While recently visiting a small African American cemetery here in Oklahoma, I came across a headstone symbol I'd never seen before. The inscription read Supreme Royal Circle of Friends of the World.
Inside the circle was a lion standing on top of an upside down triangle with three letters, one in each corner, and two numbers in the middle. Upon first glance, it all looked very secret society but once I got home and did some research, it turned out to be much more innocent.
The Supreme Royal Circle of Friends of the World was an African American fraternal organization founded in Arkansas in 1909 by Dr. Richard A. Williams. According to the Encyclopedia of Arkansas, the RCF was founded to mainly provide insurance to African American families.
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| A RCF pin featuring image of Dr. Williams. |
In 1918, the organization moved its headquarters to Chicago where they built a Supreme Temple among other facilities. Two hospitals were built in 1921 for African Americans, one in Memphis, TN and the other in Little Rock, AR, where members received free care. For a little while, the Little Rock Hospital also operated a training school for nurses.
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| The RCF hospital in Little Rock, Arkansas ca 1921-1934 Image from UAMS Library digital collection. |
Shortly after the death of Dr. Williams, the organization went bankrupt and the assets were auctioned off.
Back to the logo on the headstone. The three letters are RCF which stand for Royal Circle of Friends and the numbers, 09, represent the year the organization was found, 1909.
To read more about the the Supreme Royal Circle of Friends visit the Encyclopedia of Arkansas.
