Nobody has done the unprestigious work of researching and writing a
descriptive history of the Good Samaritans, so information is fragmentary
as it is for most fraternal temperance societies.

To the best of my knowledge the Good Samaritans were founded in New York
City in 1847 and attempted to reclaim drunkards and make them into members.
Around 1850 the Good Samaritans admitted women or, to be precise, created a
separate organization called the Sisters of Samaria.  The male and female
organizations had their own officers but met jointly.  From shortly after
the organization of the Good Samaritans the order admitted blacks as
members.  Blacks became numerous in the Good Samaritan order during
Reconstruction.  At that time the Good Samaritans seem to have lost most of
their white members.  Subsequent splits meant that there were at least two
rival black Good Samaritan orders.  The Good Samaritans had never been more
than a minor fraternal order when mostly white.  During the period when the
society was mostly African American it was one of the larger fraternal
orders.  For instance, in Washington in 1901 there were twice as many black
Good Samaritans as black Odd Fellows.  An in-house hisory was published in
the late nineteenth century.  It is not of much use.  [Howard H. Turner,
Turner's History of the Independent Order of Good Samaritans and Sisters of
Samaria, compiled by Wiley H. Jordan (Washington, DC: R.A. Waters, 1881)]

I do not know whether Good Samaritans remained a temperance organization or
whether the order still exists.

Clearly the Good Samaritans should be recognized as  a pioneering fraternal
temperance order.  They preceded the Good Templars in the welcome to
repentent drinkers, to blacks, and to women.  Unlike the Good Templars, the
Good Samaritans transformed themselves into an African American
organization.

Most likely newspapers provide the best sources for reconstructing Good
Samaritan history.  Any volunteers?

>I am looking for help in finding information on the "Independent Order of
>Good Samaritans and Daughters of Samaria".  I know it was a Temperance
>order that had lodges throughout the United States, the Caribbean and West
>Indies. But I am looking for the origins of the Order.  When was it
>founded, where and by whom?  I have not been able to find literature that
>does more then mention their existence.  Betty Morefield
>
>My E-mail adress is bmorefield@ anent.com