BPOE Fraternal Elks Sterling Silver Fob Box Gilt Interior With Cut Out Lettering 2024 Saying Hello Bill

Vintage BPOE Fraternal Elks Club sterling silver fob box with gilt interior. This is special as in the interior there is cut out lettering with the phrase “Hello Bill”. This is 2 1/4” long by 1” with a loop on top to hang. The front is line engraved with the elk and enamel emblem. There are some scratches otherwise this is in good vintage condition.

When I saw the “Hello Bill” I wanted to find out what this meant and found this explanation. This a quotation from the website Local Lodges Online.

“WILLIAM GODDARD, of Minneapolis (Minn.) Lodge, No. 44, B. P. O. Elks, is the original "Hello Bill!" of Elkdom, and this cheerful salutation which has found its way around the world, originated in Minneapolis during the Elks' National Re-Union in that city in 1897. Brother Goddard is the junior partner of the Minneapolis firm of Barnaby & Company. He has been for a great many years the treasurer of Minneapolis Lodge, No. 44, B. P. O. Elks, and was Chairman of the Finance Committee, and a member of a great many other committees that had in charge the arrangements for the Elks' Re-Union of that year, and he spent a great deal of his time at the Committee headquarters.

When visiting Elks came to the headquarters to inquire about matters they wanted to know about, if they happened to meet anybody who was not fully posted, they were usually told to "Go over there and ask Billy Goddard," and it was a constant strain of "Billy can tell you," "See Billy, he knows," etc., etc. This was repeated so incessantly that the stranger Elks when they approached Brother Goddard, greeted him with the expression, "Hello Bill! I was told to see you," etc., and so the custom started of greeting each other "Hello Bill!"

In a day or two the custom spread to the streets, with Elks from all parts of the country, and passing each other they sang out cheerfully, "Hello Bill!" and they carried the greeting back to their home lodges, and so it has spread around the ends of the earth. “

Information gathered by Mike Kelly, Grand Lodge Historian

If you have any questions please let me know and I will be happy to help!

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I will combine shipping charges and in some cases if the items are small there would not be any additional costs incurred. If you make multiple purchases I will refund any overcharges for shipping.

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