African American Fraternal Organization I.B.P.O.E.W. Membership Archive of Bert Cooper Documenting Black Civic Leadership and Social Life in Cleveland, 1952–1982

Fraternal Organization

Archive

Bert Cooper fraternal archive documents participation in the Improved Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks of the World between 1952 and 1982, establishing a continuous record of Black civic leadership, social organization, and institutional life within a segregated and post-segregation United States. Materials tied to Cooper’s role within the P.G.E.R. Club of Cleveland trace his progression into leadership positions, including treasurer, and document sustained engagement in local lodge governance and national convention culture. The archive supports research into African American fraternal networks, mid- to late-20th century Black associational life, and the role of ritual organizations in structuring community authority, leisure, and mutual aid.

Archive spans 1952–1982 and comprises 16 items including programs, invitations, admission cards, tickets, and printed memorabilia associated with I.B.P.O.E.W. and affiliated bodies in Cleveland and at national conventions. Formats include bifold programs and single-card ephemera ranging approximately from 3 x 5 inches to 8.5 x 11 inches. A green bifold program for the Ninth Annual Ball of the P.G.E.R. Club of Cleveland, November 12, 1977, lists Cooper as Treasurer alongside President James Frost and Financial Secretary Stafford P.M. Berry, accompanied by a signed admission card bearing “Bert Cooper.” A 1979 Cabaret Party program again identifies Cooper in the same office, confirming sustained leadership. Additional materials include a 1975 P.G.E.R. Club invitation, souvenir programs for Sweetheart Balls, and a 1976 Mary B. Talbert Temple No. 257 Dinner Dance marking 52 years of Elkdom. Tickets from King Tull Lodge No. 389 Cocktail Party and Raffles, along with national convention programs including the 70th Grand Lodge Convention in Atlanta, 81st in New Orleans, and 83rd in Washington, D.C., provide itineraries, organizational histories, and illustrated depictions of fraternal ritual. Supplementary items such as birthday invitations, Phillips House of Flowers membership tags, and a travel club gambling excursion flyer document a broader circuit of Black social and leisure activity structured through fraternal affiliation.

Founded in 1897 by B. F. Howard and Arthur J. Riggs following exclusion from the white Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the I.B.P.O.E.W. developed as a parallel national institution providing structured leadership, mutual aid, and ceremonial life within Black communities during Jim Crow and beyond. Local elite groups such as the P.G.E.R. Club functioned as concentrated centers of influence, bringing together past leaders within lodge hierarchies. Programs in this archive document formal social events held at commercial venues such as the Holiday Inn in Strongsville, including a 1979 event scheduled “from 10:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m.,” with music, dress codes, and admission structures that reinforced status and community cohesion. National convention materials foreground figures such as Grand Daughter Ruler Mrs. Nettie B. Smith and reflect the central role of the Daughters of Elks in expanding organizational reach across gender lines. Together, the materials document how fraternal institutions sustained parallel civic infrastructures, social mobility, and organized leisure within African American urban life during the mid-20th century.

Minor edge wear, occasional corner creasing, and light handling visible across several items; printed surfaces generally clean and legible. Overall very good condition. Cohesive documentation of long-term participation within a major Black fraternal order offers sustained evidentiary value for the study of African American institutional networks, leadership structures, and social life in the urban Midwest.

Item #22416

Price: $785.00