Understanding

The Red Men Societies

The Improved Order of Red Men traces its origin to certain secret patriotic societies founded before the American Revolution. They were established to promote Liberty and to defy the tyranny of the English Crown. Among the early groups were: The Sons of Liberty, the Sons of St. Tammany, and later the Society of Red Men. …

Imagine.

Imagine that you are a devout Catholic who has to relocate to North Dakota for work. Unfortunately the nearest church is almost an hour away so while you want to attend Mass daily, it isn’t feasible.

One day you are walking your dog through the local cemetery and you see on a headstone “Msgr. Francis O’Malley Born 1933, Ordained 1959” and next to it, a cross-shaped granite marker saying “Fr. Joseph Smith “Thou art a priest forever”. You are happy to think there were at one time Catholics in the area and on the weekdays you can’t travel for Mass you go to this part of the cemetery to pray.

One day you go to call your dog who’s sniffing around a different part of the cemetery when you see a marker saying “ here lies the remains of Pope Leo, “the Great” in memory of his 26-year pontificate” This makes no sense to you so you go to a local historian for information. You are told “why yes, that is where the Pope is buried” You replied “That isn’t true, I am a devout Catholic and I know for a fact that the Popes are buried in Rome.” “Oh, not that sort of Catholic” replies the historian. They go on the say that the local Lakota tribe has a benevolent group called the “Righteous society of Honorable Catholic order”. They have fun dressing in priestly regalia and engage in various rituals and rites such as baptism for people who want to join. They host weddings, funerals, march in parades and raise money for a lot of good causes.

How would you feel about this?

“At Baltimore, Maryland, in 1847, the various local [societies referred to as “tribes”] came together and formed a national organization called the Grand Council of the United States. With the formation of a national organization, the Improved Order of Red Men soon spread, and within 30 years there were State Great Councils in 21 states with a membership of over 150,000. The Order continued to grow and by the mid-1920s there were [societies referred to as “tribes”] in 46 states and territories with a membership totaling over one-half million.

Today, The Improved Order of Red Men continues to offer all patriotic Americans an organization … to promote patriotism and the American Way of Life, to provide social activities for the members, and support various charitable programs. Our activities include:

Flag Recognition Program — A program to honor those patriotic Americans who display the flag regularly.
Faith Of Our Fathers Chapel — Chapel erected at Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, to memorialize the ideals and principles of our founding fathers.”

Degree Of Pocahontas History
The Degree of Pocahontas is the women’s affiliate of The Improved Order of Red Men. It was organized in 1885 and soon councils had sprung up across the United States.

Very prominent people have been part of this including Richard Nixon. William O. Barnard of Newcastle, who has given over half a century to the cares and responsibilities of the profession of the law and public office, is a native of Indiana, his grandparents having been pioneers of the state. The Barnard’s represented the sterling Quaker stock which has been such a valuable element in the citizenship of Eastern Indiana…
Judge Barnard is a trustee of the Friends Church of Newcastle, he is also a trustee of Earlham College at Richmond, is a Republican, in Masonry has affiliations with the Lodge, Royal Arch Chapter, Council and Knights Templar Commandery, has held chairs in the Knights of Pythias, is a member of the Improved Order of Red Men, is an honorary member of the Rotary Club, and is a director of the Henry County Building & Loan Association.

One of the confusing aspects of the Red Men society is because thier standing in the society is referenced in death records, there people today who claim to be descendants from Native People not realizing that it is because they had an ancestor who was part of this group.

Proclamation April 13th, 2016 as Improved Order Of Red Men Day.
The Proclamation read:
IMPROVED ORDER OF RED MEN DAY
WHEREAS, the Improved Order OF Red Men was first known as the “The Sons of Liberty”. The Improved Order of Red Men is the oldest fraternal organization chartered by Congress in the United States.
WHEREAS, the Improved Order of Red Men were the group of men who threw the tea into the Boston Harbor prior to the Revolutionary War.
WHEREAS, some notable members of the Improved Order of Red Men included; George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Paul Revere and Samuel Adams.
WHEREAS, in the 1880’s Tombstone started a Charter known as “The Optapa Tribe #15 and some of its local notable members included Dr. Goodfellow, Virgil Earp and Mayor John Clum with one of its Chief’s being George W.P. Hunt who in 1912 became, the first Governor of the State of Arizona.
WHEREAS, the last recording of the tribe was in 1915 and now 101 years later the’ Great Council of the United States is granting a charter and the new Tombstone tribe will be known as “The Chokonen Tribe #49.
NOW THEREFORE, I Dustin Escapule, Mayor for the ‘City of Tombstone, do hereby proclaim April 13, 2016 as “The Improved Order of Red Men Day” in the City of Tombstone and urge all citizens to recognize the return of America’s oldest fraternal organization chartered by Congress to Tombstone, Arizona.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto, set my hand and caused the Great Seal of the City of Tombstone to be affixed this 12th day of April 2016

9 Comments

ALLEN C SMITH on April 18, 2022 at 8:03pm

MY GRANDFATHER AND HIS FATHER BOTH BELONGED TO THE IMPROVED ORDER OF THE RED MANS SOCIETY IN WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA.
Reply
- Brianna on June 10, 2023 at 9:13pm
  
  Hi Allen! I am a member of Broken Arrow Council #1 in Rocky Mount, NC! Do you remember the Tribe your father and grandfather belonged to? Or where they attended meetings? Were you ever a member? The next 2 Great Incohonees will be from North Carolina!!! Super exciting!
  Reply
- Rachel Carey-harper on June 11, 2023 at 5:34pm
  
  Please read the text in the green box above titled “Imagine”
  Reply
Ann on April 24, 2022 at 4:22pm

Comment *I’m ashamed to admit that my great grandmother belonged to the Degree of Pocahontas, the women’s version of this society, in the early 1900s. Awful to think of.
Reply
- Rachel Carey-harper on April 25, 2022 at 10:32am
  
  In several places on this website I mention that all of us humans are fabulous and flawed*. I suspect this was also true of your great grandmother if for no other reason then she produced you, a person who cares. We can’t change the past but we can impact the future. Share this website, be out there doing things and the world can change. *Go to and scroll down: https://tools4racialjustice.net/becoming/being-allies/)
  Reply
- Brianna on June 10, 2023 at 9:39pm
  
  Hi Ann,
  Why are you ashamed? I am truly curious. I am roughly a 5th generation member; first woman in my family to be a Past Great Pocahontas (state president); first person in my family to be a National officer. We have Native heritage, as do many members in Maine where I am from originally.
  
  The organization has done some incredibly positive work in this country, and we make a positive difference every day. Is there drama? Sure. We are a group of people from many different cultures, just like any other group, and we have conflicting personalities at various times… but we are still able to come together for a common goal.
  
  The Faith of Our Father’s Chapel at Freedoms Foundation in Valley Forge, PA was built, brick by brick, by members. It is a non-denominational place to worship, host weddings, funerals, memorials… in fact, we hold a memorial service the first weekend in May every year.
  
  The 4th weekend of July a team of Red Men and a team of Pocahontases each place a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. My fiance and I have both been lucky enough to be part of the Honor Guard. An experience one is not likely to every forget.
  
  The weekend following Labor Day in September members – mostly from New England states – gather at Mohawk Park in Charlemont, Massachusetts to clean the park, then to hold the Hail to the Sunrise ceremony in honor and respect to the Mohawk Indians who first extended the hand of friendship to settlers at this place.
  
  Nationally, we raised over $3 million dollars for Alzheimer’s Research. Then Alzheimer’s decided not only were the funds we raised not worth noting, but they also said our funds would no longer be used strictly for research but for any expenses they wanted to use the money for.
  
  We now have a new relationship with Homes For Our Troops, and have expanded our relationship with Freedoms Foundation to include supporting their scholarly programs that teach children about the Declaration of Independence and other pieces of American history.
  
  Additionally, there are states that support other charities: Massachusetts donates money to the Braille Foundation every year to help with the printing of books and other materials – and has done so for many many years; California has raised money for local chapters of Breast Cancer, Alzheimer’s, and Heart Disease; Maine has raised money for local chapters of Breast Cancer, Autism, Alzheimer’s, and Veteran’s service program in a rural area; New York donates to the Children’s hospitals in New York; all states raise money to benefit families in need, Ronald McDonald Houses, and other food pantries.
  
  I can’t speak to what member conduct may have been over 120 years ago, but I can speak to present day, and I can state with absolution there are many thousands of members that proudly live by our precepts of Freedom, Friendship, and Charity. I am one.
  Reply
  - Rachel Carey-harper on June 11, 2023 at 5:35pm
    
    Please read the text in the green box above titled “Imagine”
    Reply
  - B Martin on September 23, 2023 at 6:07pm
    
    Do you contribute to any Native American causes??
    Reply
    - Rachel Carey-harper on September 25, 2023 at 11:13am
      
      I assume you are asking Brianna, but it’s a really good questions for anyone. Some places to check out on these websites are: https://journeyofhealing.net/wholeness/sovereignty/
      https://journeyofhealing.net/wholeness/solidarity/
      https://tools4racialjustice.net/beloved-community/
      Thank-you so much for this question.
      Reply