Administrative Information

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Use Restrictions

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Preferred Citation

Timothy Division No. 152 Sons of Temperance Minutes, 1848-1852. Local government records collection, Lancaster County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia 23219-8000.

Acquisition Information

This collection came to the Library of Virginia in a transfer of records from Lancaster County.

Historical Information

Lancaster County was probably named for the English county. It was formed from Northumberland and York Counties in 1651

The Timothy Division No. 152 of the Sons of Temperance was constituted at Lancaster Court House 1848 July 27. The Sons of Temperance, a total abstinence society, was founded in New York in 1842. The fraternal order provided assistance for its members, both in remaining temperate, and as a mutual aid society. More broadly, they promoted the societal benefit of abstinence and temperance. In contrast to its immediate predecessor, the Washington Movement, the Sons recruited members from among those already well affected to their cause. Though they refrained from taking public stances on religious and political matters, they did advocate ending the temptation by stopping the production and sale of alcohol. As a mutual aid society, the Sons of Temperance doled out sickness and disability benefits and allotted money to assist with the burial of fellow brothers and their wives. The attractiveness of its benefits led the organization to operate as a secret society, with stringent rules and a highly restricted membership. Allegations of intemperance and other transgressions were routinely investigated and often led to expulsion from the organization.

Scope and Content

Timothy Division No. 152 Sons of Temperance Minutes, 1848-1852. The minutes document monthly meetings, which were held at the Masonic Hall at Lancaster Courthouse and in private homes. Business included reports on members suspected of breaking the vow of temperance and on the character of prospective members. The minutes also document the election of officers, the resignation and death of members, and other administrative business. Index.

Index Terms

Corporate Names:

• Lancaster County (Va.)--Circuit Court.
• Timothy Division No. 152 Sons of Temperance (Lancaster County, Va.)

Subjects:

• Fraternal organizations--Virginia--Lancaster County.
• Temperance--Virginia--Societies, etc.

Geographical Names:

• Lancaster County (Va.)--History--19th century.

Genre and Form Terms:

• Local government records--Virginia--Lancaster County.
• Minutes--Virginia--Lancaster County.
• Organization records--Virginia--Lancaster County.