Grange, National, officially called the Patrons of Husbandry, is a major farm and rural community service organization in the United States. The Grange is a fraternal order. It has about 4,000 local groups in more than 37 states. Most members live in the Northeastern, Northwestern, and Middle Atlantic states. The organization provides community service and education programs for its members. Many of the local groups, called Granges, build their own halls, which serve as meeting and recreation centers. The Grange works with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and other federal and state agencies. It helps farmers and rural groups promote laws that benefit people in rural areas.
The Grange was founded in 1867 by a government clerk named Oliver Hudson Kelley, and six of his associates. Kelley had toured the South for the Bureau of Agriculture. He had found the farmers poor, discouraged, and uninformed. He believed a fraternal order would attract members and give the farmers a chance to learn advanced farming methods.
In 1868, Kelley went to Minnesota, his home state, and began organizing local Granges. The movement spread rapidly, and soon the Grange became an agricultural force in the Midwest. By 1875, there were over 21,000 Granges with a total of 850,000 members. Farmers used the Grange to organize opposition to the unfair practices of the railroads. Freight charges remained high, though farm prices had dropped. The Grange secured the passage of state laws to limit railroad rates. The Grange also worked for an income tax, laws against trusts, and other measures which later became law.
Some of these projects failed, and the Grange lost many of its members in the 1880’s. The Grange began to grow again in the 1890’s and built a large membership on the basis of its legislative, educational, and community service programs. Its headquarters are in Washington, D.C.
