Shriners International: History and Membership

Shriners International stands as one of the most publicly recognizable fraternal organizations in the United States, distinguished by its distinctive fez hats, ceremonial pageantry, and a network of pediatric hospitals that has treated children regardless of their families' ability to pay. The organization operates as an appendant body to Freemasonry, meaning membership requires prior affiliation with a Masonic lodge. This page covers the organization's founding and structural development, how membership and advancement function, the contexts in which the organization operates, and the boundaries that distinguish it from comparable fraternal bodies.

Definition and Scope

Shriners International — formally known until 2010 as the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine (A.A.O.N.M.S.) — was founded in New York City in 1870 by actor William J. Florence and physician Walter M. Fleming. The founding mythology draws on an elaborate theatrical theme rooted in Arabic and Islamic imagery, though the organization itself has no historical connection to the Arab world; the aesthetic was a deliberate creation designed to distinguish the fraternity from the more solemn character of Masonic lodges.

The organization is headquartered in Tampa, Florida, and comprises 196 temples (local chapters) across the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Panama, according to Shriners International's official organizational records. Membership peaked at approximately 940,000 in the 1970s, a figure documented in fraternal studies and journalistic accounts of American lodge culture, and has declined substantially since that period — a pattern shared by nearly all major mid-20th-century fraternal organizations including the Odd Fellows and similar bodies.

The philanthropic arm, Shriners Hospitals for Children, operates 22 hospitals across North America and treats orthopedic conditions, burns, spinal cord injuries, and cleft lip and palate. The hospital network is legally and financially separate from the fraternal organization itself, a structural distinction the organization has publicly emphasized since the 1990s.

The broader context of American fraternal orders — including the Masonic parent body and comparable societies — is covered at the main reference index for secret and fraternal societies.

How It Works

Membership in Shriners International follows a defined prerequisite path. Candidates must first complete the degrees of either the York Rite or Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, or hold the third degree (Master Mason) in a symbolic lodge. This Masonic prerequisite is non-negotiable and places Shriners International in the category of Masonic appendant bodies, alongside bodies like the Royal Arch and the Knights Templar.

The process for joining a Shrine temple proceeds through these structured steps:

1. Masonic qualification — The candidate holds the Master Mason degree (third degree) from a recognized lodge under a grand lodge jurisdiction.
2. Petition submission — A written petition is submitted to the local Shrine temple, typically requiring endorsement from 2 existing Shriners.
3. Investigation — A membership committee reviews the petition and may conduct an informal interview.
4. Ballot — Temple membership votes by secret ballot; a single negative vote (in most temples) blocks membership.
5. Initiation — The candidate undergoes the Shrine initiation ceremony, a theatrical ritual historically styled in Arabic-themed pageantry.
6. Fez presentation — Upon completion, the new Noble (the title used for Shrine members) receives the organization's signature red fez.

Annual dues are paid at the temple level; amounts vary by temple but typically range from $75 to $150 per year based on publicly available temple schedules. Members who wish to participate in hospital philanthropy may make additional voluntary contributions through the Shriners Hospitals for Children foundation.

The governance structure consists of individual temples, each governed by a Potentate (the presiding officer), and the international body governed by an Imperial Potentate elected at the annual Imperial Session. The governance structures common to fraternal organizations provide relevant comparative context for understanding how Shrine temples exercise local autonomy within an international framework.

Common Scenarios

Shriners International operates in 3 principal contexts that define most of its public and internal activity.

Parade and ceremonial activity forms the most publicly visible dimension. Shrine units — including clown corps, mini-car units, and marching bands — participate in public parades across the United States, a tradition dating to the organization's early 20th-century expansion. This visibility has been central to the organization's recruitment identity since at least the 1920s.

Hospital fundraising and patient referral represents the second major operational context. Members are expected to be aware of Shriners Hospitals for Children referral procedures and to direct eligible families (children under 18 with qualifying conditions) to the hospital network. The 22-hospital system has provided care to over 1.4 million children since its founding in 1922, according to Shriners Hospitals for Children's published institutional history.

Lodge and social programming constitutes the internal life of individual temples — regular stated meetings, degree ceremonials for new members, and social events. Temples also maintain units (subgroups organized around specific parade or social activities) that members join based on interest.

Decision Boundaries

The key distinctions relevant to understanding Shriners International involve its relationship to Freemasonry on one side and to independent charitable organizations on the other.

Shriners International vs. Freemasonry proper: Freemasonry is the prerequisite body; Shrine membership is optional and supplemental. A Master Mason has no obligation to join the Shrine. The Freemasonry overview covers the parent structure in detail. The Shrine's ritual and social character is distinctly lighter and more theatrical than the degree work of symbolic Masonry — a contrast the founders deliberately engineered in 1870.

Shriners International vs. the Knights of Columbus: The Knights of Columbus provides a useful structural contrast. Both are fraternal organizations with prominent charitable hospitals and parade traditions. The Knights of Columbus is explicitly Catholic and does not require Masonic affiliation; Shriners International is Masonic-affiliated and formally nonsectarian. Both organizations declined in membership across the late 20th century, a trend examined in sociological literature on civic association.

Fraternal body vs. hospital corporation: Shriners Hospitals for Children is a separate 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Membership in Shriners International does not automatically generate a financial contribution to the hospital system, and the hospital treats patients regardless of any family connection to the fraternity.

The degrees and ranks in secret societies article provides additional structural context for understanding how appendant-body systems like the Shrine layer credential requirements on top of existing fraternal hierarchies.