Hillsdale Grange #933 and the Grange Movement in America

The former North Hillsdale Baptist Church, destined to become the home of Hillsdale Grange #933

Perhaps it’s no accident that Hillsdale Grange #933 ended up being housed in the former North Hillsdale Baptist Church. That’s because The Order of Patrons of Husbandry (more commonly known as The Grange) was a sort of guardian angel for agricultural communities, guiding and mentoring American farmers in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and interceding on their behalf in the fight against monopolistic practices threatening their interests.

In 1790, over 90% of the United States’ population was engaged in farming. Many of Hillsdale’s leading citizens – including inn keeper Parla Foster and tanner/inn keeper Refine Latting –  included “farmer” when listing their occupations.

The foundation of Hillsdale’s economy in the 19^th century was agriculture. In 1870, farming – either crops or animals — accounted for almost 50% of the jobs in the United States. A scan of John Collin’s 1883 History of Hillsdale suggests that Hillsdale’s percentage of farmers met or even exceeded the national average.

In 19th century Hillsdale, farmers had access to big markets like New York City for their grains, produce and livestock thanks first to the system of turnpikes that connected upstate producers with downstate consumers, and second to the railroads that followed.

But in the Civil War-ravaged South, the situation was different. Production of cotton and rice, the principal export crops, could not be sustained without vast amounts of labor that had previously been provided by enslaved blacks. Producers came up with a new system — sharecropping — which gave planters labor for their land and gave sharecroppers, white and black, a way to earn a meager living from their work. Sharecroppers and tenant farmers were obliged, by contract, to work the land in return for a portion of the crop. The insistence on growing cotton, a notorious soil robber, by landowners and creditors contributed to the poor diets of southern famers. Sharecroppers and tenant farmers could only grow as much as they could eat: it was subsistence farming at its worst.

In 1866, President Andrew Johnson dispatched Oliver Kelley of the Department of Agriculture to tour the southern states and develop a plan to rebuild the South.

Oliver Hudson Kelley (1826 – 1913)

What he discovered was distressing.  Most of the farmers he encountered were using almost primitive farming techniques and technology that had been abandoned by northern farmers generations earlier. (The mule remained  a symbol of southern farming well into the 20th century.) He also concluded that farmers in both the North and South suffered from boredom and a lack of social and intellectual stimulation.

Kelley, a member of the Masons, noticed in his travels that fellow Masons in southern states always welcomed him, despite post-Civil War tensions. He began to dream of a fraternal organization that would promote social, educational and economic cohesion across the family farms and farming communities that dotted America’s landscape at that time.

The result was the founding, in 1868, of the very first Grange — Grange #1 — in Fredonia, NY. Through the work of paid organizers, Granges spread quickly around the country. The “Granger Movement” really took off in the Midwest and West, where there was a need for unified action against monopolistic railroads and grain elevators (often owned by the railroads) that charged exorbitant rates for handling and transporting farmers’ crops and other agricultural products. By the early to mid 1870s, every state in the union had at least one Grange. In the South, where farmers were looking desperately for any help they could get, the Granger Movement spread quickly. By 1876, there were eight in Alabama alone.

In 1873, the nation’s Granges were unified under the National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry, the oldest agricultural advocacy group in America. Based in Washington, DC, the National Grange introduced new farming techniques, promoted community solidarity through lectures and events, and advocated for farm-friendly policies and legislation. (The word “Grange” was borrowed from the British, who used the term to refer to farming estates. It is derived from the Latin word for grain.)

The financial crisis of 1873, along with falling crop prices, increases in railroad fees to ship crops, and Congress’s reduction of paper money in favor of gold and silver devastated farmers’ livelihoods and caused a surge in Grange membership. From 1873 to 1875, nationwide membership in Granges quadrupled, from 200,000 to 850,000. Granges become potent political — albeit non-partisan — forces, convincing state legislatures to pass laws capping the fees charged by railroads to store and ship grain. Because of these legislative activities, some Granges adopted secret handshakes and passwords to keep railroad “spies” out of meetings. The Grange also successfully lobbied Congress for rural free mail delivery by the U.S. Post Office.

The Grange Arrives in Hillsdale

The Grange movement arrived in Hillsdale in 1902 with the establishment of Grange #933, the first Grange in the Roe Jan region. Grange #933 did not have a permanent home and met at the old Masonic Hall on Anthony St. A 1912 article in the Hillsdale Harbinger reported on the Grange’s tenth anniversary celebration.

“The principles of the grange have penetrated far and wide throughout the farming community and in every farmer’s home are members of the organization.  In many instances, entire families have joined.”

Indeed, any boy or girl old enough to manage a plow (14 to 16 years of age) was encouraged to join.

Granges were always inclusive of woman. The National Grange even went so far as to mandate that of each Grange’s elected leaders, at least four had to be women. Not surprisingly, Granges were early proponents of women’s suffrage.

The Hillsdale Grange even had its own orchestra to accompany a round of rousing songs at the anniversary celebration.

Tragedy struck on November 7, 1927, when a fire destroyed the Masonic Hall (taking the Presbyterian Church next door with it) and left the Grange to scramble for meeting space.

The Masonic Hall and its next door neighbor, the Presbyterian Church, burned to the ground in 1927.

Berkshire Eagle story Nov. 8, 1927

The Masons built a new hall (made of brick) on Cold Water Street but it did not open until June 14, 1929. Grange meetings were held in members’ homes or any other facility that could accommodate them.

The new Masonic Hall, ironically built on the sight of the Presbyterian Church that burned along with former Masonic Hall.

To the rescue came Mrs. Francis (Mary) Masters of Copake Falls, who had purchased the 96-year-old North Hillsdale Baptist Church in 1926. The church was originally built on Hunt Road in 1830 and in 1840 was moved to its current location, about four miles north of the hamlet on Rt. 22.  It was abandoned in 1881 and had fallen into a considerable state of disrepair by the time Mrs. Master’s acquired it. She in turn soon donated it to the Hillsdale Grange.  After undertaking a much-needed restoration, the Grange moved into its new home in June, 1928, just seven months after the Masonic Hall fire.

The North Hillsdale Baptist Church — the future home of Hillsdale Grange #933. At some point, it lost the tower shown here, possibly in a storm or perhaps removed for fear of collapse after years of neglect.

 A local newspaper rhapsodized about Mrs. Masters’ generosity:

“It was a splendid act and for our part we wish there were more people like Mrs. Masters, who would secure these old unused buildings dotting the countryside and make of them places of useful service to their communities.”

The Grange met in the new hall for the next 47 years, although winter meetings were again held in private homes, as the building was unheated.

By 1880, the percentage of the Unites States’ population engaged in farming had plummeted to 42%. In less than a century, rural life had dramatically changed. Between 1950 and 1970, the number of farms in the United States dropped by 50%. Today, less than 2% of Americans identify as farmers.

That decline was reflected in grange membership.  In the late 1920s when the Hillsdale Grange moved into its new building, there were 250 members. By 1975, the number had dropped to 50. In 1978, the Hillsdale Grange Master, Edna Smith, noted in a Roe Jan Independent article that in the 1920s and 1930s, young people turning 14 all joined the local Grange. “It was the thing to do,” she said. But by the mid-1970s, everything had changed. “The older members enjoy [the Grange] but I don’t see any prospects of getting new younger members,” Ms. Smith said.

In 1975, the members of the Grange decided to sell the Grange Hall.  A local artist, John Hansegger, purchased the building for $7,000 and it has remained in private hands ever since though a succession of owners.

The former Grange Hall today

A dwindling number of Hillsdale Grange #933 members continued to meet in private homes into the 1980s. At some point, Grange #933 shut down forever.

What has become of other Grange halls in our area? Ancram’s Grange #955 was built in 1927. Fun fact: the Ancram Grange was built during the days before amplification was common in community halls, and its interior walls are solid hickory, which is known for its resonance and sound conducting qualities.  In 1972, the Grange building was repurposed and renamed the Ancram Opera House and was used as an arts venue focusing on light operatic fare. Under new ownership since 2016, the Ancram Opera House has gained renown for producing and presenting inventive contemporary theatrical performances and community programs.  An expansion is planned and the complex will soon be rechristened The Ancram Arts Center.

Ancram Opera House, formerly Grange #955, built in 1927

Copake’s Grange #935, built in 1903, is still a functioning Grange and a member of the National Grange. Its mission mirrors the purpose of the original organization: to assist individuals, families, and communities through grassroots action, service, education, advocacy, cultural activities, entertainment, and agriculture awareness.

Copake Grange #935, built in 1903 and still a functioning grange hall.

In our area in the 21st century, a reawakened interest in farm-to-table eating, locally sourced produce and meats, and organic farming have inspired a younger generation of farmers to try their hands at the land. Perhaps we will see a renewed interest in the Granges. In other parts of the country the Grange is thriving. According to the National Grange website, today’s Grange community consists of 150,000 members in 1700 chapters and remains active advocating for issues such as rural broadband access, climate change, and rural healthcare. Notably, of the 17 members of the National Grange Executive Committee,  11 are women, including the current president.

 

We have always referred to this site as the Collin Cemetery, although in actuality, there are only a couple of Collin family members buried there. Even Google Maps agrees, although they mistakenly added an “s” to Collin.

But http://www.findagrave.com also refers to the site as the Old First Baptist Church Cemetery.

If that’s correct, we now know the original location of the church before it was moved to its present site on Rt. 22.

Sources:

Origin and Progress of the Order of the Patrons of Husbandry in the United States: A History from 1866 to 1873, Oliver Hudson Kelley, (1875 J. A. Wagenseller, Philadelphia)

Born in the Country: A History of Rural America, David B. Danburn, (2006 Johns Hopkins University Press)

Hillsdale Harbinger, “Ten Years Old,” Oct. 18, 1912, Page 1

Roe Jan Independent:
“Artist Purchases Hall from Hillsdale Grange”, Oct. 25, 1975, Page 1
“The Grange: Changed By Changing Times”, Apr. 26, 1979, Page 11
“A New Role for the Masonic Hall”, April 7, 1983, Page 11
“Grange Re-Elects Edna Smith”, Aug. 10, 1978, Page 20

National Grange of the Order of the Patrons of Husbandry website

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© 2022 Chris Atkins and Lauren Letellier