Daughters of the Nile

One of the women's auxiliary groups tied to the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine (often referred to as Shriners International) is the Daughters of the Nile; the other is the Ladies Oriental Shrine of North America. The Daughters of the Nile is a fraternal organization found throughout the United States of America and Canada.

The Daughters of the Nile is open to women who are 18-years of age or older, and who are related by birth or marriage to a Shriner, Master Mason, or Daughter of the Nile, is a majority member of a Masonic youth group for girls such as the Rainbow Girls or Job's Daughters, or who was a patient at a Shriners Hospital for Children®. 

The Daughters of the Nile was founded in 1913 in Seattle, WA. In late 1905, the Afifi Shrine (Tacoma, WA) formed a women's auxiliary called the Daughters of Isis, but this group only lasted until 1908 when it was disbanded by decree of the Imperial Potentate. In the same year the Daughters of Isis was founded, Shriners in Seattle formed Nile Temple. Many Shriners of Nile Temple had belonged to Afifi Shrine and their wives formed the Isis Club, but had disbanded in December of 1912. Under the direction of Mabel R. Krows, 12 ladies (all wives of Shriners) came together on February 20, 1913, to discuss forming a club similar to Zuhrah's Ladies in Minnesota. They formed the "Ladies of the Nile" with Mabel R. Krows elected as their President. As no record of the ritual of the Daughters of Isis had been kept the Ladies of the Nile sought out Charles F. Whaley to write them a new ritual which was completed by August of 1913. This club continued to meet over the next several months approving the rituals written for them, the Constitution and By-Laws, paraphernalia, and all pertinent matters. Starting on September 18, 1913, Mabel R. Krows started giving the obligation to the members. 

On October 16, 1913, they changed their name officially to Daughters of the Nile as Noble Whaley referred to the ladies as "My Daughters" and "Nile" as this new order pertained to Egypt. The order started to spread and each Temple has a name and a number according to when they were constituted. The first Temple is Hatasu Temple #1 in Seattle, WA; Hatasu was the first known Egyptian Queen in ancient Egyptian history. It became apparent that a governing body was needed and it was decided that the members of the original Ladies of the Nile were to become Founders of Daughters of the Nile, forming the Supreme Temple of the Daughters of the Nile. They decided to allow all Queens, Past Queens, and Princess Royals as members of the Supreme Temple. On November 21, 1913, they elected Levelia K. West as the first Supreme Queen and the rest of the Supreme officers. Today the order has spread and there are roughly 30,000 members in 144 cities.

The philanthropy of this group is the same as Shriners International, the Shriners Hospitals for Children® through the use of two permanent endowment funds: The Daughters of the Nile Foundation and the Canadian Trust, to which the Daughters of the Nile contributes over $2-million a year. In addition, they also sew clothing and quilts as well as provide toys, books, games and other educational/recreational items for the children’s use.

The Daughters meet in Temples and fall under the governance of a Supreme Temple. The Temple is composed of the following officers:

Queen

Princess Royal

Princess Tirzah

Princess Badoura

Princess Recorder

Princess Banker 

Princess Marshall

Princess Chaplain

Lady of the Keys

Lady of the Gates

Princess Nydia

Princess Zulieka

Princess Zenobia

Princess Zora

Princess Zuliema

Princess Musician

Attendant

The Supreme Temple is composed of the same officers with the honorary title of "Supreme" attached to the officer title. The Daughters of the Nile are known for wearing a distinctive tiara for special events and ceremonies. To find a Temple near you please visit the Supreme Temple website: http://www.daughtersofthenile.com/org_list.htm

References

1. About Us. (n.d.). Retrieved from Nydia Temple No.14: http://www.nydiatemple.com/aboutus/

2. Daughters of the Nile. (n.d.). Retrieved from Masonic Dictionary: http://www.masonicdictionary.com/dotn.html

3. Daughters of the Nile. (n.d.). Retrieved from Amara Shriners: http://www.amarashriners.org/daughters-of-the-nile.html

4. Daughters of the Nile. (n.d.). Retrieved from Arlington Lodge No.438: http://arlingtonlodge.org/daughters-of-the-nile/

5. Daughters of the Nile. (n.d.). Retrieved from Freemason Information: http://freemasoninformation.com/what-is-freemasonry/family-of-freemasonry/daughters-of-the-nile/

6. Daughters of the Nile. (n.d.). Retrieved from Sphinx Shriners: http://www.sphinxshriners.org/daughters-of-the-nile.html

7. Krows, M. R. (1951). My Memoirs of Daughters of the Nile.

8. Ladies Organization. (n.d.). Retrieved from Shriners International: http://www.shrinersinternational.org/en/shriners/ladies/nile

9. Lotus Temple No.7. (n.d.). Retrieved from Duluth Masonic Center: http://www.duluthmc.org/don/

10. Shriners. (n.d.). Retrieved from Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shriners#Membership 

11. Who are the Daughters of the Nile. (n.d.). Retrieved from Supreme Temple of the Daughters of the Nile: http://www.daughtersofthenile.com/about_who.htm