Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians

The Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH) was founded in 1836 in the United States as a movement of Irish Catholics in opposition to the growing atmosphere of anti-Catholicism in the United States. The AOH had the support of women but due to the secretive nature of the original group the women were not allowed to join and were mostly ignored. The women decided to form their own group. Originally the “Daughters of Erin,” the group was founded in 1894 in Omaha, Nebraska. The name was changed in 1906 to the Ladies Auxiliary to the Ancient Order of Hibernians, and again in 1984 to the Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians (LAOH).

The LAOH mission statement reads “While practicing friendship, unity and Christian charity, we will work to strengthen our Roman Catholic faith, our country and our communities; and perpetuate the religion, history, culture and traditions of our Irish heritage.” Their constitution outlines the goals of promoting not only friendship, unity, and Catholic charity but also assisting the people of Ireland in establishing an Irish Republic that includes all thirty-two counties. The events, meeting minutes and various other items in this collection of the LAOH reflect these values and goals.

Members of LAOH must meet certain qualifications of membership. LAOH has divisions and junior divisions in twenty-seven states across the United States. Each state has a variety of divisions with division leaders as well as a state board. The state boards report to the national board which oversees all the LAOH divisions.