C OUTFITTING THE FRATERNITY FROM HEAD TO FOOT:
Regalia Illustrations on Display In the 1900s, selling regalia and costumes to fraternal groups became big business. Regalia companies seeking to attract customers produced richly illustrated catalogs and colorful advertising material to highlight the costumes and uniforms they manufactured. Companies used posters, displays, and illustrations, like those now on view at the Scottish Rite Masonic Museum & Library, to sell their products. These items can help us better understand how companies marketed and sold fraternal regalia between 1900 and 1970. The number of Americans who were members of fraternal groups grew to more than six million by the beginning of the 1900s. Regalia companies attempted to outfit this large consumer base with everything they needed, from head to foot. The artwork and advertising material displayed in this exhibition were produced by the Cincinnati Regalia Company (1895-1998) and the Ihling Bros. Everard Company (18691995). These two companies, located in Ohio and Michigan respectively, operated for over 225 years combined. They and other regalia makers produced uniforms, regalia, and accessories for Masons, Shriners, Elks, and additional fraternal groups.
shoes. Fraternal groups used these catalogs to order uniforms and regalia for their members to wear for meetings, ritual work, parades, and other activities. As stated in an Ihling Bros. Everard Company catalog published
around 1970, “In order that a beautiful and appropriate presentation of the degrees may be complete, your Master of Wardrobe should insist that each character be completely costumed… with particular attention being focused on the feet and to the use of wigs and beards, thus enhancing the illusion.” Some of the colorful illustrations shown here were sent to customers to present color and design variations to supplement the black-and-white images in catalogs. In this drawing (left) from the Cincinnati Regalia Company, the model wears a purple evening wear suit and a Benevolent and Protective Order
Some of the artwork displayed in this exhibition was created to be reproduced in catalogs. These catalogs, printed in black and white, featured a variety of items, including hats, shoulder braids, jackets, pants, robes, tights, and
Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks Outfit, ca. 1900. The Cincinnati Regalia Company. Cincinnati, Ohio. Special Acquisitions Fund, 88.42.156.37.
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