Episode Details

Druids – The Museum of Fezology (fezmuseum.com)

The Dark Side Of Druidry | John Beckett (patheos.com)

Hessian Mercenaries of the American Revolution (historyoasis.com)

Druids – The Museum of Fezology (fezmuseum.com)

What is up with GROVES? The United Ancient Order of Druids was one of the earliest fraternal groups to hit the scene. Founded in 1771 in London, England, it was only two years later that the group formed a Grand Lodge of it's own.

The first Lodge in the Americas was chartered in 1830 in New York, New York. However, the area that would become the greatest supporter wouldn't see a local "Grove" until 1858, when the first Grove was chartered in California.

Bohemina GROVE???

Why did the Scottish come to Ireland?

Starting in 1609, Scots began arriving into state-sponsored settlements as part of the Plantation of Ulster. This scheme was intended to confiscate all the lands of the Gaelic Irish nobility in Ulster and to settle the province with Protestant Scottish and English colonists.

It appears that Druid Groves still exist in parts of California and Nevada, but the group was reported to have less than 6500 members by the middle of the twentieth century. In California the Druidic family is composed of three separate bodies: Groves, being the Brotherhood, Circles, known as the Sisterhood, and the Chapters, known as the Fun Branch.

A member of the brotherhood branch can in due time join the sisterhood. However, a member of the sisterhood cannot join the brotherhood branch. Both members of the brotherhood and the sisterhood are eligible to join the Chapter branch.

All three branches of the Druidic Fraternity claim a root in antiquity and each branch has its own moral precepts.

This fez hails from a Grove located in San Francisco, CA. Based upon the construction and embroidery, it can be dated to sometime in the mid twentieth century.

This piece represents an amazing and rare addition to the collection. As the fez states, this hat belonged to a Past Grand Chief Knight, or State President, of a Grand Chapter, known as the fun arm of the United Ancient Order of Druids.

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