Odd Fellows Lodge The Odd Fellows Lodge is a benevolent and
fraternal organization whose stated goal is to visit the sick,
relieve the distressed, bury the dead, educate the orphans, and
protect the widows. The group was organized in the United States
in 1805, and a lodge was formed in Baltimore in 1819. Some time
afterward a lodge was organized in Portsmouth, Va., and in March
1841 one was begun in Weldon, N.C., with a second lodge formed
in Wilmington soon after. A Grand Lodge was organized in North
Carolina in 1843. During the Civil War the Odd Fellows in
Wilmington provided service for the sick and wounded. A witness
reported that members "walked amidst the terrors of those hours
undaunted, and soothed many a dying pillow with sweet words of
love." From 1819 until 1981 headquarters for the national
organization were located in Baltimore, but since that time
Winston-Salem has had that distinction. In January 1991 the
Grand Lodge of North Carolina established the archives of the
state group in a historic bu