E Clampus Vitus

Biography

E Clampus Vitus is a fraternal organization founded during the California Gold Rush (1852) to poke fun at the more solemn fraternal orders of the time. It was revived by Carl Wheat and Ezra Dane (1931) to bring an element of fun into the appreciation of history and provide support for historical projects and celebrations. The ECV Grand Council first established its official archives at the California Historical Society (1961), but space was limited there, and, with the aid of University of the Pacific historian and Clamper, Richard Coke Wood, E Clampus Vitus later moved its archives to the University of the Pacific (1976).

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