In a cave 12 miles south of the Northern California town of Yreka, a group of men gathered, awash in the full moon’s glow that spread across the barren cave floor. This was an early meeting of the Knights of Pythias, a secret fraternal organization founded on the principles of friendship, charity, and benevolence.
From 1925, Yreka men joined Chapter 168 of the international organization to commiserate, support one another and live by the motto “do noble things, not dream them all day long.”
The Knights of Pythias organized and met in lodges throughout the United States, including several in Siskiyou County, Calif. The Pythian Cave, located on Cram Gulch Road, was the first home of the Yreka chapter before finding a more convenient site in town.
The Knights of Pythias had its roots in the Greek legend surrounding the friendship of Damon and Pythias some 400 years before the Christian era. Damian risked death for Pythias in a test of the Pythagorean ideal of friendship.
The Yreka Knights of Pythias enjoyed many years of camaraderie in Siskiyou County before shutting down.
Source: From the files at the Siskiyou County Museum, Yreka Calif.