View source for Order of the Eastern Star

{{WikipediaImport}}{{Short description|Freemasonry-related fraternal organization}}
{{Distinguish|Order of the Star in the East}}
[[File:Oes GGC color.PNG|thumb|General Grand Chapter logo]]


The '''Order of the Eastern Star''' is a [[Freemasonry|Masonic]] [[List of fraternal auxiliaries and side degrees|appendant]] [[Masonic bodies|body]] open to both men and women. It was established in {{start date and age|1850|p=y}} by lawyer and educator [[Rob Morris (Freemason)|Rob Morris]], a noted Freemason, and adopted and approved as an appendant body of the Masonic Fraternity in 1873.  The order is based on some teachings from the [[Bible]],<ref>{{cite book|title= Ritual of the Order of the Eastern Star|publisher= General Grand Chapter, Order of the Eastern Star|location= Washington, DC|chapter= Installation Ceremony|year= 1995|orig-year= 1889|pages= 120–121}}</ref> and is open to people of all religious beliefs. It has approximately 10,000 chapters in twenty countries and approximately 500,000 members under its General Grand Chapter.

Members of the Order of the Eastern Star are aged 18 and older; men must be Master Masons and women must have specific relationships with Masons. Originally, a woman would have to be the daughter, widow, wife, sister, or mother of a Master Mason. The Order now allows other relatives<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.easternstar.org/eligibility.html|title= Eastern Star Membership|publisher= General Grand Chapter|access-date= 2010-06-03|quote= These affiliations include:      * Affiliated Master Masons in good standing,     * the wives     * daughters     * legally adopted daughters     * mothers     * widows     * sisters     * half sisters     * granddaughters     * stepmothers     * stepdaughters     * stepsisters     * daughters-in-law     * grandmothers     * great granddaughters     * nieces     * great nieces     * mothers-in-law     * sisters-in-law  and daughters of sisters or brothers of affiliated Master Masons in good standing, or if deceased were in good standing at the time of their death|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100612124047/http://www.easternstar.org/eligibility.html|archive-date= 2010-06-12|url-status= dead}}</ref> as well as allowing  [[Job's Daughters International|Job's Daughters]], [[International Order of the Rainbow for Girls|Rainbow Girls]], Members of the Organization of Triangles (NY only) and members of the Constellation of Junior Stars (NY only) to become members when of age.

==History==
[[Image:The Little Red Schoolhouse building where the Order of the Eastern Star was born. Holmes County, Mississippi.jpg|thumb|[[Eureka Masonic College]], also known as The Little Red Schoolhouse, birthplace of the Order of the Eastern Star]]
[[Image:OES Birthplace.jpg|thumb|Signage at the Order of the Eastern Star birthplace, the Little Red Schoolhouse]]

The Order was created by [[Rob Morris (Freemason)|Rob Morris]] in 1850 when he was teaching at the [[Eureka Masonic College]] in Richland, Mississippi. While confined by illness, he set down the principles of the order in his ''Rosary of the Eastern Star''. By 1855, he had organized a "Supreme Constellation" in New York, which chartered chapters throughout the United States.

In 1866, Dr. Morris started working with [[Robert Macoy]], and handed the Order over to him while Morris was traveling in the Holy Land. Macoy organized the current system of Chapters, and modified Dr. Morris' ''Rosary'' into a ''Ritual''.

On December 1, 1874, Queen Esther Chapter No. 1 became the first [[Prince Hall Freemasonry|Prince Hall Affiliate]] chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star when it was established in [[Washington, D.C.]] by Thornton Andrew Jackson.<ref>{{cite web
|url= http://www.jabron.net/oeshist.htm
|access-date= 2007-10-25
|title= Origin and History of the Adoptive Rite Among Black Women
|first= Jessie Mae
|last= Ayers
|work= Prince Hall Masonic Directory
|publisher= Conference of Grand Masters, Prince Hall Masons
|year= 1992
|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070922140413/http://www.jabron.net/oeshist.htm
|archive-date= 2007-09-22
|url-status= dead
}}</ref>

The "General Grand Chapter" was formed in [[Indianapolis, Indiana]] on November 6, 1876. Committees formed at that time created the ''Ritual of the Order of the Eastern Star'' in more or less its current form.<ref name=OESCal>
{{cite web
|url= http://www.oescal.org/2005/2005RobMorris.htm
|access-date= 2007-10-01
|title= Rob Morris
|publisher= Grand Chapter of California
|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070928205954/http://www.oescal.org/2005/2005RobMorris.htm <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = 2007-09-28}}</ref>

==Emblem and heroines==
The emblem of the Order is a five-pointed star with the white ray of the star pointing downwards towards the manger.  The meaning of the letters FATAL surrounding the center pentagon in the emblem is only revealed to members of the Order. In the Chapter room, the downward-pointing white ray points to the West. The character-building lessons taught in the Order are stories inspired by Biblical figures:
* '''Adah''' ([[Jephthah's daughter]], from the [[Book of Judges]]). In Eastern Star, Adah is represented by the color blue and a sword and veil.  Adah represents the virtue of obedience to duty.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=http://symboldictionary.net/?p=3184|title=Eastern Star|date=26 Jan 2018|website=Symbol Dictionary: A Visual Glossary|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180127083852/http://symboldictionary.net/?p=3184|archive-date=27 January 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* '''[[Ruth (biblical figure)|Ruth]]''', the widow from the [[Book of Ruth]]. In Eastern Star, Ruth is represented by the color yellow and a sheaf of barley.  Ruth represents the virtue of religious principles.<ref name=":0" />
* '''[[Esther]]''', the wife from the [[Book of Esther]]. In Eastern Star, Esther is represented by the color white and a crown and scepter.  Esther represents the virtue of loyalty.<ref name=":0" />
* '''[[Martha]]''', sister of [[Mary of Bethany|Mary]] and [[Lazarus of Bethany|Lazarus]], from the [[Gospel of Luke]] and the [[Gospel of John]]. In Eastern Star, Martha is represented by the color green and a broken column.  Martha represents the virtue of endurance in trial.<ref name=":0" />
* '''Electa''' (the "elect lady" from [[Second Epistle of John|II John]]), the mother. In Eastern Star, Electa is represented by the color red and a chalice.  Electa represents the virtue of endurance of persecution.<ref name=":0" />

==Officers==
[[Image:EasternStarChairs.jpg|thumb|Officers representing the heroines of the order sit around the altar in the center of the chapter room.]]
[[Image:EasternStarSpokaneWA.jpg|thumb|Eastern Star meeting room]]
There are 18 main officers in a full chapter:

* '''Worthy Matron''' – presiding officer
* '''Worthy Patron''' – a Master Mason who provides general supervision
* '''Associate Matron''' – assumes the duties of the Worthy Matron in the absence of that officer
* '''Associate Patron''' – assumes the duties of the Worthy Patron in the absence of that officer
* '''Secretary''' – takes care of all correspondence and minutes
* '''Treasurer''' – takes care of monies of the Chapter
* '''Conductress''' – Leads visitors and initiations.
* '''Associate Conductress''' – Prepares candidates for initiation, assists the conductress with introductions and handles the ballot box.
* '''Chaplain''' – leads the Chapter in prayer
* '''Marshal''' – presents the Flag and leads in all ceremonies
* '''Organist''' – provides music for the meetings
* '''Adah''' – Shares the lesson of Duty of Obedience to the will of God
* '''Ruth''' – Shares the lesson of Honor and Justice
* '''Esther''' – Shares the lesson of Loyalty to Family and Friends
* '''Martha''' – Shares the lesson of Faith and Trust in God and Everlasting Life
* '''Electa''' – Shares the lesson of Charity and Hospitality
* '''Warder''' – Sits next to the door inside the meeting room, to make sure those that enter the chapter room are members of the Order.
* '''Sentinel''' – Sits next to the door outside the chapter room, to ensure people who wish to enter are members of the Order.

Traditionally, a woman who is elected Associate Conductress will be elected to Conductress the following year, then the next year Associate Matron, and the next year Worthy Matron. A man elected Associate Patron will usually be elected Worthy Patron the following year. Usually the woman who is elected to become Associate Matron will let it be known who she wishes to be her Associate Patron, so the next year they will both go to the East together as Worthy Matron and Worthy Patron. There is no male counterpart to the Conductress and Associate Conductress. Only women are allowed to be Matrons, Conductresses, and the Star Points (Adah, Ruth, etc.) and only men can be Patrons.

{{Anchor|past}}Once a member has served a term as Worthy Matron or Worthy Patron, they may use the post-nominal letters, PM or PP respectively.

==Headquarters==
{{Main|International Temple}}
[[Image:Belmont Mansion (Washington, D.C.).JPG|thumb|The [[International Temple]] in [[Washington, D.C.]]]]

The General Grand Chapter headquarters, the [[International Temple]], is located in the [[Dupont Circle, Washington, D.C.|Dupont Circle]] neighborhood of Washington, D.C., in the Perry Belmont Mansion. The mansion was built in 1909 for the purpose of entertaining the guests of Perry Belmont. They included Britain's [[Edward VIII of the United Kingdom|Prince of Wales]] in 1919. General Grand Chapter purchased the building in 1935. The secretary of General Grand Chapter lives there while serving his or her term of office. The mansion features works of art from around the world, most of which were given as gifts from various international Eastern Star chapters.

==Charities==
The Order has a charitable foundation<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.easternstar.org/information/order-of-the-eastern-star-charities/ |title=OES Charities |access-date=2016-04-15 |archive-date=2016-04-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160420181104/http://www.easternstar.org/information/order-of-the-eastern-star-charities |url-status=dead }}</ref> and from 1986 to 2001 contributed $513,147 to [[Alzheimer's disease]] research, juvenile [[diabetes]] research, and juvenile [[asthma]] research. It also provides bursaries to students of [[theology]] and [[religion|religious]] [[music]], as well as other scholarships that differ by jurisdiction. In 2000 over $83,000 was donated.  Many jurisdictions support a Masonic and/or Eastern Star retirement center or nursing home for older members; some homes are also open to the public. The Elizabeth Bentley OES Scholarship Fund was started in 1947.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.education.gov.yk.ca/advanceded/sfa/scholarships/elizabeth_bentley.html |title=Elizabeth Bentley Order Of The Eastern Star Scholarship Award |access-date=2009-11-05 |publisher=[[Yukon, Canada]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090505234919/http://www.education.gov.yk.ca/advanceded/sfa/scholarships/elizabeth_bentley.html |archive-date=2009-05-05 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Eastern Star has enjoyed long history |url=http://www.bclocalnews.com/lifestyles/67051602.html |quote=The Eastern Star Bursary, later named the Elizabeth Bentley OES Scholarship Fund, was started in 1947. |work=[[Black Press]] |access-date=2009-11-05 }}{{dead link|date=June 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>

==Notable members==
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
* [[Kate M. Ainey]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Clara Barton]]<ref>[http://www.phoenixmasonry.org/masonicmuseum/clara_barton_fdc.htm Clara Barton, U.S. Nurse Masonic First Day Cover<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
* [[Clara Nettie Bates]]<ref name="Leonard-1914">{{cite book |editor1-last=Leonard |editor1-first=John W. |title=Woman's Who's who of America |date=1915 |page=[https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Page:Woman%27s_who%27s_who_of_America,_1914-15.djvu/70 82] |volume=1 |edition=Public domain |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PMQ-AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA82 |access-date=6 February 2022 |chapter=BATES, Clara Nettie}}</ref>
* [[Cora M. Beach]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Ollie Josephine Prescott Baird Bennett]]<ref name="dcdar">{{Cite book|title=District of Columbia Daughters of the American Revolution (DCDAR) Memory Book Volume IV|publisher=District of Columbia Daughters of the American Revolution (DCDAR)|year=1958|location=Washington, DC|pages=92}}</ref>
* [[Beatrice Gjertsen Bessesen]]<ref name="WhoMinnesota-1924">{{cite book |title=Who's who Among Minnesota Women: A History of Woman's Work in Minnesota from Pioneer Days to Date, Told in Biographies, Memorials and Records of Organizations |date=1924 |publisher=Mary Dillon Foster |page=26 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RfEBAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA26 |access-date=19 June 2022 |language=en}} {{Source-attribution}}</ref>
* [[Ella A. Bigelow]]<ref name="Herald-15may1902">{{cite news |title=Eastern Star Notes. |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/519570724/?terms=%22Ella%20A.%20Bigelow%22&match=1 |access-date=16 July 2022 |work=Herald and News |via=Newspapers.com |date=15 May 1902 |location=[[Randolph, Vermont]] |page=7 |edition=Public domain}}</ref>
* [[Georgiana M. Blankenship]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Harriet Bossnot]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Emma Eliza Bower]]
* [[Gene Bradford]]<ref name=WAleg>{{cite web |url=http://web.leg.wa.gov/WomenInTheLegislature/Members/MemberBios/BradfordG_1937.pdf |title=Gene L. Bradford |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=Women in the Legislature |publisher=[[Washington State Legislature]] |access-date=12 April 2022 |quote=}}</ref>
* [[Ella Frances Braman]]<ref>{{cite book|title=Who's who in New York City and State|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5exHAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA81|year=1914|publisher=L.R. Hamersly Company|pages=81–}}</ref>
* [[Bernice Cameron]]<ref>{{cite journal|title=History of Chapter Reviewed on 75th Anniversary - 31 Jul 1955, Sun • Page 19|journal=Medford Mail Tribune|date=1955|page=19|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/13946418/medford_mail_tribune/|access-date=23 September 2017}}</ref>
* [[Edith Daley]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Nannie C. Dunsmoor]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Addie C. Strong Engle]]<ref name="WillardLivermore1893">{{cite book|last1=Willard|first1=Frances Elizabeth|last2=Livermore|first2=Mary Ashton Rice|title=A Woman of the Century: Fourteen Hundred-seventy Biographical Sketches Accompanied by Portraits of Leading American Women in All Walks of Life|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_zXEEAAAAYAAJ|edition=Public domain|year=1893|publisher=Moulton|pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_zXEEAAAAYAAJ/page/n281 277]–}}</ref>
* [[J. Howell Flournoy]]<ref>"Sheriff 26 Years – J. H. Flournoy Dies," ''[[Shreveport Journal]]'', December 14, 1966, p. 1</ref>
* [[Laura J. Frakes]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Thora B. Gardiner]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Bertha Lund Glaeser]]<ref name="Goss-1912">{{cite book |last1=Goss |first1=Charles Frederic |title=Cincinnati, the Queen City, 1788-1912 |date=1912 |publisher=S. J. Clarke Publishing Company |pages=924–28 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YENFPi_Q7DwC&pg=RA2-PA924 |access-date=9 July 2022}}</ref> 
* [[Sabra R. Greenhalgh]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Harriet A. Haas]]<ref name="Merritt">{{citation-attribution|1={{cite book|last1=Merritt|first1=Frank Clinton|title=History of Alameda County, California|url=https://archive.org/details/historyofalameda02merr|access-date=24 September 2017}}}}</ref>
* [[Sallie Foster Harshbarger]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Jane Denio Hutchison]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Vernettie O. Ivy]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Kate Wetzel Jameson]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Nannie S. Brown Kramer]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Jeanette Lawrence]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Mab Copland Lineman]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Edith Bolte MacCracken]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Eva McGown]]<ref>[http://www.akpub.com/akttt/stmatts/choirwindow.htm by Helen L. Atkinson at ''ALASKA INTERNET PUBLISHERS, INC''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070311025055/http://www.akpub.com/akttt/stmatts/choirwindow.htm |date=2007-03-11 }}</ref>
* [[Rebecca B. Mellors]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Sara E. Morse]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Vesta C. Muehleisen]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Kate Pier]]<ref name="Eagle River News">{{cite journal|title=Kate Hamilton Pier is laid to rest on wedding day; many pay tribute|journal=Eagle River News|date=1925|pages=4–5|url=https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Newspaper/BA3090|access-date=15 September 2017}}</ref> 
* [[Lorraine J. Pitkin]]<ref>{{cite book|last1=Mackey|first1=Albert G.|title=Encyclopedia Of Freemasonry|date=2013|publisher=Jazzybee Verlag|isbn=9783849631567|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SY-kAQAAQBAJ&pg=PT1403|access-date=3 October 2017|language=en|edition=Annotated}}</ref>
* [[Grace Gimmini Potts]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Jennie Phelps Purvis]]<ref>{{cite book|last=Tinkham|first=George Henry|title=History of Stanislaus County, California: With Biographical Sketches of the Leading Men and Women of the County, who Have Been Identified with Its Growth and Development from the Early Days to the Present|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iGM9AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA436|edition=Public domain|volume=1|year=1921|publisher=Histor}}</ref>
* [[Lois Randolph]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[M. Elizabeth Shellabarger]]<ref name="Binheim">{{citation-attribution|1={{cite book|last1=Binheim|first1=Max|last2=Elvin|first2=Charles A|title=Women of the West; a series of biographical sketches of living eminent women in the eleven western states of the United States of America|date=1928|url=https://archive.org/details/womenofwestserie00binh|access-date=8 August 2017}}}}</ref>
* [[Caroline Estes Smith]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[James Peyton Smith]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stpns.net/view_article.html?articleId=10544357597561477|title=James P. Smith|publisher=The Bernice Banner, [[Bernice, Louisiana|Bernice]], [[Louisiana]]|access-date=September 13, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150224165921/http://www.stpns.net/view_article.html?articleId=10544357597561477|archive-date=2015-02-24|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* [[Lura Eugenie Brown Smith]]<ref name="leonardmarquis1908">{{cite book |last1=Leonard |first1=John William |last2=Marquis |first2=Albert Nelson |title=Who's who in America |date=1908 |publisher=A.N. Marquis |page=1759 |volume=5 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eX0QOpl7iBQC&pg=PA1759 |access-date=30 December 2021 |language=en |chapter=SMITH, Lura Eugenie Brown}}</ref>
* [[Lee Emmett Thomas]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lahistory.org/site37.php|title=Thomas, Lee Emmett|publisher=[[Louisiana Historical Association]], A Directory of Louisiana Biography (lahistory.org)|access-date=December 29, 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100923113542/http://lahistory.org/site37.php|archive-date=September 23, 2010}}</ref>
* [[Violet Richardson Ward]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Nellie A. White]]<ref name="Binheim" />
* [[Laura Ingalls Wilder]]<ref>[http://www6.semo.edu/universitypress/bigmuddy/NF/Laura_Ingalls_Wilder.htm Big Muddy online publications<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060914145359/http://www6.semo.edu/universitypress/bigmuddy/NF/Laura_Ingalls_Wilder.htm |date=2006-09-14 }}</ref>
{{div col end}}

== African-American Prince Hall Order of the Eastern Star ==
{{Main|Prince Hall Order of the Eastern Star}}

The [[Prince Hall Order of the Eastern Star]] is the predominantly African-American equivalent of the Order of the Eastern Star.<ref>Schmidt, Alvin J. ''Fraternal Organizations'' Westport, CT; Greenwood Press p.100</ref>

==See also==
* [[Achoth]]
* [[Omega Epsilon Sigma]]
* [[Eastern Star Home]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{Official website|http://www.easternstar.org/}}
* {{Curlie|Society/Organizations/Fraternal/Freemasonry/Related_Organizations/Eastern_Star|Eastern Star Organizations}}
* [https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B1yTfZUgTvlpWUI0UFRCbkx5Skk/edit Pride of the North Chapter Number 61, Order of the Eastern Star Archival Collection], located at [https://web.archive.org/web/20130824152628/http://www.shorefrontlegacy.org/Shorefront/Home.html Shorefront Legacy Center, Evanston, Illinois]

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Order of the Eastern Star| ]]
[[Category:1850 establishments in the United States]]
[[Category:Organizations based in Washington, D.C.]]
[[Category:Organizations established in 1850]]