Newport Lodge No. 104
Elks History
More than 138 years of Newport hospitality — and the national Order it belongs to.
A 138-Year Story
A New American Order
From a New York theater group to a Newport lodge in twenty years.
1868The Jolly Corks become the Elks
English-born actor Charles Algernon Sidney Vivian and a circle of theater friends form the “Jolly Corks” in New York City — a social club for performers that adopts the name Elks later the same year. The new Order’s founding impulse: mutual support for fellow performers in need.
The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks is officially instituted on February 16, 1868.
Charity · Justice · Brotherly Love · Fidelity
The Order’s four cardinal principles still guide every lodge. One enduring nightly tradition is the 11 o’clock toast — a remembrance of absent members observed in lodges across the country.
Today the Order counts more than 750,000 members across 2,000 lodges, running national programs from the Elks National Foundation (scholarships, community grants) to the Veterans Service Commission to youth programs like the Hoop Shoot and Soccer Shoot.
1888Newport Lodge No. 104 is instituted
Newport #104 is chartered — one of the earliest Elks lodges in the country and the second-oldest in Rhode Island. The founding officers, known as The Three Friends, include the lodge’s first Exalted Ruler and first Secretary, both seated in 1888.
One of those friends would go on to serve as Secretary into the 1920s — a remarkable three-decade run that bridges the lodge’s earliest years.
Newport #104 will come to be known by a nickname that still fits: “The Hospitality Lodge.”
The Hospitality Lodge
Thirty-three years of meeting around town — building a tradition that still defines the lodge.
Early yearsAn early officer slate
A small archive treasure: nine officers in formal dress from Newport #104’s earliest years. The lodge has always taken its rituals — and its officer photographs — seriously.
1920A 48-star presentation flag
A hand-lettered 48-star American flag is presented to Newport #104 on July 15, 1920. The inscription — “Newport, R.I. Lodge No. 104, B.P.O. Elks, July 15, 1920, James A. Morrison” — still survives in the lodge archives.
The lodge finds a home
After meeting for 32 years at the Newton Building at the corner of Pelham & Thames, the Elks purchase the Parkgate villa at 141 Pelham Street from Annie Leary’s estate on May 25, 1920 for $37,650. Newport #104 finally has a permanent home of its own — a Gilded Age landmark with its own remarkable story. See the building’s story →
Life at the Lodge
Clambakes, bowling leagues, and the lodge band — Newport #104 between the wars.
1928The summer clambake
Annual summer clambakes are documented for the lodge archive in 1928.
1931The Bowling League
The Newport #104 bowling team is photographed in September 1931.
May 1932The Bowling Outing
An annual outing for the bowling league. Smiles, suits, and a Sunday on the town in May 1932.
1932Bowling Champions
Newport #104 bowling champions — taking home the hardware after a winning season.
1938The Newport Elks Lodge Band
The lodge’s own band — for years a fixture at parades, ceremonies, and lodge socials. 1938.
2025: Mortgage paid off
Newport #104 owns its landmark home free and clear — more than a century after the Elks first picked up the keys.
A Century of Service
What the lodge has sent out the door at Pelham & Bellevue.
Five moments that still stand out
For a hundred-plus years, the lodge has been at work in and around Newport. A few moments that still stand out:
1900 · The tablets above City HallIn 1900, the lodge helped underwrite the formal dedication of Newport’s new City Hall and donated the bronze tablets that still hang over the doors of the City Council Chambers. The lodge has stayed close to City Hall ever since: every spring it sponsors National Youth Day, when local high-schoolers spend a day in the actual mayor’s and councilors’ chairs running the city.
When the country calledIn World War I, the lodge ran a scrap-metal drive for the war effort. After Pearl Harbor, the Elks offered the building to the Army as housing for soldiers passing through. In the early 1950s, they organized a million-pint blood drive for service members fighting in Korea.
1945 · Sixty feet over the lawnA weeklong carnival pitched right on the front lawn. The headliners were Great Arturo and Miss Heddy, working a balancing act on a wire sixty feet in the air — no net. Anyone walking down Bellevue could look up over the porch railing and watch them.
1946 · The new ambulanceThe Newport Fire Department had been answering emergency calls out of a converted panel truck. The lodge bought the city a fully-equipped ambulance and handed over the keys. It was the kind of upgrade that quietly changed outcomes.
Every December since the ‘30sUp to 450 community kids a year at the lodge for the Christmas Party. Magicians, accordion players, jugglers, gifts, food. Some of the grandchildren of the original kids are still on the guest list.
Most of these never made the front page. Which is the point.
Fun Facts You May Not Know
Little stories & numbers from the Order’s 158 years.
Source: Elks.org — A Brief History of the Order →
Source: Elks.org — A Brief History of the Order →
Source: Wikipedia — List of BPOE Members →
Source: BPOE Grand Lodge — “Making A Difference” (Elks.org) →
Source: BPOE Grand Lodge — “Making A Difference” (Elks.org) →
Source: BPOE Grand Lodge — “Making A Difference” (Elks.org) →
Source: Elks.org — Our History →
Sources & Further Reading
- "Lodge #104 Welcome," Elks.org
- "Newport Lodge No. 104," Rhode Island State Elks Association
- "More Information" (current membership & lodge counts), Elks.org — accessed May 2026
- "Making A Difference" (Grand Lodge Public Relations Committee primer), Elks.org PDF
- "Our History," Elks.org
- "A Brief History of the Origins of the Order of Elks," Elks.org Historical Stories
- "Grants & Appropriations 2025–26," Elks National Foundation