Originally intended purely as a men's social club, lodges were soon founded in Cincinnati, Ohio; St. Louis, Missouri; and Crawfordsville and Frankfort, Indiana.

[5][independent source needed] When Albert C. Stevens was compiling his Cyclopedia of Fraternities in the late 1890s, he was unable to ascertain whether it was still in existence.

[5] After giving a rousing address to the seven delegates of the 1906 Moose national convention, he was appointed "Supreme Organizer" of the Order.

[5][independent source needed] Old National Moose Lodge bylaws restricted membership in this men's club to white people.

The leadership also wished to buy additional real estate to the west and north owned by two other families, for a total of 1,023 acres.

[5][18] While Mooseheart began as a school, it soon grew to become a small incorporated village and hub of the organization, housing the headquarters of the LOOM as well as the Women of the Moose.

The population of Mooseheart would grow to 1,000 by 1920, reach a peak of 1,300 during the Great Depression, and decline to approximately 500, the campus' current maximum capacity, in 1979.

[5][19] In addition to Mooseheart, the LOOM also runs a retirement center, Moosehaven, located in Orange Park, Florida.

[20] Until at least the 1970s, membership was restricted to white men of "sound mind and body, in good standing in the community, engaged in lawful business who are able to speak and write the English language".

[24][25] In the early 1920s, the LOOM reportedly had over half a million members, with 32,570 in the Mooseheart Legion and 5,178 in the Junior Order of Moose.

At nine o'clock, all Moose are directed to face toward Mooseheart with bowed heads and folded arms and repeat a silent prayer "Let the little children come unto me, do not keep them away.

Other "thou shalts" pertain to patriotism, service to fellowmen, protection of the weak, avoidance of slander to a brother Moose, love of the LOM, faithfulness and humility[28] James Davis drew up the initiation ritual for the order.

[29] There are also death and graveside services, granted on request of the family of deceased Moose, as well as a Memorial Day ceremony every first Sunday in May.

On July 24, 1913, two candidates for LOOM membership, Donald A. Kenny and Christopher Gustin, died during[31] their initiation ceremony in Birmingham, Alabama.

It has sponsored medical research for muscular dystrophy, cerebral palsy, cancer and cardiology, as well as the March of Dimes.

[36] The court allowed the Independent, Benevolent and Protective Order of Moose to continue using the same fraternal titles and colors.

The Catholic Church, however, has never explicitly objected to the Moose,[30] despite having condemned similar organizations, such as the Freemasons, for their oaths and other rituals.