Established in 1874, the Black River Grange is the Sampson County chapter of the North Carolina State Grange, a grassroots civic organization dedicated to the improvement of farm and rural living.
The North Carolina State Grange organized in 1873, six years after Oliver Hudson Kelly started The Grange, Order of Patrons of Husbandry, on the national level. In 1877, the North Carolina Grange passed a resolution urging the establishment of the Department of Agriculture of North Carolina. The North Carolina Grange became defunct in the early 1900s. In 1929, several North Carolina leaders, including Jane McKimmon and Clarence Poe, re-established the organization. Community service is a major focus of the present North Carolina Grange.
For more information about the North Carolina Grange, visit the North Carolina State Grange website .
From the guide to the Black River Grange minute book, 1874 - 1877, (Special Collections Research Center)
