How the Elks Began
The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks started in New York City in 1868, founded by a group of actors and entertainers who first called themselves the Jolly Corks — a name meant to dodge blue laws that kept bars closed on Sundays. When one of the group died suddenly, the others decided their drinking club should do some good in the world too, and the Elks were born. The four founding virtues — charity, justice, brotherly love, and fidelity — still anchor everything the Order does.
Denver #17
Lodge #17 was chartered in Denver in 1882, making it 144 years old and one of the older Elks lodges in the country. We’re known as the Mother Lodge of the Rockies — the first lodge established in the region, with several other Colorado lodges tracing their roots back here.
A More Honest History
For most of its history, the Elks — like most fraternal organizations of the era — was a white men’s club. Denver #17 didn’t admit its first women members until 1995, when three longtime volunteers, previously known as Elkettes, were finally allowed to join as full members. They’re still active in the Lodge today. In 2019, a Lodge trustee wrote a formal diversity statement addressing that history directly and committing the Lodge to a different standard going forward — you can read the current version on our Diversity & Inclusion Statement page.
We think that history is worth telling straight, not glossing over it. The Lodge today looks different than it did in 1882, and that’s the point.