[African Americana]: [Louisiana]: [Knights of Pythias]:

[Manuscript Ledger Book Recording Three Years of Meetings for the Pine Tree Lodge of the Leesville, Louisiana Knights of Pythias].

Leesville, La: 1930-1933. 135pp. Folio. Contemporary partially-printed ledger book, bound in half black cloth over maroon cloth boards, completed to various degrees in ink manuscript. Significant wear, dust-soiling, abrading, and staining to binding, with front joint partially split. Text block separated from spine, with a few leaves detached but otherwise intact in gatherings. Varying levels of toning and dust-soiling to text, but highly readable nonetheless. Fair condition. Item #4182

A unique and informative manuscript record book recording the activities of a local lodge of the Knights of Pythias in Louisiana during the Great Depression. Leesville, Louisiana is atill a very small town located in Vernon Parish, not far from the Texas border (about fifty miles from Jasper, Texas). The present ledger records meeting times and dates, appointments and elections, occasional committee reports, and notes on meeting activities, including communications, dues paid, suspensions and reinstatements of members, disbursements made by the lodge, and more, in varying levels of detail throughout the book. As an example, the September 18, 1930 meeting records (with original spelling retained) that the committee "a pointed on claning off the graves Sir Jem Davis" and five others; the "unfinished business" portion records that "Some of the members of the Lodge was dissatisfied with their endetness to the Lodge which was tabled untill the next R.M. which will be Oct 2nd;" and new business included "Sir RJ Jefferson CC of Silver Star Lodge No. 110 of Slagle La visited Pine Tree Lodge on Sept 18 and md short talk on the good of the order," followed by a listing of four other members of the Slagle lodge who accompanied Jefferson. Naturally, numerous other members of the Pine Tree Lodge and others are named throughout the activities recorded in the book, providing a written record of an African-American organization struggling to maintain social standing and provide mutual aid to its members in a harrowing time in American history.

Price: $1,250