Alliance of Poles of America (Cleveland, Ohio : 1895-2005)

The Alliance of Poles of America is an ethnic fraternal-insurance organization established in Cleveland, Ohio, in September 1895. Originally named the Alliance of Poles in Ohio, this organization was founded by members of Group 143 of the Polish National Alliance who were dissatisfied with that body's decision to admit non-Roman Catholic Poles to membership.

The Alliance initially received most of its membership from the Cleveland area and from Ohio cities with substantial Polish communities. In 1917, however, the organization changed its name to the Alliance of Poles of America in order to more accurately reflect its growing membership outside of the state of Ohio.

By the 1920s and 1930s, the Alliance had evolved into a substantial enterprise. In 1925-1926 it constructed a large headquarters building and meeting hall on Broadway Avenue in the heart of Cleveland's Polish community in the Slavic Village neighborhood. By the late 1930s, its membership exceeded 20,000. It maintained over sixty "groups" in the Cleveland area as well as groups in the states of Michigan and Pennsylvania. During this decade, it also began the independent publication of its own house organ, Zwiazkowiez (The Alliancer).

The Alliance has functioned as a major insurance organization although it is far less structured in terms of membership requirements than during its early history. Membership is open to men and women and to individuals with other than Polish or Roman Catholic background.

The Alliance of Poles of America was established in Cleveland on 22 Sept. 1895 by 68 dissatisfied members of Group 143 of the Polish National Alliance (PNA), who disagreed with the PNA's decision to admit as members POLES who were not Catholic (see CATHOLICS, ROMAN). Thomas Zolnowski was elected chair of the new organization, Teofil Golembiewski vice-chair, Thomas Rutkowski secretary, and Joseph Deranek treasurer. The new group, named the Alliance of Poles of Ohio, held its first convention in St. Stanislaus's Parish Hall on 2 Jan. 1897. Its treasury then held $1,918. By its 1903 convention in Toledo, OH, the Alliance had expanded to other cities and the treasury had surpassed $20,000.

By July 1917, a number of Poles living outside of Ohio had joined the Alliance and its name changed to the Alliance of Poles of America. In 1925 the Alliance, with 17,000 members, began construction of its $180,000 national headquarters at Broadway and Forman avenues, which opened on 7 Feb. 1926. Membership fell to 13,000 in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Michigan in 1935; 8,000 of these belonged to the Alliance's 66 Cleveland branches. Yet the Alliance expanded its activities, beginning a newspaper, Zwiazkowiec (the Alliancer), and contributing to charitable and educational efforts to benefit Poles both in the homeland and in the U.S.

Assets continued to grow, reaching $4 million in 1960. By 1973 the Alliance continued as both an insurance and a social organization with 15,000 members in 60 lodges in the Cleveland area. In addition to insurance, it offered to its members mortgage loans, maintained a welfare fund for sick or disabled members, awarded college scholarships, sponsored sports, a drama club, a scouting program, and showings of Polish films. Later on the drama club evolved into the Polish theater, and a library and the Polish School have been added. The current trend of the Alliance is to assume an increasingly larger role as a cultural organization. In 1988 the Alliance of Poles of America proposed to build a Polish Village in NORTH ROYALTON. With headquarters at 6966-68 Broadway Ave., by 1990 it had 23,000 members, and by 1994, assets of more than $8.7 million.

Alliance of Poles in the State of Ohio, Cleveland, Ohio — Name changed to Alliance of Poles in America in 1918.
Alliance of Poles in America, Cleveland Ohio — Name changed to Alliance of Poles of America in 1962.
Alliance of Poles of America, Cleveland, Ohio – Merged with Polish Roman Catholic Union of America in 2005
American Union Polish Brotherhood of St. Joseph — Merged with Alliance of Poles of America in 1967.
National Alliance of Poles in the State of Ohio, Cleveland, Ohio — Name changed to Alliance of Poles in the State of Ohio in 1910.
Union of Saint Joseph of the U.S. North America, Pittsburgh, Pa. — Merged with Alliance of Poles of America in 1968.

Alliance of Poles of America is a fraternal insurance organization which broke away from the Polish National Alliance in 1895, over the issue of membership for non-Roman Catholic Poles. Originally a Cleveland, Ohio, organization, it now includes groups throughout Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania, and has opened its membership to men and women with other than Polish or Catholic backgrounds. In 1917 it changed its name from the Alliance of Poles in Ohio to the Alliance of Poles of America.

The Alliance of Poles in America (Cleveland, Ohio), a regional cultural and fraternal insurance organization, was founded in 1895 as the Alliance of Poles in State of Ohio. Its name was changed ca. 1917. The Alliance has 17,000 members and 83 branches in Ohio, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. It provides life insurance to members, cooperates with other Polish American organizatoins in cultural activities, sponsors clubs for Polish youth, maintains a library, and provides a scholarship fund.