Lot 035 - Antique Grouping Of Archival Materials From The Order Of United American Mechanics O.U.A.M., Excelsior Council No. 2, Waterbury, Connecticut, Including Three Meeting Minute Books, 1876–1909, And Loose Ephemera

Grouping of archival materials from the Order of United American Mechanics O.U.A.M., Excelsior Council No. 2, Waterbury, Connecticut. Includes three fully completed hardcover meeting minute and record books detailing proceedings from 1876 through 1909, handwritten and recorded at various halls including Good Templar Hall, Temperance Hall, Mechanics Hall, and Pythian Hall. Entries document officer elections, member propositions, finances, and ceremonial activities in remarkable detail. Also includes a small grouping of more than ten loose pieces of related ephemera such as proposition cards, letterhead, and other printed materials. Hardcover volumes show significant wear, with loss to spine coverings and surface abrasion.

The Order of United American Mechanics O.U.A.M. was founded in 1845 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as a nativist fraternal organization promoting the interests of American-born workers and advocating for compulsory public education and protection of domestic labor. By the late 19th century, the order had expanded nationally, establishing local councils such as Excelsior Council No. 2 in Waterbury, Connecticut. These records represent a detailed primary source for fraternal, social, and labor history in post–Civil War Connecticut.