The Fraternal Brotherhood was one of the many fraternal and mutual aid organizations that arose in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

during the golden age of fraternalism. Unlike most such societies in that era, it accepted men and women as members on an equal footing. In March 1914, Emma R. Neidig was elected as its Supreme President, the first woman to head such a mixed-gender fraternal organization. Neidig had been Supreme Vice President of the organization since 1898, two years after its founding in 1896 in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, California. The group was largely a

mutual insurance A mutual insurance company is an insurance company owned entirely by its policyholders. It is a form of consumers' co-operative. Any profits earned by a mutual insurance company are either retained within the company or rebated to policyholders ...

society, described by the ''

Los Angeles Herald The ''Los Angeles Herald'' or the ''Evening Herald'' was a newspaper published in Los Angeles in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Founded in 1873 by Charles A. Storke, the newspaper was acquired by William Randolph Hearst in 1931. It ...

'' in 1908 as "one of the most popular and trustworthy orders in the country" with "about 40,000 members" and with offices on

Figueroa Street Figueroa Street is a major north-south street in Los Angeles County, California, spanning from the Los Angeles neighborhood of Wilmington, Los Angeles, Wilmington north to Eagle Rock, Los Angeles, Eagle Rock. A short, unconnected continuation of ...

at the corner of Lincoln in Los Angeles. Still, during its years as the Fraternal Brotherhood, it had many of the trappings of a lodge or

secret society A secret society is an organization about which the activities, events, inner functioning, or membership are concealed. The society may or may not attempt to conceal its existence. The term usually excludes covert groups, such as intelligence ag ...

. There were 23,720 benefit members and 711 social members in 280 lodges in 1923. Each lodge had a chaplain. There was also a juvenile department for children of members. The Brotherhood had a secret ritual, passwords, grips and signs. Preuss, Arthur
A Dictionary of Secret and other Societies
' St. Louis, B. Herder Book Co. 1924, p.129. Although they were active in fourteen U.S. states in 1908 and eighteen in 1923, the bulk of their business was in California. According to the California Insurance Commissioner, in 1924 the organization had assets of $1,304,372.10 and paid $459,411.90 in benefits, the bulk of that being death claims ($204,938.05) and old age benefits ($189,315.40), but also including $27,194.46 in permanent disability claims and $33,595.90 in sick and accident claims (the remaining $4,368.09 being certificate and reissue fees). The organization merged with the Iowa-based Homesteaders Life Association in 1931, becoming the Golden West Life Insurance Association. In 1948 it was renamed as the Homesteader’s Life Company. Homesteaders Life Association had similar origins as a fraternal and mutual insurance organization, the Homesteaders, also admitting men and women on an equal footing. Founded in 1906 by two officers who were forced to resign from the

Brotherhood of American Yeomen Brotherhood of American Yeomen (acronym, BAY; originally, Farmer's Mutual), was a coeducational North American secret societies, secret List of general fraternities, fraternal benefit society organized in 1897. In 1932, the organization was change ...

, in 1923, it had transformed from a fraternal organization to just a mutual insurance group.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fraternal Brotherhood 1896 establishments in California 1931 disestablishments in California Defunct clubs and societies of the United States Fraternities Mutual organizations Non-profit organizations based in Los Angeles Organizations established in 1896 Organizations disestablished in 1931 Fraternities and sororities in the United States Merged fraternities and sororities