Mike Griffin vividly remembers sitting on the wood box at the Grange hall at 74 County Road in Scarborough while his parents attended weekly meetings that decided which charity the Grange members should embark on and when the next bean supper would be.

He remembers becoming a junior member, then, at age 14, a full member. Now, at 58, Griffin serves as the North Scarboro Grange’s master as it prepares to celebrate its 100th birthday.

“I’ve been through a lot with the Grange,” Griffin said. “A lot of events and a lot of good times.”

Even as the North Scarboro Grange holds its March 16 public supper and meeting to celebrate its longevity, Granges throughout the country are seeing their numbers dwindle.

“It’s a little sad,” said Mike’s mother, Barbara Griffin, 81, who is North Scarboro’s secretary. “I’ve been a member for 66 years and I can remember a time when the Grange was the center of the community.” That’s not so any more, she said.

The National Grange grew out of Farmer’s Clubs in the 1850s. Each club debated agricultural and household issues while both men and women had separate gatherings, said Maine Grange Master Jim Owens.

Numbers began declining after the Civil War, but under the leadership of National Master Obadiah Gardner in the 1870s, the number of Granges rebounded from 243 to 419. Membership during that time more than doubled from 21,515 to 55,212.

Granges have served rural communities throughout the years, hosting town meetings, banquets, dances and other events such as bean suppers in order to raise money for charitable causes, Owens said.

The number of Granges nationwide is currently about 180 with a membership of 8,000, according to the National Grange.

“I just think there is more for families to do now,” Owens said. “There didn’t used to be a lot of options for families or for towns to have functions or for extracurricular activities. That’s not true any more.”

North Scarboro is not immune to the decline. Once a booming club with more than 100 members, it now has about 33, said Mike Griffin. Ironically, it was established in 1909 after splitting from the Oak Hill club because Oak Hill membership became too unwieldy.

Members range in age from early 30s to late 80s.

“There used to be a lot of junior members, and it was common to see numerous members as young as 14,” Mike Griffin said. “It used to be that families would sit around the dinner table together and talk. I remember always going to the Scarboro Grange with my aunts and parents, and other friends and family members because it was a place for social gathering.”

Barbara Griffin, who joined shortly before World War II, said she remembers the days when the Grange held “World’s Fairs.” The events, she said, drew hundreds of people from Cumberland and York counties to Scarborough. The fairs included everything from displays of canned goods to sheep shearing demonstrations and horse rides, she said.

“They used to be a lot of fun,” she said. “It was like going to a yearly fair that brought the community together.”

She said the fairs stopped during World War II as Granges and the nation focused on the war effort. North Scarboro tried to host fairs after the war, but the enthusiasm wasn’t there.

“There just weren’t enough people to attend or to help,” she said.

To try and boost numbers, the Maine Grange has embarked on marketing campaigns advertising the benefits of joining a Grange, Owens said. For example, in the past, the Maine Grange would promote dairy awareness. Now it focuses on promotions such as home gardening and family involvement.

“We give yearly scholarships to members or to the children of members,” Owens said. “We would like to see our numbers increase.”

Barbara Griffin said North Scarboro might not see a 200th anniversary if the membership doesn’t grow.

“It just won’t happen,” she said.

Mike Griffin is more optimistic.

“Our slogan is, ‘If it’s to be, it’s up to me,’ ” Mike Griffin said. “It’s up to each member to recruit someone. I think with the economic times the way they are, people are going to start getting back to being more family-oriented. The Grange is always looking for new members and I think we will see our memberships grow again.”