Ku Klux Klan robe, Hollis, ca. 1925
Item 28642 info
Maine Historical Society
An unidentified person used this robe and hood in Hollis in the 1920s, when the Ku Klux Klan was at its height of over 150,000 members, or 23 percent of the population in Maine. In addition to being racist, they were anti-immigrant and anti-Catholic. Marches occurred throughout the state.
The secret society mandated hoods and robes to hide the identity of members. Milton Charles Bennet of Bangor published sheet music for his song The Klansman's Rally Song where the chorus lines are:
"Crosses burn, our hearts all yearn with love each for his brother. All thru the night Our robes gleam white, For God, for country, and each other."
Deputy Carl Churchill found this robe and hood 20 feet up on a power pole in Hollis in 1965.
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