Symbols of Fraternal Organizations

that may be seen on Portage County graves,
where all these photographs were taken

Symbol	Organization
	Independent Order of Odd Fellows, founded in Baltimore in 1819. "F L T" stands for "Friendship, Love, Truth." A benevolent as well as fraternal society, the Odd Fellows make substantial charitable contributions and, formerly at least, provided benefits for widows and orphans of members.
	Daughters of Rebekah, women's auxiliary of the Odd Fellows. The auxiliary was established in 1851 at a time when women were not permitted membership in the Odd Fellows proper, though that is no longer the case.
	Probably the most well-known symbol of the Masons. The G stands for both "God" and "Geometry."
	The Masonic keystone; Freemason who was a Knight Templar, York rite. "K S H T W S S T" is esoteric.
	32nd degree Mason, Scottish rite.
	Order of Eastern Star, women's organization affiliated with the Masons. The pentagram is properly carved point downward, but is sometimes seen point upward. Men may join the Eastern Star, although women may not be Masons.
	Order of Eastern Star. "F A T A L" is said to stand for "Fairest Among Thousands, Altogether Lovely."
	The Knights of the Maccabees, a fraternal and benefit organization providing insurance benefits for families of deceased members. Local lodges are called tents. The name is taken from the prominent family of that name who lived in Jerusalem in the second century B.C. and who led the Jewish people in their fight for freedom from the Syrian rule, as recounted in the apocryphal Books of Maccabees, included in some Bibles.
	The Ladies of the Maccabees, a women's organization affiliated with the above. Local lodges are called "hives." The Ladies of the Maccabees merged with the men's organization in 1926. The Maccabees organization became a life insurance corporation in 1962 and is no longer considered "fraternal."
	The Modern Woodmen of America, founded in Omaha in 1890 by Joseph Cullen Root; the MWA survives today as an insurance company.
	Royal Neighbors of America, women's auxiliary to the Modern Woodmen of America.
	Royal Neighbors of America. "F E C M U" stands for Faith, Endurance, Courage, Modesty, Unselfishness.
	Spanish-American War Veterans memorial.
	This is an ancient Christian symbol, which has been adopted by many groups, religious and otherwise, among them the York rite Masons, the Methodists, and Christian Science. Often forms a part of other organizational symbols.
	The American Legion, chartered by the U. S. Congress in 1919 to assist American veterans and their families. The Legion has numerous youth programs, and urges complete accounting for prisoners of war and those missing in action. The national headquarters is in Indianapolis, Indiana.
	The Shriners (The Imperial Council of the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine). The organization, founded in 1872, is open to those who have become Master Masons.
	Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, founded in 1868 "to promote, protect, and enhance the welfare and happiness of each other." The women's auxiliary ("Does") was integrated with the BPOE in 1995.
	Ladies' Auxiliary to the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
	Sons of the American Revolution, organized 1889, descendants of American Revolutionary soldiers, or of men who in some other way supported the cause of American independence.
	Daughters of the American Revolution, founded 1890, volunteer women's service organization promoting patriotism, better education of children, and preservation of American history.
	Grand Army of the Republic, fraternal and benefit organization for Union veterans of the Civil War (see separate article).
	Women's National Relief Corps, auxiliary to the Grand Army of the Republic since July, 1883. The Corps aims to perpetuate the memory of Civil War dead, and to assist veterans of all United States wars. Headquarters are at Springfield, Ill.
	Latinized form of a Greek monogram for the name "Jesus." Many phrases have erroneously been advanced for the supposed meaning of the "abbreviation" IHS, but in truth the individual letters I, H, and S do not stand for anything. The second letter is not even an H, but the Greek letter eta. The name JESUS, written in Greek, is ΙΗΣΟΥΣ; early on, the first three letters (ΙΗΣ) became a monogram for the name. Later readers mistakenly assumed that it was an abbreviation, transliterated sigma (correctly) as Latin S, eta (incorrectly) as Latin H, and speculated (erroneously) on what IHS "stood for."