Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta ®
The History of the American Association, U.S.A.
The American Association, approved at the request of Pope Pius XI, was installed on April 28, 1927, with headquarters in New York City. It became the tenth National Association of the Order, and the first in the Western Hemisphere.
From its small beginnings it has grown to approximately 1,700 Knights and Dames. Women were first welcomed to the Association in 1985. Although the Order includes both Knights and Dames from around the world, the shortened, more familiar name, the Order of Malta®, is often incorrectly referred to in conversation as simply the Knights of Malta®.
There are more than 25 designated American Association Areas across the country with appointed Area Chairpersons. Knights and Dames assist a broad number of charitable projects financially and with their hands-on volunteer efforts. The Association has participated in the Annual Order of Malta Pilgrimage to Lourdes since 1986.
The Association holds its annual investiture of new members in St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City each November.