Media: BOOK - paperback, 200 pages
Author: D. Weinbren
Year: 2019
ISBN: 9781526710338
Other: b&w photos, bibliog, index
Publisher: Pen & Sword

Fraternal and friendly societies and trade unions – associations that provide mutual aid and benefits – have a long, fascinating history and the most famous of them – the Freemasons – have a reputation for secrecy, ritual and intrigue that excites strong interest and has been the subject of widespread misunderstanding. Daniel Weinbren, in this concise and accessible handbook, dispels the myths that surround them and gives readers an insight into their real purposes, their membership and their development over the centuries. He has also compiled a detailed compendium of books, archives, libraries, and internet sites that readers and researchers can consult to find out more about these organizations and to trace the involvement and experience of family members who were connected with them.

The origins of these societies are explored as are their economic, social and civic functions and the impact they had on the lives of individuals who joined them. The range of such societies covered includes the popular and international ones such as the Oddfellows, Foresters and Rechabites, as well as the smaller local fraternal organizations. The type of assistance they offer, their structure and hierarchy, meetings and ceremonies, regalia and processions, and feasts and annual gatherings are all described and explained.

So much information about these organizations and their membership is easily available if you know where to look, and Daniel Weinbren's work is the ideal introduction to them. Anyone who has a forebear who was at some time linked with one of these organizations will find his book to be an essential guide to their research.

Contents:
Preface
Acknowledgements
1. Links and Divisions
 - Brotherly Love
 - Distinctiveness and Blurred Boundaries
 - Advancement
2. Digging Where You Stand
 - Material Culture
 - Personal Testimony
3. Press Reports
 - Local Stories
 - Press Bias
4. Fraternity Before About 1800
 - The Ancient World
 - Guilds
 - Drama
 - The Long Eighteenth Century
5. Freemasonry
 - Records
 - Charity
 - Ornamentation
 - Social Base
 - Specialists Lodges
 - Imperial Connections
 - Twentieth Century
6. Friendly Societies
 - The Long Nineteenth Century
 - 1911: National Insurance
 - Further Roles for the State
7. Trade Unions
 - Since the 1790s
 - From 1914
 - Since the 1940s
 - Sources and Collections
 - Digging Deeper
Bibliography
Index