E Clampus Vitus chapters are known to have existed at Columbia, Sonora and Jamestown but there is so little written information about this secret society! It’s said that by the time the meetings were over, nobody was in any condition to remember what happened. Although this fraternity is dedicated to the study and preservation of the history of the Mother Lode, it’s not sure if it is a “historical drinking society” or a “drinking historical society.” What does E Clampus Vitus mean? Well, that is the greatest mystery of all, because nobody seems to know what it means! While it seems that everyone regarded ECV as a burlesque of the widespread secret societies, fraternal and political, ECV flourished, in part, as the result of the miners’ reaction to the “established” organizations such as the Masons and Odd Fellows. Those groups had come to the mining country prior to ECV, and when ECV appeared, the older, more established groups looked down upon the more rowdy nature of E Clampus Vitus. It became popular in the gold country because it gave young men who worked hard at the mines a perfect excuse to horse around. ECV made fun of the stuffed shirts of the Masons: they made great fun of the sashes and ceremonial attire of the “upscale” fraternities, and began dressing in red shirts and pinning on badges made of cut-out tin can lids. This practice, called “wearing the tin”, continues to this day, although the badges are frequently professionally made. Members commonly dress in a red shirt, black hat and Levi’s jeans. ECV titles reflected the tongue-in-cheek nature of the organization. Officials were called “Noble Grand Humbug,” “Roisterous Iscutis,” “Grand Imperturbable Hangman,” “Clamps Vitrix,” and “Royal Gyascutis.” Mark Twain was a member, and it was while attending an ECV meeting that he heard the story which he wrote as The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County. The organization has raised historical plaques in many places throughout the West (often those sites such as bordellos and saloons overlooked by more traditional historical societies), with a traditional “doin’s,” or party, after each plaque dedication. In 1936 a plaque appeared in Northern California stating it was made by Sir Francis Drake during his voyage of discovery saying that he had claimed all of California for England, and that he had the authority of the claim by having been ceded the land by the local Miwok Indians. The man who was chief of the Miwoks in 1937, William Fuller, was a member of E Clampus Vitus. During an ECV meeting, he revoked the cession of land to England, and ceded it all to the United States government. The so-called Drake’s Plate of Brass was accepted as authentic for forty years, yet was in actuality a hoax that got out of control. Despite the humor and rowdiness of E Clampus Vitus, the members did take their brotherhood seriously. When a member became sick or injured, the group would collect food or money to help him. They frequently trekked through the vastness of the Sierra Nevada to reach lonely miners who otherwise would have had no Christmas celebration. The society was also careful to assist the widows and orphans of fallen members.
