# 50

Slight damage on brass blade cover.  

Antique Knights of Golden Eagle Ceremonial Sword. Engraved with the name D. Wilson. Estimated to be from the late 1800's or early 1900's. The Knights of the Golden Eagle (KGE) was an American fraternal organization founded in Baltimore, Maryland in 1872. At its height in the 1920s, the organization had 73,340 members in 26 states. It ceased operations in the late 1960s or early 1970s. The order's original objectives were to help its members find employment and aid them while unemployed. Membership was open to white males over 18, who were able to write and support themselves, were law-abiding, of sound moral character, and the Christian faith. Its core purpose was to help members find employment, provide aid to the unemployed, and offer support to widows and orphans. There was a female auxiliary called the Ladies of the Golden Eagle.[2] In the early years of its existence, the group received assistance from other secret societies and fraternal groups. The Odd Fellows helped them become established in Philadelphia in 1875 and the Knights of Pythias helped them become established in Massachusetts in 1880. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knights_of_the_Golden_Eagle