Shriners are a fraternal organization of Master Masons best known today for their charitable work—especially Shriners Hospitals for Children—and for their distinctive red fezzes, parades, and community events.

What the Shriners Are

  • Shriners (formally Shriners International) are a Masonic appendant body, meaning members must first be Freemasons before joining.
  • The group focuses on fellowship, family-oriented social events, and large-scale philanthropy rather than only traditional lodge ritual.

How They Started

  • The Shrine began in New York in the early 1870s when several Masons, including Walter M. Fleming and William J. Florence, created a new fraternity with Middle Eastern–themed symbols and ceremonies.
  • It was originally called the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine (A.A.O.N.M.S.), which many members like to note can be rearranged to “A MASON.”

What They Do Today

  • Shriners are most famous for sponsoring Shriners Hospitals for Children, a network of pediatric specialty hospitals that began in the 1920s to provide free or heavily subsidized care, especially for orthopedic conditions and burn treatment.
  • Local Shrine temples run fundraising events—such as circuses, parades, and festivals—to support the hospitals and other charitable causes while also serving as social hubs for members and their families.

Culture, Image, and Online Talk

  • Publicly, Shriners are often recognized as “the guys in the little cars with the fezzes” in parades, mixing lighthearted pageantry with charitable messaging.
  • In forums and conspiracy discussions, some people link them to secretive Masonic influence, while others describe them more casually as hobbyist or social-club Masons with a strong charity arm.

TL;DR: Shriners are a Masonic-based fraternity founded in the 1870s that blends social fun, Middle Eastern–style symbolism, and large-scale philanthropy—most notably Shriners Hospitals for Children.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.