OAImages Blog

Ty Lawson sat out his second game due to an ankle injury.  It was obvious the team was not the same without him.

Clemson had lost 52 consecutive games in Chapel Hill going into this match up.   A Carolina victory would be a record for the most consecutive home victories against a single opponent.  But it did not start well for the Tar Heels.

Continue Reading »

There are many abbreviations used in Blue Book and on this site that may not be readily apparent to collectors, especially those with less experience in this hobby.  Scott Dillard has written an excellent explanation of many of these abbreviations.  However many still do not know what these abbreviations mean.   I thought this would be a good time to explain three of the more obscure abbreviations used: LB, MTZ, and GER.

Once there were three major manufacturers of Order of the Arrow insignia.   While these three companies did not manufacture every OA item, they certainly were dominant forces in this business.   They were responsible for many of the classic issues of our hobby.   Flaps produced by each of these companies had distinctive shapes.   In some cases more than one of these companies produced very similar emblems for the same lodge.   So, an important part of being able to identify some of these older items properly is knowing which company manufactured them.  The three companies were Lion Brothers (LB), The Moritz Embroidery Works (MTZ), and the Geer Company (GER).  

An explanation of each of thes three shapes follows.

Continue Reading »

Here is another update on recent and forthcoming issues from Catawba lodge.

As is customary in recent years, Catawba will be issuing two patches for the delegates to this year’s Dixie Fellowship, the SR-5 Conclave.   Both items follow this year’s superhero them.

Continue Reading »

In the latter part of last year I was made aware that Catawba lodge had planned a new set of Ordeal, Brotherhood and Vigil flaps.   Shortly after that the directive came down from the National Committee that lodges were not to make special flaps for the various honors.   I had assumed Catawba issued the flaps anyway, as they were in the works, and left space on my site to insert them once I had images.

Recently Larry Banks told me that due to this new directive the Ordeal and Vigil flaps were not produced.  Only the Brotherhood flap was made and issued.   I pressume the lodge had run out of stock of their former brotherhood flaps before the change in policy and needed the new flap.

Continue Reading »

Muscogee lodge has come out with a new standard flap. The flap features an new artistic rendering of the lodge’s fox totem in what appears to be a Southeastern “low land” forest. The artistic style kind of matches this year’s activity patches and I suspect it is the work of the same artist.

Continue Reading »

Here’s another oddity that many have not seen and I have no real idea what it should be.

While at the SC TOR this past weekend, someone told me Johnny Pleasants had on his table a red bordered flap with the S9 design.   “Impossible!”  I said, “There is no such flap.”  I walked over to Brush Creek’s table and asked Johnny about it.  He reaches into one of his bins and pulls out this piece.

Continue Reading »

I accidentally left the 2006 Dixie flap out of my listings for this lodge.   I’m guessing this should be S53 and have renumbered the 2006 NOAC patches accordingly so as to make room for this flap

(Ed. note.  Post editted on 6/17/07 to add image supplied by Woody Woodruff.  Thanks.)

Continue Reading »

David Cody and Jimmy Arthurs tipped me off to this patch from 188.  It is the design of the 1994 NOAC flap from this lodge, where NOAC is misspelled “NCAC”.  They believe it should be listed as an issue.   I’m more skeptical.

They say that a large number of this lodge’s 1994 NOAC flaps were issued with NOAC misspelled “NCAC” and claim to have traded for several of these pieces.   Others were corrected after the fact and show signs of being restitched.   They say they informed the North Carolina Blue Book editor of this piece and he has declined to list it.

Continue Reading »

Skyuka lodge thought they were sure to score a touchdown with this year’s theme.  I wonder who won the “Skyuka Bowl”.   Like with Santee’s “Vikings”, I can imagine all sort of fun and fellowship - a friendly rivalry -  being had with the “hippies” from Itibapishe Iti Hollo lodge.

The lodge issued a single flap for this year’s conclave.

Continue Reading »

Unali’yi 236 let their inner nerd show at this year’s Dixie Fellowship. 

They issued a flap with a matching “dangle” this year, following their very geeky theme.  Two patch sets, where the bottom is meant to be a pocket hanger type patch seem to be becoming more popular in this part of the country.

Does anyone know what the writing across the top of the flap means?

Continue Reading »

Santee 116 appears to have adopted a Viking theme for this year’s Dixie Fellowship.   Before returning to the halls of Valhalla, the lodge issued a single flap for this conclave.   Word from the street has it that this flap was not issued to lodge members until 11pm Saturday night during conclave, making it one of the harder lodge issues to get from this year’s Dixie Fellowship.

Continue Reading »

Looking back towards “Brave Heart”, Bob White 87 adopted a ”Quail Heart” for the 2007 Dixie Fellowship.   I wonder how they got along with all those peace-loving folks from 188! ;)  The lodge had a minor bout of sanity, when compared to some other lodges these days, and issued only one flap.

Continue Reading »