After deciding how to handle the strike, they agreed to "bury the hatchet" and form an organization dubbed "The Order of Good Things".

Early meetings were held on local theater stages, and after taking care of business, attendees rolled out a keg of beer and enjoyed social time.

In April 1898, the membership formed a Grand Aerie, secured a charter and developed a constitution and by-laws, with John Cort elected the Eagles' first president.

Most early members were actors, stagehands and playwrights, who carried the Eagles story as they toured across the United States and Canada.

Every year they raise millions of dollars to combat heart disease and cancer, help children with disabilities, and uplift the aged and infirm.

[5] In the Fraternal Order of Eagles, the term Aerie is the name of the building in which the members meet and hold events.

[12] The Grand Aerie Fraternal Order of Eagles International Convention is held each year in a different city in either the United States or Canada.

[13] Officers of the Fraternal Order of Eagles, on a local and international level, are elected each year by popular vote of their delegates.

By the late 1970s the all-white provision had officially been rescinded, but, because the Order used the blackball to admit new members, it was difficult for minorities to gain membership.

In 1979 the FOE tried to get a lawsuit dismissed that alleged it was violating the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by not allowing African Americans to use their athletic facilities.

The article stated that a local Eagle official could only cite Joe Louis as a black member of the FOE.

[9] As of 2019, membership is open to any person of good moral character, and believes in the existence of a supreme being, and is not a member of the Communist Party nor any organization which advocates the overthrow of the United States government.

[17] As part of the charitable philosophy, the Eagles give back 100 percent of the contributions received in the form of grants.

A few years later the Order sponsored the creation of Eagle Hall at the Range for Boys at Sentinel Butte, North Dakota.

By 1980 it was advocating for seniors to work after age 65 and to return the Social Security system back to its original purpose.

[16] Frank E. Hering, a Past Grand Worthy President of the Fraternal Order of Eagles in South Bend, Indiana, campaigned for "a national day to honor our mothers", nearly 35 years after social activist Ann Jarvis first proposed a similar U.S. holiday.

Walking into the classroom of a fellow instructor, Hering found his colleague distributing penny postcards to students.

[20] There, at the "Tomb of the Unknown Soldier", before a large audience including many congressmen and senators, Hering was introduced as "the Father of Mother's Day".

DeMille and Ruegemer drummed up publicity for the film by working together to erect granite monuments of the Ten Commandments across the nation.

The Fraternal Order of Eagles kept the project going long after the film opened, and some monuments didn't get erected until up to 10 years later.