E. Clampus Vitus: Historians who like to drink, or drinkers who like history?

Just who are the Clampers?

Well, they are a good argument for something I’ve been told all my life – that men will be boys.  They are historians who like to drink, or drinkers who like history – no one is sure which, not even the members of this offbeat group of oddballs.   For all their tom-foolery, they do something very important – they help preserve our history.  These are the people who place many of the historical markers you’ll find on the side of the road.

The first members of E. Clampus Vitus – the Clampers – were gold miners and prospectors in the California gold rush days.  The club grew as a parody of Masons and Oddfellows, with initiation rituals and rites that were meant to amuse and entertain with rough-housing antics and irreverent humor.  Mark Twain was rumored to be a Clamper, and if he wasn’t…