what is the purpose of the elks organization
Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks The Elks had modest beginnings in 1868 as a social club for minstrel show performers, called the "Jolly Corks".[4] It was established as a private club to elude New York City laws governing the opening hours of public taverns. After the death of a member left his wife and children without income, the club took up additional service roles, rituals and a new name. Desiring to adopt "a readily identifiable creature of stature, indigenous to America," fifteen members voted 8â€“7 in favor of the elk above the buffalo.[5] Early members were mostly from theatrical performing troupes in New York City. It has since evolved into a major American fraternal, charitable, and service order with more than a million members, both men and women, throughout the United States and the former territories of the Philippines and the Panama Canal.[6]
American Federation of Labor The American Federation of Labor (AFL) organized as an association of trade unions in 1886. The organization emerged from a dispute with the Knights of Labor (K of L) organization, in which the leadership of that organization solicited locals of various craft unions to withdraw from their International organizations and to affiliate with the K of L directly, an action which would have taken funds from the various unions and enriched the K of L's coffers.[1] The Federation of Organized Trades and Labor Unions also merged into what would become the American Federation of Labor.