Elks Grand Lodge
Copyright I.B.P.O.E of the World.
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Brief History
Improved Benevolent Protective Order of Elks of The World
Grand Lodge Headquarters
(252) 358-7661 :Phone
Fraternal organizations proved popular among African Americans for the same reasons that they proved
popular among other Americans: providing financial, spiritual, and emotional aid, they were invaluable to the
communities they served. African American fraternities, however, had the added purpose of improving self-
esteem. First instituted during slavery, the membership, rituals, uniforms, and offices of these societies
generated a respect not available outside of the lodges. Fully committed to economic, personal, and academic
advancement, fraternal organizations have played a vital role in every phase of the African American
experience.
One such organization is the Improved Benevolent and Protective Order of the Elks of the World (IBPOEW).
Currently boasting 500,000 members in over 1,500 lodges worldwide, the IBPOEW is the largest Black
fraternal organization in the world. The IBPOEW's stated purpose is "that the welfare and happiness of its
members be promoted and enhanced, that nobleness of soul and goodness of heart be cultivated, that the
principles or Charity, Justice, Brotherly/Sisterly Love and Fidelity be inculcated, that its members and their
families be assisted and protected, [and] that the spirit of patriotism be enlivened and exalted."
The Improved Benevolent Protective Order of Elks of the World was granted a copyright as an organization
on September 28, 1898, in Cincinnati, Ohio. A Pullman porter, Arthur James Riggs, and Benjamin Franklin
Howard, who were both members of another fraternal organization, met in that city, and they discovered that
they both had dreams of forming an Elks organization for people of color. Their dreams and plans were
realized when the first Lodge, Alpha Lodge No. 1, was organized in Cincinnati, as a result of the efforts of
these two men. As the Elks prevailed, the organization struggled against many racist attitudes and legal
efforts to deny the existence of the Improved Benevolent Protective Order of Elks of the World.
On June 13, 1902, Emma Virginia Kelly organized the Daughters of Elks in Norfolk, Virginia. This group was
later adopted by the Grand Lodge and became an auxiliary body to the Brothers of Elks. The first Temple was
Norfolk Temple No. 1, Norfolk, Virginia.
A few of the major departments of the Elks are the Grand Lodge Education Department, History Department,
Medical Department, Veterans Affairs Department, National Youth Department, Civil Liberties Department,
Antlered Guard Department, and the Hobson R. Reynolds National Shrine Department. Through the efforts of
its members and various departments, the Elks sponsor extensive educational scholarship programs, youth
summer computer literacy camps, and children with special needs, parades and unequaled community
service activities throughout the world.
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