Our Legacy

It was 1888, a time of great social, economic, and scientific change in the United States. The Suffragettes were busy forming the Equal Rights Party. Edison had just introduced his phonograph. Kodak announced the first handheld camera, and Burroughs patented his adding machine. It was practically impossible for women to own life insurance.

In November 1888, Marie L. Kirkland put a notice in her local paper, the Daily Nonpareil, of Council Bluffs, IA, to call a meeting of the wives of Modern Woodmen of America members to arrange a social. Nine women, including Mrs. Kirkland, met and formed a "ladies auxiliary" to Modern Woodmen Camp 171.

However, within two years the group reorganized as a social organization, with a constitution, rituals, and articles of incorporation, and renamed itself Royal Neighbors of America. These women believed that they could make a difference.

The name is derived from Proverbs 27:10, "For better is a neighbor that is near than a brother that is far." The word "royal" was added to signify the ladies' belief in the nobility of their community. The name has been so reflective of the Society's principles of members helping each other --"neighbor helping neighbor" -- that not once in its more than 110 years has there been a suggestion to modify the name.

The first Royal Neighbors of America Head Camp was held in Council Bluffs in January 1892, with women from four camps in Nebraska, Iowa, and Illinois attending. Mrs. Kirkland, who is credited as the "Mother of the Society," was elected the first Supreme Vice Oracle and wrote the constitution and bylaws. Miss Lilian Huff was elected the first Supreme Oracle and wrote the Society's first rituals.

Life Insurance

In the years following the Civil War, commercial life insurance grew in popularity in the United States. The life insurance was backed by old-line, stock companies and was so expensive that only prosperous businessmen could afford it. In the 1870s and '80s, a number of fraternal benefit societies (non-profit membership organizations) were formed to offer affordable life insurance protection to their members. However, most of the early commercial life insurance companies and newly formed fraternal benefit societies excluded women.

Between 1892 and 1894, the idea of forming a fraternal benefit society for women to provide life insurance was discussed at Royal Neighbors of America meetings. At the third Head Camp in January 1894, delegates voted to incorporate as a fraternal benefit society in the state of Illinois, which had favorable life insurance laws. It took a year of organizing, but at the Head Camp in January 1895, a petition for a charter to offer life insurance was approved and sent to the Illinois Secretary of State. The charter was signed on March 21, 1895, officially forming the Royal Neighbors of America Fraternal Benefit Society, which included more than 4,100 charter members.

The Society was formed, according to the early Royal Neighbors charter, "to bring joy and comfort into many homes that might otherwise today be dark and cheerless. . . by affording the mother an opportunity to provide protection upon her life."

By providing life insurance and community service, Royal Neighbors has remained true to its mission for more than 110 years.