1878 Antique Postal Card UX5 One Cent Liberty International Order of Good Templar Mauston

1878 Postal Card

I.O. of G.T. International Order of Good Templar 
Mauston Wisconsin 1878
Preprinted Postal Card: UX5 One-Cent Liberty
Cancellation: Mauston (Juneau County), Wisconsin, June 6 or July 6.
Size: 3 x 5-1/8 inches

Addressed to: Robert Glenn, Jr., S.D., Wyalusing, Grant County, Wisconsin.

MESSAGE
A receipt for payment message sent by the I.O. of G.T., Grand Lodge of Wisconsin by B.F. Parker, Grand Worthy Secretary.

I.O. of G.T. Grand Lodge of Wisconsin
Office of Grand Worthy Secretary, Mauston, Wis.
Robt. Glenn Jr. L.D. No. 199

Your Report for Quarter ending April 30, 1878, and G.L. Tax amounting to $4.32 is received.
B.F. Parker, G.S.

Receipt for Payment from the International Order of Good Templars, a temperance organization

DETAILS
Used Postal Card with Town Cancel on Preprinted UX5 Liberty one-cent Postal Card, black on buff, issued in 1875. Variations apply to this UX5 Postal Card: No watermark, and on front: Write the Address on This Side. It was mailed to Robert Glenn, Jr., S.D., in Wyalusing, Grant County, Wisconsin.

CANCELLATION and DATE of MAILING
The postal card uses a Town Cancel with no year. The 1-cent Liberty printed postage shows no killer mark.

HISTORICAL CONTEXT
Addressee: Robert Glenn, Jr., (1858-1915), husband of Hattie (Harriet E. Brodt) and father of many children, was a farmer. He was elected to the Wisconsin Senate in 1912 representing the sixteenth district. Additionally, Glenn was Sheriff (1905-1906) of Grant County, Wisconsin and a member of the Grant County Board. He was a Republican.

Organization: I.O. of G.T. is a worldwide International Order of Good Templars, now known as the International Organisation of Good Templars, whose purpose is the promotion of alcolhol-free, drug-free, good living. The first Wisconsin lodge in Sheboygan Falls was organized in 1854. A Grand Lodge for Wisconsin was instituted on May 13, 1856, with F. A. Atherley as G. W.C. T. and Seth C. Buckman as G. W. S. By 1860 the Wisconsin membership totaled 12,000 in 152 Lodges.

Grand Worthy Secretary: Benjamin F. Parker (1839-1912) came to Wisconsin from Pennsylvania in 1853 where he apprenticed Waukesha, training for the profession of carpenter.  When the American Civil War broke out he enlisted and served in Company K of the Second Wisconsin Volunteers and Company A of the First Wisconsin Volunteers, Heavy Artillery Division. When mustered out in November, 1865, Parker had attained the rank of Senior First Lieutenant. He then settled in Mauston where he was in the furniture business, married and raised a daughter, and was active in the I.O. of G.T. and Ancient Order of United Workmen.

Blog post by Mary Katherine May.
Rick and Mary May operate the Etsy.com shop GrandmaHen and the webstore Quality Music and Books.