North and South farmers.

Because of the Mason’s involvement, the first Grange borrowed the Mason practices of secret meetings, oaths and special passwords. There are seven degrees of Grange membership. The ceremony practiced at the meetings was related to the seasons and various symbols and principles.

In the last few decades, the Grange no longer has secret meetings, anyone may join, however, they still acknowledge the history, practices, and traditions of the original organization.

The Grange originally formed to promote the social and economic needs of farmers in the United States. The membership grew during the financial woes of 1873; falling crop prices; increases in railroad fees; and Congress’s reduction of paper money in favor of gold and silver.  Although nonpartisan, the Grange has supported such groups as the Greenback Party, the Populist Party, and the Progressives.

During its prime popularity it behooved politicians trying to represent rural areas to try to get the backing of the Grange. If they didn’t, they would have a difficult time getting elected.

Accomplishments of the Grange

What are some of the significant accomplishments of the Grange? Here are a few:

1.    The regulation of railroads and grain warehouses.

2.    Creation of the Cooperative Extension Service

3.    Rural Free Delivery

4.    The Farm Credit System

5.    Supporting Suffrage

The Grange became a respected organization whose members included Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S Truman, artist Norman Rockwell, and businessman Frederick Hinde Zimmerman.

The monument to the founding of the Grange is the only private monument on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

If you come from a community that includes a Grange Hall, be proud. If someone laughs at you for your loyalty, show them this brief history. The Grange is a worthy institution with a rich history that we should all be proud of.

For more information on the history of the Grange, there are many references at the end of the Wikipedia article from which I took much of this information. See “The National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry.”

Thanks for listening.