Tree Shaped Tombstones - The Woodmen's Circle

Most Tree Shaped Tombstones are not related to the several fraternal organizations collectively called "Woodmen".  But some certainly are. When you see one of this shape, medium height with a fork at the top, you can from a distance predict that this will be an "Official" one. There is usually a Woodman logo at the fork just as you see here.

But this one is an oddity.  It is from a member of The Woodmen Circle.

That was the Ladies Auxiliary of the Woodmen.

We ran across this rather nice specimen in Oshkosh Wisconsin.

The Woodmen Circle was the auxiliary of the Woodmen of the World starting in the 1890s. The main organization still exists but the Circle was incorporated into the Woodmen in 1965. There must have been a very active local chapter - they were called Groves by the way - as a second monument of similar form but lesser preservation was nearby.

The internet being what it is there is certainly some information on the Woodmen Circle to be found out there but it is buried deep under a large amount of trashy info on a purportedly haunted site in Texas that was once a retirement home and orphanage.  From its name it was clearly founded by this worthy organization and deserves better than to be tromped all over by paranormal buffs with dubious ghost detecting equipment.