E Clampus Vitus

The Ancient and Honorable Order of E Clampus Vitus (ECV) is a fraternal organization dedicated to the study and preservation of the heritage of the American West, especially the history of the Mother Lode and gold mining regions of the area. The fraternity is not sure if it is a "historical drinking society" or a "drinking historical society." There are chapters in California, Nevada, Arizona, Colorado, Utah, Washington, Idaho, Oregon and has Outposts in other western states. Members call themselves "Clampers." The organization's name is in Dog Latin, and has no known meaning; even the spelling is disputed, sometimes appearing as "Clampus," "Clampsus," or "Clampsis." The motto of the Order, Credo Quia Absurdum, is generally interpreted as meaning "I believe it because it is absurd;" the proper Latin quotation Credo quia absurdum est, is from the Christian apologist Tertullian (c.160 – c.220 AD), who rejected rationalism and accepted a Gospel which addressed itself to the "non-rational levels of perception."

Members of note included Adam, the first "Clampatriarch"; Philip D. Armour, the meat packer; John Mohler Studebaker, the automobile manufacturer; Gene Autry "The Singing Cowboy" and owner of the California Angels baseball team; and John Hume, a California state assemblyman. ECV also claims Ulysses S. Grant, Lord Sholto Douglas, J. Pierpont Morgan, Horace Greeley, and Horatio Alger as members, but claims have also been made to Solomon, Julius Caesar and Augustus Caesar, Henry VIII of England, Sir Francis Drake, George Washington, Andrew Jackson, Ronald Reagan, and of course, His Imperial Majesty Joshua A. Norton, "Emperor of these United States and Protector of Mexico". These fanciful claims show ECV's propensity for not taking much of anything particularly seriously, least of all itself.

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