Discover The Order of Good Things

Uncover the rich history of the Fraternal Order of Eagles from 1898 to 1904

Discover Our Inspiring Journey

A Novel of Community, Courage, and the Power of People Helping People.

When machines threatened to replace human hearts, one community chose a different path—and changed America forever.

In February 1898, Daniel O'Malley arrives in Seattle clutching his grandfather's fiddle and chasing the promise of work in a boomtown drunk on gold fever. But the city's theaters are going dark, not from lack of audiences, but from a new threat: Edison phonographs that promise to replace live musicians forever.

As a bitter strike erupts between desperate performers and powerful theater owners, the city's soul hangs in the balance. Enter Anna Morrison, a boarding house keeper with a revolutionary vision—what if, instead of fighting each other, they helped each other?

THE ORDER OF GOOD THINGS tells the true story of how a musicians' strike became the birthplace of the Fraternal Order of Eagles, one of America's most influential fraternal organizations. From eighteen struggling musicians meeting in Anna's kitchen to over 200 chapters across North America within six years, this is the story of how "people helping people" became more than a motto—it became a movement.