Wyoming Fraternal Lodges

About Fraternal Organizations in Wyoming

A deep look at the history, oldest lodges, membership process, and notable members of fraternal organizations across Wyoming.

History of Fraternal Organizations in Wyoming

Wyoming has the smallest population of any U.S. state, but its fraternal history is disproportionately rich, woven through the cattle trails, rail towns, coal camps, and oil fields that built the Equality State. The Union Pacific Railroad reached Cheyenne in 1867 and Laramie soon after, and the Wyoming Territory was organized in 1868. Within a decade, Masonic lodges, Odd Fellows lodges, and Knights of Pythias halls had been chartered in Cheyenne, Laramie, Rawlins, Rock Springs, and Evanston, often before the towns themselves had finished building their first courthouses.

The Grand Lodge of Wyoming, A.F. and A.M., was constituted in 1874, less than six years after the territory was organized, a sign of how quickly fraternal infrastructure followed the rails. After the territorial period and statehood in 1890, the major American fraternal orders moved in. Cheyenne Elks Lodge No.

660, chartered in 1900, became the centerpiece of Wyoming Elks life and reflected Cheyenne's role as state capital and major rail hub. Laramie Elks Lodge No. 582 had actually been chartered slightly earlier and remains among the most historic in the state. Rock Springs, Rawlins, Casper, Sheridan, Cody, Riverton, Lander, Green River, Evanston, Powell, Buffalo, Newcastle, Worland, Torrington, and Gillette all eventually chartered Elks lodges.

The Loyal Order of Moose and the Fraternal Order of Eagles spread through the rail and coal towns. The Knights of Columbus arrived in the small Catholic communities clustered around Cheyenne, Casper, Rock Springs, Sheridan, and the Italian and Slavic mining camps of Sweetwater County. The Cattlemen's associations, the Stock Growers Association, the Wool Growers Association, the Frontier Days Committee, played semi-fraternal roles in the cattle and ranch country, organizing roundups, brand inspection, market arrangements, and the iconic Cheyenne Frontier Days rodeo, founded in 1897 and still running. Wyoming's small population means that individual lodges have always known each other personally, and the state association meetings of the Elks, Moose, Eagles, and Knights of Columbus have a familial character that contrasts sharply with the larger anonymous gatherings in more populous states.

The state's military history, F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne, the largest intercontinental ballistic missile base in the country, plus historic Fort D.A. Russell and the various Wyoming Army National Guard armories, has fed lodge memberships consistently. Wyoming fraternalism is small in absolute numbers but historically deep and culturally distinctive.

Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks in Wyoming

Cheyenne Elks Lodge No. 660, chartered in 1900, is the flagship Wyoming Elks lodge and reflects the capital city's role as the state's political, financial, and rail hub. The lodge has occupied historic clubhouses near downtown Cheyenne and remains active today. Laramie Elks Lodge No.

582, chartered slightly earlier, anchors the University of Wyoming community. Casper Elks Lodge No. 1353 reflects the city's oil industry roots. Rock Springs Elks Lodge No.

624 grew with the Union Pacific coal town. Sheridan, Cody, Riverton, Lander, Green River, Evanston, Powell, Buffalo, Newcastle, Worland, Torrington, Gillette, and Rawlins each chartered lodges of their own, many of them still operating. The Wyoming State Elks Association funds the Wyoming Elks Children's Therapy Program, statewide Hoop Shoot competitions, scholarship work through the Elks National Foundation, and veterans' programming at the Sheridan and Cheyenne VA Medical Centers. Wyoming Elks lodges have a particularly strong tradition of supporting rodeo and 4-H youth programs, fitting the state's deep ranching and agricultural identity.

The state association's annual convention, rotating among Wyoming cities, is one of the more close-knit fraternal gatherings in the country given the modest membership.

Loyal Order of Moose in Wyoming

The Loyal Order of Moose came into Wyoming through the rail and coal trades. Lodges in Cheyenne, Casper, Rock Springs, Laramie, Sheridan, Riverton, Green River, Rawlins, and Evanston operated through much of the twentieth century, drawing members from Union Pacific employees, oilfield workers, miners, and ranchers. Wyoming Moose lodges have always been smaller in absolute terms than those in more populous states, but they have served as important community institutions in their towns, hosting weekly suppers, dances, and benefit events. Mooseheart and Moosehaven receive consistent Wyoming fundraising despite the small membership base.

Several smaller Wyoming Moose lodges have consolidated over the past several decades, but the surviving lodges remain active and tightly tied to local civic life.

Eagles, Knights of Columbus & Other Fraternal Orders in Wyoming

The Fraternal Order of Eagles spread into Wyoming from its 1898 Seattle founding through the Union Pacific corridor. Aeries in Cheyenne, Casper, Rock Springs, Laramie, Sheridan, Green River, and Rawlins operated through much of the twentieth century, with smaller aeries in other rail and ranch towns. Wyoming Eagles supported the order's signature legislative legacy, which includes the federal observance of Mother's Day, workers' compensation laws, old-age pensions, and key provisions of Social Security, and the order's modern charitable focus on diabetes research and children's hospitals continues to draw Wyoming Eagles dollars. The Knights of Columbus presence in Wyoming centers on the Diocese of Cheyenne, which covers the entire state.

Cheyenne Council 1100 was chartered in the early twentieth century, and large councils operate in Casper, Rock Springs, Sheridan, Laramie, Riverton, and Cody. Wyoming Knights of Columbus support seminarians, run Tootsie Roll drives for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, sponsor Coats for Kids drives in winter, and partner closely with Catholic Charities of Wyoming on rural ministry, Native American outreach to the Wind River Reservation, and family support work. The state council, although small, consistently maintains a high per-capita charitable profile.

Wyoming Fraternal Lodges by the Numbers

Wyoming has approximately 18 active Elks lodges with combined membership around 6,000, around 8 Moose lodges with roughly 2,500 members, around 10 Fraternal Order of Eagles aeries with about 3,000 members, and around 30 Knights of Columbus councils with roughly 3,000 members. Lions Clubs are present, with more than 50 in the state. Rotary, Kiwanis, and Optimist clubs operate in the larger cities. Total Wyoming fraternal and civic membership is estimated at more than 18,000 once auxiliaries are included.

Per-capita fraternal density in Wyoming is among the highest in the country given the small population, and the close personal connections among lodge members are a defining feature of the state's fraternal culture.

How to Join a Fraternal Lodge in Wyoming

Membership requirements in Wyoming follow the standard order-by-order pattern. The Elks require U.S. citizenship, age twenty-one, belief in God, and sponsorship by a current Elk. The Moose admit men twenty-one and older with sponsorship.

The Eagles welcome men eighteen and older. The Knights of Columbus is open exclusively to practical Catholic men eighteen and older. Initiation fees and annual dues vary by lodge but commonly run between fifty and one hundred fifty dollars in Wyoming, often on the lower end given the smaller lodge budgets. Lions, Rotary, and Kiwanis are coed civic clubs admitted by invitation.

Because Wyoming communities are small and tightly connected, the easiest path into a lodge is usually through a public event, a Cheyenne Frontier Days fundraiser, an Elks Hoop Shoot, a Knights of Columbus pancake breakfast, a Moose pig roast. Wyoming lodges actively welcome new members and PCS arrivals at F.E. Warren Air Force Base.

Notable Wyoming Fraternal Members in History

Wyoming's fraternal roll is small in absolute numbers but distinctive. Governor and Senator Francis E. Warren, after whom F.E. Warren Air Force Base is named, was an active Mason and a longtime supporter of fraternal civic work in Cheyenne.

Senator Alan Simpson, the long-serving Cody senator, has participated in Wyoming civic events for decades. Senator John Barrasso has appeared at fraternal benefit events. Governor Stan Hathaway was associated with multiple civic clubs. Western artists associated with the Buffalo Bill Center of the West in Cody have lent their names to Wyoming Elks and Eagles benefit events.

Rodeo champions associated with Cheyenne Frontier Days, Casper College, and the University of Wyoming athletic programs have appeared at Hoop Shoots and Knights of Columbus charity events. Bishop Joseph Hart, Bishop David Ricken, Bishop Paul Etienne, and Bishop Steven Biegler of the Diocese of Cheyenne have all worked closely with the Wyoming Knights of Columbus state council. The small size of Wyoming's fraternal community means that nearly every active member knows the state officers personally, and the state's annual conventions function as both formal business meetings and informal family reunions.

Frequently Asked Questions: Wyoming Fraternal Lodges

Sources & Further Reading

• https://www.elks.org/lodges/
• https://www.wyomingelks.org/
• https://www.kofc.org/
• https://www.wykofc.org/
• https://www.mooseintl.org/
• https://www.foe.com/
• https://www.dioceseofcheyenne.org/
• https://www.wyohistory.org/
• https://www.cfdrodeo.com/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wyoming