The Shriners

The Shriners' elaborate Middle Eastern imagery and Mosque-named meeting halls have no actual connection to Islam or the Near East, despite using terms like Imperial Divan and temples styled after Moorish architecture. The fraternity emerged in post-Civil War America, when exotic fraternal rituals captured the public imagination. In 1872, two men built an organization on pure theatrical fantasy. Dr. Walter M. Fleming, a prominent Freemason and physician, teamed up with actor William J. Florence to launch the group in New York City. They formally named it the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, an appendant body requiring members to first achieve the degree of Master Mason.

Florence developed the ritual and theme after encountering a secret society ceremony during his travels abroad. Fleming organized the first chapter, Mecca Temple, in New York City. The founders leaned hard into 19th-century American fascination with the exotic Near East. Local chapter headquarters took on names like Egypt, Sahara, Morocco, and Oasis. Members wore red fezzes as official headgear and decorated their regalia with camels, pyramids, and the Sphinx. Many buildings went up in Moorish Revival style. A 12-member governing board took the name Imperial Divan, borrowing from traditional Near Eastern government councils. In 1876, the fraternity formed the Imperial Council to manage its rapid national growth.

The organization shifted toward large-scale philanthropy in 1922, opening the first Shriners Hospital for Crippled Children in Shreveport, Louisiana. That single facility launched a massive pediatric care network rooted in the Masonic principle of relief. In 2010, the group rebranded as Shriners International to reflect its expanding global footprint. The organization now operates from headquarters in Tampa, Florida, reporting nearly 1.7 million members across over 200 chapters in nine countries.