A black and white photo postcard showing the Dreadnought L.O.L., # 210 marching band, circa 1915. They met at the Odd Fellows Hall. L.O.L. is Loyal Orange Lodge. The postcard is unused, and the publisher is unknown. Alice Metz Collection.

The Loyal Orange Lodge, or more commonly known as the Orange Order or Loyal Orange Institution, was founded on September 21, 1795 in Northern Ireland by Irish Protestants. The organization was named after King William of Orange, and they were pro-British Unionist and anti-Irish nationalism. Outside of the United Kingdom, the Loyal Orange were far more active in Canada, with 930 active lodges in Ontario alone, they created a social safety net for Protestant working men and their families. In America, protestants coming from Ireland were more likely to melt into the mainstream and there were far fewer lodges formed, the handful that did took root in New York and Philadelphia. The most notorious events of the Orange Lodge were a series of riots taking place between 1870 and 1871 in Manhattan. The first was at an Irish Protestant parade on July 12, 1870 starting from the lodge which met up with a group of hecklers and Irish Catholic labors who joined up to attack the parade. Eight people died in this riot and the tensions continued into the following years parade on July 12, 1871. Here, 3,500 National Guardsmen and 1,500 police officers were assigned provide protection and prevent a second riot. A large crowd of Irish Catholic threw bricks, bottles, and whatever else they could get their hands on to pelt the passing parade. The police and national guardsman responded by beating the hecklers and occasionally firing their muskets. As the parade passed through different neighborhoods it found varying levels of resistance. By the time they made it to Cooper Union the parade dispersed. The end of the riot left sixty people dead and another one hundred and fifty injured. As a result, the Loyal Orange was dissolved for a time and its former members joined the Masonic Lodge. In Bisbee, the Loyal Orange Lodge was one of many fraternal organizations that were active during the boom years. Members were referred to as the Orangemen and their official title was the Loyal Orange Lodge Dreadnaught, No. 210. They held their first annual church parade on Sunday July 6th, 1913. Their parades were accompanied by fife and drum music. Members met at the Presbyterian church beforehand for services. Unlike other lodges, Bisbee Loyal Orangemen were not particular about which church they attended, providing it wasn’t Catholic.

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