National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry

The National Grange

National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry
Promotional poster, ca. 1873, that offers a "gift for the grangers"
Formation	December 4, 1867; 156 years ago (1867-12-04)
Founder	Oliver Hudson Kelley William Saunders Francis M. McDowell John Trimble Aaron B. Grosh John R. Thompson William M. Ireland Caroline Hall
Founded at	Washington, D.C.
Type	Advocacy group Fraternal organization
Purpose	Agrarian interest group Agricultural education Grassroots organizing
Headquarters	National Grange Headquarters Building 1616 H Street NW, Suite 200 Washington, DC
Origins	Farmers' movement
Region served	United States
Membership (2023)	~140,000
National President	Christine Hamp
National Vice President	John Benedik
Executive Committee Chair	Lynette Schaeffer
Website	www.nationalgrange.org

The National Grange, a.k.a. The Grange, officially named The National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry, is a social organization in the United States that encourages families to band together to promote the economic and political well-being of the community and agriculture.^[1] The Grange, founded after the Civil War in 1867, is the oldest American agricultural advocacy group with a national scope.^[2] The Grange actively lobbied state legislatures and Congress for political goals, such as the Granger Laws to lower rates charged by railroads, and rural free mail delivery by the Post Office.

In 2005, the Grange had a membership of 160,000, with organizations in 2,100 communities in 36 states. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C., in a building built by the organization in 1960. Many rural communities in the United States still have a Grange Hall and local Granges still serve as a center of rural life for many farming communities.