The Croatian Fraternal Union ( hr, Hrvatska bratska zajednica) (CFU), the oldest and largest Croatian organization in North America, is a fraternal benefit society of the

Croatian diaspora The Croatian diaspora consists of communities of ethnic Croats and/or Croatian citizens living outside Croatia. Estimates on its size are only approximate because of incomplete statistical records and naturalization, but (highest) estimates sugges ...

based out of

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...

, Pennsylvania, US.

History and activities

In the late fall of 1893 Croatian American journalist Zdravko V. Mužina issued a call for a convention to organize a fraternal benefit society for Americans of Croatian descent. Three hundred people met in response to the call on January 14, 1894 in

Allegheny City, Pennsylvania Allegheny City was a municipality that existed in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania from 1788 until it was annexed by Pittsburgh in 1907. It was located north across the Allegheny River from downtown Pittsburgh, with its southwest border formed by ...

. Only a handful of people signed up and paid dues to the new group. Mužina arranged for another meeting on September 2, 1894 which merged six Croatian societies into a new group, the Croatian Federation. This group changed its name to the National Croatian Society in 1897. In 1926 the National Croatian Society merged with the Croatian League of Illinois of Chicago, St. Joseph Society of

Kansas City, Kansas Kansas City, abbreviated as "KCK", is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas, and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As of ...

and the New Croatian Society of

Whiting, Indiana Whiting is a city located in the Chicago Metropolitan Area in Lake County, Indiana, which was founded in 1889. The city is located on the southern shore of Lake Michigan. It is roughly 16 miles from the Chicago Loop and two miles from Chicago' ...

to form the Croatian Fraternal Union. In 1939 the CFU absorbed the Slovanic Croatian Union. The CFU built a new Home Office building in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh in 1928–29. The building featured ornate Flemish Gothic terra cotta ornamentation and was nominated as a Pittsburgh historic landmark in 2018. In 1961, the organization moved to a new headquarters in Wilkins Township. A street in

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slov ...

, capital of Croatia, is called ''Street of the Croatian Fraternal Union''. The

National and University Library in Zagreb National and University Library in Zagreb (NSK) (, NSK; formerly , NSB) is the national library of Croatia and central library of the University of Zagreb. The Library was established in 1607. Its primary mission is the development and preserv ...

, one of Croatia's central cultural institutions, is located in that street.

Josip Marohnić Josip Marohnić (November 12, 1866 – January 23, 1921) remains up to this day the most influential Croatian emigrant in the Americas. Marohnić was born in Hreljin, Croatia (then in Austria-Hungary) and lived in the United States for 28 years, ...

, founding father and first president of the CFU, also has a street named in his honor in Zagreb.

Benefits and activities

The CFU offers a wide variety of insurance plans. However, it has been an important group in preserving Croatian culture in North America, by supporting Croatian roots, and traditional tamburitza groups. The '' Zajedničar'', the CFU's newspaper, has been in circulation since 1904 and provides insurance information, as well as providing details about CFU cultural events from around the continent. The "Z", as it is called, began as a monthly and became a biweekly in 1909.

Membership

Membership is open to any one interested. Juvenile memberships are also available. In the late 1960s the CFU had 110,000 members. This declined to 100,000 members in 1979. That year the CFU had 1,000 lodges in twenty six states and several Canadian provinces. The CFU had 90,000 members in 1988.

Alan Axelrod Alan Axelrod (born 1952) is a prolific author of history, business and management books. As of October 2018, he had written more than 150 books. Axelrod resides in Atlanta, Georgia. Axelrod received his doctorate in English from the University o ...

''International Encyclopedia of Secret Societies and Fraternal Orders'' New York; Facts on File, inc 1997 p.57

Current officers

National board

High Trial Board

Junior Cultural Federation

Lodges

United States

Canada

Croatia

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official Website
Croatian-American culture in Pennsylvania Croatian-American history Fraternal Union Organizations established in 1894 Ethnic fraternal orders in the United States Croatian-Canadian culture Organizations based in Pittsburgh 1894 establishments in Pennsylvania