Note:  This material was scanned into text files for the sole purpose of convenient electronic research. This material is NOT intended as a reproduction of the original volumes. However close the material is to becoming a reproduced work, it should ONLY be regarded as a textual reference.  Scanned at Phoenixmasonry by Ralph W. Omholt, PM in May 2007.
 

GOULD'S HISTORY OF FREEMASONRY

THROUGHOUT THE WORLD

 

VOLUME V 

 

CONTENTS

 

CHAPTER ONE

 FREEMASONRY IN ALABAMA - Page 1

 

CHAPTER TWO

FREEMASONRY IN ARIZONA 17

 

CHAPTER THREE

FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS 29

 

CHAPTER FOUR

FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA 50

FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO

 

CHAPTER FIVE 67

 FREEMASONRY IN CONNECTICUT

FREEMASONRY IN DELAWARE

 

CHAPTER EIGHT

FREEMASONRY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

 

CHAPTER NINE

 FREEMASONRY IN FLORIDA

 

CHAPTER TEN

FREEMASONRY IN GEORGIA

 

CHAPTER ELEVEN

 FREEMASONRY IN THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS

 

CHAPTER TWELVE

 FREEMASONRY IN IDAHO

 

CHAPTER  THIRTEEN

FREEMASONRY IN ILLINOIS

 

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

FREEMASONRY IN INDIANA

 

 CHAPTER FIFTEEN

FREEMASONRY IN IOWA

 

 CHAPTER SIXTEEN

 FREEMASONRY IN KANSAS

 

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

FREEMASONRY IN KENTUCKY

 

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

FREEMASONRY IN LOUISIANA

 FREEMASONRY IN MAINE

 

CHAPTER NINETEEN

 FREEMASONRY IN MARYLAND

 

CHAPTER TWENTY‑ONE

FREEMASONRY IN MASSACHUSETTS

 

 CHAPTER TWENTY‑TWO

FREEMASONRY IN MICHIGAN

 

CHAPTER TWENTY‑THREE

FREEMASONRY IN MINNESOTA

 

CHAPTER TWENTY‑FOUR

 FREEMASONRY IN MISSISSIPPI

 

CHAPTER TWENTY‑FIVE

FREEMASONRY IN MISSOURI

 

CHAPTER TWENTY‑SIX

FREEMASONRY IN MONTANA

 

CHAPTER TWENTY‑SEVEN

FREEMASONRY IN NEBRASKA

 

CHAPTER TWENTY‑EIGHT

FREEMASONRY IN NEVADA

 

CHAPTER TWENTY‑NINE

FREEMASONRY IN NEW HAMPSHIRE

 

CHAPTER THIRTY

ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE ROYAL ARCH SYSTEM

 

CHAPTER THIRTY‑ONE

THE ORDER OF THE TEMPLE IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

 

CHAPTER THIRTY‑TWO

THE GENERAL GRAND COUNCIL OF ROYAL AND SELECT

 MASTERS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

 

CHAPTER THIRTY‑THREE

THE SCOTTISH RITE OF FREEMASONRY

 

CHAPTER THIRTY‑FOUR

THE ANCIENT ARABIC ORDER OF THE NOBLES OF THE

 MYSTIC SHRINE

 

[The remaining States are in Volume Vl.]

 

FOREWORD

THE intimate connection between Freemasonry and the founding and development of America is fascinating and illuminating, not only to the Brethren of the Craft but to all who are interested in the history of the building of the civic life of North America. Neglected by the writers of history, because unrealised and unknown, the spirit and ideals of this ancient Fraternity have played a mighty part. Herein, for the first‑ time, is to be found the first real picture showing how Freemasonry and its teachings and influence were a vital part of the early days‑the establishment and growth‑of the States and Provinces of the United States and Canada. Far more potent than the wars of which the historian writes at length, in the crystallising and fixation of the fundamentals of North American civilisation, were the tenets of Freemasonry. One has but to follow the men whose names appear in these pages, for history is but the record of the lives and influence of men.

Never before has the history of American Freemasonry been presented as in this work. No one person could do it. For each jurisdiction, some leader in the Craft, imbued with its spirit and a student of its history, has been chosen to tell the story of that jurisdiction. The tale has thus been told by experts who will be recognized as such by the Brethren of the Grand jurisdictions of which they write. All of them are nationally and some internationally known and acclaimed.

Bro. J. Edward Allen and I have made the selection of the co‑authors but we have left them unhampered except by limitations of space. Theirs is the credit for research and the responsibility for conclusions. We are grateful for their co‑operation, given freely and without financial reward, but merely that the true story may be told of the Fraternity they love and, serve.

 

MELVIN M. JOHNSON.

 

 

 ILLUSTRATIONS VOLUME V Benjamin Franklin Frontispiece PACING PAGE s Administration Building, Montgomery, Alabama 8 The Masonic Temple, Montgomery, Alabama 8 Eastern Star Hospital, Montgomery, Alabama 14 American Masonry Upon the Western Trail pages 20‑21 Albert Pike 40 Fay Hempstead 44 1 The Albert Pike Memorial 48 The Albert Pike Residence 48 San Francisco, 1870 52 Grand Parade, Knights Templar, 1883 52 Mystic Shrine Temple, Los Angeles, California 58 Shriners at San Diego Fair 5 8 b Passion Cross Formation 64 Gregory Gulch, 1859 page 70 Cabin of Sagendorf and Lehow 72 Masonic Temple, Grand Junction, Colorado 72 Highlands Masonic Temple, Denver, Colorado 72 Colorado Consistory 76 Masonic Temple, Fort Collins, Colorado 76 Lawrence Nicholls Greenleaf 82 Henry Moore Teller 82 X111 xiv ILLUSTRATIONS 8AQN0 PAOB Lodge Night in the Village 88 The Masonic Home at Wallingford, Connecticut 92 Masonic Temple, Woodbury, Connecticut 92 Gunning Bedford 98 Two Views of the Masonic Home of Delaware 104 The Scottish Rite Temple, Washington, D. C. io8 Home of Federal Lodge, No. 1, 1796‑1804 112 First Home of Columbia Lodge, No. 3 112 The Masonic Temple, Washington, D. C. 112 A Notable Masonic Ceremony 114 The 61st Annual Session of the Imperial Council, A. A. O. N. M. S. 116 Grand Lodge, F. and A. M., Florida 12‑2 A Masonic Diploma in French 126 Masonic Temple, Fort Lauderdale, Florida 126 The Scottish Rite Temple, Miami, Florida 132 Major General James Edward Oglethorpe 138 George Walton 138 Noble Jones 138 At the King's Boat‑house, Honolulu 158 Masonic Temple at Boise, Idaho 166 Masonic Hall, Idaho City, Idaho 166 Return of Western Star Lodge, No. 107 page 177 Shadrach Bond 180 Governor L. L. Emmerson 180 Masonic Temple, Decatur, Illinois 182 Masonic Temple, Evanston, Illinois 182 Marshall Masonic Temple 182 ILLUSTRATIONS xv PAC1NG PAGE Airplane View of the Illinois Masonic Home 184 The Illinois Masonic Orphans' Home 186 Masonic Temple, Chicago, Illinois 19o Knights Templar Grand Commandery of Illinois 194 Knights Templar Hospital, Knightstown, Indiana 198 The Indiana Masonic Home at Franklin, Indiana 200 Masonic Temple, Indianapolis, Indiana 202 Masonic Temple, South Bend, Indiana 202 Masonic Temple, Logansport, Indiana 204 Masonic Temple, Marion, Indiana 204 Scottish Rite Cathedral, Indianapolis, Indiana 2o8 Masonic Temple, Sioux City, Iowa 212 Theodore Sutton Parvin, LL.D. 218 Louis Block, P .'. G .'. M. 218 Iowa Masonic Library, Cedar Rapids, Iowa 218 Masonic Home, Wichita, Kansas 226 Grand Lodge Building, Topeka, Kansas 226 Building of the Grand Consistory of Kentucky 230 The Old Masons Home, Shelbyville, Kentucky 232 The Building of Preston Lodge, No. 281, Louisville 232 The Masonic Widows and Orphans Home and Infirmary, Louisville 236 Masonic Temple, New Orleans, Louisiana 244 The New Masonic Temple, New Orleans 244 The Charter of Portland Lodge page 263 William King, First Grand Master 266 Robert P. Dunlap, Sixth Grand Master 266 Josiah H. Drummond, Twenty‑second Grand Master 266 xvi ILLUSTRATIONS PACING Peas Masonic Hall, Sanford, Maine 272 Masonic Hall, Winthrop, Maine 272 Laying the First Stone of the Baltimore and Ohio R.R. 282 John M. Carter 286 General Thomas J. Shryock 286 Edward T. Schultz 286 Maryland Masonic Home, "Bonnie Blink," Cockeysville, Maryland 290 The Scottish Rite Temple, Baltimore, Maryland 300 Facsimile of Petition of First Lodge in Boston, Massachusetts page ‑ 311 The Green Dragon Tavern in Boston, Massachusetts 34 The Masonic Funeral Given General Warren 34 Masonic Temple at Plymouth, Massachusetts 320 Masonic Temple at Dedham, Massachusetts 320 Masonic Temple, Worcester, Massachusetts 322 Masonic Temple, North Attleboro, Massachusetts 322 Massachusetts Masonic Home, "Overlook" 326 Corner‑stone Laying, Lowell, Massachusetts 326 Masonic Temple, Detroit, Michigan 330 Michigan Masonic Home, Main Building, Alma, Michigan 334 R The Hospital at the Michigan Masonic Home, Alma, Michigan 334 Masonic Temple, Ann Arbor, Michigan 334 The Passion Cross, Detroit Commandery, No. i, Knights Templar 340 A. E. Ames 350 A. T.,,C. Pierson 350 Old Central House, St. Paul, Minnesota 350 Old Masonic Temple, Natchez, Mississippi 36o Masonic Temple, St. Louis, Missouri 374 ILLUSTRATIONS xvil FACING reds The Eastern Star Room 376 The Lobby 376 Scottish Rite Temple, Kansas City, Missouri 38o Ivanhoe Masonic Temple, Kansas City, Missouri 384 The William Frederick Kuhn Memorial 384 Montana's Masonic Home 394 Laying the Corner Stone at Billings, Montana 394 Nebraska Masonic Home 4o8 Facsimile of Petition for First Lodge in New Hampshire page 423 Masonic Temple, Manchester, New Hampshire 428 Jewels and Apron of the Royal Arch 438 Knights Templar Parade on Capitol Hill, Albany 488 Shriners at Washington, D. C., 1935 536 Columns of the Mystic Shrine Erected in Washington, D. C. 538 Prominent Army Officers, Members of the Masonic Fraternity Duke of Wellington, Arthur St. Clair, Frederick the Great, Marquis de Lafayette, Anthony Wayne, Baron von Steuben, Napoleon Bonaparte, Winfield Scott, Simon Bolivar, John J. Pershing, Nelson A. Miles, George B. McClellan At end of volume GOULD'S HISTORY OF FREEMASONRY THROUGHOUT THE WORLD VOLUME V A HISTORY OF FREEMASONRY THROUGHOUT THE WORLD VOL. V FREEMASONRY IN ALABAMA OLIVER DAY STREET INTRODUCTORY THE existing Masonic Grand Bodies in Alabama were formed on the dates following The Grand Lodge on June II, 1821. The Grand Chapter on June 2, 182‑7.

 

The Grand Council on December 13, 1828. The Grand Commandery on December I, i86o. The Council of Anointed High Priests on December 8, 1869.

 

The earliest Bodies of the Scottish Rite in Alabama were formed at Mobile in December 1867.

 

Red Cross of Constantine, Saint Dunstan's Conclave, instituted at Birmingham on September 25, 1925.

 

These dates will furnish us with convenient points of departure in sketching the history of Freemasonry in Alabama.

 

SYMBOLIC MASONRY Masonry in Alabama, of course, preceded the formation of the Grand Lodge. Masons were among its earliest settlers. The settlement of Madison County, lying north of the Tennessee River, began feebly in i 8o5 and, on August 29, 1811, a Dispensation was issued by the Grand Lodge of Kentucky for the earliest Lodge in the State. This was Madison Lodge, No. 2.1, at Huntsville. Its Officers under the Dispensation were Marmaduke Williams, Master; John C. Hamilton, Senior Warden; and William Harrison, Junior Warden. Charter was granted August 2‑.8, 18iz, and the first Officers under the Charter were Lewis Watson, Master; Thomas Fearn, Senior Warden; and John J. Winston, Junior Warden. It still exists as Helion, No. I, at Huntsville.

 

From 1812 to the organisation of Grand Lodge on June 11, I82I, fourteen other lodges were formed. They were, 2 FREEMASONRY IN ALABAMA Friendship, No. 6, at Mobile. Chartered by the Grand Lodge of Louisiana, September 6, 1813; forfeited July i, i82o; Friendship, No. 65, at St. Stephens. Chartered by the Grand Lodge of North Carolina about 1815; forfeited in 1816; Alabama, No. 21, at Huntsville. Dispensation issued by the Grand Master of Tennessee, April 6, 1818; Charter granted October 4, 1818; Washington, No. 23, at Hazel Green. Dispensation issued by the Grand Master of Tennessee, July 6, 1818; Charter granted October 6, 1818; surrendered in 1829; Eureka, No. 16, at Blakely. Charter granted by the Grand Lodge of Louisiana, March 27, 1819; forfeited previous to June 1821; Alabama, No. 51, at Claiborne. Chartered by the Grand Lodge of South Carolina, June 2S, 1819; Rising Virtue, No. 3o, at Tuscaloosa. Dispensation issued by the Grand Master of Tennessee, August 2, 1819; Charter granted October 5, 1819; Halo, No. 21, at Cahaba. Dispensation issued by the Grand Master of Georgia, February 21, 182o; Charter granted January 24, 1821; forfeited in 1872; Moulton, No. 34, at Moulton. Dispensation issued by the Grand Master of Tennessee, May 2, 182o; Charter granted October 4, 1820; Franklin, No. 36, at Russellville. Dispensation issued by the Grand Master of Tennessee, October 3, 182o; surrendered December 8, 1824; Tuscumbia, No. 4o, at Courtland. Dispensation issued by the Grand Master of Tennessee, March 3, 1821; Charter granted December 18, 1821; forfeited January 9, 1834; Farrar, No. 41, at Elyton (now Birmingham). Dispensation issued by the Grand Master of Tennessee, March 6, 1821; St. Stephens, at St. Stephens. Dispensation issued by the Grand Master of North Carolina, April 12, 1821; forfeited in 1834; Marion, at Suggsville. Dispensation issued by the Grand Master of Georgia, May 28, 1821; Chartered December 18, 1821; forfeited in 1878.

 

Nine of these, viz.: Halo, Madison, St. Stephens, Rising Virtue, Alabama, No. 51, Farrar, Alabama, No. 21, Moulton, and Franklin (or Russellville) Lodges, after due notice to all, participated in the Convention which convened in the hall of Halo Lodge, at Cahaba, on June 11, 1821, and formed the Grand Lodge of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of Alabama, with Thomas W. Farrar, of Elyton, as Grand Master and Thomas Amis Rogers, of Cahaba, as Grand Secretary.

 

Washington, No. 23, Tuscumbia, No. 40, and Marion did not attend the Convention. Washington never adhered but the other two, Tuscumbia and Marion, accepted Charters December 18, 1821.

 

Those who participated in forming the Grand Lodge, so far as the proceedings disclose, were Thomas W. Farrar, John Brown, and Bartholomew Labuzan, all of Elyton (Birmingham); Israel Pickens and Benjamin S. Smoot, of St. Stephens; Constantine Perkins, Thomas Owen, and Dugald McFarlane, FREEMASONRY IN ALABAMA 3 all of Tuscaloosa; William B. Allen, John H. Thorington, David McCord, Thomas O. Meux, Horatio G. Perry, Luther Blake, John Cox, Thomas Amis Rogers, and Robert B. Watson, all of Cahaba; Gabriel Moore, David Moore, Clement C. Clay, John M. Leake, and Frederick Weeden, all of Huntsville; Anderson Hutchinson and Lewis B. Tully, of Moulton; George W. Owen, John Murphy, and James H. Draughan, all of Claiborne; Seth W. Ligon and George Kreps, residence unknown; John S. Fulton, of Russellville, and the Rev. John B. Warren and John Elliott, of Mobile. There was also present a Bro. Davis.

 

Of the fifteen Lodges above mentioned, seven derived from the Grand Lodge of Tennessee; two from that of Georgia; two from that of Louisiana; two from that of North Carolina, and one each from Kentucky and South Caro lina. Both of the Lodges from Louisiana ceased to exist before the formation of the Grand Lodge, as did one from North Carolina.

 

The Lodges participating in the formation of Grand Lodge hailed thus from Tennessee, four; Georgia, two; Kentucky, one; North Carolina, one; and South Carolina, one. This is sufficient evidence of the orthodox character of the Freemasonry of Alabama.

 

On June 15, 1821, the Lodges participating in the formation of the Grand Lodge surrendered their old Charters or Dispensations and received new Charters with numbers as follows No. 1, Madison, at Huntsville, No. 2, Alabama, at Huntsville, No. 3, Alabama, at Claiborne, No. 4, Rising Virtue, at Tuscaloosa, No. S, Halo, at Cahaba, No. 6, Moulton, at Moulton, No. 7, Russellville, at Russellville, No. 8, Farrar, at Elyton (now Birmingham), No. 9, St. Stephens, at St. Stephens.

 

Lodge No. 1o, under the new Grand Lodge, was Chartered on December 1g, 1821, under the name of Mobile; became defunct in 1831; Lodge No. 11 was Chartered January 1, 1822, at Montgomery, under that name; still active; Marion, at Suggsville, accepted a Charter on December 18, 1821, and became No. 12; now defunct; Tuscumbia, No. 4o became No. 21 on December 2i, 1824, on the roster of the new Grand Lodge; now defunct; Washington, No. 23, at Hazel Green, Chartered by the Grand Lodge of Tennessee, ceased to exist in 1829, by surrender of its Charter, without ever becoming a constituent of the Grand Lodge of Alabama. Thus is accounted for all of the original fifteen Lodges in Alabama.

 

To‑day, Madison, No. 1 and Alabama, No. 2, at Huntsville, exist by virtue of their consolidation in 1824 as Helion, No. i.

 

Alabama, No. 3 is now at Perdue Hill, Monroe County, and Rising Virtue, 4 FREEMASONRY IN ALABAMA Moulton, and Farrar still exist at their original sites. Thus we see that of the nine Lodges forming the Grand Lodge six are still in existence. The three dead ones are Halo, at Cahaba; Franklin, at Russellville; and St. Stephens. Two of the three were located at former but now dead capitals of the State; the towns of Cahaba and Old St. Stephens no longer exist. Russellville is a prosperous town in the northwest corner of the State and now has a live Lodge under the same name, but as No. 371.

 

The aspiring little city in which the Grand Lodge was formed has passed away, and we venture to quote here a description of its rise and fall from Mrs. Fry's ".Memories of Old Cahaba " (1908) When the General Assembly convened at Huntsville the following year (18ig), the Commissioners reported that they had selected a locality at the mouth of the Cahaba River for the capital and by that Legislature of 1819 the town of Cahaba was incorporated, lots laid out and a location for the government buildings selected by Governor William Bibb, who appointed Luther Blake, Carlisle Humphreys and Willis Roberts to hold the first town election.

 

Cahaba at this early day was not only the capital of the State, but was also the seat of justice of Dallas County, and soon sprung into an important business and social centre, despite its unfortunate geographical location. Lying in a valley, the Alabama River in front, with the Cahaba River flowing around the northwestern and northern portions of the town, and Clear Creek on the west, the place is almost surrounded by streams of water, which become swollen torrents and subject it to heavy overflow during the wet season.

 

In 1820, Cahaba had two newspapers, a land office, State bank, stores, private boarding houses, hotels, schools and churches, we presume, though there is no mention made of a church until later on.

 

In 1822, a large amount of public land was sold in Cahaba at public outcry. Lands in the vicinity of the town brought $1.25 an acre. In a few weeks these same lands were worth $6o.oo and $70.oo an acre, and in a few months could not be had at any price. There was a great demand for city lots, and it has been stated that unimproved lots in the central portion of the town in 1822 sold as high as $5,025, and that the sale of 184 lots amounted to over $120,000, which amount was added to the sum set aside by the Legislature for government buildings.

 

The Capitol was a solid square brick structure, two stories high, surmounted by an imposing dome, said to be similar in appearance to the old Capitol building at St. Augustine, Fla., which was erected in the same year. On either side of the broad hall that ran through the centre of the first floor were the executive and state offices. The second floor, composed of two large rooms, was occupied by the Senate and House of Representatives.

 

The town was now growing and continued to improve rapidly until 1825, when the largest flood ever known in the history of this country swept down the Alabama and Cahaba Rivers and completely inundated Cahaba. According to tradition the Legislature was in session when the flood came and the different representatives had to be rowed in boats and landed in the second story of the Capitol to reach the legislative, halls. Many of the private residences and public FREEMASONRY IN ALABAMA 5 buildings were injured by the overflow and, when a portion of the State House fell, Cahaba was no longer deemed safe as the seat of government, and at a meeting of the next Legislature, in January 182‑6, the capital was removed to Tuscaloosa.

 

Cahaba now became almost abandoned. Though it still remained the county seat of Dallas County, many of the most influential inhabitants moved away and the town rapidly declined. Many of the houses were torn down and moved to Mobile. Many of those left were unoccupied. Rare flowers bloomed in the lonely yards in neglected wild luxuriance. Beautiful climbing roses waved mournfully to the breeze from decaying galleries and the grass grew in the principal streets as though months had passed since foot had touched it. The place was lonely and deserted. And this a few months before was the gay capital of the State of Alabama, famed for its thrift and industry, its hospitality and its chivalry! A sad commentary on the uncertainty and mutability of human hopes, human endeavours and human ambition! But those beautiful scenes are no more. All those noble, grand old people have passed away and their like will never be seen again, because the conditions and the surroundings that produced them are no longer a part of the South.

 

They are gone never to return, and Cahaba, like Rome, must ever remain a Niobe of the nation, a mother bereft of her children, to whom our hearts still cling with loving enthusiasm in memory of her departed glory. Though long years have passed and the ruin is now perfect and complete, the site of the old town is still a lovely spot, where the pure, limpid waters gush unceasingly from the Artesian wells; where the flowers planted long years ago still bloom in perennial spring in the old‑time yards; where the mocking bird still sings in the springtime and the Cherokee roses, full with blossoms, shed their snowy petals along the deserted streets; where the sweet breath of the China blossom is wafted by the night breeze; where the stars still shine in all their brilliant beauty and the moon rises in its old‑time splendour enfolding the ruined town in its soft, mellow light and lovingly shadows the graves of the dead, who when living, were among the most refined, cultivated and intellectual people that ever adorned the State of Alabama.

 

A description of the other dead capital, Old St. Stephens, would read much like the foregoing.

 

It was among a people and surroundings like these that the Grand Lodge of Alabama had its beginning. It is not surprising that those who composed it were the best people of their day.

 

The Lodges formed during 182‑1 and prior thereto were located as follows two at Huntsville; two at Mobile; two at St. Stephens; and one each at Hazel Green, Blakely, Claiborne, Tuscaloosa, Cahaba, Moulton, Russellville, Court land, Elyton, Suggsville, Montgomery, Conecuh C. H., and Florence. A glance at the map shows that of these nineteen Lodges, seven were in the Tennessee Valley; seven were in the southwest (or Mobile) corner of the State; and one each at Tuscaloosa, Cahaba, Montgomery, Elyton (Birmingham) and Conecuh C. H. The two chief Masonic centres were the Tennessee Valley in the 6 FREEMASONRY IN ALABAMA extreme north, and the Mobile Neck in the extreme south end of the State, with thin lines extending up the Alabama and Black Warrior Rivers, then two of the State's main avenues of travel and communication.

 

This may give a hint of the difficult conditions under which Masonry then existed in Alabama. The first five Annual Communications of Grand Lodge were held in Cahaba on the Alabama River, and then the meetings were held at Tuscaloosa, the new capital, on the Black Warrior for many years.

 

To reach either of these places from Mobile or the Tennessee Valley required wearisome travel by steamboat or over bad roads and occupied about two weeks of time going, attending Grand Lodge and returning home. Con trast this with the impatience with which we now give two or three days to the discharge of this duty.

 

Masonry in Alabama, as elsewhere, was very injuriously affected during the years 1830 to 1840 by the so‑called " Morgan Craze," the agitation which grew out of the disappearance of one William Morgan from Batavia, New York, in 182‑6, allegedly abducted and murdered by the Freemasons because of his betrayal of their secrets. It is unnecessary to enter into that subject further than to mention the effects it had on Masonry in Alabama. For about two years its effects here were not marked. By 182‑9 the storm was being felt. In that year there were thirty‑three Lodges in the State and of these the Charters of ten were declared forfeited at the Annual Communication in December of that year and representatives from only nine Lodges appeared the first day. The Committee on Foreign Correspondence alluded to the " anti‑Masonic clamour and malignant opposition " prevailing in many States. Feeble Annual Communications of the Grand Lodge were held in 1830 to 1834. No further Communications were then held until December 6, 1836. For two years the light of the Grand Lodge went out, but on the last‑named date the representatives of six Lodges and four other Brethren met at Tuscaloosa and revived the Grand Lodge. The Grand Chapter went to sleep from July 1830 to December 1837, and no Assembly of the Grand Council was held in 1840.

 

But by 1841 the storm had spent its force. The strong men had never weakened or lowered their flag. The timid began to venture back. In a few years all signs of the devastation had disappeared and Masonry, stronger for its trials, entered upon an era of progress that has never been halted, though severely shaken by the ravages of the Civil War.

 

In the year 1859 the Grand Lodge and its particular Lodges were legally incorporated by special Act of the Legislature, giving them a standing before the law not otherwise obtainable. Its Charter was materially but not radically amended in 1875 by another Act of the Legislature.

 

After many years of effort, finally the Grand Lodge in 1912 established a Masonic Home, at Montgomery, for the care of distressed Master Masons and their widows and orphans. It was formally opened on the 18th day of January 1913, with three girl children as inmates. While as usual with such institutions it has taxed the financial resources of the Grand Lodge, it has met in the main FREEMASONRY IN ALABAMA 7 the expectations and hopes of its founders and supporters. Its burden is lightened by the maintenance of the Emergency (or Charity) Fund for the assistance of the distressed outside the Home. The utility and value of this fund as an instrument of relief has been fully proved.

 

Until 1903 the Grand Lodge had no printed manual or monitor of its own. For the written " Work " recourse was had to those of Webb and Cross or to monitors based upon them. In the year above named it promulgated a manual of its own, which also included the Constitution and Edicts. This book has gone through many editions and reprintings and has contributed much to the spread of Masonic knowledge among the Masons of the State. Webb's Monitor is, of course, its basis with many of Cross' changes and additions.

 

The history of Masonry in Alabama has not been replete with exciting or stirring events. Peace and harmony have at all times prevailed among the Craft, a condition favourable to its solid growth and prosperity. A long suc cession of able and devoted leaders (Grand Masters, Grand Secretaries, Grand Lecturers, Foreign Correspondents, etc.,) have assured it a firm and safe course at home and respect from abroad.

 

The Committee on Foreign Correspondence had its beginning in 182‑6, but its duties did not assume their present form till 1842‑. Prior to this latter date its reports were barren. The first real report was given in 1844 by Leroy Pope Walker, subsequently Secretary of War of the Confederacy. He reviewed twenty Grand Lodges in two pages and thus briefly cast the form for the future. The office of Grand Lecturer began with the organisation of the Grand Lodge in 182‑1 and existed till 1857. It then became vacant and was not recreated till 1889. With the death of Bro. Angus M. 'Scott in 1915, the office again lapsed and has so remained though repeated efforts have been made to revive it. A system of District Lecturers has taken its place.

 

James Penn, Grand Lecturer from 182‑7 to 1834, may fairly be regarded as the father of the " Alabama Work." Situated as the Lodges were in those days and under the conditions surrounding them, intercourse between them was of the most scanty nature and, Chartered as they were by five different Grand Lodges, it will be easily under stood that among these early Lodges there was no uniformity of " Work." To add to the confusion no doubt every Lodge had members made in different States, each feeling and insisting that his Work was the best and most authentic.

 

Until 1826 there was no established " Work "; each Lodge followed the Work of the State from which its members chiefly hailed. But at the 182‑6 Communication, under date of December 15, we find this record: Brother Penn offered the following resolution " Resolved that a working committee be appointed to consist of five brethren; who shall on Monday Evening next, exemplify the mode of work, which they may believe to be the most correct on the three First Degrees of Ma‑ 8 FREEMASONRY IN ALABAMA sonry," which being carried, Brothers McFarlane, Penn, Wallace, Phister and Wooldridge were appointed said committee.

 

The proceedings for the next Monday, December 18, contain the following: This being the day assigned for hearing the report of the working committee, Brother James Penn, from said committee, gave a splendid and most interesting exemplification of the mode of work agreed upon by said committee, in the three first degrees of Masonry, which was received with great and deserved applause.

 

So long as James Penn attended Grand Lodge, whenever the " Work " was exemplified, it was done under his direction. When, in 1846, he left the State his mantle fell upon the shoulders of James M. Brundidge, one of his initiates and pupils. From 1848 till his death on March 13, igoi, Bro. Brundidge was regarded as the last authority upon what was the proper " Work " for Alabama. He was without doubt the greatest ritualist Alabama Masonry has produced. Angus M. Scott, his pupil, was second only to Brundidge for length of service, for knowledge of the " Work," and for skill in imparting it. By their sweetness of spirit, their nobility of character, their purity of life, their charm of person and their ability as instructors, these three men left a lasting impression upon the Masonic Fraternity in this State.

 

The first standing Committee on Work was created in December 1842, and at no time since has the Grand Lodge been without such Committee. Sometimes its Chairman and the Grand Lecturer have been the same person, and sometimes not.

 

To the Grand Lecturers and their co‑workers, the Chairman of the Committee on Work, must be accorded a large measure of credit for the progress of the Craft and its present prosperous condition in the State.

 

Among the members of the Lodges in i82i, and prior thereto, were the foremost business, professional, and public men of the day, embracing United States senators, members of Congress, governors, legislators, lawyers, phy sicians, ministers, educators, etc., etc. A hasty glance discloses the following: Thomas W. Farrar, the first Grand Master, was a highly respected man and Mason. This is attested by the fact of his election to the highest office in the gift of his Brethren from among the distinguished body of men who composed the first Grand Lodge. He married Seraphine Bagneris, a French woman of high standing from Louisiana, by whom he had two sons, Du Volney T. and Du Vernay, and it is a tradition in his family that he and LaFayette were close friends and that the latter named Bro. Farrar's two sons. Descendants and relatives of Thomas W. Farrar reside in New Orleans, but they know little of him. It is regretted that our data are so meagre.

 

Thomas Amis Rogers 0'792‑i82i), the first Grand Secretary, died during this year at the early age of twenty‑nine years, yet he had served as a member of the State Constitutional Convention of 18ig, and as secretary of the State FREEMASONRY IN ALABAMA 9 Senate in 1819 and was secretary of state from i8i9 to his death in i821. He was a lawyer by profession and built the first court house for Shelby County. We do not wish to convert this sketch into a biographical dictionary of the prominent men of Alabama of that period, but we must mention the following Marmaduke Williams (1774‑i85o), lawyer; member of Congress; member of Constitutional Convention of 1819; judge; brother to Robert Williams, governor of Mississippi Territory; married Agnes Payne, first cousin of Dolly Madison; many prominent descendants in Alabama.

 

Thomas Fearn (1789‑1863), physician and surgeon; Gen. Andrew Jackson's personal physician in Creek War, 1813; member of Alabama " Secession Convention," 1861; member of first Confederate Congress.

 

John Brown, a soldier of the Revolutionary army; pensioned as such March 15, 1833.

 

Bartholomew Labuzan, a leading merchant of his day.

 

Constantine Perkins (1792‑1836), lawyer; elected attorney‑general of Alabama 1825; was under Andrew Jackson in Creek War of 1813.

 

Horatio Gates Perry (1795‑1834), lawyer; served in both branches of the Legislature; circuit judge.

 

Gabriel Moore (1785‑1845), lawyer; speaker of first Territorial Legislature of Alabama; member of Constitutional Convention of 1819; president of State Senate, i 82o; member of Congress, 1822‑29; governor, 1829‑31; U. S. senator, 1831‑37.

 

David Moore (1789‑1845), family physician of Andrew Jackson; elected to Legislature thirteen times; State Senate, 182.2.‑2.5; speaker of the House, 1841; extensive planter.

 

Clement Comer Clay (1789‑1866), lawyer; congressman; governor; U. S. senator; served in Creek War of 1813; member of Territorial Legislature and of Constitutional Convention of 1819; author of Clay's Digest, 1843.

 

Frederick Weeden, distinguished physician and surgeon; soldier.

 

George Washington Owen (1796‑1837), lawyer, studied in the office of Felix Grundy; partner of Governor John Gayle; speaker of the House, 182o; in Congress, 1823‑29; mayor of Mobile, 1836.

 

John Murphy (1785‑1841), lawyer; planter, governor, member of Congress; clerk of South Carolina Senate for ten years; member of Constitutional Convention of 1819.

 

Thomas Owen, lawyer; son‑in‑law of Marmaduke Williams and grandfather of Thomas McAdory Owen, founder and director of the Alabama Department of Archives and History.

 

Israel Pickens (178o‑1827), member of North Carolina Senate, i8o8‑Io; in Congress from that State, 1811‑17; register of U. S. Land Office at St. Stephens, Alabama; member of Constitutional Convention of 1819; governor, 1821‑25; U. S. senator, 1826.

 

Masonic membership in Alabama has been no less distinguished since 1821 10 FREEMASONRY IN ALABAMA than it was in that year and prior thereto. The names mentioned in this sketch, coupled with a reasonable familiarity with the history of Alabama, demonstrate what a large share Masonry has had in the settlement, founding, and building of the State. Nearly all of its leading men have been Masons.

 

In recent years the Masonic membership in Alabama has shown a marked decline. There are two main causes for this, the depressed financial conditions and the unwise facility afforded unworthy profanes for initiation during and following the World War.

 

CAPITULAR MASONRY On March 21, 1823, a Grand Chapter of Royal Arch Masons was formed at Mobile by two Chapters. The Chapters participating were those at Tuscaloosa and Mobile. Two other Chapters then in the State, one at Cahaba and one at Claiborne, held aloof. This organisation had a precarious existence until September 1826, when the General Grand Chapter declared it irregular and recommended that another Grand Chapter be formed. Identified with this abortive attempt were prominent Masons of the day, among them Dugald McFarlane, Israel Pickens (then governor), and Nimrod E. Benson, as Grand High Priests.

 

On June 2, 1827, representatives of the four Chapters then in the State, working under the General Grand Chapter, to wit, Tuscaloosa, No. i, at Tuscaloosa; Alabama, No. 2, at Cahaba; Mobile, No. 3, at Mobile; and Monroe, No. 4, at Claiborne, met in Mobile and formed a new Grand Chapter, adopted a Constitution and elected Officers. John Murphy (then governor) was the first Grand High Priest under this Organisation. The Grand Chapter was not prosperous; it held meetings till July 8, 1830, and then went to sleep for more than seven years. There is no doubt this result was caused by the Morgan excitement.

 

Apparently under the stimulus of John C. Hicks, then Grand Master, on December 8, 1837, a meeting of Officers and representatives of the subordinate Chapters convened in the Masonic Lodge room at Tuscaloosa, at which it was resolved that a Grand Chapter be formed, " the former Grand Chapter of this State having failed to hold its constitutional meetings for the last seven years." The Grand Royal Arch Chapter was, thereupon, opened with John C. Hicks as Grand High Priest, and in this capacity he served for three years. He was succeeded on December 7, 1840, by Companion A. B. Dawson, of Wetumpka.

 

The period Of 1823 to 1841 may be counted as marking one era in the history of Capitular Masonry in Alabama. Another is that from 1841 through the Civil War period, and the third and last is that from, say, 1866 to date. The first period was characterised by doubt and uncertainty. The earlier portion of the second period was one of prosperity, but during the latter portion of this second period Royal Arch Masonry in Alabama was shattered like everything else by the tragic shock of war. The third period has been one of varying but continuous success and prosperity. The latest complete statistics show nearly 1o,ooo members.

 

FREEMASONRY IN ALABAMA On December 8, 1869, a Council of Anointed High Priests for Alabama was constituted at Montgomery. George D. Norris was chosen President; Daniel Sayre, Recorder; Richard F. Knott, Master of Ceremonies. The Coun cil has had a continuous and successful existence, though meetings were not held in 1882 to 1891, inclusive; 1894, 1897, 1898, 190░, and 1901. Since the latter date its Convocations have been held regularly and are well attended during each Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge.

 

CRYPTIC MASONRY The Grand Council of Royal and Select Masters of the State of Alabama t was formed at the Masonic Hall, Tuscaloosa, on the evening of December 13, 1838, by twenty‑eight Royal and Select Masters, Gerard W. Creagh presiding, with F. C. Ellis as Recorder.

 

The others present were John C. Hicks, then Grand Master of Masons in Alabama; R. A. Baker, Charles Bealle, L. S. Skinner, E. W. Esselman, William Hazlett, Z. B. Snow, James Rather, J. D. Bears, Doric S. Ball, Carlo De Haro, Jacob Wyser, J. C. Van Dyke, Armand P. Phister, Walker K. Baylor, Major Cook, James G. Blount, James L. F. Cottrell (the successor in Congress of William L. Yancey), W. R. Ross, G. T. McAfee, John Cantley, A. B. Dawson, Rev. James H. Thomason, J. B. Norris, Carter R. Harrison, and William H. Payne. The proceedings are silent as to whence hailed these companions, though we know from other sources that most of them resided in and around Tuscaloosa.

 

A Constitution was adopted and Companion Creagh was elected " Thrice I Illustrious General Grand Master." (The word " General " was eliminated from the nomenclature in 1846.) Of those participating, John C. Hicks, Armand P. Phister, and Walker K. Baylor were already prominent in the Masonic life of Alabama. To the well‑known Bro. John Barker, of Scottish Rite fame, is accorded the honour of first sowing in Alabama the seeds of Cryptic Masonry. The Grand Council held its Annual Assemblies regularly (except 1840) to and including 1860. The decline about 1840 was doubtless due to the Morgan excitement. The growth of the Grand Council during the period from 1840 to the Civil War was slow but steady. The records show one active subordinate Council in 1838; four in 1841; twenty‑four in 1850, and sixteen in 1860. Other distinguished Masons who appeared in Grand Council during this period were James Penn, father of the Masonic " Work " in Alabama; David Moore, William Hendrix, William C. Penick, Lewis E. Parsons (subsequently governor and elected United States senator in 1865 but not seated), Sterling A. M. Wood, J. McCaleb Wiley, David Clopton (subsequently a justice of the Supreme Court), } Nimrod E. Benson, James M. Brundidge, Alabama's greatest ritualist; Felix G. Norman, David P. Lewis (subsequently governor), Daniel Sayre (long Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge), Rufus Greene, Lewis B. Thornton, John A. Loder, distinguished lawyer, and others.

 

On the roll of members of Central Council, at Marion, was the name of 12 FREEMASONRY IN ALABAMA the accomplished minister and writer Eugene V. Levert, and on that of Tuscaloosa Council the name of the distinguished educator, Frederick A. P. Barnard, subsequently president of Columbia College (now University), and the founder of Barnard College for Women.

 

The regularity of the formation of the Grand Council seems never to have been challenged. At the 1841 Assembly ministers of the gospel were exempt from dues, and " the original members of the Grand Council " were allowed to vote in the election of Officers. In 1843, 1845, and 1847 the Grand Council expressed its disapproval of the proposed transfer of the Cryptic Degrees to the Royal Arch Chapters. This question agitated the Grand Chapter for many years, the latest echo being heard in 1880. Alabama has at all times stood firmly for the independence of the Cryptic Degrees.

 

At the 1845 Assembly that master ritualist, James Penn, exemplified the Cryptic Degrees before the Grand Council and it was resolved that the subordinate Councils be enjoined to practise the same. Thus, Bro. Penn appears as the father of the Cryptic " Work " in Alabama, as he was of that of the Symbolic Degrees. In 1848 Dispensations were issued for Louisiana Council, No. 15, at New Orleans, and for Columbus Council, No. 16, at Columbus, Mississippi. These were never Chartered and ceased existence in 1851.

 

In 1849 it developed that an Officer acting under the authority of the Grand Consistory of Charleston, South Carolina, had conferred the Cryptic Degrees on Masons residing in Alabama, and that these companions had applied to and obtained from the Grand Council a Dispensation to form a subordinate Council, Izabud, at LaFayette. On discovering these facts the Dispensation of Izabud Council was withdrawn and demand made on the Consistory that the fees collected by its Officer be returned to the Brethren paying them. This demand was repeated several times, but never with any result.

 

Being unable even to get a reply from the Consistory, at the 1855 Assembly the Grand Council discharged its Committee and adopted a resolution that it had " exclusive jurdisiction over all subordinate councils in Alabama and over the degrees of Royal and Select Masters and that any attempt by the Grand Consistory of South Carolina, or any officer thereof, to establish Councils in Alabama or to confer these degrees will be regarded as an act of usurpation and unwarranted by Masonic usage." This was but another phase of the long controversy over the position of the Cryptic Degrees in the Masonic system.

 

In 1850 the New Masonic Trestle Board, by Moore, was adopted " for the government of the Grand and Subordinate Councils." The use of the term " adjourned " was disapproved and " assembly " instead of " meeting " was recommended.

 

At the 1852 Assembly, the distinguished ritualist and author, Companion J. W. S. Mitchell, was present and installed the Officers.

 

In 1854 the Grand Council adopted as the uniform of the Cryptic Degrees " a collar and apron of Tyrian purple, trimmed with gold." In the 1857 proceeding it is noted that at the last Triennial of the General FREEMASONRY IN ALABAMA 13 Grand Chapter an effort had been made to form a General Grand Council but that the movement failed because several of the Grand Councils, among them that of Alabama, had no one present authorised to participate. At the next Annual Assembly, the Committee on Foreign Correspondence, through Companion Lewis B. Thornton, reported adversely.

 

In 1858 the Grand Puissant granted a Dispensation to form California Council, No. 38, at San Francisco.

 

At the 1859 Assembly a resolution was offered that no Council can be opened or work with less than nine Royal and Select Masters, and that those receiving said Degrees in a Council of less than that number would not be recognised. No action was ever taken upon the resolution, but Alabama has always adhered to the quorum of nine.

 

The history of the post‑Civil War period of the Grand Council is quickly told. On December 8, 1864, the Civil War had nearly spent itself and on that date the Grand Council again convened at Montgomery with nine Councils represented. Only three of its Officers, however, appeared: James B. Harrison, Grand Puissant; Daniel Sayre, Recorder; and Thomas McDougal, Grand Sentinel.

 

By December 6, 1865, the war had become history; the Grand Council met with thirteen Councils represented and five of its regular Officers in place. The Recorder reported that Cryptic Masonry was reviving in Alabama, and expressed his hope that " our future should be steadily onward and upward." This hope has been fulfilled with one marked exception. In 188o the General Grand Council was formed and, in the same year, the Grand Council of Alabama ratified the general Constitution and became a member. Soon, how ever, a decline set in and by 1886 the state of Cryptic Masonry was so low that no Annual Assembly was held. At the 1887 Annual, the Grand Master reported to the Grand Council that " our numbers are now reduced to the minimum," and that all but three of the Councils in the State were dormant, and that these three were in a " very feeble condition." The Grand Master recommended that the Grand Council be dissolved and that the subordinates hold under the General Grand Council. This action was not taken, but, at the 1888 Annual, connection with the General Grand Council was dissolved, the resolution reciting that it was " detrimental to be subordinated longer to the General Grand Council." For the next seventeen years the Grand Council was an independent body.

 

In 1892‑ it was resolved that the Degree of Super‑Excellent Master be conferred without charge on all Royal and Select Masters, members of Councils in Alabama.

 

Not till 1894 did the languishing condition of Cryptic Masonry show signs of reawakening. Conditions were further improved in 1895 and " hard times," incompetent presiding Officers in the Councils, and the scramble for advance ment without knowing anything about the Cryptic Degrees were assigned as the causes of the low state of this branch of Masonry.

 

14 FREEMASONRY IN ALABAMA In 1898 the Annual Assembly met in the new Masonic Temple on Perry Street, Montgomery, where it has ever since been held.

 

By 1899 the country and Cryptic Masonry were again prosperous, and the latter has continued so in varying degrees ever since, though it is again feeling the effect of the present world‑wide depression in business.

 

In 19o5 the Grand Council renewed its membership in the General Grand Council and this relation has since been maintained to the advantage of both. From 6 Councils in 1904 with 357 members, the increase has been to 22 Councils with about 3ooo members.

 

KNIGHTS TEMPLAR This Concordant Order, though not technically a part of Freemasonry, will be briefly treated.

 

In the year 186o there were five Commanderies in Alabama, all chartered by the Grand Encampment of the United States. They were Washington, No. I, at Marion; Mobile, No. 2; Tuscumbia, No. 3 ; Montgomery, No. 4; and Selma, No. 5, with a total of about 15o members.

 

Charter for the first of these, Washington, No. I, was refused in 1841 by the Grand Encampment, but was granted on September 12, 1844; then came Mobile, Tuscumbia, and Montgomery, and finally the Charter for the last, Selma, No. 5, was issued September 16, 1859. At the 1847 Triennial of the Grand Encampment there was authorised the issuance of a Charter to " Barker Encampment," at Claiborne, Alabama, as soon as it complied with the requirements of the General Grand Constitution, made proper returns, and paid all dues. This movement must have fallen through as no such body is shown on the roster for 185o or any subsequent year of the Grand Encampment. This name affords evidence, however, of the popularity in Alabama of Bro. John Barker.

 

On December I, 186o, in the Asylum of Montgomery, No. 4, the "Grand Commandery of Knight Templar and Appendant Orders of Alabama " was formed, under warrant from the Grand Encampment of the United States. Richard F. Knott, one of the most distinguished Masons of his day, was elected Grand Commander, a position he held for eight years. Washington, No. I, then in a moribund state, did not participate. So the Order of Knights Templar had a brief but uneventful history in Alabama of about sixteen years before the formation of the Grand Commandery. The Grand Conclave of 186o was held in regular course, but by 1862 the disruptions resulting from war had become so great that a quorum could not be obtained. It was not represented at the Triennials of 1862 or 1865 for the same reasons. Its history has been undisturbed except by the difficulties of the Civil War and Reconstruction periods, and its growth in numbers and influence has been steady. Able men have presided over it and served on its Committee on Foreign Correspondence. Their addresses and reports make the printed proceedings of great interest and value. On December 9, 1861, the Grand Commandery and its subordinates were incor‑ FREEMASONRY IN ALABAMA 15 porated by Act of the Legislature of Alabama. From its small beginning in 1860, with 5 Commanderies and only about 150 members, it now boasts 35 Commanderies with over 5000 members. Despite the present general financial depression, its future is bright.

 

THE SCOTTISH RITE In 1865, Grand Commander Albert Pike reported the Scottish Rite membership in Alabama as " exceedingly limited," with no organisation of the Rite and no Inspector‑General. In his allocution of May 1870 he said of Alabama In this State no attempt was made to propagate the Ancient and Accepted Rite, until, in December 1867, Ill. Bro. Batchelor established in Mobile the several bodies of the degrees up to the Kadosh. I have no report from Ill. Bro. Knott, Deputy for the State, of the establishment of bodies or of any initiation, nor have I had any communications from him for quite a year and half. I hoped to hear long ago of the establishment of the Rite at Montgomery, the capital of the State; and it ought not to be difficult, among the great number of intelligent Masons in Alabama, to find many worthy of initiation into the higher mysteries.

 

The 1872 Transactions of the Supreme Council show Mobile Lodge of Perfection, No. I, with thirty‑seven members; Mobile Council of Princes of Jerusalem, No. I, with fifteen members; Mobile Chapter, Knights of Rose‑Croix, No. I, with ten members; and Mobile Council of Kadosh, No. I, with eleven members. These were the earliest bodies of the Rite to be established in the State. In 1874 there were no reports from Alabama and in 1876 Grand Commander Pike reported the Bodies at Mobile as " lifeless and extinct." On April 13, 1874, Alabama Lodge of Perfection, No. I, at Montgomery, was Chartered, but in 1876 Grand Commander Pike reported it as giving " no signs of vitality." However, this body is still on the Roster of the Supreme Council and at present has 1109 members. It and the other Scottish Rite bodies now at Montgomery have erected there a magnificent temple. The other bodies of the Rite at Montgomery were chartered as follows Hermes Chapter of Rose‑Croix, October 2o, 1899, present membership 939; Mitchell Council of Kadosh, October 22, 1915, present membership 813; Holbrook Consistory, October 2o, 1917, present membership 803.

 

The other Scottish Rite bodies in Alabama were Chartered as follows Birmingham Lodge of Perfection, October 2o, 1897, present membership 3199; Birmingham Chapter of Rose‑Croix, October 2o, 1899, present membership 2‑811; Birmingham Council of Kadosh, October 2o, 1899, present membership, 2691; Alabama Consistory, Birmingham, October 2o, 1899, present membership 2642; Mobile Lodge of Perfection, October 24, 1901, present membership 2iio; Mobile Chapter of Rose‑Croix, May 21, 1903, present membership, 1802; Mobile Council of Kadosh, October 23, 1907, present membership 1692; 16 FREEMASONRY IN ALABAMA Mobile Consistory, October 2.3, 1907, present membership 1688; Dothan Lodge of Perfection, October i9, 192.7, present membership 114.

 

The foregoing tables show that the Scottish Rite in Alabama is flourishing. The Birmingham and Dothan bodies are also housed in splendid temples. Alabama has furnished two of the Grand Commanders of the Rite in the Southern jurisdiction, viz.: James C. Batchelor and George Fleming Moore.

 

CONCLUSION Masonry in all its branches is firmly established in the State. On the whole its course here has been peaceful and prosperous. Like everything else, the Grand Lodge and Masonry in general in the State have suffered during the past few years on account of bad business conditions and other causes, but it is confidently believed that the bottom has been reached and soon the Craft will be experiencing another era of prosperity. It is not Masonic to be pessimistic; Hope is one of the guiding principles of Freemasonry. Masonry has passed through these valleys many times and has always emerged wiser and stronger than before.

 

FREEMASONRY IN ARIZONA HARRY ARIZONA DRACHMAN 0 RGANISED Masonry came into existence in the Territory of Arizona on April 22, 1865 . It was on that date that a Dispensation was issued by the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of California to form Aztlan Lodge at Prescott, Arizona. At the Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge of California, held on October 15, 1865, the Committee on Charters made the following report of interest to all Arizona Masons: " Your Committee has had under consideration the application of Aztlan Lodge for a continuance of its Dispensation until the next Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge. This Lodge is located at Prescott, in Arizona Territory, and the great distance between us and that locality, and the uncertain and slow means of communication, afford a sufficient reason why the Lodge's Records and Returns have not yet been received. Bro. Alsap, the Master of the Lodge, well says in his application: ` This is a small community, far removed from others, an advance post of the army of civilisation, fighting against barbarism, with a hostile and savage foe around, and‑depending upon our own armed hands for safety of life and property. I say it proudly, nowhere are the Constitutions of Masonry more cherished and loved, or its principles better or more nobly illustrated. The worthy distressed Brother here has ever found a friendly word and helping hand.' " With all this in mind, the Grand Lodge of California did continue the Dispensation of the Prescott Lodge until the former's next Annual Communication. The first three Officers named under the Dispensation were John T. Alsap, Worshipful Master; Hezekiah Brooks, Senior Warden; and Herbert Bowers, Junior Warden. Then, on October 11, 1866, the Grand Lodge of California having found that the Records of Aztlan Lodge had been creditably kept, granted it a Charter and assigned it as No. 177. The Officers who had been named in the Dispensation continued under the Charter.

 

The next Lodge to organise in the Territory was Arizona Lodge, at Phoenix, to which a Dispensation was issued by the Grand Lodge of California on August 9, 1879. Then, on October 16 of the same year, a Charter was granted to 17 18 FREEMASONRY IN ARIZONA the Lodge and it was registered as No. 257. The first three Officers of this Lodge were John T. Alsap, Worshipful Master; Francis A. Shaw, Senior Warden; and Newell Herrick, Junior Warden.

 

Arizona Lodge was followed by White Mountain Lodge, at Globe, Arizona, the third Lodge to be organised in the Territory. This Lodge was issued a Dispensation from the New Mexico Grand Lodge on July 1, 188o. Because there was no two‑story building in the town of Globe at the time, the Grand Lodge of California had refused to issue a Dispensation to form a Lodge there. For that reason the Brethren there petitioned the Grand Lodge of New Mexico, which allowed Lodges to meet on ground floors, provided they were safe from intrusion and properly tiled. The Altar, Pillars, Pedestals, Columns, and other Lodge furniture used by the Lodge were designed and put together by local carpenters. The jewels were made of tin, from which they had been neatly cut by the local tinsmith, Bro. Jacob Abraham. Suspended on collars of blue ribbon, they presented a unique appearance. During the time the Brethren were awaiting news of the Dispensation from the New Mexico Grand Lodge, John Kennedy was induced to erect a two‑story building. This was then readily accepted by the Masons, and leased by them for five years. In order that the Officers might familiarise themselves with the Ritual of the Grand Lodge of New Mexico, they occasionally met in lonely cabins on the high hills that surround Globe, or in the wilderness near by. The first meeting of this Lodge held under Dispensation took place on August 2, i88o, with the following Officers officiating: A. H. Morehead, Worshipful Master; Alonzo Bailey, Senior Warden; and Jacob Abraham, Junior Warden. Then on January 18, 1881, a Charter was granted to the White Mountain Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, by the Grand Lodge of New Mexico. It was registered as No. 5.

 

The first quasi‑Masonic organisation in Tucson was a Masonic Club which was organised on April 11, 1875. This, however, ceased to exist on February 3, 1876. Then, on October i9, 1879, the Tucson Masonic Relief Association was organised, the purpose of which was " to relieve distressed worthy Brother Masons, their wives, widows, and orphans, and to encourage social and fraternal intercourse among the Brethren." This organisation was also shortlived, for it lasted only until December 7, 1879. A few months later, on February 6, 188o, to be exact, the Masonic Association of Tucson was organised, with George J. Roskruge as President. On February 17 of the next year, this organisation became Tucson Lodge, under a Dispensation issued by the Grand Lodge of California. Its Charter was granted October 15, 1881, and the number 2‑63 was assigned to it. The first three Officers of the Lodge were: Ansel M. Bragg, Worshipful Master; George J. Roskruge, Senior Warden; Abraham Marx, Junior Warden. The next Lodge to be formed in Arizona Territory was Solomon Lodge, at Tombstone, for which a Dispensation was granted by the Grand Lodge of California on June 14, 1881. The first Officers were: William A. Harwood, Worshipful Master; Benjamin Titus, Senior Warden; and Thomas R. Sorin, Junior Warden.

 

FREEMASONRY IN ARIZONA 23 On February 5, 1882, Tucson Lodge, No. 263, sent the following letter to the four other Lodges in the Territory: Hall of Tucson Lodge No. 263 Free and Accepted Masons Tucson, Arizona February 5, 1882 To the Master, Wardens, and Brethren of Lodge No.

 

Free and Accepted Masons Arizona Brethren On Tuesday the 21st March next we will dedicate our new Masonic Hall, now in course of construction, and we extend a cordial invitation to the Officers and members of your Lodge to participate with us on that occasion.

 

We would also suggest the idea of forming a Grand Lodge at that time, there being now five Lodges in the Territory. If this suggestion meets with your approval, will you elect Delegates to attend for that purpose; and should the Grand Lodge be formed, Tucson Lodge will pay Delegates fees same as‑ in California. At all events we will be happy to see any and all members of your Lodge present at the opening of the hall.

 

We have extended the same invitation and suggestion to all Lodges in the Territory.

 

Fraternally yours Ansel Mellen Bragg, Master George James Roskruge, Senior Warden Abraham Marx, Junior Warden All the Lodges, excepting only Aztlan Lodge, No. 177, of Prescott, sent Delegates to the Convention. The following communication from Aztlan explains why that Lodge did not also sent Representatives to Tucson Hall of Aztlan Lodge No. 177, Free and Accepted Masons Prescott, Arizona March 21, 1882 To the Master, Wardens, and Brethren of Tucson Lodge No. 263 Free and Accepted Masons Tucson, Arizona Brethren The Committee appointed by this Lodge at their last regular meeting to fully investigate the advisability and necessity of establishing a Grand Lodge in the Territory of Arizona and severing our connection with the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of California, have been in daily consultation and deliberation over the subject‑matter in question and have come to the conclusion not to send anyone from this Lodge to represent us in the Convention to assemble 24 FREEMASONRY IN ARIZONA at Tucson; that we do not believe in the " advisability and necessity " of forming a Grand Lodge in Arizona at this time; that the expense attending such a move will not be for the good of Masonry in this Territory; that it will cause a falling off of membership in all the Lodges in consequence of additional expense, and ultimately result in bankruptcy and the surrender of a majority of the Charters of the several Lodges now existing; that we believe it ill advised and premature.

 

Trusting you may fully realise your highest anticipations in your coming dedication and festivities, we are, Brethren, Very fraternally yours, Geo. D. Kendall, Past Master Chairman of the Committee Nevertheless the Representatives of Arizona Lodge, No. 2.57, at Phoenix, of Tucson Lodge, No. 2.63, at Tucson, and of White Mountain Lodge, No. 5, at Globe, met at Tucson on March 2.3, 1882.. Representatives of Solomon Lodge U. D., of Tombstone, were also invited to take part in the deliberations of the Convention. Alonzo Bailey was elected Chairman, and George J. Roskruge was appointed Secretary. A Constitution was then adopted by the Convention, a Lodge of Master Masons was opened, and the following Grand Officers were elected and appointed: Ansel M. Bragg, Grand Master; John T. Alsap, Deputy Grand Master; Alonzo Bailey, Senior Grand Warden; William A. Harwood, Junior Grand Warden; Abraham Marx, Grand Treasurer; George J. Roskruge, Grand Secretary; Charles M. Strauss, Grand Chaplain; James A. Zabriskie, Grand Orator; Joseph B. Creamer, Grand Marshal; Josiah Brown, Grand Bible Bearer; James D. Monihon, Grand Standard Bearer; Thomas R. Sorin, Grand Sword Bearer; Francis A. Shaw, Senior Grand Deacon; Charles A. Fisk, Junior Grand Deacon; Benjamin Titus, Senior Grand Steward; William Tucker, Junior Grand Steward; William Downie, Grand Pursuivant; Solon M. Allis, Grand Organist; and James M. Elliott, Grand Tyler. The Master Mason's Lodge was then closed, and the Convention, having completed the business for which it assembled, was adjourned sine die.

 

The M.*.W.%Grand Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, of the Territory of Arizona was then opened in ample form on March 2.5, 1882.. A resolution was passed that the M.'.W.'.Grand Master and V.'.W.'.Grand Secretary should endorse the Charters of the Lodges represented. Since Aztlan Lodge, No. 177, was not represented at the Convention, the following resolution regarding it was passed: " Resolved, That it should be properly represented to the Grand Master during the recess of the Grand Lodge that Aztlan Lodge now holden at Prescott, Arizona Territory, was a duly constituted Lodge, the Grand Master is hereby authorised to adopt the same course and make a similar endorsement on its Charter as on the Charters of the other Lodges in the Territory." Upon receipt of the engrossed Proceedings of the Grand Lodge Communication of March 25, 1882., the M.'.W. *Master of Aztlan Lodge wrote to the Grand FREEMASONRY IN ARIZONA ZS Secretary. He referred to the resolution passed by the Grand Lodge regarding the endorsement of Aztlan Lodge's Charter, and objected to sending the Charter out of his control for that purpose. A second interesting letter to the same effect is also found in the Grand Lodge archives. It reads as follows: Prescott, Arizona Territory June 3, x882 George J. Roskruge, Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge Free and Accepted Masons of Arizona Tucson, Arizona Territory Dear Sir and Brother: Yours of the 31st May received to‑day, and I hasten to reply so as to delay your work as little as possible.

 

Before I wrote my letter of the 29th I had read the Proceedings of the Grand Lodge, and judging from them that the Grand Master would want to see our Charter I used the language that you quote. I am still of the opinion that it would not be right for me to send you by express or otherwise our Charter. Comparing dates, it seems as if six days were the least number it could possibly take to send it to you and return, if all worked well. During this time we could not examine distressed Brethren who might apply for relief nor open our Lodge even for the burial of a Brother, should it unfortunately be our duty to do so.

 

I do not know of any section of the California law which bears on the case, and so I quote to you the words of Mackey : " I have no doubt that the Grand Master cannot demand the delivery of the Warrant into his custody, for having been intrusted to the Master, Wardens, and their successors by the Grand Lodge, the Master who is the proper custodian of it has no right to surrender it to anyone, except to that Body from whom it emanated." It seems to me that the Grand Master can easily satisfy himself as to our being a regularly constituted Lodge, without seeing our Charter, and can then send us a copy of the endorsement under the Grand Seal and attested by you. With this we could work until such time as we might be able to present our Charter under the care of the Master or Warden.

 

I am desirous of facilitating your labours by all proper means, but the more I consider my duty under the circumstances the less I am inclined to send the Charter out of my control.

 

I enclose you therefore the Petition drawn in accordance with the Resolution of our Lodge, which please present to the Grand Master for his action. With assurances of fraternal regard, I am yours truly, Morris Goldwater Master of Aztlan Lodge No. 177 Although the Records do not show just how the Grand Master succeeded in endorsing the Charter, we do know that on June 14, 1882, the proper endorsement was made, and Aztlan Lodge, No. 177, being the oldest Lodge in the Territory, was registered as No. 1 in the list of Arizona Lodges.

 

26 FREEMASONRY IN ARIZONA The year 1882 was a time of hardship and danger in Arizona. The Territory had a small white population living in widely scattered communities. Although the Southern Pacific Railway had recently completed its main line across the southern part of the Territory, it was of little help to the inhabitants, since most of them lived in remote districts. Roads were little more than trails, and due to heavy mountain snows and summer storms, they were impassable much of the time. At all times there was also constant danger from roving bands of stage‑coach robbers and Apache Indians. Travel on the main roads was done in either four‑ or six‑horse Concord stage‑coaches or in buckboards; on the mountain trails it was done by horseback or muleback. Danger of attack by marauding Indians made it necessary to do much of the travelling between twilight and dawn. And, of course, few comforts for the weary traveller were to be found at the journey's end. Therefore, it was under such trying conditions as these that the early Masons of Arizona managed to perfect the organisation of the Grand Lodge and to attend the regular meetings of their local Lodges. Indeed, it was not until 1895 that northern and southern Arizona were connected by rail, thus making possible a steady increase in Masonic membership and in the number of Chartered Lodges throughout the Territory.

 

At the first Annual Meeting of the Grand Lodge, held in November, 1882, Bro. Morris Goldwater introduced a resolution for the appointment of a Committee of three to present to the Grand Lodge at its next Session the most feasi ble method of creating a widow's and orphan's fund. This was done and the Committee reported in November 1883, proposing the following plan for the creation of the fund: That each Lodge pay for each Master Mason borne upon its Rolls the sum of fifty cents per annum. The plan was adopted, and the first year's record of the fund shows that there was a membership of 35o, and the sum of $175 in the fund. To‑day, with a membership of 6685 there is to the credit of this fund $118,794. In 1918 the Grand Lodge created an endowment fund which now amounts to $161,459. The purpose of the funds was the erection and maintenance of a Home for aged and needy Masons, their widows and orphans. Although the Home has not yet been built, the aged and needy are generously taken care of with money from these funds. In 1922 a large Home with extensive grounds, located at Oracle, Arizona, was offered to the Grand Lodge on condition that it be used for the care and treatment of tubercular patients. The offer was accepted and the Grand Lodge has since maintained the Home for ambulatory tubercular patients, the large majority of whom come from sister Grand Jurisdictions. Although the Home is not now equipped with hospital facilities for the care of advanced cases, it is hoped that in the near future, with the aid of sister Grand jurisdictions it may be made a permanent national Masonic tubercular sanitarium.

 

Of the early pioneer Masons, none undertook greater responsibility for the success of Masonry than Bro. George J. Roskruge, known as " Father of Masonry in Arizona," and Grand Secretary for forty‑five years. Never discouraged by the great handicaps of adverse opinions and scant funds, he worked tire‑ FREEMASONRY IN ARIZONA z.7 lessly and advanced money liberally to promote the growth and success of the Fraternity in Arizona.

 

Another eminent Mason was Marcus A. Smith, a member of Tucson Lodge, No. 4, who was for years delegate to Congress from Arizona Territory, and later United States Senator for a number of years until his death. Among those prominent in the Masonic Fraternity of Arizona to‑day is Bro. George W. P. Hunt, a member of White Mountain Lodge, No. 3, of Globe, who has served as governor of the State for seven terms and was minister to Siam by appointment of President Wilson. Still other prominent Arizona Masons are Ralph Cameron, Past Master of Flagstaff Lodge, No. 7, a former United States Senator; Carl Hayden, Past Master of Tempe Lodge, No. 15, who was once a representative in the national Congress and is now a United States senator; Ygnacio Bonillas, Past Master of Nogales Lodge, No. ii, who was ambassador for the Republic of Mexico to the United States during President Carranza's term; and Dr. Andrew E. Douglass, Past Master of Flagstaff Lodge, No. 7, now a member of Tucson Lodge, No. 4, who is internationally known for his scientific work in astronomy and tree‑ring research.

 

Since the formation of the Grand Lodge in 1882, with 5 Lodges, a membership of 274, and no cash resources, it has grown to 38 Lodges, having 6685 members and cash resources of $326,778.

 

Alexander G. Abell, Very Worshipful Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of California for years, did much to promote the order in Arizona. Hon. John Howard was largely instrumental in helping to organise the first Masonic Lodge in Arizona, which was at Prescott. The first recorded minutes of a meeting are without date. This, however, was in the year 1864, the Secretary being Lieut. Charles Curtis, of the United States army.

 

The meeting was held at the house of John N. Goodwin, then governor of the Territory, Mr. Goodwin being the presiding officer.

 

It was resolved to apply to the Grand Lodge of California for Dispensation to open a Lodge at Prescott. The name selected was Aztlan. John T. Alsap was chosen Worshipful Master; Joseph Ehle, Senior Warden; and H. Brooks, Junior Warden. Bro. John T. Alsap was afterwards the second Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of Arizona. The petition was signed by nine Master Masons. As it was necessary to have a recommendation from the nearest Lodge, Joseph Lemon was selected to carry the petition to Santa Fe, New Mexico.

 

At the next meeting, which is also without date, $300 were subscribed for the purpose of procuring and furnishing a hall. Upon the return of John Lemon from Santa Fe, John N. Goodwin was chosen to present the petition to the Grand Master of California. This was done April 22, 1865, and the petition was granted.

 

Owing to the inability of Mr. Ehle to secure a demit from his Lodge, H. Brooks was named Senior Warden and Herbert Bowers, Junior Warden.

 

The first to apply for Degrees was Lieut. Samuel L. Barr, a Fellow‑craft. The first named as affiliating members were N. L. Griffin, A. W. Adams, and z8 FREEMASONRY IN ARIZONA Ned Pierce. September 30, 1865, the first regular Work was done. A. C. Noyes and J. G. Mitchell receiving the Entered Apprentice Degree and Lieut. Samuel L. Barr being raised to the Sublime Degree of Master Mason.

 

The first Lodge funeral held was on January 2, 1866, Stephen Lea, a member of an Oregon Lodge being the deceased.

 

On August 1866 the last meeting under Dispensation was held. The debts of the Lodge were all paid; the books, papers, and Dispensation were forwarded to California by Bro. Samuel L. Barr, and by a vote of the Lodge the Grand Lodge of California was asked to change the name of the Lodge from Aztlan to Arizona Lodge and to grant a Charter. January 21, 1867, the Charter arrived, but the name of the Lodge remained as Aztlan Lodge, No. 177. The Charter was brought from San Francisco, California, to La Paz by Charles N. Genung, and from La Paz to Prescott by Joseph R. Walker.

 

[The above is taken from an address delivered at Prescott, Arizona, June 24, 1891, by Morris Goldwater, Past Grand Master, upon the twenty‑fifth anniversary of the Masonic Order in Arizona.] FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS ANDREW J. RUSSELL A THOUGH Arkansas is rich in Masonic lore, any one attempting to write or compile a comprehensive history of Freemasonry during its more than one hundred years of organised existence in the State is greatly handicapped by a lack of Records. The loss of the Grand Lodge's library by fire at three different times has made it impossible for the historian to be sure that his statements are absolutely authentic. In fact, much of the Arkansas Masonic history that does exist is based on tradition rather than on written records chronologically arranged. In order to offset this lack of documentary evidence, the Grand Lodge of 1871, realising the need of gathering and preserving Masonic data, appointed a History Commission for that purpose. During the next two years this Commission made reports on its findings, and by the time of the Session of 1873 it seems to have caught up with its work. The gist of its reports was, however, merely a recital of important features of the organisation of the Grand Lodge in 1838, supplemented by biographical sketches of Past Grand Masters.

 

Again, in 1927, the task of bringing such data up to date was undertaken. At the Session held that year, another History Commission was created. This second Commission has, with the assistance of the Grand Secretary, succeeded in restoring a complete file of all Proceedings except those for the years 1839 and 1840. Some of the earlier Proceedings were obtained only by making copies of data preserved in the libraries of other Grand Jurisdictions. Still other data that were gathered and are still being gathered give facts regarding the early history of the 73o Lodges (511 of which are still active, which have been Chartered by the Grand Jurisdiction. The task of procuring portraits of all Past Grand Masters was also undertaken. With only a few exceptions, that task is now complete. The collection of historic mementoes which has recently been brought together includes bound volumes of The Trowel, a Masonic publication edited by Past Grand Master George Thornburgh from 1886 to 1922, as well as many Masonic histories and encyclopxdias in which references to Freemasonry in Arkansas are made. From those and the writer's own memories and associations, gained from attending every Session of the Grand Lodge held since 1886, he has gathered material for this brief sketch.

 

The tradition that Symbolic Masonry was introduced into Arkansas by the Spaniards in 1770, as suggested by one writer, is vague and independable. It is an historic fact, however, that following the expeditions of Hernando de Soto in the sixteenth century several Spanish settlements were made in that z9 30 FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS part of the Missouri Territory from which Arkansas Territory was afterwards carved. The first of those was at Arkansas Post. In the minds of many it is not improbable that Freemasonry existed in some form among the early pioneers of those first settlements, but the belief cannot be substantiated by authentic records.

 

Beginning with the indisputably authentic records, we, however, find that in i8i9, Andrew Scott, a resident of Potosi, Missouri, was appointed by President James Monroe to serve as judge of the Superior Court of the Territory of Arkansas. After removing to Arkansas Territory and locating there, he and other members of the Fraternity in that region petitioned the Grand Lodge of Kentucky for Arkansas Lodge, to be located at Arkansas Post, then capital of the Territory. The Charter naming Robert M. Johnson as Worshipful Master was issued on November 30, 1819. Upon Judge Scott's departure from Potosi, the Officers and members of his Lodge there had deemed it advisable to surrender their letters of Dispensation, and in so doing they had requested the Grand Lodge of Kentucky to permit judge Scott to retain the jewels of the Potosi Lodge for the purpose of presenting them to the first Masonic Lodge to be established in the Arkansas Territory. The request was granted, and accordingly, upon the institution of Arkansas Lodge U. D. the jewels which had formerly been used by his old Lodge in Missouri were presented by judge Scott to the first Lodge in the new Territory.

 

Later, in 182‑1, when the seat of government was removed from Arkansas Post almost all members demitted from Arkansas Lodge, for they too were removing to the new seat of government. This made it necessary for the Lodge there also to surrender its Dispensation to the Grand Lodge of Kentucky, and again judge Scott retained the jewels for the purpose of presenting them to the next Lodge to be established in his adopted Territory. However, a period of fifteen years, from 1821 to 1836, appears to have elapsed before any further movement looking toward the establishment of new Lodges was undertaken. This was probably due to the " anti‑Masonic excitement " which was raging with intense fury at about that time. In 1836, however, the year of the admission of Arkansas into the Union, the Grand Lodge of Tennessee was Petitioned for a Dispensation for a new Lodge to be located at Fayetteville, in Washington County. The Dispensation was granted, and the Lodge was called Washington Lodge. It was later Chartered as Lodge No. 82‑, with Onesimus Evans acting as its Master, James McKisick as Senior Warden, and Matthew Leeper' as Junior Warden. Upon the establishment of this Lodge, Judge Scott again made good his promise concerning the jewels. When the Charter was granted, however, it was accompanied by proper jewels, and, at the suggestion of judge Scott, the new Lodge presented the jewels which he had brought with him from Missouri to Clarksville Lodge, No. 9, which meantime had been Instituted by the Grand Lodge of Arkansas. Then, in 1845, when the Charter of Clarksville Lodge, No. 9, was taken up, the jewels were placed in the keeping of Franklin Lodge. Two years later they were placed in the archives of the FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS 31 Grand Lodge of Arkansas, where they were later unfortunately destroyed by fire.

 

In September, 1837, the Grand Lodge of Louisiana granted a Dispensation for Western Star Lodge, at Little Rock, designating Edward Cross as Master, Charles L. Jeffries as Senior Warden, and Nicholas Peay as junior Warden. The Charter for this Lodge was issued on February 12, 1838, as Western Star Lodge, No. 43. Before January 6, 1836, a second attempt to establish Masonry at Arkansas Post had been authorised by the Grand Lodge of Louisiana, and a Charter had been issued to Morning Star Lodge, No. 42, of that place. But the attempt to revive Masonry there was almost futile, for as time passed the historic village, itself the first point of settlement and the first capital of the State, began gradually to disappear, leaving little trace of its Masonic activities.

 

The next Lodge to be established in Arkansas was granted a Dispensation by the Grand Master of Alabama on November 21, 1838. It was called Mount Horeb Lodge and was located at Washington, in Hempstead County. Soon after its establishment this and the other Chartered Lodges of the State called a Convention, which met in Little Rock on November 21, 1838, and after a six days' Session adjourned sine die. The total membership of all the Lodges in Arkansas at that time was about one hundred. The following copy of the Record, or rather, abstract, of the Convention's Proceedings was obtained by the Arkansas History Commission from the files in the archives of the Grand Lodge in Missouri.

 

NOTICE OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE CONVENTION THAT FORMED THE CONSTITUTION OF THE GRAND LODGE OF ARKANSAS A.D. 1838 (A.L. 5838) The Convention of the Ancient York Rites met in the city of Little Rock, Arkansas, in the month of November, in the year of Christ, 1838 (A.L. 5838), was composed of the following Delegates From Washington Lodge, No. 82, working under authority of the Grand Lodge of Tennessee, Onesimus Evans, Past Master, Washington L. Wilson, Robert Bedford, A. Whinnery, R. C. S. Brown, Samuel Adams, and Williamson S. Oldham.

 

From Western Star Lodge, No. 43, working under authority of the Grand Lodge of Louisiana, William Gilchrist, Past Master, Charles L. Jeffries, Past Master, Nicholas Peay, Past Master, Edward Cross, Past Master, Thomas Parsel, Alden Sprague, and John Morris.

 

From Morning Star Lodge, No. 42, working under authority of the Grand Lodge of Louisiana, John W. Pullen.

 

From Mount Horeb Lodge, working under a Dispensation from the Grand Lodge of Alabama, James H. Walker, Allen M. Oakley, Joseph W. McKean, and James Trigg.

 

Which Convention, on the 21st day of November, A.D. 1838, by unanimous consent of all Delegates, adopted a Constitution for the government of the Grand Lodge of Arkansas: Whereupon a Grand Lodge was opened in due and ancient 32 FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS form, and the Officers thereof were elected and installed according to the most ancient usages and customs of the Fraternity: When on the 27th day of November, aforesaid, the Convention adjourned sine die.

 

Attest. Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of Arkansas judging from this account the Convention must have resolved itself into a Grand Lodge, but if any Minutes were kept other than the above " Notice of Proceedings," they have been " lost in the rubbish of the Temple." Elbert H. English, noted as a jurist as well as a Masonic scholar, sewed as Grand Master from 1849 to 1850. After an interim of nine years he was again elected in 1859. From that time on he was re‑elected from Session to Session until November 1869, when he retired. Thus he served in that high Office during the entire period of the War between the States. Although his addresses to the Grand Lodge during his incumbency are models of excellence in diction and fraternalism, some of them are highly coloured with the bitterness which was fairly general at that time. Feeling impelled to espouse the cause of Secession it was only natural that he should employ his beautiful flow of English in its support. Although he ever eschewed the idea that he could be actuated by his political views, in his address delivered at the Grand Lodge Session of November 1861 he said in part: " I refer to these matters not in a political sense, or as mere political events, for Masonry does not interfere in affairs of a strictly political character‑but I refer to them as great civil events‑stern historical realities overwhelming in their immediate consequences and deeply affecting our entire people in all their relations, civil and social as well as political. . . . There are no voices to respond for a number of subordinate Lodges. Why are these Brethren absent? The answer is in every mouth, with all its thrilling and momentous associations! They have laid aside the gavel, the trowel, and the plumb‑line, and taken up the sword. And this night their tents whiten many a plain, and their patriotic breasts help to form a living wall to protect eleven States of a once‑glorious Union from the invasion and desolation of a man‑if he may be called such‑who now desecrates the seat first occupied by the good and great Washington. And who, as the fit representative of the party that placed him in power, has trampled in the dust the Constitution framed by the purest and best men that ever sat in council to organise a government. And may I be permitted to say that, if there is weeping in Heaven, Washington and his associates have wept over the ruin which his degenerate successor and his black‑Republican confederates in crime and guilt have wrought!" When the smoke of battle had finally cleared away, however, when victory had come to the other side and the domicile of the Grand Lodge had been returned to Little Rock, whence it had been removed to the Confederate seat of State government at Washington, in Hempstead County, Grand Master English seems to have had a different attitude. In his address made at the November Session of the Grand Lodge in 1865, a marked contrast in the tone of his words was very noticeable, for he at that time evinced his own resigna‑ FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS 33 tion to the fate of war in the following words: " The terrible storm of war is over, the last faint echoes of its awful thunders are hushed, its angry clouds are drifting away, and the sun of peace once more smiles upon our desolated country. Many of our Brethren who met with us in former years and whose faces are familiar to us now sleep the long sleep of death, in their quiet resting‑places, and their homes are left in mourning. They may have erred, but to err is incident to the frailty of human nature, and to forgive is not only Masonic but Divine. Let the broad mantle of Masonic charity be thrown over their errors, whatever they have been, and let their virtues be cherished in the memory of those of us who survive them. The unfortunate and deplorable civil commotion, which for four gloomy years afflicted our country, fortunately for Masonry ' it has no schism. The Masons of the United States now, as before the national troubles, constitute one great individual Fraternity. Leading Masons from j every section of our extensive country have assembled at Columbus, Ohio, in the General Grand Chapter and the General Grand Encampment, since the close of the war, and, as in years gone, they treated each other as Brothers and Companions, transacted their Masonic business in peace and harmony, renewed their social and fraternal obligations around a common Altar, and have thus demonstrated to the world that Masons are bound together by ties which cannot be severed by civil strife or political conflicts.... There stretches from the stormy coast of the Atlantic to the calm and peaceful shore of the Pacific a fraternal 1 chain of strong links, which, though unseen by the world, will do more than all else to reunite and strengthen the bonds of union between the Northern and Southern people, who during the last four years were unhappily at war about sectional questions." In another address, made at the Grand Lodge Session of 1866, Bro. English said: " At the close of the war, no class of our population returned i more readily, quietly, and cheerfully to the peaceful pursuits of life than did the Masonic Fraternity. . . . I repeat now, in writing, substantially what I said to the last Grand Lodge orally: In considering the claims of applicants for initiation, advancement, or affiliation, the physical, moral, and mental fitness of the applicant must alone be regarded. In other words, none other than the old and well‑defined Masonic tests should be applied. No inquiry should be made whether he was born North or South, or was on one side or the other in the late war." As a sequel, the significant fact remains that such a spirit of toleration exists among the members of, the Craft in Arkansas as is not to be found in any other civic and moral institution of the State. Although the spirit of the Old South still exists there in legend and in song, no Mason attempts to use it to further his political ambitions. There is hardly a community or section of the State, however, that was not greatly affected by the great strife. Tales about thrilling experiences and narrow escapes from death have been handed down from father to son. Even now there are men still living who witnessed the mysterious freeing of certain prisoners of war after they had been condemned 34 FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS to death, the secret being that the prisoners were Masons. Some of their captors, having seen the Masonic sign of distress, immediately released the prisoners while their comrades were executed in accordance with the rules of war. It is also an historical fact that many men prominent in Arkansas politics have also been prominent in Masonry, but no governor, congressman, or United States senator of Arkansas has ever occupied the office of Grand Master. It may not be improper also to observe that while Arkansas has not elected a Republican to State office since Reconstruction Days, yet Republicans, and even veterans of the Union Army, have frequently been elected as Grand Masters of the Masonic Fraternity in this jurisdiction.

 

The following historical highlights of Arkansas Masonry were gleaned from the Annual Proceedings now in the Grand Lodge Library of the Albert Pike Memorial Temple at Little Rock. They incidentally introduce the names of prominent Masons, whose complete biographies would indeed give a comprehensive history of Freemasonry in Arkansas. As has been said, following the third loss of the Grand Lodge library by fire, the Grand Secretary, Fay Hempstead, and the present History Commission have succeeded in restoring all Proceedings except those for the years 1839 and 1840. Those covering the period from the time of the organisation Convention held in 1838 up to 1851, have been supplied mainly by bound copies entitled Proceedings o f the Grand Lodge o f Free and Accepted Masons of Arkansas: 1838‑1851. The originals of these Proceedings are to be found in the libraries of the Grand Lodges of Alabama, Maine, Massachusetts, and Missouri.

 

The Session of 1841 convened at the Masonic Temple in Little Rock, which was, perhaps, the Hall of Western Star Lodge, No. 2, where it seems likely that all subsequent Sessions were held up to the time of the outbreak of the War between the States. During that period, meetings were held at Washington, the Confederate capital of the State. The Session of 1841 was presided over by Alden Sprague, Grand Master pro tempore. At that meeting Bro. Sprague was elected Grand Master for the ensuing year. Returns were then made from Washington Lodge, No. 1, at Fayetteville; Western Star Lodge, No. 2, at Little Rock; Morning Star Lodge, No. 3, at Arkansas Post; Mount Horeb Lodge, No. 4, at Washington; Clarksville Lodge, No. 5, at Clarksville; and Van Buren Lodge, No. 6, at Van Buren. During the Session it was also " Resolved, That Brother Edward Cross be and is hereby appointed a Delegate from this M.".W.'. Grand Lodge, and is hereby requested and authorised to attend the Convention of the several Grand Lodges in the United States proposed to be held in Washington, D. C., in March next." After recording a list of the Officers present at the next Session, which convened on November 7, 1842, this entry follows: " The Grand Lodge was opened in ample form, continued in Session until the sixth day of February, a. L. 5843, when the same was closed in ample form, during which Session the following elections, appointments, et cetera, took place." Two Charters were granted at that time. It was also ordered that the Grand Secretary should cause to be pub‑ FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS 35 lished an abstract from the Minutes, and that a copy of it should be sent to the several States " and to Texas." One copy of it was also to go to each of the several Lodges of the Grand Lodge of that republic.

 

At the Session of 1843 a Committee which had been appointed at the previous Session reported that it had " settled the difficulty said to exist in Van Buren Lodge, No. 6, to the great satisfaction of all concerned and in accord ance with the ancient usages and customs of the Fraternity." Thus, apparently, an end was made of what appears to have been the first trouble within the Grand Lodge. Several Communications from other Grand jurisdictions were then read and filed.

 

The 1845 Session of the Grand Lodge took further note of a matter that had been discussed during the 1842 Session, namely the death of the Grand jurisdiction's first Grand Master, William Gilchrist. At that time it was requested that subscriptions be taken " to erect a suitable monument over his remains." At that same Session the Committee of Foreign Correspondence submitted an extensive review of the Proceedings of the Grand Lodges in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Wisconsin.

 

The next Annual Session, held on November 5, 1846, authorised " a Committee of three to prepare an act of incorporation for this Grand jurisdiction and to present it to the legislature during its present session." It appears that the Committee carried out its instructions, and that the Grand Lodge authorised the Act to be included in its printed Proceedings of that year. Such incidents as this explain, perhaps, the reason for the long‑drawn‑out Sessions of this period, some of which lasted several weeks. The State Legislature was also in session during the same period. Those present at this Session levied a tax of one dollar on each non‑affiliated Mason living in the State, and ordered subordinate Lodges to collect the tax and to report on it at the next Session. The money thus raised was to be spent " for charitable purposes." This Session also endorsed the idea of a General Grand Lodge. Early in the Session of the Grand Lodge of 1847, a resolution introduced and promptly passed on the second day repealed the " tax edict " of the previous Session. Thus it is clear that the non‑affiliate, who is still a problem to almost every Masonic jurisdiction, was a concern to the Grand Lodge of Arkansas even in those early days.

 

Previous to the Session of 1848 it may have been the custom for Grand Masters to deliver opening addresses, but if such had been the case it had not been customary to include the addresses in the Record. The Record of the 1848 Session, however, gives a complete version of Grand Master D. J. Baldwin's address, which was prefaced by these words: " Obedient to the custom, salutary in its tendency, which has obtained in the sister Grand Lodges of this nation, it is a duty incumbent on us at the opening of this Grand Communication to render thanks to the Great Jehovah for his wonderful goodness and enduring mercy to us and our Brotherhood during the past year, and to bring to your notice such matters as imperiously demand your special attention. Chosen and 36 FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS sent here for your sagacity, virtue, and wisdom, to adorn the great Masonic edifice within our bounds, your constituencies look to you for that result of your Labours which your capacity warrants and your disposition so fully guarantees." In this introduction Grand Master Baldwin dealt with the problems of the times, and seemingly with great understanding. Like Banquo's ghost that would not down, the Grand Master reported that " Van Buren Lodge, No. 6, has, for a peculiar local reason, ceased to exist, and its Charter, jewels, and furniture are in the hands of our Grand Secretary." However, this Lodge is now a very lively corpse.

 

It was at this Session of 1848 that the Grand Lodge first advocated the establishment of a school for the blind in Arkansas. At that time steps were taken to provide for raising funds for the purpose. It is significant that the Arkansas Legislature soon thereafter established a school for the blind which is to‑day one of the leading eleemosynary institutions in this commonwealth. Twentyone Lodges were represented at this Session, which lasted twelve days.

 

Without any Minute of explanation, neither the Grand Master, P. P. Pullen, nor the Deputy Grand Master, George B. Hayden, was present at the opening of the 1849 Session. However, both were listed as being present at later sittings. Bro. E. H. English is recorded as having acted as the Grand Master pro tempore. Although Bro. English's name does not appear among those who were possible candidates for the Office of Grand Master, he was elected to that high position for the succeeding Session. Thus began in the Grand Lodge of Arkansas the career of one of the State's most illustrious Masons. At the next Annual Communication, thirty‑two subordinate Lodges were represented. In his opening address Grand Master English stressed the need for education and advocated the establishment of a Masonic school. He also proposed that a uniform Code of By‑Laws be adopted. The establishment of St. John's College was then recommended by the Educational Committee, and another Committee was named to apply for a Charter for the school. This Session also provided for a Grand Lecturer, and Bro. W. H. Sutton was unanimously named to fill the newly created Office. The Proceedings of this Session also contain a list of the names of members of the thirty‑four subordinate Lodges in the State. The next year, at the Session of 1851, Grand Master E. H. Whitfield suggested that it would be expedient for the Grand Lodge to divide the State into four or more Districts. Thus was established the District system and the appointment of the District Deputy Grand Masters. The Committee which had been appointed to obtain a Charter for St. John's College also reported at this time and presented a Charter which had been granted by an Act of the Legislature. It had been approved on December 31, 185o.

 

Since the Session of 1852 celebrated the hundredth anniversary of the Initiation of George Washington into Freemasonry, it was ordered that " a block of marble of suitable size, with appropriate device and emblems, should be pre pared and forwarded to the national capital to be placed in the Washington Monument just then being erected there." At the next year's Session, Bro. E.

 

FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS 37 H. English, Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Correspondence, submitted a report, at the conclusion of which he pointed out some of the leading subjects that had recently been engaging the attention of the Craft throughout the United States. Among those topics mentioned were the matters of appropriately celebrating the Initiation of George Washington, of erecting a monument to Henry Clay, of providing relief for the Brethren in California, of settling the disputes existing among the Brethren of New York, and of creating a General Grand Lodge. Commenting on these matters in general, the Chairman said: " In these important enterprises, it is to be hoped that Arkansas will not be an idle spectator, but that she will keep her lamps trimmed and her lights burning, and actively employ her growing energies in the great field of Masonic charity spread out before her." At the 1854 Communication the Library Committee reported the purchase of thirty‑five volumes of Masonic literature at a cost of $153. It is also interesting to note that Albert Pike was quite active in the Sessions of this period.

 

Another interesting feature of the Session was the great amount of attention which was given at the time to the maintenance and progress of St. John's College. Indeed, more than passing notice should be given to the establishment of St. John's College. For years this college flourished under Masonic management. It was made possible by funds contributed by the Grand Lodge. State educational facilities not having yet been provided, it was the alma mater of many men who contributed much to the educational development of the State. Like many other pioneering projects, however, it went out of existence with the coming of endowed colleges and the establishment of State schools. The founding of this college is perhaps the outstanding contribution of Arkansas Masonry during the first fifty years of its Grand Lodge. Next year Grand Master Nathaniel G. Smith expressed his attitude toward the library in the following words: We have laid the foundation for a good library. This is a good work. Let us pursue it by adding to the collection of books and increasing it annually until we have such a library as our wants demand, one that comports with our standing as a Grand Lodge. The Bible says, ` give thyself to reading ' and ` study to show thyself a workman that needeth not to be ashamed.' " Later in the Session of that year (1855) an appropriation of $zoo was made for the library fund.

 

An interesting question has been raised regarding the address of the Grand Orator, George A. Gallagher, which was made at the Annual Communication of 1856. Since he began a most scholarly and able address by saying, " Ladies and gentlemen, Brethren," we to‑day wonder how the " ladies " happened to be present, for the Order of the Eastern Star had not yet been introduced into Arkansas. The outstanding event in the Proceedings of 1857 was discussion of the codification of the By‑Laws governing subordinate Lodges and a copy of the Constitution and the By‑Laws governing the Grand Lodge.

 

The first substantial effort to establish a Masonic Widows' and Orphans' Home seems to have culminated in 1858, when Grand Master Luke E. Barber 38 FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS reported having held an Emergent Communication of the Grand Lodge at Pine Bluff, on June 24 of that year. At this Session it was appropriately noted that the Grand Lodge was then twenty years old, and that the number of Lodges had increased from 4 subordinate Lodges to 128. During the Session of 1859 Albert Pike was introduced as the representative to the Grand Lodge of Minnesota and the Grand Lodge National of the Spanish Republic of Santo Domingo. He delivered an address, which was perhaps his first active participation in the Grand Lodge of Arkansas. Another interesting event of this Session was the attitude expressed toward duelling. Despite the fact that duels were quite common and were still regarded as being the proper way for prominent men to settle their difficulties, the Grand Lodge of 1862 " Resolved, That no Mason who shall knowingly challenge or accept a challenge from a Mason shall sit in this Grand Lodge." Perhaps the outstanding feature of the Proceedings of 1863 was the record that a number of Travelling Lodges had been granted Dispensations to meet the exigencies of the war. Past Grand Master J. W. Sorrels has told the author of this article that he received the Masonic Degrees stationed in Madison County, Arkansas, with the Confederate Army, and that he was only nineteen years old at the time. The impressive event of the Session of 1869 was the retirement of Grand Master English after ten years of continuous service. A Past Grand Master's jewel was presented to him at that time.

 

At the Session George Thornburgh, afterwards Grand Master and for years editor of the Masonic Trowel, made his appearance. From then on he attended every Session of the Grand Lodge until his death. George Thornburgh may be called the pioneer advocate of prohibition in Arkansas, for at the 1886 Session he urged the adoption of a resolution making it a Masonic offense punishable by expulsion for a member to keep a saloon for the sale of intoxicating liquors. At this Session a Committee on History was also appointed. Dr. E. R. Duvall was Chairman. This Committee made very interesting reports at subsequent Sessions in 1872, 1873, 1874, and 1875. They consisted mainly of short biographies of Past Grand Masters.

 

The main feature of the Past Grand Master's address delivered at the Annual Communication of 1873 referred to the national panic, brought about by the appearance of a cholera epidemic in the early summer and the outbreak of yellow fever in the autumn, which was climaxed by " one of the worst droughts ever known anywhere." Another event of this Session worthy of more than passing attention was J. R. H. Scott's presenting to the Grand Lodge the Apron worn by his illustrious father, judge Andrew Scott.

 

A few days after the adjournment of the Grand Lodge of 1875, the Masonic Hall burned down, and much valuable property, unpublished Records, and many historic articles belonging to the Grand Lodge were destroyed. An interesting feature of the Session of 1875 was the Lodge's refusal to allow the Grand Treasurer $400 to reimburse him for that amount which he had lost through the failure of a bank. The reason given was that the Officer had deposited the money in his own name and not in the name of the Grand Lodge.

 

FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS 39 A spirit of optimism and rejoicing characterised the Session of 1876, America's centennial year. However, the Grand Master, Bro. M. L. Bell, spoke as follows in his address made at that time: " While we can but rejoice at the material prosperity of our State, the abundant crops and general peace and prosperity that reign through the land, can we congratulate ourselves upon equal progress in education and refinement, goodness and purity, among the people? . . . Amid our congratulations on our general prosperity as a State and a people, can we also rejoice in the success and prosperity of our work as Masons? " Again, soon after the adjournment of the Session of 1877, the Masonic Hall was destroyed by fire and a valuable Masonic library as well as all Records, books, and papers pertaining to the Grand Secretary's Office were among the losses. One of the features of the Session of 1879 was the conferring of the Degrees on Arthur McArthur by special request of Magnolia Lodge, No. 2. At the time a captain in the United States Army stationed at Little Rock, Bro. McArthur afterwards became famous as a Brigadier‑General of the Confederate Army, and as one of the principal generals in the Spanish‑American War. He was a native of Little Rock.

 

The Session of 1888 featured the celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the organisation of the Grand Lodge. John P. Karns was the only Brother present who had attended the Convention of 1838. Among the prominent visi tors at this celebration was Joseph Eichbaum, Grand Master of Pennsylvania, and Michael Nisbet, the Grand Secretary of that jurisdiction. The author of this article was also present, being only twenty‑three years of age at the time.

 

The Session of 1892, presided over by Bro. C. A. Bridewell, was the first to be held in the Grand Lodge Temple that had been erected at the corner of Fifth and Main Streets in Little Rock. For the first time in the history of the Grand Lodge, it was able to meet in its own home. This was an occasion of much felicitation. This Session marked the beginning of the long and faithful service of John M. Oathout as Grand Lecturer. Bro. Oathout served from 1892 till his death in 1912‑. He was succeeded by Bro. Clark, who is still serving in that capacity, having already exceeded the record of Bro. Oathout in point of time.

 

As has already been pointed out, Arkansas has been favoured with a great deal of unusually fine Masonic material. The State has, indeed, produced some of the outstanding Masons of the world. If records had been preserved the his tory of Freemasonry in Arkansas would compare favourably with that of any other Grand Jurisdiction.

 

However, the limitations, both of authentic Records as well as space, are such that biographical sketches can be given for only a few of Arkansas's most distinguished members of the Craft. First, let us sketch the life of that great Arkansas Mason‑Albert Pike.

 

Pike was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on December 29, 18og. In 1822he attended Harvard University, and afterwards he taught school in Massachusetts for seven years. In 1832 he joined a trading party and made an expedi‑ 40 FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS tion through Kansas, Missouri, New Mexico, and the Indian Territory. He reached Fort Smith, Arkansas, on December 1o of that year. There he resumed his profession as a teacher. Later he married Miss Mary Ann Hamilton at Arkansas Post. He also engaged in newspaper work at Van Buren and at Little Rock, and was admitted to the bar in 1836. Afterwards he was admitted to the bar of the Supreme Court of the United States. He received that advancement just when Abraham Lincoln and Hannabal Hamblin did. In 1846, during the war with Mexico, Pike raised a company of Arkansas cavalrymen and served as its captain under Archibald Yell, the Arkansas governor who resigned office to enter his country's military service. Bro. Yell, a Mason, was killed at the battle of Buena Vista, in 1847. Pike's account of the action at Buena Vista, as published throughout the State, aroused the ire of Colonel John S. Roane, who thought the report reflected unjustly on the Arkansas regiment. In consequence Colonel Roane challenged Captain Pike to a duel, and although neither was a " fire‑eater," public opinion was such that Pike felt himself honour bound to accept the challenge. The duel was fought at a spot in the Indian Territory, just across the Arkansas River from Fort Smith, in August, 1848. Two shots were exchanged by each of the duelists, fortunately without injury to either. Their seconds refusing to interfere, personal friends who were present brought about a reconciliation. Pike and Roane afterwards became friends and companions. When Captain Pike was mustered out, he returned to Little Rock and resumed his law practice.

 

Bro. Pike was made a Mason in Western Star Lodge, No. 2, in July 1850. In 1859 Albert Pike became Grand Commander of the Scottish Rite of the Southern Jurisdiction. He also assisted in establishing the Scottish Rite Council in Arkansas, in 1853. That same year he was made Grand High Priest of the Royal Arch Chapter, and in 1865 he was chosen Grand Orator of the Grand Lodge. The fact that he never attained the position of Grand Master was perhaps due to his activities in legal and military pursuits. In 1853 Pike removed from Little Rock to New Orleans, probably with a view to practising law there. Apparently he did not secure an extensive practice, however, for he maintained himself by translating the Code Napoleon from the French, a translation which is still in use in Louisiana. Pike is rated as one of the most learned lawyers of his time. After residing in New Orleans for about five years, Pike returned to Little Rock, where he maintained his residence until 1868. Then he removed to Washington, District of Columbia, where he could be in closer contact with his Masonic duties. He resided there until his death on April 2, 1891.

 

Pike's thrilling yet disappointing career as a soldier during the war between the States is worthy of historical reference. Like many another Easterner who had cast his lot in Dixie Land, Albert Pike found himself in a dilemma when it became necessary to choose between his country as a whole and his State. As a boy he had heard of the glory of the Union, but as a man he was faced with the " sovereignty " of his State. Although he hoped against hope that Arkansas would not secede, when it did so he finally cast the die in its FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS 41 favour by saying, " Whatever I am, I owe it to my State." During the war he reached the rank of brigadier‑general, and was put in command of a brigade composed largely of Cherokee, Chickasaw, and Choctaw Indians from the Indian Territory. When General Van Dorn ordered those troops to be taken into Kansas, Pike protested, for he did not think that the Indians should be required to fight except in their own Territory. But about that time the Federal troops under General Curtis invaded western Arkansas, and General Pike was required to join General Van Dorn. He did so just in time to participate in the battle of Pea Ridge, or Elkhorn, in Washington County, Arkansas. That battle was fought contrary to Pike's judgment and against his advice. It terminated unsuccessfully for the Confederates, who lost two of their ablest leaders, General McIntosh and General McCulloch.

 

This was the beginning of a very sad and disappointing period of Pike's life‑due chiefly to a quarrel which arose between him and other Confederate commanders with whom he was associated. So serious did the differences of opinion become that Pike was ordered arrested. Finally, the disagreement culminated in Pike's retirement from the service during the early years of the war. To add to his troubles, Pike's large property holdings were confiscated by the Federal Government. At one time property of his valued at $z.o,ooo was sold on the auction block. As a result he was almost penniless at the close of the war. But with the dauntless courage characteristic of the man, Albert Pike resumed his literary and legal pursuits and again amassed quite a fortune. In i 879 he relinquished the practice of law in order to give his entire time to his Masonic pursuits and literary productions. " Every Year " is his best known poem.

 

Among the many magnificent tributes which have been paid to Bro. Pike's memory, the following from Colonel Patrick Donan, of Fargo, North Dakota, is one of the most interesting. Colonel Donan said of him Albert Pike was a king among men by the divine right of merit. A giant in body, in brain, in heart, and in soul. So majestic in appearance that every passerby turned to gaze upon him and admire him. Six feet, two inches tall, with the proportions of a Hercules and the grace of an Apollo. A face and head massive and leonine, recalling in every feature some sculptor's dream of a Grecian god; while his long, wavy hair, flowing down over his shoulders, made a strikingly picturesque effect. The whole expression of his countenance told of power combined with gentleness, refinement, and benevolence. . . .

 

His legal practice brought him several fortunes . . . but his ear and heart and purse were ever open to the appeal of the needy or distressed and his benefactions were beyond enumeration. His bounty was reckless in its lavishness.

 

In all the rush of his busy and eventful career, he found time to counsel and assist every worthy man or woman who came to him. He was peculiarly kind and considerate toward young people.

 

Glorious record of a glorious man! Great enough to succeed in nearly every line of human effort and ambition. A patient and faithful teacher, a brilliant editor, a lawyer of eminent ability and skill, an eloquent and impas‑ 42 FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS sioned orator, a gallant soldier, a profound scholar, a poet whose verses tingle with pure Promethean fire that comes from heaven alone, a prolific author, a wise counselor, a patriot, and a philanthropist whose charity was broad enough to take in all mankind. God never made a gentler gentleman, a better citizen, or a truer man! He was in himself the highest and grandest embodiment of the virtues and graces of Freemasonry, a living exemplification of the exalted and exalting principles of our great world‑embracing Brotherhood! He ran the whole gamut of earthly honours. He climbed Fame's glittering ladder to its loftiest height, and stepped from its topmost round into the skies. . . .

 

As had already been indicated, another of Arkansas' famous Masons was Elbert Hartwell English. A native of Alabama, Bro. English was reared on a farm. His education was such as he could obtain from the primary schools and academies of his day. He was admitted to the bar in 1838 and had some experience as a legislator. In May 1844 he removed to Little Rock, and soon thereafter was appointed reporter of decisions of the Supreme Court. In 1854 the General Assembly elected him chief justice of the Supreme Court, an office he held until his death excepting only a short period during the war between the States. Bro. English was made a Mason in Athens Lodge, No. 18, in Alabama, on August 25, 1842. Afterwards he affiliated with Western Star Lodge, No. 2, at Little Rock. In 1849 he was elected Grand Master. Following his reelection in 1859, he served for ten consecutive years, the longest period any one Grand Master has ever served. The founding of St. John's College was the outstanding accomplishment of his administration. Bro. English received all the Degrees of both the York Rite and the Scottish Rite.

 

Charles E. Rosenbaum, another distinguished Arkansas Mason, was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on January 1, 1855. He was educated in the public schools of his native city, and then in 1883 he moved to Little Rock, where he entered business. He was an active participant in both the York Rite and the Scottish Rite Bodies. He served as Grand Master from November 1914 to November 1915. His most distinctive service to Masonry came perhaps through his connection with the Scottish Rite Bodies, wherein he became a pioneer in the work of dramatising and adapting for presentation, with elaborate stage equipment and effects, Degrees which had hitherto, for the most part, been communicated only. For nearly forty years he was the directing genius of the Bodies of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite in the Jurisdiction of Arkansas, and in 1911 he was made one of a Committee to superintend the construction of the House of the Temple. He served as the Chairman of the Committee until 1915, when that wonderful structure was completed and dedicated in Washington, District of Columbia. Few men have devoted so much time to the work of Masonry or achieved positions of such prominence in all its branches as did Bro. Rosenbaum. His Masonic record is, indeed, an impressive one. February 25, 1931, closed the unblemished record of a long useful life crowned with joys of friendships and honours well bestowed.

 

A biographical sketch of Bro. Fay Hempstead forms the essential nucleus FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS 43 about which the history of the Masonic Fraternity in Arkansas has been builded during the past threescore and more years. Fay Hempstead came from a talented lineage, both paternal and maternal. While his father was a member of the Supreme Court of Arkansas, he wrote of its most widely quoted decisions on the law of descent and distribution.

 

Fay Hempstead was born in Little Rock, on November 24, 1847. He was educated in private schools and in St. John's (Masonic) College. Later, he studied law at the University of Virginia. In 1868 he entered upon the practise of his profession at Little Rock, a vocation from which he retired only in 1881, upon his election as Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of Arkansas. From then on he gave his entire time to his official duties and to literary pursuits.

 

On May 6, 1869, Bro. Hempstead was made an Entered Apprentice in Western Star Lodge, No. 2, at Little Rock. Step by step, he received all the Degrees of both the York Rite and the Scottish Rite, including the Thirty‑third Degree. On November 23, 19oi, he was coroneted as Honorary Inspector General. Bro. Hempstead's preferment placed him in the Chairs of almost all the local Bodies. For years he was also prominent in the Order of the Eastern Star. His service in all the Grand Bodies was distinctive. In addition to his record as Grand Secretary, he also served as Grand High Priest of the Grand Chapter of Royal Arch Masons in 1891, and as Most Illustrious Grand Master of the Grand Council in 189o. From 1899 he served as Grand Recorder of the Grand Council, of the Order of the High‑Priesthood, and of the Grand Commandery. In 19o6, Bro. Hempstead was elected Grand Steward of the General Council of North America. He also served as Most Puissant General Grand Master from 1921 to 1924. His address made in 1878, when he served as Grand Orator of the Grand Lodge of Arkansas, is to be found in the collection entitled Masonic Jewels.

 

Perhaps the highest honour within the gift of Masonry was conferred upon Bro. Hempstead at Chicago on October 8, 19o8, when he was crowned Poet Laureate of Freemasonry, an honour which had up till then been bestowed upon only two others, Robert Burns and Robert Morris. Hempstead's literary, musical, and historical works are extensive. His poems have passed through several editions, and his essays and addresses have found a place in Masonic literature. His large collection of historical and biographical works includes volumes that touch upon all subjects of state.

 

The Session of the Grand Lodge held on November 17 and 18, 1931, was the occasion of the completion of Bro. Hempstead's fifty years of service as Grand Secretary. Grand Master Andrew J. Russell took special note of the Golden jubilee, and appointed a Committee to prepare a programme to be given on that occasion. Among distinguished Masons of other Grand jurisdictions present were M. '. W.'. E. E. Sykes, Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Louisiana, R. '. W.'. Milton W. Boyland, Grand Junior Warden of the Grand Lodge of Louisiana, and R. '. W.'. Isaac Cherry, Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of New Jersey. Telegrams and letters of felicitation came from several foreign Grand jurisdictions and from almost every State in the Union.

 

44 FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS Bro. Hempstead's response on this occasion, made without reference to notes or manuscript, is a classic piece of Masonic literature that really gives a bird's‑eye view of the Craft in Arkansas during the last fifty years. It is quoted here because no one now living is more capable of drawing such a picture Most Worshipful Grand Master and Brethren of the Grand Lodge, Sisters, and Brothers I find myself utterly incapable of expressing the deep emotions which fill me on this wonderful occasion. I wish that I might find the words necessary to express to Bro. Harry H. Myers my appreciation of the kind things he has said to me, and to you, Most Worshipful Sir and Brother, and to the other Grand Lodge Officers for having projected this jubilee Celebration, and to the Committee for having made this great occasion possible. I also feel deeply honoured to know that Brethren from other jurisdictions are present, having made long journeys to attend this event. I can only express to them my pride and appreciation of their presence, and extend a word of welcome to them for their being in our midst.

 

When I give one glance at this magnificent assembly, I realise that you have assembled to celebrate an unusual event, the service of fifty years as Secretary to the Grand Lodge of Arkansas. When I look back upon the initial inci dent of entering upon this Office, it seems incredible to me that a half century of time has passed away. It seems so recent, as if it were yesterday, last week, last year, and yet I know that between that date and this, time with his velvetshod feet, treading lightly, has rolled a half‑hundred years into the abyss of the past.

 

A friend has said to me, " This is a far different world, no doubt, from what it was when you began in this Office." Yes, indeed! It is a far different world, and a far better one. In that fifty years the genius of man has simply run riot in the field of invention and advance. He has invaded the eagle's home and fashioned for himself the semblance of a bird. He soars into the sunlight and the clouds until the eagle becomes but a tiny speck beneath him, and having gained dominion of the upper air, he girdles the earth with his ventures! And men and women are daily vying with each other for newer records in altitude and 'speed. He has covered the earth with swift‑moving vehicles which make transportation a plaything and travel an unceasing delight. He has plunged into invisible ether and seized upon sound waves through which, with the aid of electricity, in the telephone, the long‑distance call, the wireless, and the radio, he sends his communications to far continents, as friend would speak with friend, and from aerial towers he broadcasts the human voice into millions of homes so that a man may sit in his home and listen to the king of England talking to his Parliament in London; a song sung in New York and a concert given in San Francisco. He has flooded the world with light, making darkness into daylight with the magic of the electric lamp. He has imprisoned the voice of music in a whirling disc that rivals the nightingale with floods of melody and song. He has put upon the screen, shadows that move and talk as if they were human and clad in the colours of natural life. These and countless other marvels and miracles have come to pass in that half‑century flown, and possibly FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS 45 the end is not yet. Each year finds something new where all seems old. Each spring new verdure and fresh flowers crown the hills that have stood from everlasting.

 

All the years invent.

 

Each month is various to present The World with some development; And men, through novel spheres of Thought, Still moving after Truth, long sought, Will find new things when we are not.

 

And how has Masonry in Arkansas fared while these great features were in the making? Let us recall a few items by way of comparison. Then her Lodges numbered three hundred and forty‑two; to‑day they are five hundred and ten. Then her membership was approximately fifteen thousand; now it is approximately forty thousand. Then her revenue was around ten thousand dollars; now it is above sixty thousand dollars. These are material things, but they show through the light of comparison that in that time the Grand Lodge of Arkansas has not stood still or gone backward, but that her advance, if slow and creeping on from point to oint, has been always forward.

 

And what have been the achievements o the Grand Lodge of Arkansas during those eventful years? Let us recall those which come readiest to the mind. First, we have established at Batesville a home for orphan children of Masons, which is the pride and glory of the Grand Lodge. Then, we have built in the State's tuberculosis sanitarium at Booneville, purely as a matter of charity, a ward for the more ample accommodation of children smitten with that disease. We have created a bureau for the payment of pensions to widows and indigent, aged Masons, which every month sends a measure of relief to numerous cases of need. We have created a Board of Finance, composed of able financiers who wisely conserve and administer our invested funds. A generous Bro., ,J. P. Hall, of Conway Line Lodge, No. 373, in Arkansas, but himself living at Bakersfield, Missouri, just across the line, has made a wonderful donation to the cause of higher education of which boys graduating from the Home are the beneficiaries, and which stands as a perpetual endowment for that noble cause. It is with the deepest sorrow that we relate that Bro. Hall departed this life within the past fortnight. For a time and in a limited way we furnished hos ital service for the sick. We furnish lecturing for the Lodges. The Grand Loge has been liberal in making donations for monuments to deceased Past Grand Masters. Since we have come into this splendid building, we have been more suitably housed than ever before, overcoming the disasters of three fires that have occurred within my knowledge. Here in this building, for the first time in our history, we are able to maintain an adequate library, which is gradually filling up with valuable and interesting books. Two features that have come into this library during the past year are specially worthy of note. One is a large album which I have had manufactured and beautifully bound, which I call a Portrait Gallery of Past Grand Masters; into which is gathered the portraits of all Past Grand Masters of the Grand Lodge, as far as obtainable, only a few of the earlier ones being lacking; and these being conveniently indexed 46 FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS so that reference to the portraits can be easily made, form a condensed history of the Grand Lodge as reflected in the portraits of those who have been its leaders. The other feature to which I refer is the gathering and having suitably bound memorial circulars issued by Grand Bodies of Arkansas for those who passed on into the Silent Land. And then, although it is not a subject which originated in the Grand Lodge, but is a subject to which she has made liberal donations of her funds, sons and daughters of members of our Lodges receive the benefit of our Educational Loan Fund projected by the Order of Knights Templar, the object of which is to aid young men and young women in making their way through college. The Grand Lodge of Arkansas did her part in the building of the George Washington National Masonic Memorial which is being erected at Alexandria, Virginia; and which will be dedicated in 1932‑She did her part toward relieving cases of distress in the flood waters of 192‑7. She did her art in relieving cases of distress in the drought disaster of 1930; and in all of these features she has had the cordial cooperation and assistance of that noble band of workers, whose assisting hand the Grand Lodge of Arkansas gratefully acknowledges.

 

Not any of these features are of overwhelming greatness, but when put together, all are units in an united structure of achievements which furnish a fair exhibit of the aims and purposes of Masonry as carried out in these ways, of which, we have no cause to feel ashamed. I cannot claim to have had any direct connection with their origin and inception; but only that I have gone along with them step by step from the beginning.

 

The one feature of distress in contemplating these buried years is recalling the long list of those who were of us and with us, who walked and worked with us, who have passed on into the Silent Land. May it be that their spirits in the Vast, share with us the emotions of this hour.

 

Oh, if it be, that souls which once we knew, Have prescience in them of the things we do, Then may we think that from their realms of day They look upon us in approving way; And though their tongues are hushed forevermore, They silent watch us from the other shore.

 

Brethren and Friends, in this supreme hour of my life I seem to be as one who stands on the tip of a mountain crest and looks pensively down upon the long valley beneath him. Valley once filled with roseate hopes which have now grown ashen and grey! Valley once filled with the glow of Youth and the fire of Ambition, which have now become chilled by the frosts of Age. But I do so with a calm serenity which makes me feel that I can adopt the words of our nation's chief poet when he said Time has laid his hand upon my heart gaily; Not smiting it, But as a harper lays his open palm upon his harp To deaden its vibrations.

 

I assure you, Brethren and Friends, that he who stands in the sunset of life and sees the shadows lengthen, sees the sun descend below the slanting FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS 47 hills, may yet find sweet solace in dwelling upon " the days that are no more." And such I trust may be the case with me to the end.

 

As the day dies out in a golden gleam, And the red West glows with its parting beam, So would I, Friends, when it comes my lot, Wish to depart thus calmly; and not As the Old Year passes, sad and slow, Wrapped in the shroud of the Winter's snow; But rather in the starlight, fair and clear, Where the quivering discs of the stars appear.

 

He died in the spring of 1934.

 

In 1841 the General Grand High Priest of the United States issued his Dispensation to Far West Chapter of Royal Arch Masons, at Fayetteville, in Washington County, Arkansas. The petitioners for that authority were the Rev. Joel Haden, Samuel Harris, William Shoman, Onesimus Evans, Thomas J. Pollard, Richard P. Pulliam, Alfred A. Stirman, Thomas Bean, and Abraham Winnery. The next year a Charter was granted to Far West Chapter, No. i, by the General Grand Chapter of Royal Arch Masons. And thus Royal Arch Masonry was inaugurated in Arkansas.

 

On June 21, 1844, Union Chapter, of Little Rock, was established by a Dispensation issued by Joseph K. Stapleton, the General Grand High Priest of the United States, to George P. Lemmon as High Priest, Joseph Grubb as King, and C. J. Krebs as Scribe. On the following September 13, the Charter to Union Chapter, No. 2, was granted. Then followed the organisation of Friendship Chapter, No. 3, of Union County, and of Whitfield Chapter, No. 4, at Camden. On April 28, 1851, a Convention of the Chapters was convened for the purpose of organising a Grand Chapter for the State of Arkansas. These representatives were present: Union Chapter, No. 2, represented by E. H. English, High Priest, A. Pike, King; C. J. Krebs, Scribe; Friendship Chapter, No. 3, represented by F. Courtney, High Priest, D. J. Baldwin, proxy for King, and W. H. Hines, Scribe; Whitfield Chapter, No. 4, represented by E. H. Whitfield, High Priest, C. C. Scott, King, and Jas. A. Warren, Scribe.

 

The Convention elected E. H. English to be Grand High Priest; Franklin Courtney, Deputy Grand High Priest; C. C. Scott, Grand King; A. Pike, Grand Scribe; L. E. Barber, Grand Secretary; and R. L. Dodge, Grand Treasurer. The Officers were installed by E. H. Whitfield. A Constitution was then adopted and Far West Chapter was then invited to unite with the Grand Chapter of Royal Arch Masons. The Convention then adjourned, and after one day's Session the Grand Chapter closed until its next regular Convocation. Since that time it has met annually, except during the years 1863 and 1864, when no meeting could be held because of the War between the States. Since the close of that conflict the Grand Chapter's Labours have been zealous and harmonious.

 

48 FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS The growth, although slow, has been gradual. There are now 30 Chapters, having an affiliated membership of over 7000.

 

The first Council of the Order of High Priesthood in Arkansas was held at Little Rock on January 17, 18 It was presided over by Samuel Reed, who served as President; William H. Field, who acted as Vice‑President; and A. W. Webb, who served as Recorder. At that time, Companions English and Merrick were consecrated and anointed. The next Council convened on February 16, 1853. At that meeting Companion Barber was consecrated and anointed. The Councils continued to hold Special Sessions until the beginning of the War between the States, when they were discontinued. Then, on November 6, 1867, a Convention of High Priests was held at Little Rock. At that time Companion Barber acted as Chairman and Companion M. L. Bell Secretary. A Constitution was then formed, and a Council of High Priests for the State of Arkansas was organised. Companion L. E. Barber was elected President, with a full corps of Officers, as provided by the Constitution. As Royal Arch Masonry flourishes, so flourish the High Priests. The evening following the closing of the Grand Chapter of Royal Arch Masons is given over to the conferring of this Degree.

 

Council Masonry was introduced into Arkansas on April 25, 1853, by a Dispensation issued by Albert Pike, Deputy Inspector General of the Supreme Council of the Southern jurisdiction, to R. L. Dodge, Luther Chase, and W. H. Sutton, all of Little Rock. The newly organised body was named Occidental Council. Then, on the Thirty‑third Degree of Charleston, South Carolina. The next Councils organised were Adoniram Council, No. 2, of Camden; Cephas Council, No. 3, of Monticello; Friendship Council, No. 4, of Seminary, and Osiris Council, No. 5, of Fort Smith. On November 6, 186o, a Convention was called to meet at the Masonic Hall in Little Rock, on invitation of the Supreme Council of the Thirty‑third Degree for the Southern Jurisdiction of the United States, for the purpose of forming a Grand Council of Royal and Select Masters. The following Councils were represented: Occidental Council, No. i, of Little Rock, Luke E. Barber, Thrice Illustrious; R. L. Dodge, Illustrious Deputy; Thomas Parsel, P. C., and members, William G. Sutton, Henry H. Hays, and J. B. Groves. Adoniram Council, No. 2, of Camden, Edmund H. Whitfield, Thrice Illustrious. Friendship Council, No. 4, of Seminary, Samuel H. Bayless, Thrice Illustrious. Osiris Council, No. 5, of Fort Smith, R. M. Johnson, Representative. The Convention resolved itself into a Committee of the Whole, and proceeded to form a Constitution for the Most Puissant Grand Council of Royal and Select Masters of Arkansas. Then, after consultation, a Constitution was adopted. The Convention next proceeded to elect Officers. Those chosen were: Companion L. Barber, Grand Master; Companion E. H. Whitfield, Deputy Grand Master; Companion S. H. Bayless, G. I. M.; Companion W. H. Sutton, G. P. C. of W.; Companion R. L. Dodge, Grand Treasurer, and Companion E. H. English, Grand Recorder. There are now 1169 Council Masons in Arkansas. The Grand Council meets annually, immediately after the closing of the Grand Chapter of Royal Arch Masons.

 

FREEMASONRY IN ARKANSAS 49 Organised Templar Masonry was first introduced into Arkansas by a Dispensation to Hugh de Payens Commandery, dated December Zo, 1853, and issued by W. B. Hubbard, Grand Master of the Grand Encampment of the United States, to Sir Albert Pike, Sir Percy C. Brockus, Sir John McDaniel, Sir H. H. Heath, Sir H. F. Loudon, Sir B. B. French, Sir A. W. Webb, Sir W. S. Brown, Sir John W. Sketo, and Sir Samuel Mitchell.

 

Sir Albert Pike was made Eminent Commander; Sir A. W. Webb, Generalissimo; and Sir J. W. Sketo, Captain General. Then, in October, 1856, a Charter was granted to the Commandery, which was known as Hugh de Payens Commandery, No. i. The next Commandery organised was Bertrand du Gueselin Commandery, No. z, at Camden. The date of its Dispensation was April 13, 1866. Its Charter was issued on September i8, 1868. This was followed by Jacques de Molay Commandery at Fort Smith. The date of its Dispensation was December 30, 1868, while the date of its Charter was September 22, 1871. The next Commandery to enter the field was Baldwin Commandery, No. 4, at Fayetteville. Its Dispensation was issued on April 28, 1871, and its Charter on September 22, 18 71.

 

On March 23 , 1872, pursuant to a call for a Convention to be held in Fort Smith, the Grand Commandery was organised. At that meeting the following Commanderies were represented: Hugh de Payens Commandery, No. i ; Bertrand du Gueselin Commandery, No. 2, and Jacques de Molay Commandery, No. 3. Sir L. E. Barber was elected President, and Sir Edward J. Brooks, Recorder. The Constitution was then framed, and the following Officers were elected: Sir Luke E. Barber, of Little Rock, Right Eminent Grand Commander; Sir Edward J. Brooks, of Fort Smith, Very Eminent Deputy Grand Commander; Sir Raphael M. Johnson, of Fort Smith, Eminent Generalissimo; Sir Samuel W. Williams, of Little Rock, Eminent Captain General; Sir William A. Sample, of Fort Smith, Eminent Prelate; Sir Walter O. Lattimore, of Fayetteville, Eminent Senior Warden; Sir Caleb H. Stone, of Camden, Eminent Junior Warden; Sir Roderick L. Dodge, of Little Rock, Eminent Treasurer; Sir J. W. Rison, of Little Rock, Eminent Recorder; Sir R. S. Crampton, of Spadra, Eminent Standard Bearer; Sir J. S. Looney, of Fayetteville, Eminent Sword Bearer; Sir Robert E. Salle, of Camden, Eminent Warden, and Sir James Tunnah, of Little Rock, Eminent Captain of the Guard. The Grand Commandery meets annually in May, and now has a membership of over Zsoo in the 28 Commanderies.

 

FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA JOHN WHICHER T is quite impossible to write the story of pioneer Masons and Masonry in California in small compass, for it is interwoven with romance and fiction. Masons and Masonry were known in the Golden State long before the dis covery of gold by John Marshall in January 1848. The pioneers were lured there not altogether by a desire for gold, but rather because of highly coloured stories told by returning trappers, who lauded California's genial skies and fertile lands that were to be had for asking. A few Masons came in the 1830's, but the trek to the new country did not fully begin until about May 1840. Then John Bidwell, of whom more will be told later in this sketch, organised a party in Platt County, Missouri, and the adjacent region, and presently he and his companions started on the long and perilous journey to the Pacific Coast. From that time until the discovery of gold in California in 1848, emigration from the East was constant. It was never again so spectacular, however, as during the decade immediately following the discovery.

 

So far as records disclose, the first Master Mason to make a permanent residence in California was Abel Stearns, who came from Salem, Massachusetts, and settled at the pueblo of Los Angeles in 1833. He had the distinction of ship ping to the Philadelphia Mint, in 1842, the first gold mined in California. The dust and nuggets were purchased from miners who discovered and worked the mines in Placerito Canyon, near the San Fernando Mission in Los Angeles County. Singularly, the discovery of gold there in sufficient quantity to warrant shipment to the United States mint caused no interest at all beyond the locality where it was found. Pioneers were hungry for land, not for gold.

 

Besides Abel Stearns, there were, indeed, other pioneer Masons of preGrand Lodge days. Among them was Christopher Carson, the noted trapper and scout better known as " Kit " Carson, who carried the first overland mail from Taos, New Mexico, to military headquarters at Monterey, California, in 1842. Carson was born in Kentucky on December 24, 18o9, and died at Fort Lyon, Colorado, On May 23, 1868. He spent many years of his life in California, having made his first visit there in 1829. He was with General John C. Fremont at the capture of Sonoma in 1846. Carson's last trip to California was made in 1853. Then he returned to Taos, New Mexico, where he was appointed Indian Agent, a post he held until the beginning of the war between the States in 1861. During the war he was first a colonel of the First New Mexico Cavalry, then later breveted brigadier‑general. In 1854 he received his Masonic Degrees in Montezuma Lodge, No. io9, of New Mexico.

 

50 FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA 51 Associated with Carson was George Yount, a pioneer of 1831, who was the first American settler in Napa Valley and builder of the first fort in California, erected in 1841. He received his Degrees in 185o in Benicia Lodge, No. 5, was Grand Bible Bearer from 1854 to 1864, and died on October 5, 1865.

 

Hillard P. Dorsey, at the time a Past Master, came to California from Mississippi in 1849. In 1855, as the first Master of Los Angeles Lodge, No. 42, he was expelled by the Grand Lodge for fighting a duel, something that was contrary to the Masonic regulations as well as the civil law of the jurisdiction. Benjamin D. Wilson, known as " Don Benito," came to California from New Mexico in 1841 and settled on a ranch on which the city of Riverside was subsequently established. He was one of the first initiates of Los Angeles Lodge, No. 42, and was mayor of the city in 1851. Mount Wilson is said to have been named in his honour.

 

Myron Morton, a captain in Colonel Stevenson's famous New York regiment, was a member of California's first Constitutional Convention. To him was delegated the task of phrasing the document.

 

In 1846 Robert Semple edited The Californian, the first newspaper published in the State. Having received his Degrees in Kentucky, he came to California in 1845 as secretary of the Bear Flag Party. Semple was president of the first Constitutional Convention, a body that not only formed the State government but also prevailed upon the United States to accept the former Mexican territory as a sovereign State. That took place on September 9, i85o.

 

Commodore John D. Sloat received his Degrees in 18oo in St. Andrew's Lodge, No. 3, of New York City. From 1844 he was in command of the Pacific Squadron of the United States Navy, and on July 7, 1846, he raised the American flag and took possession of California, in the name of the United States Government. A monument to his memory, standing in the presidio of Monterey, was dedicated by the Grand Lodge of California on June 14, 1910. Commodore Sloat died on November 28, 1867, at Staten Island, New York.

 

James Frazier Reed, organiser of the Reed‑Donner party of emigrants at Springfield, Illinois, on April 15, 1846, and a comrade of Abraham Lincoln throughout the Black Hawk War, was an outstanding character among the early Masons of California. As first lieutenant of Captain Charles M. Weber's company of United States Rangers, of the Pueblo of San Jose, he helped to defeat the insurgent Californians at the battle of Santa Clara, on January 2, 1847, while he was on his way to procure relief for the starving Donner party near Truckee. He rescued thirteen persons, including three members of his own family, and later escorted them to Sutter's Fort at Sacramento. Reed donated six public parks to the city of San Jose in 1851. He was born in County Armagh, Ireland, on November 14, 181o, and died at San Jose on July 24, 1874. His Masonic Degrees were conferred in 184o, in Springfield Lodge, No. 4, at Springfield, Illinois.

 

Joseph Warren Revere, grandson of Joseph Warren and Paul Revere, was young lieutenant in the squadron commanded by Commodore Sloat, already  52 FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA mentioned. By order of the Commodore and Commander John B. Montgomery, of the sloop of war Portsmouth, he had the honour of lowering the Bear standard and raising the American flag at Sonoma, California.

 

John A. Sutter, famous as the builder and owner of Sutter's Fort, was elected to receive the Degrees in Marysville Lodge, No. 9, on September i, 1853, though so far as is known he was never initiated.

 

Serving as a purser in the squadron of Commodore Sloat was a Mason named Rodman Price who afterwards became a member of California's first Constitutional Convention. Later he was elected governor of New Jersey.

 

One of the most interesting of the pioneer characters among early Masons of California was Colonel John W. Geary. After being discharged from service in the Mexican War, he came to California on the ship Oregon in 1849. When he landed at San Francisco on April 1 of that year he carried a commission granted by President Polk and making him postmaster of the town. Geary filled the place only fourteen days and then resigned. Since establishment of orderly government in San Francisco was just then being seriously considered by the citizens, Geary was elected as first alcalde, or mayor, at an election held the following August 1. He served as mayor until 1851, and then returned to his native State of Pennsylvania. Five years later President Pierce appointed him governor of Kansas Territory. There Geary had the unpleasant task of administering his office during the troublous days incident to discussion of the slavery question in that blood‑stained Territory, and when James Buchanan was inaugurated as President he resigned and again returned to his old home. At the outbreak of the war between the States in 1861, he entered the Northern Army as a colonel. During the war he was wounded several times, and eventually he was given a commission as brigadier‑general for gallantry in action. As commander of the Second Division of the Twentieth Army Corps, he took part in Sherman's memorable march to the sea, and upon the arrival of the Northern troops at Savannah, in 1864, he was appointed military governor of that city. Geary, who was elected governor of Pennsylvania in 1866, was probably the only American who ever had the distinction of having been governor of two States, in this instance, Kansas and Pennsylvania. Bro. Geary received his Masonic Degrees in St. John's Lodge, No. 219, of Pittsburgh, on January 4, 1847. Because he was just on the point of leaving for Mexico with his regiment, the three Degrees were conferred in one evening by Dispensation. In California, where he was active in Masonic Work, he assisted in formally organising California Lodge, No. 13, then under obedience to the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia. He was its first Secretary.

 

The Brother to whom California Masonry is most indebted was Charles Gilman, who presided at the Convention which launched the Grand Lodge of California. In the spring of 1849 he came to San Francisco from Baltimore, and at once commenced active work among the Masons scattered throughout the city. He had been Grand Master of New Hampshire in 183o, and Grand Master of Maryland from 1842 until 1848. He was an active Inspector General Thirty‑ FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA 53 third Degree of the Scottish Rite Masons. From 1835 to 1849 he was Secretary General of the Royal Arch Masons and Grand Recorder of the Grand Encampment of Knights Templar of the United States. Not only was he learned in the civil law, but he was also familiar with Masonic law and custom. As presiding Officer of the Convention that formed the Grand Lodge, his knowledge of procedure was invaluable. Though he was logically the Mason to be selected as first Grand Master, he declined the honour in favour of his law partner, Colonel Stevenson, because his own Bro. Gilman died at Baltimore sometime in September, 1861.

 

The man to whom California Masons assigned the duty of administering the affairs of the Grand Lodge in 1850, Jonathan Drake Stevenson, was a colourful character. On January 1, 18oo, he was born in New York City; he died at San Francisco on February 14, 1894. In 1821 he was made a Mason in Phoenix Lodge, No. 40, of New York City, and he became the Lodge's Master the following year. For many years he was private secretary to Vice‑President Daniel D. Tompkins, who was a justice of the New York Supreme Court, and was governor of New York from 1807 until 1817. Bro. Tompkins was Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge in New York in 18o6 and Grand Master in 182o. At the outbreak of the Mexican War in 1846 Bro. Stevenson, who had long been identified with the New York National Guard, was commissioned colonel of the First New York Volunteers, a regiment known as the New York Legion. He sailed for California with his regiment in September 1846, and arrived at San Francisco on March S, 1847. There his troops were first to hoist the American flag over the old Mexican presidio. Colonel Stevenson established his headquarters at Los Angeles, and after the signing of the Treaty of Hidalgo, in 1848, his command was mustered out. As an officer he was a rigid disciplinarian, honest and just in all his dealings with his men. At his death he was buried not far from the place where nearly half a century before he had entered the Golden Gate with his soldiers, and where the Pacific chants a ceaseless requiem in honour of the first Grand Master of California.

 

Before the East heard of the discovery of gold at Sutter's Mill, in January 1848 one Charter and one Dispensation approving the formation of Masonic Lodges in Alta California had been issued. After 1848 and before the formation of the California Grand Lodge, others were issued as follows: (1) Western Star Lodge, No. 98, at Benton City, whose Charter, dated May io, 1848, came from the Grand Lodge of Missouri. (2) San Francisco Lodge, empowered by a Dispensation from the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts granted sometime in 1848. This Lodge was never formed. (3) California Lodge, No. 13, at San Francisco, whose Charter was issued by the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia on November 9, 1848. (4) Pacific Lodge, at Benicia, established under a Louisiana Dispensation dated June S, 1849 (S) Davy Crockett Lodge, at San Francisco, established under a Louisiana Dispensation dated sometime in 1849. (6) Connecticut Lodge, No. 75, established under a Connecticut Charter dated January 54 FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA 31,._ 1849. (7) New Jersey Lodge, at Sacramento, established under a New Jersey Dispensation dated March 1, 1849. (8) Sierra Nevada Lodge, at Centerville (now Grass Valley), established under an Indiana Dispensation dated May, 1848. (9) San Francisco Lodge, whose Indiana Dispensation was dated sometime in May 1848, did not organise. (io) Pacific Lodge, at Long's Bar, established under an Illinois Dispensation dated sometime in October 1849. (11) Laveley Lodge, at Marysville, established under an Illinois Dispensation dated sometime in October 1849. (12) Richmond Travelling Lodge, whose Dispensation was issued by the Grand Lodge of Virginia sometime in 1849, was never organised. (13) La Fayette Lodge, No. , at Nevada City, held a Charter from Wisconsin dated sometime in 185o. (14) A Lodge to be established somewhere " in the mining district of California " was empowered by a Dispensation issued by the Grand Master of Ohio on March 5, 185o. Nothing at all is known about the fate of this Lodge. (15) Gregory Yale Lodge was empowered by a Dispensation issued by the Grand Lodge of Florida in 1849.

 

Peter Lassen is sometimes credited with having brought the first Masonic Charter to California, the Charter of Western Star Lodge, No. 98, but that distinction really belongs to Bro. Saschel Woods. Bro. Lassen was a pioneer of California who arrived here in May i84o. In 1847 he returned to Missouri for the express purpose of urging immigrants to come to his large estate in Alta California. Among the men who agreed to go with him were several Masons. They applied for a Charter from the Grand Lodge of Missouri, and that was granted as of May io, 1848. In this Charter, Bro. Woods was named as Master and Bro. Lassen as junior Warden. The Lodge was to be located at Benton City, on Lassen's ranch. Bro. Lassen was said to have been a member of Warren Lodge, No. 74, at Keytesville, Missouri, but he was neither versed in Masonic lore or Ritual, nor did he take any part in the organisation or subsequent Work of the Lodge. Bro. Saschel Woods, on the contrary, was active in Masonic Work. He was legal custodian of the Charter from the day it was issued, he presided at the first meeting of the Lodge held on October 30, 1849, he issued the first invitation to the California Lodges to hold a Convention for forming the Grand Lodge of California, he was California's first junior Grand Warden, and he continued his Masonic activities until overtaken by ill health and financial reverses. Bro. Woods, who was a native of Kentucky, removed from there to Missouri in 1834. A minister of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church and a forceful public speaker, Bro. Woods warmly espoused the antiMormon cause. He took a conspicuous part in the Mormon war in Missouri. It was he who accepted the Mormon commander's sword at the time that leader surrendered. This sword Bro. Woods afterwards presented to Wakanda Lodge, No. 52, at Carrollton, Missouri, of which he was a Charter member and the first Chaplain, and it is still in possession of the Tyler of Wakanda Lodge. Saschel Woods died at Crescent City, California, on April 26, 1854. A monument erected by the California Grand Lodge marks his grave.

 

On the California Register, Western Star Lodge, No. 98, was made No. 2.

 

FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA 55 In May 1851, it was granted permission to remove to Shasta, where it still carries on. All that is left of what was once Benton City is a stone monument that marks the site where the Lodge was first opened. This stands along the State highway, seventeen miles north of Chico.

 

Though the further Masonic history of Peter Lassen has no place here, his activities as a promoter are so interesting as to merit relating. In 1851, with Isaac Roop, a Past Master of Western Star Lodge, No. 98, and others, Lassen removed to the Honey Lake Country, in the region that now forms northeastern California. Lassen was a bachelor; Roop, a married man having a daughter named Susan. In honour of Roop's daughter, Lassen gave the name Susanville to the town that the pioneers established. There the settlers took up land without any formality except law of their own making, and in 1856 they established a new territory and called it the Republic of Nataqua. With Lassen as president and Roop as secretary of the newly established State, a code of laws was adopted whose first section declared that " in as much as Honey Lake Valley is not within the limits of California, the same is hereby declared a new Territory," and fixed boundaries that enclosed a region extending 15o miles north and south and some Zoo miles east and west, into Utah Territory, now the State of Nevada. Each settler was allotted 64o acres of land and one town lot. The western boundary of the new " Republic " was 35 miles east of the headquarters of Lassen and Roop. Settlers in the Carson and the Washoe valleys, whose lands were included within the paper survey, never knew they were a part of the new State. Nataqua had its own courts and peace officers and functioned as an independent government for several years. Finally, however, about 1859, it passed out of existence. Roop then went to western Utah, and later he became the first provisional governor of Nevada. Lassen continued to reside in Honey Lake Valley until he was killed‑supposedly by Indians‑in 1859. His memory is perpetuated by Mount Lassen, the only active volcano in the United States proper, by Lassen County, California, and by a granite monument near the huge pine tree under which he camped on his arrival in Honey Lake Valley.

 

James W. Marshall's discovery of gold in California, on January 19, 1848, set the world ablaze with excitement, and soon the great plains and mountains west of the Missouri River became the site of trails for seekers after the yellow metal. Masonic Lodges throughout the Eastern States were besieged with applications for Degrees made by those whose hearts were set upon going to the new El Dorado by the sunset sea, there to satisfy their greed for wealth. Like grist at the mill, Masons were ground out, so to speak, to meet the demands for human brotherhood, aid, and assistance on the journey to the wondrous new land. Grand Lodges and Grand Masters in the Eastern States issued Charters and Dispensations for Travelling Lodges so that Masons might be made en route. They were to organise Lodges after they reached their destination. The first Charter upon which a Lodge was established in California was granted by the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia, and dated November 9, 1848.

 

56 FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA This Lodge, known as California Lodge, No. 13, was to be located at San Francisco, with Samuel At Lee as Master, William Van Voorhees as Senior Warden, and Bedney F. McDonald as junior Warden. Van Voorhees held a commismission from President Polk that made him Assistant Postmaster General for California. At Lee was appointed postmaster of San Francisco. Lee, however, resigned his commission and did not leave Washington. John W. Geary was appointed in his place. Before leaving Washington, District of Columbia, Levi Stowell was installed as Master of the Lodge.

 

California Lodge, No. 13, was organised on October 17, 1849, with Levi Stowell as Master and John W. Geary as Secretary. Fees for the Degrees were fixed at $115, the charge for affiliation was $15, the dues were $4 a month. The Lodge held its first meetings in an attic at 726 Montgomery Street, San Francisco, a room so low at the sides that the Brethren had to move towards its middle when they arose, to keep from striking their heads on the roof timbers. The improvised Lodge Hall was lighted only by candles. Chairs were provided for the Master and Wardens, but all others present sat on boxes and benches. The Master's Pedestal was a pine box. A wooden shoe box, draped with an American flag and bearing the usual great lights of Masonry, served for an Altar. The lesser Lights were afforded by candles supported on wooden uprights. This Lodge, which participated in the formation of the Grand Lodge, is now Lodge No. i on the California Register.

 

The third Charter known to have been used in California was issued by the Grand Lodge of Connecticut at a called Communication held on January 30, 1849. The Lodge was named Connecticut Lodge, No. 76. Caleb Fenner was Master; James W. Goodrich, Senior Warden; and Elizur Hubbell, Junior Warden. When the Grand Lodge was organised, the name of Connecticut Lodge, No. 76, was changed to Tehama Lodge, No. 3. The room first occupied by the original Lodge was an attic at the corner of Fifth and J Streets. The second story of the building served as lodgings for persons whose sex and lack of morals made them ineligible for the privileges of Masonry. Naturally, the Lodge soon removed to more congenial quarters at a lower rental. Tehama Lodge, No. 3, now meets in the dignified Masonic Temple, of which it is part owner.

 

The fourth Lodge of California, known as La Fayette Lodge, held a Charter granted to J. F. Halsey, as Master, by the Grand Lodge of Wisconsin in the early months of 185o. Halsey and some other Masons from La Fayette County, Wisconsin, first settled at Nevada City. There the Lodge was organised and there it Worked until March 1851, nearly a year after the formation of the Grand Lodge of California. In May 1851 the Wisconsin Charter was surrendered. Members of the Lodge were then granted a Charter by the Grand Lodge of California. Known as Nevada Lodge, No. 13, this Lodge has had a continuous existence.

 

Besides the four Chartered Lodges already mentioned, several other Lodges operated before April 185o by virtue of Dispensations issued by Grand Masters.

 

FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA 57 The earliest of these Lodges was New Jersey Lodge, whose Dispensation, dated March 1, 1849, bore the signature of Edward Stewart, Deputy Grand Master of New Jersey. Thomas Youngs, as Master, opened the Lodge at Sacramento on December 4, 1849. Immediately after the formation of the Grand Lodge, on April 19, i85o, the Brethren of New Jersey Lodge were granted a Charter as Merryman Lodge, No. 4, and two weeks later the name was changed to Jennings Lodge. Berryman Jennings, in whose honour the Lodge was named, withdrew his membership early in 1851, removed to Oregon, became Master of Multnomah Lodge, No. 1, at Oregon City, and at the organisation of the Grand Lodge of Oregon, on September 14, 1851, was elected its Grand Master. In October 1830, Jennings opened the first school in Iowa. In 1923 a bronze tablet commemorating the man and the circumstance was erected near Galland, some six miles from Keokuk, the site of the school. Bro. Jennings received his Degrees in Des Moines Lodge, No. 1, at Burlington, Iowa, in 1845. He withdrew in 1847, and when he arrived at Sacramento, in 1849, he affiliated with New Jersey Lodge. He continued as a member until his death, which took place in Oregon in 1888. Jennings Lodge, No. 4, surrendered its Charter on February 14, 1853 The second Dispensation for a Lodge in California was issued by the Grand Master of Louisiana under date of June 5, 1849. This authorised D. B. Hyam, and others, to open a Lodge of Ancient York Masons at Benicia. The Brethren held their first meeting on March 6, 1850, and formally organised two days later, choosing the name Benicia Lodge. Benicia Lodge received a Charter from the Grand Lodge of California in 185o and held its first meeting as a California Lodge on May 9 of that year. In May 1852 Hyam was elected Grand Master, and the following June he conferred the Degrees of Masonry without the sanction of a Lodge and in a house not devoted to Masonic uses. Then he pocketed the fees he had received. To this the Grand Lodge took exception at a special Communication held on August 17, 1852. Hyam's defense was that it was an inherent right of a Grand Master to make Masons at sight, and that he, as such an Officer, was above the law of Masonry and could do no Masonic wrong. The result of the deliberations of the Grand Lodge was that the doctrine claimed by Hyam was disavowed. In testimony of its position, the Grand Lodge adopted the following Regulations The Grand Master has no power to make Masons at sight, or at will, except in a regular Lodge by unanimous consent of the members present. . . . He is but the creature of the Grand Lodge, with no implied powers. It is compe tent for Grand Lodge to try its Grand Master for a misdemeanor in office, and deal with him as the nature of the offense may require.

 

A few years after this event took place, Hyam left California. He was last heard of in England as a discredited Mason.

 

Benicia Lodge, which still flourishes, has included among its members 58 FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA many makers of California history who have ranked high in the good work of upholding law and order and resisting evils incident to the gold rush of early days.

 

Davy Crockett Lodge was organised in San Francisco in the fall of 1849 by virtue of a Dispensation issued by an irregular Grand Lodge of California. The Brethren of this Lodge renounced their allegiance to the Louisiana Grand Lodge and Petitioned for a Charter under California obedience. This was granted on November 27, i85o, and the Lodge was known as Davy Crockett Lodge, No. 7. In August 1852, the Lodge's name was changed to San Francisco Lodge. Its Charter was revoked in 1859.

 

Sometime in May 1848 the Grand Master of Indiana issued a Dispensation for a " Travelling Lodge for California to be known as Sierra Nevada Lodge." The members of this proposed Lodge were residents of La Fayette, Indiana. They opened their Lodge at Centerville, now Grass Valley, California, in 1849, and there the Lodge continued in active operation until May 1852. It was then transferred to California obedience with the name of Madison Lodge, No‑ 2.3, and as such it is still Working.

 

Another early Lodge that expected to Work in California was to bear the name San Francisco Lodge. Proposed in Wayne County, Indiana, in 1848, the Lodge was to be located at San Francisco. But so far as is known, it never organised. The Officers named in the Dispensation were Henry R. Hannah, Master, John Prichett, Senior Warden, and Absalom Cunningham, Junior Warden. The only member of this proposed Lodge whose record can be traced was Henry R. Hannah, whose name appears on the Roster of Ophir Lodge, No. 33, at Murphy's Camp, Calaveras County, California.

 

Two Lodges, about whose activities little is known, operated by virtue of Dispensations issued by Grand Master Lavely, of Illinois, and dated March 1849. One Dispensation was for Pacific Lodge, in which Past Grand Master Nelson D. Morse, of Illinois, was named as Master, Alexander Ewing, as Senior Warden, and L. D. Montgomery, as junior Warden. The Brethren opened the Lodge at Long's Bar, Butte County, in 185o, where it continued until the fall of 1851. In 1852 Bro. Morse represented Butte County in the California Legislature. Later he returned to his home at Henderson, Illinois, where he died on February 9, 1854.

 

Among the distinguished men who were made Masons in Pacific was John Bidwell, a pioneer of 1840. Bro. Bidwell described the early home of this Lodge as being a log house rising some four feet above ground, whose dirt floor had been excavated deeply enough to permit one to stand. Altar and Pedestals were stumps of trees, the Lights were candles, and the jewels were cut from tin cans. Bro. Bidwell's record looms large in the early history of California. Born in New York in 1819, he emigrated to Pennsylvania and Ohio with his parents. After teaching school ,:n Ohio and Iowa, he went from Missouri to California in 1840. There he was grantee of the Colus (Colusa) Ranch in 1845, since he had become a naturalised Mexican citizen. In 1846 he ranked as major, under FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA 59 Stockton, in the California Battalion. Later Bro. Bidwell became a miner on Feather River, at Bidwell's Bar. He acquired the Arroyo Chico ranches, and there made his permanent home as a man of wealth and one of the foremost agriculturalists of the State. In 1849 Bro. Bidwell served as State senator in the first California Legislature. He was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention held at Charleston, South Carolina, in 186o, a delegate to the National Union Convention held in 1864, and a member of Congress from 1864 to 1867. As anti‑monopoly candidate for governor of California, he was defeated in 1875. In 18go he was again an unsuccessful candidate for governor, this time on the Prohibition Party ticket. In 1892 he became the first candidate of the Prohibition Party for President of the United States. In this campaign Bro. Bidwell's total expenses were only $300, that amount having been paid to Rev. E. B. Barnes, who went to the party's St. Louis convention in Bidwell's interest. Bro. Bidwell died at Chico, California, on April 5, igoo.

 

In March 1849 Grand Master Lavely, of Illinois, also issued a Dispensation to Past Deputy Grand Master John R. Crandall as Master, and others, to form and open a Travelling Lodge in the Territory of California, to be known as Lavely Lodge. The Lodge was organised at Marysville early in 185o, and continued in operation until the formation of the Grand Lodge the following April. Lacking a suitable hall, Lodge meetings were held in a tent. Bro. Crandall, of Lavely, was Senior Grand Warden of the Grand Lodge of California in 1853, and for many years was active in the State's Masonic and civic affairs.

 

The antecedents of Gregory Yale Lodge, of Stockton, California, reach back into Florida Masonry. In his address to the Grand Lodge of that State, on January 14, 185o, Grand Master Thomas Brown reported that since the last annual Communication he had granted a Dispensation to W.‑. Bro. Gregory Yale, Master of Solomon's Lodge, No. Zo, of Jacksonville, East Florida, to establish a Lodge in California. The Lodge thus provided for was organised at Stockton early in 185o, and continued to operate until about the time that San Joaquin Lodge, No. i9 was organised, some two years later. Then it ceased Work. No report on this Lodge was ever made to the parent Grand Lodge from which it sprang. Gregory Yale, original holder of the Dispensation, was a lawyer who removed to San Francisco in i85o and there became associated with Albert Nunes, whose office was in Adobe B, on the Plaza. Bro. Yale joined with others to organise Occidental Lodge, No. 22, of San Francisco, in May 1852, though he withdrew from that Lodge on January 24, 1859 The Dispensations and Charters thus far mentioned include all those for Lodges whose opening in California was proposed up to the time of the formation of the California Grand Lodge. As has been explained, some few of the proposed Lodges materialised. The Brethren of other proposed Lodges, who started to the new land of gold with high hopes of finding riches, may have been diverted to Oregon. Some may have perished from the privations that beset those who undertook the long journey across desert and sierra. On the whole, however, the hardy Masons who did reach their destination and set 6o FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA up Lodges became towers of strength in building here a decent civilisation. To them succeeding generations indeed owe much.

 

It is not generally known that representatives of some of the Lodges operating in California in 1849 and 185o, by virtue of Dispensations, formed a Grand Lodge early in the latter year. It seems that D. B. Hyam, whose Masonic repu tation would stamp him as a sort of climber on the fraternal social ladder, was the guiding spirit in a Convention which met at Sacramento, in March 185o, solemnly organised " The Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Ancient York Masons of California," and adopted a Constitution. Immediately the Lodges Working under Charter protested, and the Delegates to the irregular Body promptly rescinded their action.

 

Soon after the irregular organisation passed out of existence, proceedings were begun anew and publicly in regular Masonic manner for the formation of a Grand Lodge. In behalf of the Lodges holding Charters, a call for a Con vention to be held at Sacramento on April 17 for the purpose of forming a Grand Lodge " in the State of California " was published by Saschel Woods, Master of Western Star Lodge, No. 98, under date of April 5, i85o. It should be borne in mind that although the Constitution of the new State had been adopted on October io, ratified by the people of the Territory on November 13, and proclaimed on December Zo, 11849, Congress did not formally accept California as a part of the Union until September 9, i85o. In response to Woods's call, a Convention was held on the day fixed, in the Red House at Sacramento. It was attended by accredited representatives from the following Chartered Lodges: California Lodge, No. 13, of the District of Columbia; Connecticut Lodge, No. 75; Western Star Lodge, No. 98, of Missouri. The Leader in that Convention was Charles Gilman, who represented California Lodge, No. 13Bro. Gilman was peculiarly well equipped to take a leading part in the work of forming a Grand Lodge, and to him was committed the preliminary work of organisation. The Delegates selected him to be the Chairman of the Convention. A Constitution consisting of only nine articles, and containing only basic Masonic law, was adopted, and on April I9, i85o, the Grand Lodge was formed and opened regularly, in strict accordance with Masonic law and usage. In this Grand Lodge Bro. Jonathan Drake Stevenson, of California Lodge, No. 13, was Grand Master; Bro. John A. Tutt, of Connecticut Lodge, No. 75, was Deputy Grand Master; Bro. Caleb Fenner, of Connecticut Lodge, No. 75, was Senior Grand Warden; Bro. Saschel Woods, of Western Star Lodge, No. 98, was junior Grand Warden; Bro. John H. Gihon, of California Lodge, No. 13, was Grand Secretary. Petitions for Charters were received and granted that same day. A Charter was granted to the Brethren of New Jersey Lodge, of Sacramento, which was from then on known as Berryman Lodge, No. 4. Benicia Lodge, of Benicia was Chartered as No. 5. The Grand Lodge was then closed in ample form, to meet semi‑annually on the first Tuesday in May and in November.

 

From the humble beginnings of organised Masonry in California just recounted, the Grand Lodge now boasts nearly i5o,ooo members. The pioneer FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA 61 Brethren brought order out of chaos, and by following the dictates of and by stern Masonic morality they laid deep and strong foundations for stable government. One of the first standing resolutions the Grand Lodge adopted was against duelling; it provided for the expulsion of all who should use that method to settle personal disputes. Another resolution declared " that the stern morality of Masonry is practicable, that we pledge the influence of this Grand Lodge in sustaining it, and recommend that the members exemplify the same in their lives and conduct. " When the Grand Lodge was formed, the three Lodges under Charter had a combined membership of only 103. By November, 1850, seven additional Charters had been granted and the combined membership had increased to 304. At that time the fees exacted by the Grand Lodge were $ioo for a Dispensation to form a Lodge, $so for a Charter, $25 to the Grand Secretary for engrossing a Charter, $i.5o for each Degree conferred, $2 for each affiliate, and $2 semiannually for each contributing member. Five dollars was fixed as the fee for a diploma, and for a copy of any document required of the Grand Secretary, a charge of 5o cents for each hundred words was charged. During the next ten years the number of Lodges increased to 128, the membership to sons . All those Lodges except three were in the northern part of the State.

 

Because of the shift in population and the rapid decline of some of the mining camps, thirteen Lodges had surrendered their Charters before i86o, two others had been transferred to the Oregon jurisdiction, and two other Charters had been revoked for cause. Since the organisation of the Grand Lodge, 678 Lodges have been formed, while 98 have become extinct by revocation or surrender of Charter, consolidation with other Lodges, or surrender of jurisdiction. In November 1851 two Lodges were transferred to assist in the formation of the Grand Lodge of Oregon. Eight Lodges were transferred to Nevada in July 1865. Three Lodges were transferred to Arizona in March 1882, and in December 1912 three Lodges were transferred to form the Grand Lodge of the Philippine Islands. The three Lodges located in the southern part of the State during the early career of the Grand Lodge were San Diego Lodge, No. 35, organised in 1851; Los Angeles Lodge, No. 42, organised in 1853; and Lexington Lodge, No. 104, organised in 1855 at El Monte, a town at the end of the Old Santa Fe Trail. By 1870 the population of the southern counties of the State had begun to increase, and at that time many Lodges were formed. There are now 235 Lodges in the region south of the Tehachapi River, and of those 160 are located in Los Angeles County alone.

 

Of the many early mining camps, one only need be mentioned. Known as Columbia and located in Tuolumne County it was the largest in the State. It was popularly called the " Gem of the Southern Mines." Gold was discovered there in the spring of 1850, and within a month the rush of miners from nearby camps brought in a population of some 6ooo gold‑seekers. Every week brought more treasure hunters, and at times as many as 30,000 men madly dug for gold in the hills roundabout. As many as 15,000 miners lived within limits of the 62 FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA town. By the year 1865, however, Columbia was a dead settlement. In its heyday Columbia had 40 saloons, a long street where fandangoes were danced to the music of hurdy‑gurdies, 4 English language theatres, I Chinese theatre having a stock company Of 40 native actors, 3 jewelry stores, a bull ring, 143 faro banks having a combined capital of some $2,000,000, 4 hotels, 2 military companies, 2 fire companies, 3 express offices, 4 banks, 4 newspapers, 2 churches, a Sunday school, a division of the Sons of Temperance, and Columbia Lodge No. 28 of Masons. The principal bank, a building whose steps were of white Columbia marble and having mahogany counters, belonged to D. O. Mills. The bank's capacious scales could weigh $40,000 worth of gold dust and nuggets at one time. The mines, lying within a radius of three miles, produced and shipped a hundred and a quarter million dollars worth of gold before they were exhausted. In Columbia, the Masonic Lodge was a power in maintaining order and decent government. After the gold fever had died down and the mines were exhausted, however, the membership of the Lodge fell to a low mark. In I89I the old Lodge, which had been established in July 1852, consolidated with Tuolumne Lodge, No. 8, at the historic town of Sonora. There it still carries on. In the annals of the Grand Lodge of California are to be found stories of many mining towns long since vanished. Of them all, Columbia was indeed most notable.

 

ILLUSTRIOUS MASONS OF CALIFORNIA Though names of all distinguished California Masons cannot be mentioned in this short sketch, in addition to those which have been noted the following are of consequence. Alexander G. Abell. Born in New York City on June 29, 1818. He arrived in San Francisco on November 6, 1847, from Honolulu, where he had served as United States Consul since 1844. Made a Mason in Federal Lodge, No. I, at Washington, District of Columbia, in 1852. Affiliated with California Lodge, No. I, on January 5, 1853. Master of that Lodge from 1855 to 1857. Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of California from May 19, 1855, until his death on December 26, I89o. Bro. Abell was known in Masonry both as a Warwick and a Bismarck. During his long years of service he was the dominating character of the Grand Lodge.

 

George W. Baird. Admiral in the United States Navy. Affiliated with Naval Lodge No. 87, at Vallejo, in 1870‑ Withdrew to Washington, District of Columbia, in 1872. Died in 193 I.

 

Lawrence Patrick Barret. Distinguished as an actor. Raised in Oriental Lodge, No. 144, at San Francisco, on July i9, 1870. He continued his membership in that Lodge till his death in I89I.

 

John Mills Brown. Surgeon General of the United States Navy. Master of Naval Lodge, No. 87, in 1871. A Grand Master from 1875 to 1878. Died at Washington, District of Columbia, on December 7, 1894. He was surgeon aboard the U. S. S. Kearsage in its memorable battle with the Confederate cruiser Alabama.

 

FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA 63 Luther Burbank. Born in Massachusetts. World famous horticultural experimentalist. Made a Mason in Santa Rosa Lodge, No. 57, in 1921. Died on April 11, 1926.

 

Thomas Hubbard Caswell. Born on August io, 1825, at Exeter, Otsego County, New York. Lawyer. Settled in Nevada City in 1849. Made a Mason in Nevada Lodge, No. 13, in June, 1851. Master of the Lodge from 1868 to 1869, and from 1870 to 1871. Grand Lecturer in 1873. Grand Commander of the Supreme Council of Scottish Rite Masons, Southern Jurisdiction of the United States in 1895. Died November 13, 1900.

 

Samuel Langhorne Clemens, known to the world as " Mark Twain." Made a Mason in Polar Star Lodge, No. 79, at St. Louis, Missouri. Was in California during the 186o's, and on February 8, 1865, acted as junior Deacon of Bear Mountain Lodge, No. 67, at Angels Camp. Angels Camp is the scene of Mark Twain's famous story of " The Jumping Frog of Calaveras County. " Joseph B. Coghlan. Admiral in the United States Navy. Received much unfavourable renown through newspapers and magazines for his recitation of a poem entitled " Me and Gott," which ridiculed Emperor William II of Ger many. Master of Solano Lodge, No. 229, at Vallejo, in 1887. Died on December 5, 1908.

 

James G. Fair. Of " Comstock Bonanza " fame. Received his Masonic Degrees in 1858 in Bear Mountain Lodge, No. 76. Secretary of that Lodge in 1861. Treasurer from 1862 to 1864. Withdrew from the Lodge in 1869 and ceased all further Masonic activities.

 

William D. Fair. Junior Warden of California Lodge, No. 1, in 1850. Lawyer. At the opening of the war between the States, Bro. Fair was a strong supporter of the Confederacy. Because this attitude caused a decline of his law practice, he committed suicide on December 27, 1861. On November 3, 1870, Bro. Fair's widow, Laura D. Fair, shot and killed Alexander Crittenden, a prominent lawyer. Her acquittal on the ground of " emotional insanity " introduced a new type of defense into criminal practice.

 

Stephen J. Field. Raised in Corinthian Lodge, No. 9, at Marysville, in 1850. In 1866 he was made a life member of the Lodge because of his liberal donations. A brother of Cyrus West Field, projector of the first cable to be laid across the Atlantic Ocean. A member of the first California Legislature, in 1850. Prepared a code of mining, civil, and criminal laws which was generally adopted by Western States. Justice of the Supreme Court of California in 1857 and chief justice in 1859. In 1863 he was appointed to be an associate justice of the United States Supreme Court. He resigned that post in April, 1897. Born at Haddam, Connecticut, on November 4, 1816, and died at Washington, District of Columbia, on April 9, 1899 James Clair Flood. Member of the " Comstock Bonanza " banking firm of Flood and O'Brien. Made a Mason in Golden Gate Lodge, No. 30, in 1852. Died in 1889.

 

64 FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA John Hays Hammond. World famous mining engineer. Raised in Oriental Lodge, No. 144, at San Francisco, on June 2‑o, 1893 .

 

James William King. Member of California Lodge, No. 1. Banker. Edi tor of The San Francisco Bulletin. Shot by James P. Casey on May 14, 1856, and a week later died. Casey was hanged by the San Francisco Vigilance Committee immediately after the burial of King.

 

Thomas Starr King. Born at New York City on December 16, 182‑4. Died at San Francisco on March 4, 1864. Received his Master's Degree on August 17, 1861, in Oriental Lodge, No. 144. Pastor of the First Unitarian Church of San Francisco from April 186o until his death. By his zeal and eloquence Thomas Starr King was foremost among those who succeeded in keeping California in the Union at the time of the war between the States, and in stimulating subscriptions to the funds of the Sanitary Commission during that war. He was instrumental in raising $566,ooo from citizens of San Francisco. Upon hearing of Bro. King's death, the California Legislature of 1864 adjourned for three days, after resolving " that he had been a tower of strength to the cause of his country." A bronze statue of the patriot in Golden Gate Park, at San Francisco, and a statue in the Hall of Fame, at Washington, District of Columbia, memorialise his devotion to humanity and to the Union. He was at one time Grand Orator of the Grand Lodge of California. His best epitaph is written in the hearts of his Brethren.

 

John William Mackey. Of " Comstock Bonanza " fame. Made a Mason in Forest Lodge, No. 66, at Alleghany, California, in 1858. In 1862 he withdrew to Escurial Lodge, No. 7, of Virginia City, Nevada. Born on November 2‑.8, 1831, at Dublin, Ireland. He died in 1903.

 

Nelson A. Miles. General in the United States Army. Raised in February, 1888, at the age of forty‑seven, in Southern California Lodge, No. 278, of Los Angeles. Died on May 15, 192‑5, at Washington, District of Columbia.

 

William Smith O'Brien. A member of the famous gold‑mining and banking firm of Flood and O'Brien, of the " Comstock Bonanza." With John W. Mackey he made a fortune out of his interest in the Comstock mines. Made a Mason in Golden Gate Lodge, No. 30, in 1852. Was Secretary of the Lodge in 1853. Died in 1878.

 

Lester A. Pelton. Member of Gravel Range Lodge, No. 59, at Camptonville. In 1879 he invented the Pelton water wheel, a successful innovation in hydraulic engineering, since adopted by engineers throughout the world. In 192‑9 a monument having the form of a water wheel was erected at Camptonville in his honour.

 

Leland Stanford. Received his Masonic Degrees in Ozaukee Lodge, No. 17, at Port Washington, Wisconsin. Withdrew, and removed to Cold Springs, near Placerville, California, in 1852‑. From 1853 to 1855 he was at Michigan Bluff. He was at Sacramento from 1855 till 1874, when he took up his residence at San Francisco. Leland Stanford was the chief political agent and one of the incorporators of the Central Pacific Railroad. He was governor of California FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA 65 from 1861 to 1863 and United States senator from California from January 1885 till his death on June 21, 1893. He founded Leland Stanford Jr. University as a memorial to his deceased son.

 

William G. Walker. Made a Charter member of Texas Lodge, No. 46, at San Juan Bautista, on October 25, 1853. Withdrew from the Lodge in 1855. Organised the Walker invasion of Nicaragua in 1855, and became president of the republic he established there. In November 1853, he seized the town of La Paz and proclaimed the Republic of Lower California. Walker's aim was generally believed to be the conversion of the border states of Mexico into a slave‑holding republic. In May 1854 Walker and his " cabinet " returned to San Francisco. There he was indicted by a grand jury, tried, and acquitted. In May 18 Walker embarked on his Nicaragua enterprise, but after two years he was compelled to leave that country. He went to New York, and subsequently made another invasion of Central America. This time he fell into the hands of the Honduras military authorities, was tried, condemned, and shot on September 25, 1860. Edmund Randolph, then a resident of Sacramento, was associated with Walker in his unsavory escapades.

 

THE CALIFORNIA RITUAL One of the first matters to engage the attention of the Grand Lodge of California in 1850 was Ritualistic uniformity. The Officers of the several Lodges having come from different jurisdictions, naturally held divergent views and were jealous of the infringements of others. At the first Communication, a Committee was appointed whose members were instructed to compare their knowledge and " report the proper mode of Work." The result was that, in 1853, Isaac Davis, who had learned his Work in Ohio, was appointed Grand Lecturer. Undoubtedly he used the Barney Work, since Barney had been Grand Lecturer of Ohio from 1836 to 1843. Bro. Barney was an enthusiastic Ritualist, who, while living in Vermont in 1817, went to Boston and there learned the Preston Work as taught by Bro. Gleason. In 1843 Barney attended a conference at Baltimore, and on his return home the Grand Lodge of Ohio adopted the Work as approved by the Baltimore Conference. In the main, California has adhered to the old Barney Ritual.

 

MASONIC RELIEF IN CALIFORNIA Masonry in California has fairly justified its claims as an upholder of the principles of Brotherly Love and Relief, and in these matters its record is worthy of the best traditions of our Institution. Before the Organisation of the Grand Lodge, the Brethren of the pioneer Lodges were actively engaged in relief work rendered necessary in the years 1849 and 1850 by the poverty and sickness following the rush of gold‑seekers to the new El Dorado. In the wake of those lured by tales of wealth, came deadly Asiatic Cholera. In Sacramento as many as a 150 new case's of cholera a day were reported, and to the credit of our pioneer Brethren, all these were cared for, irrespective of the affiliation of the stricken.

 

FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA 65 from 1861 to 1863 and United States senator from California from January 1885 till his death on June 21, 1893. He founded Leland Stanford Jr. University as a memorial to his deceased son.

 

William G. Walker. Made a Charter member of Texas Lodge, No. 46, at San Juan Bautista, on October 25, 1853. Withdrew from the Lodge in 1855Organised the Walker invasion of Nicaragua in 1855, and became president of the republic he established there. In November 1853, he seized the town of La Paz and proclaimed the Republic of Lower California. Walker's aim was generally believed to be the conversion of the border states of Mexico into a slave‑holding republic. In May 1854 Walker and his " cabinet " returned to San Francisco. There he was indicted by a grand jury, tried, and acquitted. In May 1855 Walker embarked on his Nicaragua enterprise, but after two years he was compelled to leave that country. He went to New York, and subsequently made another invasion of Central America. This time he fell into the hands of the Honduras military authorities, was tried, condemned, and shot on September 25, 186o. Edmund Randolph, then a resident of Sacramento, was associated with Walker in his unsavory escapades.

 

THE CALIFORNIA RITUAL One of the first matters to engage the attention of the Grand Lodge of California in i85o was Ritualistic uniformity. The Officers of the several Lodges having come from different jurisdictions, naturally held divergent views and were jealous of the infringements of others. At the first Communication, a Committee was appointed whose members were instructed to compare their knowledge and " report the proper mode of Work." The result was that, in 1853, Isaac Davis, who had learned his Work in Ohio, was appointed Grand Lecturer. Undoubtedly he used the Barney Work, since Barney had been Grand Lecturer of Ohio from 1836 to 1843. Bro. Barney was an enthusiastic Ritualist, who, while living in Vermont in 1817, went to Boston and there learned the Preston Work as taught by Bro. Gleason. In 1843 Barney attended a conference at Baltimore, and on his return home the Grand Lodge of Ohio adopted the Work as approved by the Baltimore Conference. In the main, California has adhered to the old Barney Ritual.

 

MASONIC RELIEF IN CALIFORNIA Masonry in California has fairly justified its claims as an upholder of the principles of Brotherly Love and Relief, and in these matters its record is worthy of the best traditions of our Institution. Before the Organisation of the Grand Lodge, the Brethren of the pioneer Lodges were actively engaged in relief work rendered necessary in the years 1849 and i85O by the poverty and sickness following the rush of gold‑seekers to the new El Dorado. In the wake of those lured by tales of wealth, came deadly Asiatic Cholera. In Sacramento as many as a 15o new cases of cholera a day were reported, and to the credit of our pioneer Brethren, all these were cared for, irrespective of the affiliation of the stricken.

 

66 FREEMASONRY IN CALIFORNIA In the fall of 1849 and during the following spring, members of Sacramento Lodges, who numbered only 69, contributed $32,000 towards the support of a local hospital and gave of their time and funds for general relief besides. Tuolumne Lodge, No. 8, of Sonora, which had been Chartered in November i85o, and had only 41 members, expended $4500 in two years, not a dollar of which went to its own members. A survey made in 1852 showed that in only one case had relief been demanded by, or paid to, a member of a California Lodge. During its formative years, the Grand Lodge adopted a law, which is still part of its Constitution, stipulating that " the funds of a Lodge are trust funds set apart for the payment of its necessary expenses and for the special calls for charity for which it was instituted," and that " each Lodge shall see to it, even if it require all its funds and property, that the needy Brethren of its own membership and neighbourhood are not suffered to want or to be made a burden to others." And this law applies equally to distressed widows and orphans.

 

Our Masonic treasuries have never been avaricious. No Lodge may charge less than nine dollars a year for dues, most of them do charge twelve dollars. Each initiate must pay twenty‑five dollars toward the support of the two Homes maintained by the Grand Lodge‑one Home, at Covina, for the care and education of dependent children, the other, at Decoto, for the care of aged dependent Masons, their widows and mothers. These Homes represent a capital expenditure of some $Z,ooo,ooo for buildings, and a yearly maintenance cost of some $Zoo,ooo. In a single year 230 children and 368 aged men and women were cared for out of these funds. A clubhouse for young men and women attending the State University is maintained at Berkeley, and another at Los Angeles. In California there are 14 organised Boards of Relief, which in a recent year expended $95,SZo. Of this amount the Lodges composing the Boards and California recipients contributed $58,140. Though unobtrusively carried on, this work of relief is a monument to Masonry. It is known only to those whose sorrows and distresses have been assuaged by the helping hand and open purse. An Endowment Fund for the benefit of the Masonic Homes was created in 1910. Although this fund increases only slowly, it now amounts to some $700,000. Only the interest accruing to this fund may be used.

 

FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO HARRY L. BAUM IKE most of the rest of the West, Colorado was settled as a result of the discovery of gold. The existence of the precious metal in what is now Colorado was definitely determined in August 1849, but no deposits of consequence were discovered until April 1858, when a party of traders led by O. O. Cantrell brought to the outside world evidence of the presence of gold in washings from the sands of the South Platte River, near the present site of Denver. Further confirmation was furnished by O. O. Russell and O. O. McFadden, who at about the same time found gold in the sands of Cherry Creek, also near the present site of Denver. Reports of those discoveries, gradually made known through the newspapers, resulted in the westward migration of many venturesome persons who were in quest of riches. Fairly substantial numbers of them began to reach Colorado during the latter part of 1858. As was usually the case in such circumstances, town sites were laid out near several places where gold had been discovered, but only two of those towns ever developed. They were Auraria, on the west bank of Cherry Creek, and Denver City, on its east bank. The two were rivals for supremacy in size and population. In the spring of 1859 those towns began to grow rapidly, and in April 186o they were united under the name and government of Denver City. Transportation from the eastern centres of population was, of course, only by means of ox‑cart or wagon, on horseback or on foot. Those pretentiously styled cities, which were the first objectives of gold‑seekers, consisted of only a few straggling log cabins‑without windows, with dirt roofs and floors‑the rudest of furniture, and none of the comforts common to those settled regions from which the adventurers had so recently departed.

 

One hardly can fail to be impressed with the importance of the Masonic Lodge in the life of such communities. And, indeed, we find pioneer Freemasonry to have possessed unique characteristics and to have been filled with a wealth of the best of Masonic attributes. Here, in a vast wild country hitherto unpopulated by white settlers, were gathered persons totally unknown to one another, untrammelled by any tie of home or family, unrestrained by the civilising influences to which they had been accustomed. They found themselves completely thrown upon their own resources‑for food and shelter, for protection, for government, and for social intercourse.

 

It was natural that under such circumstances people should look about them for others whose preferences were like their own. How human it was and how very indicative of the values of fraternity, that many of those men 67 68 FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO found themselves congregating as Masons almost as soon as they arrived at the scene of their intended activities. At first they met informally without Warrant or Dispensation. Later, they went through the form of opening Lodge and examining applicants for admission to their meetings. Occasionally a burial was conducted with Masonic rites, though the historian wonders where jewels, Columns, Aprons, and other paraphernalia were obtained for the purpose. It must be assumed that at least a Bible was to be found among the Brethren assembled on such solemn occasions! Since those pioneer Brethren were holding forth without even a vestige of regular authority, it is conceivable that they may have considered one of the Great Lights sufficient for their purpose. Of course, no Degrees were conferred at any of those meetings, such foregatherings having been mainly an expression of the Brethren's desire to see once more the form of the Lodge, to listen to the familiar words of the Ritual, to prove and to know one another Masonically, and to be able to afford relief to distressed and needy who found themselves amidst such strange surroundings. Thus the Lodge of those days was a social and fraternal centre of great value to the community and to the men who participated in the fellowship it had to offer. Here, through Masonry, and without the trials which in such circumstances must ordinarily be used to prove worthiness, men came to know each other as trustworthy, dependable citizens. Here too, along with others of like persuasion, might men renew in spirit the obligations taken before a common altar.

 

The first such meeting of which there is record was held in Auraria on November 3, 1858, in the cabin of Henry Allen, which stood on the west bank of Cherry Creek. It is best described by one of the participants, Bro. J. D. Ramage, in a letter he wrote in 1896, nearly forty years later.

 

On the evening of the 3d day of November, 1858, the first informal meeting of Masons was held in the cabin, I think, of Henry Allen. I arrived in Pike's Peak, as it was then called, on the 2.d of November . . . and having heard that I was a Mason, they invited me to attend.

 

I accompanied Bro. Allen to his abode, and there found Bros. W. M. Slaughter, Charles Blake, Dr. Russell, Andrew Sagendorf, and, I think, George Lehow. These Brethren, together with Bro. Allen and myself, made the first seven Masons, according to my knowledge and belief, who ever met in Colorado having in contemplation the application for a Charter, and a seven who stuck together, as Masons should do, through thick and thin. . . . In the meantime we decided to form an informal Lodge for mutual fellowship, and for the purpose of practising Lodge Work, so that when we received our Charter we would be able to take hold properly. We agreed to meet every Saturday night, and as our object in locating in Colorado was to get gold . . . we decided that any ideas concerning the country we were in, news of any mines we should discover, or any information which might be beneficial to the Brethren, Masonically or financially, would, at the next meeting, be given to the Masons there assembled. We had some very pleasant meetings.

 

FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO 69 From time to time we increased our membership. On the Z7th of December, St. John's Day, we concluded to have a supper in honour of the festival‑a work of no small difficulty. We had flour, pork, coffee, beans, and so on, and a scarcity of even some of those things. Those who were so disposed went out hunting, and returned with some game in time to prepare it for the feast. . . . We had great difficulty in finding something to cover our festal board with. Somebody informed us that a Mormon, his wife and daughter, had lately come to town, and taking for granted that where there were women (a scarce article in that country in those days) there we would surely find tablecloths, we called on the old lady and she informed us that, while she did not possess what we desired, she had some nice, clean bed sheets, and we were welcome to them. We were now provided, and ready for the supper. We accordingly met. There' were in all twenty‑six in number, and notwithstanding our hurried preparations, there probably never was a happier or pleasanter meeting of such a Body of Masons.

 

The meetings of this group of devoted Masons finally resulted in the submission of an application to the Grand Lodge of Kansas for a Dispensation to form a new Lodge to be called Auraria Lodge U. D. In the meantime, on May 6, 1859, O. O. Gregory's discovery of rich deposits of placer gold started a veritable stampede to the region of the Gregory diggings. Those were situated high in the mountains, in what is now Gilpin County, some forty miles northwest of Denver. Three towns were immediately laid out in Gregory Gulch, as the locality had been called in honour of the discoverer. Of those, Mountain City was the settlement adjacent to the Gregory discovery. Central City was situated somewhat above it, and Black Hawk just below it. In the course of their rapid growth, however, the three became one populous settlement, straggling down the gulch and extending up the mountain slopes for some distance on either side. There the remains of those towns still stand, almost depopulated. They are reminders of the glories of other days and of the fame that once was theirs. In early days, though, a population of more than 2o,ooo‑almost exclusively male‑was crowded into a few square miles of terrain almost vertical. And all were bent upon finding gold or profiting from others' discovery of it. Here, during the frantic rush for treasure, the Masons, many of whom had participated in the meetings at Auraria, conceived the idea of building a Masonic Temple. Its construction is best described in a letter written by Bro. William M. Slaughter, in which he recounts the experience as he remembered it in 1896.

 

About the first day of June, 1859, there had assembled in and around Gregory Gulch, where Central City and Black Hawk now stand, fully twenty thousand men, and it was decided that there ought to be a rallying‑ lace for Masons, hundreds of whom were to be found among this vast crow A consultation of those known to each other as Masons was held at Slaughter and Sopris's cabin, and it was resolved to build a Lodge Room. The word was passed about among all those claiming to be Masons, and about the 15th of June a site was 70 FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO selected for the Lodge Room, which was on the south side of Gregory Gulch. . . . Work was begun immediately, and the ground leveled for the building, and from fifty to one hundred men with horses and ox‑teams were cutting and dragging logs for the new Temple, which, as near as I now remember, was about thirty feet square. . . . Within two or three days the walls were up, and chinked and plastered with mud inside and out. A pole roof covered with pine boughs, and this covered with several inches of earth, completed the Lodge Room building. The three Stations were made of pine logs, sawed the proper height, hewn and sunk into the ground, with a shorter block of the same material planted by it for a seat. The Secretary's desk was the end gate of a wagon Gregory Gulch, Colorado, 1859. [Drawn from contemporary descriptions.] The first building erected for Masonic purposes between the Missouri River and the Pacific coast.

 

box, nailed on top of a post set in the ground and covered with a piece of wagoncover canvas, with a block of wood for a seat. I do not remember the exact date of the first meeting in the new Lodge Room, but I think it was about the twentieth of June, 1859. I shall never forget that first meeting on the mountain side.

 

Word had been passed about among the Masons of the several camps that a Masonic meeting would be held that night at dusk, and as the hour arrived the trails and paths leading towards the Temple began to be lined with Masons, gathering together to meet each other, from distant States and countries, for the first time in this wild place amid the pine woods on a lone mountain side. Four men (Masons) armed with rifles and revolvers stood on guard, one at each corner of the Temple, and one at the outer door also. At the outer door there was also a Receiving Committee, to whom each visitor was introduced, or made himself known if he was unacquainted with anyone. If he desired ex‑ FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO 71 amination as to his standing as a Mason, he was at once placed in the charge of an Examining Committee, of whom there were not less than ten or more appointed to wait on visiting Brethren who were unknown to any known Mason. Scores of visitors were known or had proved themselves Masons, and of course were vouched for. There were over two hundred visiting Brethren whose names were entered upon the journal, or Roll of Visitors, as it was called at that first meeting. A meeting was held once each week for over three months. These meetings were of course informal, and were held for the purpose of forming acquaintance with each other.

 

As an interesting sequel to the account given in Bro. Slaughter's letter, we add here the transcript of an entry in Book A, at page 59, of the Records of Gregory Mining District, Arapahoe County, Kansas Territory, now Gilpin County, Colorado.

 

Know all men by these presents that we, Wm. M. Slaughter, John Hughs, and Joseph Casto, a building committee appointed by the Free and Accepted Masons, do this day preempt one block for the purpose of erecting a Masonic Temple, June 12, 1859 Wm. M. Slaughter John Hughs Joseph Casto The Temple proposed by those fervent pioneer Masons was probably never used for the meetings of a regularly Chartered Lodge. As testified by Bro. Slaughter, however, informal meetings were held there weekly for more than three months, from June 2_o, 1859, until the approaching bad weather compelled the members to return to Denver City and Auraria for the winter. At Auraria the first Lodge was formed, and there the first regular meeting was held when, on October 1, 1859, the members of the original group received their Dispensation from the Grand Lodge of Kansas, which authorised them to organise Auraria Lodge U. D. This they did on October 18, 1859, with Henry Allen as Worshipful Master. The Lodge's Records, still preserved, show that it met regularly from that date on.

 

Here, then, we have the record of the first Masonic Lodge and the first Masonic Temple in a region that included much more than merely the present State of Colorado. Really, this was the first permanent Lodge, still working as such, and the first Temple, in a vast territory that included nearly half the area of our county. Bounded by New Mexico on the south, it extended from a thin line of settlements along the Pacific Coast, where Lodges were first established in 1848, to the Missouri River, along whose banks some of the early Lodges of Kansas and Nebraska were situated.

 

Strangely, however, Auraria Lodge was not the first to be Chartered in the region, nor was it one of the three that later joined to form the Grand Lodge of Colorado. In February 1861 that part of Kansas Territory which later became Colorado was segregated. The Territory of Colorado was organised at the same 72 FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO time. Since the procedure which usually followed under such circumstances was the organisation of an independent Grand Lodge, this action was promptly taken by the Brethren of Colorado. As had been explained after Gregory's discovery of gold was made known, the first objective of the gold‑seekers was the region adjacent to Gregory's claim. The route there led from Denver City and Auraria across the Platte River, then due westward almost fifteen miles to a point where it entered the mountains just where Clear Creek flows out. Here Golden City was built, later to become the first capital of Colorado. And here, on February 18, i86o, Golden City Lodge U. D. was organised, under Dispensation from the Grand Lodge of Kansas. Bro. Isaac E. Hardy was Worshipful Master, Bro. Eli Carter was Senior Warden. These and the other Officers were installed by Bro. John Hughs, who was deputised for the purpose by Auraria Lodge U. D. Golden Lodge, which was Chartered by the Grand Lodge of Kansas on October 17, i86o, as Golden City Lodge, No. 34, became Lodge No. 1 on the Roster of the Grand Lodge of Colorado. The two other Lodges which joined with Golden City Lodge, No. 34, to form the Grand Lodge of Colorado were Summit Lodge, No. 7, of Parkville, and Rocky Mountain Lodge, No. 8, of Gold Hill, both of which had been Chartered on June 5, 1861, by the Grand Lodge of Nebraska.

 

On August 2, 1861, the following Brethren met in Golden City in the Hall of Golden City Lodge, No. 34: Bro. Eli Carter, Worshipful Master; Bro. I. E. Hardy, Senior Warden, and Bro. J. A. Moore, Junior Warden, of Golden City Lodge, No. 34; Bro. Charles F. Holly, Master, and Bro. John M. Chivington, Junior Warden, of Rocky Mountain Lodge, No. 8; Bro. James Ewing, Master; Bro. O. A. Whittemore, Senior Warden; Bro. S. M. Robins, Junior Warden, of Summit Lodge, No. 7. There they organised the Grand Lodge of Colorado with John M. Chivington as Grand Master, under " the name and style of the Most Ancient and Honourable Fraternity of Free and Accepted Masons of Colorado." This name the Grand Lodge bore until the Annual Communication of 1875. At that time a revised Constitution was adopted and the name was changed to " The Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of Colorado." Following the organisation meeting, the First Annual Communication was held at Denver City on December io, 1i, and 12, 1861, and at that time Bro. John M. Chivington was re‑elected Grand Master. Six Lodges were repre sented, including, in addition to the original organisers, Nevada Lodge, No. 4, Denver Lodge, No. 5, and Chivington Lodge, No. 6. The former had worked under Dispensation from January 1861 until on October 15, 1861, it was Chartered by the Grand Lodge of Kansas as Nevada City Lodge, No. 36. The Lodge almost immediately surrendered its Kansas Charter, however, in order to become a member of the Colorado Grand Lodge. At the First Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge of Colorado it was Chartered as Nevada Lodge, No. 4, and at the time Andrew Mason was retained as Worshipful Master.

 

As has been said, Auraria Lodge U. D. did not participate in the formation FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO 73 of the Grand Lodge of Colorado. Unfortunately, this Lodge lost its priority because it never received its Charter from the Grand Lodge of Kansas. That the Charter was authorised, and was to have been issued as No. 37 on the Roll of the Grand Lodge of Kansas, is apparent from the Minutes of the Annual Communication of that Grand Lodge in 1861. At that time it was voted to grant a Charter to Auraria Lodge upon receipt of its Dispensation and the necessary returns if the Grand Secretary of Kansas should find those correct. The returns were received in October 1861, after the Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge of Kansas had taken place, but at the time Auraria Lodge told of its intention to surrender its Dispensation and to apply to the Grand Lodge of Colorado for another. Thus, Auraria Lodge lost its priority on the Roll of the Grand Lodge of Colorado by failing to apply to the Grand Lodge of Kansas for a Charter in 186o, the year in which Golden City Lodge, No. 34, did apply and was Chartered. So far as the Records disclose, Auraria Lodge never did apply for a Charter. Instead, it continued to Work under Dispensation from the time of its organisation in October, 1859. Whether or not this failure to apply was due to carelessness, or what other reason there may have been, is not certainly known, but the fact remains that Auraria Lodge was still under Dispensation at the time the Grand Lodge of Colorado was formed. After that took place, Auraria Lodge applied for a Dispensation and received it under the name of Denver City Lodge U. D., with Charles H. Blake as Worshipful Master. At the First Annual Communication it was Chartered under the name and number of Denver Lodge, No. 5, with Paris S. Pfouts as Worshipful Master.

 

Chivington Lodge, located at Central City under Dispensation from the newly‑elected Grand Master, John M. Chivington, was Chartered at the First Annual Communication as Chivington Lodge, No. 6, with Allyn Weston as Worshipful Master, and Henry M. Teller as Senior Warden.

 

Of the three Lodges which participated in the formation of the Grand Lodge of Colorado, only Golden City Lodge, No. 1, has enjoyed a continuous existence. It still flourishes with just pride in its priority and in a long and honourable career. Rocky Mountain Lodge, No. 3, lasted only a short while, having surrendered its Charter at the Second Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge in 1862, because nearly all its members had left the district. At the Fifth Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge, held in 1865, Summit Lodge, No. 2, also returned its Records and surrendered its Charter for like reason. Considering the circumstances of time and place such developments were not at all surprising, for during those years of frenzied gold digging whole towns often declined and practically disappeared within a few months. Whenever gold was discovered in any given locality, a town often sprang into being as though by magic, throve for a time, then as suddenly passed out of existence. The inhabitants rushed away as more promising gold fields were opened, or gradually drifted away as placer diggings were exhausted.

 

The three other Lodges which participated in the First Annual Communication and received their Charters at that time also merit mention here. Of 74 FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO those, all are still in existence. Nevada Lodge, No. 4, maintains itself in a deserted city, the mere shell of what was once a thriving community. Perched high upon the sides of furrowed and barren hills, its stores and houses vacant, its streets covered with weeds, its wooden sidewalks rotted and broken, Nevada City shelters only one human being, a devoted Brother who is Treasurer of the Lodge. Of the other forty‑odd members whose names remain on the Lodge's Roll, a dozen or more still live so near that with the aid of members of Central Lodge, No. 6, and Black Hawk Lodge, No. ii, they are able to continue holding Communications in the old Lodge Room that still stands on the main street of this ghostly city hidden away in a fastness of the Rocky Mountains. Thus do these Brethren keep alive the spirit of a Masonry that flourished in the gold camps of the old West, a Masonry of the frontier that antedated both church and school, and flourished long before the advent of other uplifting and refining influences.

 

The second Lodge of the original early group, Denver Lodge, No. S, is a direct continuation of Auraria Lodge U. D., as has been explained. This Lodge carries on the tradition established by those seven Masons who were first to meet together as such in this region. It still meets regularly on Saturday night, as did the pioneers, and thus preserves its existence as a Lodge uninterrupted since 1859. A very active Lodge, Denver Lodge, No. S, is now one of the largest in Colorado with approximately lzoo members.

 

The last of the historic original Lodges, Chivington Lodge, No. 6, lives on now as Central City Lodge, No. 6, its name having been changed in 1866. That year the town of Black Hawk, which lay just below Central City, in Gregory Gulch, became the home of Black Hawk Lodge, No. i1. It was Chartered by the Grand Lodge of Colorado on October 1, 1866. Thus during the first ten years following the organisation of the Grand Lodge of Colorado, the region in Gilpin County contiguous to the original gold diggings held Nevada Lodge, No. 4, Chivington Lodge, No. 6, and Black Hawk Lodge, No. i 1, whose Rolls listed more than half the Masons in the Territory of Colorado. It is interesting to note that of the first twelve Annual Communications of the Grand Lodge of Colorado, half were held at Central City. Since that time the Annual Communications have been held in Denver, for with the decline of gold‑mining activities the population of Gilpin County has shrunk and the Lodges there now include only a fraction of their former numbers. In spite of this, however, Central Lodge, No. 6, and Black Hawk Lodge, No. i1, continue to flourish and to perpetuate the traditions of the pioneer Masonry of Colorado. At present, Central Lodge, No. 6, has about 132‑ members who still meet in the Lodge Room in Central City that has been the Lodge's meeting‑place since 1866. Black Hawk Lodge, No. 11, sister Lodge to Central Lodge, No. 6, and Nevada Lodge, No. 4, still continues an active existence. Each of these Lodges Works happily and efficiently with the assistance of co‑operation of the other two.

 

After Chartering the original six Lodges, the Grand Lodge of Colorado FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO 75 next Chartered Union Lodge, No. 7. According to the Records, a Petition for a new Lodge to be called Union Lodge, No. 7, and a prayer that a Charter be issued to it at once, were presented to the Grand Lodge at its Third Annual Communication, held on November 2, 1863. The prayer of the Petitioners was immediately granted. Those Brethren among whom was the militant Unionist, John M. Chivington, a Past Grand Master, petitioned for a new Lodge to be called Union Lodge, and asked that a Charter be given them without any period of Dispensation. Such a request was unusual, to say the least, but it was granted nevertheless. To‑day Union Lodge is distinguished for having been granted a Charter directly, and having never worked under Dispensation.

 

This singular circumstance explains itself when one recalls the period during which it took place. In those days civil strife between two sections of the nation was disrupting families, separating friends, and causing brother to hate brother. Even Colorado was not immune to those conditions. Here, even in Freemasonry, there was sufficient feeling to bring about the formation of a Lodge made up exclusively of sympathisers with the North. The Records show that all those Brethren except Bro. Chivington came from Denver Lodge, No. 5, which was at that time strongly tinged by Southern sentiment, as it seems. Yet in the Minutes of Denver Lodge, No. 5 we find an entry saying that the Brethren of the new Lodge were to be permitted to use not only the Hall of Denver Lodge, No. 5, but also its paraphernalia. How significant was this of the toleration practised under the restraining influence of Masonry! For we of to‑day can scarcely estimate the fierce feelings engendered by the terrible conflict then in progress.

 

Of the other early Lodges in Colorado, only No. 8, No. 9, and No. 1o remain to be accounted for. One of these, Empire Lodge, No. 8, was another example of an abortive attempt to form a Lodge in the face of difficulties in herent in a rapidly shifting population. Chartered in 1865, this Lodge throve for a time and succeeded in maintaining a precarious existence for ten years. Finally, in 1875, it surrendered its Charter. Lodge No. 9 and Lodge No. io are interesting because they were the first to be Chartered outside of Colorado Territory by the Grand Lodge of Colorado. They were properly Montana Lodge, No. 9, and Helena Lodge, No. 1o, in Montana Territory. Later they surrendered their Charters and became, respectively, Montana Lodge, No. 2, of Virginia City, Montana, and Helena Lodge, No. 3, of Helena, Montana, on the Roster of Lodges under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Montana. In precisely the same way, other Lodges in the State of Colorado also contributed to the formation of the Grand Lodge of Utah and the Grand Lodge of Wyoming, just as Kansas Lodges and Nebraska Lodges had earlier contributed to the formation of the Grand Lodge of Colorado.

 

When more gold, silver, and other metals were later discovered in the mountains of Colorado, other mining‑camps sprang up, as before, and sometimes almost overnight. But no more Lodges were Chartered to die out with the towns that supported them. Instead, Colorado communities grew in sta‑ 76 FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO bility as industries came in and the settlement of the State proceeded. Thus, the location of Lodges at an ever‑increasing distance from original centres of population soon became the rule. First of those was Georgetown Lodge, No. 1z, presently followed by El Paso Lodge, No. 13, at Colorado City, later removed to Colorado Springs. Then came Columbia Lodge, No. 14, at Columbia City, later removed to Boulder. Those were followed by Mount Moriah Lodge, No. 15, at Canyon City, and Pueblo Lodge, No. 17, at Pueblo. As time went on, many other Lodges were established. Most of the later Lodges throve, and maintained their places on the Roster of the Grand Lodge of Colorado as the communities grew and reached maturity. Some early Lodges, originally in the Colorado ,Jurisdiction, came to be listed on the Rosters of other Grand Lodges as new States and Territories were formed.

 

But difficulties other than those of a shifting population and the varying fortunes of boom communities beset the path of Masonry in Colorado throughout its formative period. Great distances and the risks of travel in wild and sparsely settled country interposed serious obstacles. It was nothing unusual for Brethren to travel from ten to twenty miles, or even more, along mountain trails, sometimes in very inclement weather, to attend Lodge. The Brethren who attended the Annual Communications of the Grand Lodge frequently travelled much greater distances on foot or horseback, much of the way along almost impassable roads or trails. At the Eighth Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge, held in 1865, the Grand Master, Bro. Henry M. Teller, reported that he had granted a Dispensation to Canyon Lodge U. D., at Canyon City. Before doing so he had visited Canyon City and found that though there were only a few Brethren there, they had the ability and disposition to support agoodLodge. He learned also that the proposed Master and Junior Warden regularly attended the Communications of El Paso Lodge, although doing that required them to ride some fifty miles through almost uninhabited country. This seems to be at least a fair indication of more than passing interest on the part of those worthy Brethren. At the same Annual Communication, Bro. Harper M. Orahood, Grand Lecturer, reported that he had visited nearly all the Lodges in the Jurisdiction. With the Grand Master, he had made preparations to visit the Lodges at Canyon City and Pueblo, both then under Dispensation, but the appearance of marauding Indians along the trail caused them to dismiss the visit as unsafe. It should be borne in mind that the proposed visit would have required a round trip horseback ride of some 400 miles through unsettled country. The intentions of the Grand Officers were undoubtedly good, even though the Indians unwittingly prevented carrying them out.

 

A somewhat darker picture shows that not the least of the difficulties of those pioneer Masons was the conduct of some of the Brethren. In those early times, as at others, this was the concern of the serious and constructive element in the membership. In the instance about to be cited, it is quite evident that the better element shrank neither from telling the wayward that their conduct was unbecoming their profession as Masons, nor from defining, in positive FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO 77 terms, the penalties to be exacted for further misbehaviour. At the Fifth Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge, held in 1865, the following resolulution was adopted: " Resolved, That it shall be and is hereby made the imperative duty of the subordinate Lodges in this jurisdiction to restrain, as far as possible, the Masonic crime of intemperance by trial and suspension, or expulsion, as the case may require, and for the faithful performance of that duty the said subordinate Lodges will be held accountable to this Grand Lodge." That the young Grand Lodge flourished from the very start is shown by the returns that came in year by year. There has been a steady growth in number of subordinate Lodges from the original three to an active list of 148 out of a total of 169 that have been Chartered since the beginning. From an original membership of not more than i5o, at the time of organisation in 1861, the Grand Lodge has grown to a present membership of about 34,000 Master Masons. And this out of Colorado's total population of 1,035,791 people in 1930! It is a remarkable fact that in only one year, 1875, has there occurred a net loss in membership in the Lodges under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Colorado.

 

Of the several concordant Masonic Bodies, the Royal Arch Masons first came to Colorado with Central City Chapter, No. i. It received its Dispensation from the General Grand Chapter of the United States under date of March 23, 1863, and its Charter under date of September 8, 1865. The Organisation of Central City Chapter, No. 1, was soon followed by that of Denver Chapter, No. 2. It received its Dispensation from the same source in April 1863, while its Charter was also dated September 8, 1865. Those first two Chapters were followed within ten years by the establishment of Pueblo Chapter, No. 3, Georgetown Chapter, No. 4, and Golden Chapter, No. 5, all of which participated in the formation of the Grand Chapter of Colorado on May 11, 1875,. with William N. Byers as Grand High Priest. The list of Chapters then steadily grew until there are 51 active Chapters having a total of nearly 8ooo members. It is significant that of the 53 Chapters of Royal Arch Masons thus far Chartered in Colorado all but one have survived. One other surrendered its Charter for the purpose of consolidation, when the towns of Colorado City and Colorado Springs were united under the latter name. At that time Euclid Chapter, No. 45, of Colorado City merged with Colorado Springs Chapter, No. 6, of Colorado Springs, under the latter's name and number.

 

The Commandery of Knights Templar was next in order of appearance in Colorado. Colorado Commandery, No. i, was given a Dispensation under date of January 13, 1866, and was Chartered by the Grand Encampment of Knights Templar of the United States on September 18, 1868. Soon thereafter Central City Commandery, No. 2, was established with a Charter under date of October 24, 1868. These two Commanderies, joined by Pueblo Commandery, No. 3, formed the Grand Commandery of Colorado on March 15, 1876, with Henry M. Teller as Grand Commander. Thirty‑six Commanderies out of a total of 37 originally established are still flourishing, with a total membership 78 FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO of over 4500 Sir Knights. Two Triennial Conclaves of the Grand Encampment have been held at Denver since the organisation of the Grand Commandery. Both were highly successful. The first, held in 1892, attracted some 75,000 visitors, all kinds included. The second, held in 1913, remains outstanding among Triennial Conclaves for the impressively beautiful decorations that graced the city at the time. Colorado Knight Templary is proud to have supplied the Grand Encampment of the United States with one Grand Master, Most Eminent George W. Vallery, who filled that post during the Triennial period from 1925 to 1928.

 

Cryptic Rite Masonry was first established in Colorado when the Grand Council of Illinois Chartered Central City Council as No. 54. This Council terminated its existence in 1875. It was, then, not until 1892 that Denver Coun cil, No. 1, was placed under Dispensation by the Grand Master of the General Grand Council of the United States. Its establishment was soon followed by the organisation of 6 other Councils. All those Councils were Chartered in 1894 by the General Grand Council, and the Grand Council of Colorado was formed on December 6 of the same year. There are at present 15 active constituent Councils under the jurisdiction of the Grand Council of Royal and Select Masters of Colorado, with over 2300 members.

 

The Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite was established in Colorado when Delta Lodge of Perfection, No. i, was Chartered in Denver on January 26, 1877, by Illustrious Bro. Albert Pike, Grand Commander of the Supreme Council, Southern Jurisdiction. Soon afterwards, on April 11, 1878, Mackey Chapter of Rose Croix, No. i, was established. The next two Bodies of the Scottish Rite were not Chartered until ten years later‑Denver Council of Kadosh, No. 1, on September 3, 1888, and Colorado Consistory, No. i, on the following October 17.

 

The Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite has flourished in Colorado in a very gratifying way. Its growth, like that of the York Rite, has been fostered by the labour of many loyal and willing workers. With Bro. Henry M. Teller, Thirty‑third Degree, who was the first Inspector General, the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite carried on for many years under the usual handicaps of small membership and inadequate equipment. It had, however, one highly compensatory advantage. That was the inspiration afforded by the indefatigable industry of Bro. Lawrence N. Greenleaf, Thirty‑third Degree, Deputy Inspector General under Bro. Teller. Due to Bro. Greenleaf's leadership and enthusiastic example, most early obstacles were surmounted. The present thriving condition of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite, which now has 3 Consistories and 2 magnificent Temples, has of late years been attained under the stimulating supervision of Bro. Stanley C. Warner, Thirty‑third Degree, Inspector General in Colorado. The second set of Bodies was Chartered in Denver by the Supreme Council in 1918, and the third set in Pueblo the following year. All the Bodies have greatly prospered. Though the membership of Colorado Consistory, No. i, was 53 in 1889, the year after it received its Charter, now its FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO 79 membership is about 24oo. The combined membership of the 3 Consistories of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite in Colorado is over 6ooo.

 

So far as concerns active charity, Colorado Masons have never yet been convinced that it is wise to establish Masonic institutions of a charitable nature to care for dependents. The Minutes of the Twenty‑eighth Annual Com munication, held in 1888, reveal that a Committee was at that early date appointed to " present to this Grand Lodge some plan for founding a Masonic ` Widows and Orphans ' Home." Since that time the subject has been exhaustively studied by various Committees of the Grand Lodge. The result of the investigations has been the adoption of the method now used in caring for dependents as the best under existing circumstances. Many subordinate Lodges have funds of their own which provide relief within certain limitations. In addition, and what is even more important, the Grand Lodge of Colorado has formed what is called the Colorado Masons Benevolent Fund Association. This Association is the repository of a steadily increasing fund, the income from which is used for all necessary charitable purposes. Known only to administrators of the fund, there comes to every dependent each month a check sufficient to meet his needs. Thus each recipient can continue to live as a respected resident of his community. He is adequately cared for, yet not publicly known as the recipient of charity. In such a fashion has Colorado Masonry been able to care for its widows, orphans, and dependent Brethren with satisfaction to all concerned and in an efficient and unostentatious manner.

 

Another organised activity, of a different nature, which has been carried on under the auspices of the Grand Lodge, is that of the Soldiers' and Sailors' Welfare Committee. It is engaged in the regular visitation and entertainment of sick and disabled Masonic war veterans who are being cared for in Government hospitals located within the State. The two such institutions‑Fitzsimmons General Hospital, near Denver, and Fort Lyon Hospital, at Fort Lyontogether house some Z,ooo patients, of whom about Zoo are Masons, or dependents of Masons. Regular visitations are made to those men, and a wonderful service of sympathy, good cheer, and encouragement is rendered. Thus the welfare and happiness of these Brethren is looked after.

 

Names of distinguished men are almost always associated with the history of every Grand Lodge of Masons‑names of men distinguished not only in Masonry but also in many other fields of endeavour. Of the many such which Colorado Masonic history records, that of John M. Chivington, outstanding Mason, preacher, warrior, first Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Colorado, must head the list. Bro. Chivington was a Methodist preacher who came to Colorado after having had extensive experience in his profession in Ohio, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, and Nebraska. That he was active in the Masonic work of those States is proved by the fact that he was at some time or other a member of a Lodge in each of them, that he was Master of a Lodge at Wyandotte, Kansas, and at one time Grand Chaplain of the Grand Lodge of Nebraska. Later in his career he was sent to Colorado Territory as presiding elder of the 8o FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO Rocky Mountain District of the Methodist Episcopal Church. During the second year of this service, while he was Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Colorado, he offered his service to his country and entered the forces of the North. Refusing a proffered commission as chaplain, he was made a major in the First Colorado Infantry. He distinguished himself chiefly in the celebrated Apache Canyon fight, known in history as the battle of Glorieta, when he led Soo men in a rear attack upon the Confederate troops of General O. O. Sibley, who was attempting to invade Colorado from New Mexico. Historians say that this battle saved Colorado and her great gold deposits to the Union. For bravery shown at the time, Major Chivington was made a colonel, a rank he held until his honourable discharge from the army, in 1865. Another of Colonel Chivington's exploits was his leadership at the battle of Sand Creek. In that engagement with Indians, several hundred of them were slain, and the massacre of 174 white men, women, and children was thus avenged. Indian depredations from which Colorado settlers were suffering at the time were effectually ended by this victory. The historian must surely be aware that this devout and warlike clergyman truly believed the biblical exclamation, " Vengeance is mine, saith the Lord." Another Brother of early days to whom Colorado Masonry is deeply indebted was M.'. W.‑. Bro. Allyn Weston, first Grand Lecturer and second Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Colorado. Before removing to Colorado, Bro.

 

Weston had for six years been editor and publisher of The Ashler, a Masonic magazine, of Detroit and Chicago. He was the first Master of Chivington Lodge, No. 6. Bro. Weston's greatest contribution to Colorado Masonry was emphasised by R.‑. W.‑. Bro. W. W. Cooper, formerly Grand Lecturer and in 1932 Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of Colorado, in his masterly analysis of the Colorado Work, its origin and descent. Bro. Cooper wrote as follows In the days we are considering, the Work used by a new Grand Lodge would be that which was known and favoured by some strong, forceful leader in the organisation, particularly if he possessed authority to regulate the matter. Allyn Weston was the outstanding leader in the Grand Lodge of Colorado in the first two years of its existence. Within four months after the organisation of the Grand Lodge, he was appointed its Grand Lecturer, whose duty it was to " cause the work of the several Lodges to be uniform,'' and he was the second Grand Master of Colorado. Past Grand Master Henry M. Teller, speaking in the Grand Lodge in i91o, said: " Weston was a remarkable man, a man of fine presence, fine education, and fine address, and a gentlemen in the best use of the term. I do not think it is an exaggeration to say that this man had great influence on the organisation, the upbuilding, and general character of Masonry in this jurisdiction. He was a firm believer in the tenets of the Craft, a firm believer in the maintenance of strict order, and devoted to the great principles that underlie this Institution; and he impressed himself upon the Lodge for the year that he was Grand Master as I think no other man has ever done since." When it is known that the first active Grand Lecturer and the second Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Colorado was a man of the character above de‑ FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO 8 1 scribed, there can be but one conclusion, and that is that Weston determined the system of Work that was required to be used by the Lodges under the jurisdiction of the new Grand Lodge. And this conclusion is confirmed by a living and competent witness, an associate of Weston's and a participant in the Masonic affairs of the State since the year 1861. I speak of Most Worshipful Bro. Chase Withrow, who served as Grand Lecturer in 1864 and as Grand Master in 1866, and who, now in his ninety‑first year, occasionally confers the Master Mason Degree. Brother Withrow has repeatedly stated in Grand Lodge and elsewhere that " the Work mostly used in the early days of Colorado Masonry was what was known as the ` Allyn Weston.' " That this Work continued to be used after Weston left the State is shown by the Report of a Committee of the Grand Lodge upon a revision of the Work pre ared by Grand Lecturer George E. Wyman, and adopted by the Grand Loge in 1882, in which it was stated: " The Work presented by the Grand Lecturer is in its essential features the same as the ` Allyn Weston Work ' so long used in this jurisdiction.'' Just which one of the many kinds of Work used in Michigan from 1844 to 186o, which Weston introduced into Colorado, it is probably now impossible to determine. Because of certain of its characteristics, there can be no doubt that it was a variety of the 'Barney Work ' used in Michigan in the period mentioned. " In 1911 the Colorado Work was thoroughly and very competently revised by Bro. Cooper himself, the accomplished student of Masonic Ritual, whom we quote above. Of his own revision, Bro. Cooper has said: " Essentially, the Colorado Work remains as it was in 1861. No modern material was added in this revision, although some restorations were made that antedate in their origin Weston, Barney, the Baltimore Convention, and even Webb. Leaving out of consideration any Systems of Work in use in the United States prior to the year 18oo, the line of descent of our Colorado Work appears to be fairly well defined. First we have Webb, then Gleason, then Barney, then some modified form of Barney as used in Michigan seventy‑five years ago, then Weston, and finally the Colorado Work." We must conclude, then, upon the most competent of modern testimony, that Bro. Weston was responsible for the purity and accuracy of the Colorado Work in its inception, whatever change it may since have undergone. We can trace the thread of influence of each unselfish worker who wove into the fabric of the future greatness of the Ancient Craft for which he laboured.

 

Among those other Colorado Masons who were great in civic life as well as great in Masonry, the name of Henry Moore Teller, third Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Colorado, stands pre‑eminent. Beginning in 1863, he at first held the office for one year. Subsequently he was elected Grand Master each year from 1867 to 1872, inclusive, and thus served his Grand Lodge as Grand Master for seven years in all. Aside from Bro. John M. Chivington, only one other Mason has had the distinction of being elected to the Grand East in 82 FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO Colorado a second time. That honour was also conferred upon Bro. Webster D. Anthony, who followed Bro. Teller and served during the years 1873 and 1874. That Bro. Teller's associates in Masonry regarded him very highly is evident from his further Masonic record, which covered a period of more than fifty‑four years. He was made a Mason in Illinois in 1858. In 1861, at the age of thirty‑one, he came to Colorado. He was second Master of Chivington Lodge, No. 6, first Eminent Commander of Central City Commandery, No. 2, and first Grand Commander of the Grand Commandery of Colorado. He was coroneted Honorary Inspector General of the Thirty‑third Degree in 1866. Appointed in 1882, he was the first active member in Colorado of the Supreme Council of the Southern Jurisdiction of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite. He occupied this post for nearly thirty‑two years, and rose to the position of Grand Prior in the Supreme Council in 1913. From this brief review it is clear that Bro. Teller was a Mason of many activities. No adequate catalogue of them is possible here.

 

For many years Bro. Teller was also a distinguished figure in the nation's civic life. Upon his arrival in Colorado, he established himself as a lawyer in Central City and quickly became the leader of his profession in the Terri tory. Soon thereafter he organised the Colorado Central Railroad, which later became a part of the Colorado and Southern Railroad. During the first five years of its existence he was president of the former. Having been appointed major‑general of militia during the Indian troubles of 1863, he served in that capacity for three years. Upon admission of Colorado to the Union in 1876 he was elected to the United States Senate, where he served until 1883. He was then appointed to the Cabinet as Secretary of the Interior under President Chester A. Arthur, and at the expiration of the latter's term Bro. Teller returned again to the Senate. Altogether, he served as senator from Colorado for thirty years. During that time his outstanding accomplishments were indeed many, and one at least merits specific mention. This had to do with stating our nation's aims at the outbreak of the Spanish‑American War. At that moment, the position of our government in the conflict could easily have been misunderstood by other world powers, and trouble leading to serious consequences might easily have been precipitated. Realising this, and recognising the seriousness of the situation, Bro. Teller introduced into the United States Senate the following resolution, which was adopted, thus removing all doubt as to the intention of our government " Resolved, That the United States hereby disclaims any disposition or intention to exercise sovereignty, jurisdiction, or control over said island (Cuba), except for the purpose of pacification thereof; and asserts its determination, when that is accomplished, to leave the government and control of the island to its people." Bro. Teller died in 1914. He had served his Lodge as Master, his Commandery as Eminent Commander for ten years, the Grand Commandery of FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO 83 Colorado as first Grand Commander, the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite as Inspector General for thirty‑two years, the Grand Lodge of Colorado as Grand Master for seven years. In addition, he had served his country in some form of national public service for thirty‑three years. This was a truly remarkable record for one man to leave behind him‑the record of a great citizen and a great Mason.

 

The fairest shrine that can be occupied by any of the Masonic great must, after all, be within the hearts and memories of their Brethren. None more surely occupies that place than Colorado's poet laureate of Masonry, Lawrence N. Greenleaf. Masonic poet, editor, and publisher, Bro. Greenleaf was, in addition, a tireless worker both in the ranks of Masonry and in high places. Receiving the Degrees of Ancient Craft Masonry in Boston, in 1863, he affiliated with Denver Lodge, No. 5, that same year, then served his Lodge as Master in 1866, 1868, 1869, 1877, and 1878. He was High Priest of Denver Chapter, No. 2, for two years, and Grand High Priest of the Grand Royal Arch Chapter of Colorado in 1885. He was Grand Master of the Grand Council of Colorado in 1907, and for eighteen years he was Recorder of Colorado Commandery, No. 1. Bro. Greenleaf was friend and associate of such other great Masons as Bro. Albert G. Mackey, Bro. Albert Pike, Bro. Henry M. Teller, and Bro. Henry P. H. Bromwell, whose monumental work on Freemasonry was published by the Grand Lodge of Colorado in 1905. The publication of this volume was undertaken after the death of Bro. Bromwell. The literary ability of Bro. Greenleaf made him an important member of the Committee that carried the work through to completion. Bro. Greenleaf was elected Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Colorado in 1880, and served as Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Correspondence of the Grand Lodge from 1870 to 1878; again in 1882, and again from 1889 to 1917. In Denver, from 1893 until 1917, he published a Masonic magazine, The Square and Compass, while his writings, especially his poetry, gave him world renown in Masonic circles. To have written only one of his Masonic poems, " The Lodge Room over Simpkin's Store," would have been sufficient to assure him lasting fame among the Masons. It has been said of his writing, particularly of his poetry, that it expressed the very soul of Freemasonry. His correspondence reports, which extend over a third of a century, furnish the means for acquiring a Masonic education, since they touch upon nearly every phase of the Institution. Having received the Degrees of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite by communication from Bro. Albert G. Mackey, Bro. Greenleaf's interest in that Body never flagged. He initiated the movement that led to the organisation of the Scottish Rite Bodies in Denver, and was chiefly responsible for bringing that about. At some time or other he was the presiding Officer in each of the Bodies. He served as Deputy Inspector General from 1878 until infirmities forced him to reture in 1914. During the difficult days of the formative period of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite in Colorado, Bro. Greenleaf carried on through the era of indifference and small membership until he saw the fruition of his efforts in the magnificent 84 FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO growth and prosperity of that Body in the early part of the twentieth century. Our distinguished Brother died in 192‑2‑. For years he had held a position of respect and loving regard in the hearts of his Brethren, an enviable honour which his long and unselfish service amply justified. Preserved in his writings, his spirit will long serve as an inspiration to many Masons in years yet to come.

 

Another Colorado Mason whose name will long be remembered was M.‑. W.‑. Bro. Roger W. Woodbury, who is credited with an accomplishment of which Colorado Freemasonry is justly proud. He held the Masonic Memorial Exercises at Mount Vernon, Virginia, on the centenary of the death of Worshipful Brother George Washington. In response to a recommendation in the address of Grand Master William D. Wright, made at the suggestion and request of Bro. Woodbury, those exercises were formally inaugurated by the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of Colorado in 1893. The enormous task of initiating and carrying through the plan was entrusted to a Committee consisting of three Past Grand Masters, Bro. Woodbury, Bro. William D. Wright, and Bro. William D. Todd. After corresponding for three years, this Committee succeeded in interesting enough Grand Lodges of the United States to insure the national character of the project. Having concluded that the exercises could only properly take place at Mount Vernon, George Washington's Virginia estate, the Grand Lodge of Virginia was then formally invited to arrange all details of the celebration. That Grand Lodge accepted the invitation, and gave acknowledgment to the Grand Lodge of Colorado for its inception of the idea and for the service it had performed. On December 14, 1899, the Memorial Exercises were carried out under the auspices of the Grand Lodge of Virginia. Practically every Grand Lodge in the United States participated, and the Grand Lodge of Colorado was accorded the place of highest honor among them in recognition of its service. The honour was even increased by asking M.‑. W.‑. Bro. Alphonse A. Burnand, then Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Colorado, to deliver one of the three addresses given on the occasion. The two other addresses were delivered by the Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Virginia and by Bro. William McKinley, President of the United States, respectively. The events of the occasion were later fully described by Past Grand Master William D. Todd, a member of the Committee. As Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of Colorado, he named this as " the most interesting, impressive, and important Masonic event of the last century." Bro. Roger W. Woodbury's mind conceived the plan of that fitting centenary celebration, his industry carried it out. To him belongs the greater share of credit for successful accomplishment.

 

Two other Past Grand Masters of the Grand Lodge of Colorado must be mentioned even in this short sketch. They were M.. W . . Bro. Chase Withrow and M.‑. W.‑. Bro. Earnest Le Neve Foster. The former was a person of outstand ing interest to the Masonic historian for many years because he was the only survivor of early Colorado Masonry. During his lifetime Bro. Withrow had personally known every Grand Master of this Grand Lodge. He had been inti‑ ‑ FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO 85 mate and co‑worker with Bro. Chivington, Bro. Weston, Bro. Teller, Bro. Greenleaf, Bro. Whittemore, Bro. Parmelee, and the other pioneers of the days when Colorado Masonry was founded. Bro. Withrow was first Master of Black Hawk Lodge, No. ii, in 1866, and at the same time he was Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Colorado. In 1916, on the fiftieth anniversary of his Grand Mastership, he was re‑elected Master of his Lodge. Again he sat in Grand Lodge as representative of Black Hawk Lodge, No. 11, just half a century after he first presided as Grand Master. The death of this distinguished Brother in 1931 severed the last link that for so long had connected Colorado Masonry of to‑day with the pioneer Masonry of Colorado's earliest years.

 

M.‑. W.‑. Bro. Earnest Le Neve Foster was long distinguished among Colorado Masons because of the many years of service he rendered to the Craft in nearly every sort of way. His name will chiefly be remembered, however, as that of the founder of the Colorado Masons' Benevolent Fund Association, as that of a contributor to the fund, and as that of a faithful and successful worker in the service of the Association. Bro. Foster was Grand Master in 189o. For nine years he was Grand Lecturer, and in addition he served other branches of the Craft in many Offices. Nearly all the last twenty‑five years of Bro. Foster's life were devoted to the service of the Benevolent Fund Association; there he laboured without pecuniary reward until the very hour of his death. It was fitting that this worthy Mason's life should end as it did: Death came to him while he was on an errand of mercy to a beneficiary of the Fund. Bro. Foster died as he had long lived‑occupied with the work of the Craft for which he had chosen to labour.

 

Mention of some few of the many other great Masonic pioneers and workers whose lives have served as inspiration and example to Masons of Colorado must be made here before this short article is brought to a close. These few are the five who have served the Grand Lodge of Colorado as Grand Secretary during its seventy years of existence. The Colorado Grand Lodge has indeed been fortunate in its choice of Grand Secretaries. All have been able and distinguished workers in the field of Masonry, itself an abiding strength and support. First of the Grand Secretaries was R.‑. W.‑. Bro. Oliver A. Whittemore, one of the organizers of the Grand Lodge, and later Deputy Grand Master. Bro. Whittemore occupied the office until 1865, when he was succeeded by R.‑. W.‑. Bro. Edward C. Parmelee, who held the position for thirty‑five years, a career distinguished throughout by faithful and efficient service. At the death of Bro. Parmelee, a Past Grand Master, R.‑. W.‑. William D. Todd, succeeded him. Bro. Todd held the Office only three years. He was followed by an outstanding Masonic writer, a capable orator and a tireless worker, R.‑. W.‑. Charles H. Jacobson, who served as Grand Secretary until his death in 1921, a period of more than sixteen years. Since the death of Bro. Jacobson, this important post has been occupied by R.‑. W.‑. Bro. William W. Cooper, whose standing among present‑day Masonic students and authors is generally well known.

 

Of great names such as those that have been mentioned, Colorado has had 86 FREEMASONRY IN COLORADO ‑ its full share. It stands indebted to those Brethren and to many living workers who to‑day are ably serving the Craft with all their strength and will and heart. Though the historian cannot here mention all of those, he is nevertheless in duty bound to accord some words to the labourers in the ranks‑no less worthy contributors to the success and prosperity of Masonry in this jurisdiction. To them the Fraternity is often as deeply obligated as to those whose names shine forth more brightly from the pages of Masonic history. Without them the acknowledged great could have accomplished little. To them the debt can never be repaid, even in gratitude. They here receive posterity's tribute of honoured recognition‑they who have been quiet and faithful workers in their day and generation.

 

Coming now to the present, we must not fail to say that the activities of Freemasonry in Colorado are to‑day characterised by a perpetuation of all that is best of fraternal feeling, by a normal increase of numbers, and by steady ad vancement of the Craft's many interests. In the larger centres of population throughout the State, a number of beautiful buildings have been constructed for the housing of Masonic activities. Many worthy relief activities have been organised and carried on under the auspices of Masonic Bodies. Just as progress in any line of worthy endeavour is never without difficulty, however, so, too, Freemasonry in Colorado has not escaped its times of trial. Nevertheless it has thus far surmounted every obstacle. Accompanying the Craft's healthy growth there has been a widening and deepening of its power and influence for good. To the pioneer founders, credit for whatever progress has been made must first be accorded. Nothing could exceed the worth of their service. None could have sacrificed more freely or unselfishly than they. In days whose story now forms part of a great tradition, they were first to build. On the foundations firmly laid, they builded better than they knew. Since then, one well‑formed stone after another has been slowly and carefully laid on others equally well formed, until now we can perceive a temple slowly rising on its firm and solid base. Truly this is an edifice not built by human hands. Rather, it is an imperishable monument to Faith, to Devotion, and to Love.

 

FREEMASONRY IN CONNECTICUT WINTHROP BUCK P REVIOUS to the year 1789 eighteen Lodges whose names and locations are known existed in Connecticut. Of those, eight received their Charters 1 from the St. John's Grand Lodge situated in Boston, which was descended from the Grand Lodge of England. Six were Chartered by the Massachusetts Grand Lodge, also situated in Boston, which claimed authority from the Grand Lodge of Scotland. The remaining four, situated near the New York State line, obtained their Charters from the Provincial Grand Lodge of New York. The famous Army Lodge, known as American Union Lodge, had ceased operation, in 1783, and the authority of its Charter was not again used until Jonathan Heart reached Ohio with it. Although Chartered by the St. John's Grand Lodge, its membership was principally confined to Connecticut soldiers of the American line. There are traditions of one or two other Lodges, but they are only traditions.

 

The source from which the Charter members of those Lodges obtained their Degrees is in most cases difficult to ascertain. Masonic Lodges were frequently attached to British regiments that were on service in the struggle with the French for possession of this continent, and it is supposed that some men, like Israel Putnam, obtained their Light from such sources. A few Masons may have been initiated in England. A number of the members of American Union Lodge became Charter members of Lodges founded after the struggles of the War for Independence had come to a close.

 

In those days it was the custom among the Lodges to hold Conventions. Such a Convention met in New Haven in the house of Bro. Brown on April 29, 1783. Delegates were in attendance from Hiram Lodge of New Haven; St. John's Lodge, of Middletown; St. John's Lodge, of Fairfield; St. John's Lodge, of Hartford; St. John's Lodge, of Norwalk; King Solomon's Lodge, of Woodbury; St. John's Lodge, of Stratford; Compass Lodge, of Wallingford; Union Lodge, of Danbury; Wooster Lodge, of Colchester; St. Paul's Lodge, of Litchfield; and King Hiram's Lodge, of Derby. Twenty‑one Delegates from those twelve Lodges were present. As a result of that Convention, regulations were adopted which were intended to make the proceedings of those Lodges more uniform and lead finally to the establishment of the Grand Lodge.

 

Other meetings were doubtless held in the succeeding years, but nothing further was accomplished until, at a meeting of Delegates held at Hartford on May 14, 1789, it was voted that the Committee of four there appointed prepare a systematic plan for forming a Grand Lodge, and that they report to a subsea7 88 FREEMASONRY IN CONNECTICUT quent meeting to be held in New Haven on the following July 8. It is not stated what Lodges were represented at that meeting, or how many Delegates attended. We do know, however, that Frederick Lodge of Farmington, Hiram Lodge, of New Haven, and St. Paul's Lodge, of Litchfield, were among those represented.

 

On the date set, at least twenty‑two Delegates met in New Haven. They represented Hiram Lodge, of New Haven; St. John's Lodge, of Middletown; St. John's Lodge, of Fairfield; St. John's Lodge, of Hartford; King Solomon's Lodge, of Woodbury; St. John's Lodge, of Stratford; Compass Lodge, of Wallingford; Union Lodge, of Danbury; Wooster Lodge, of Colchester; St. Paul's Lodge, of Litchfield; Frederick Lodge, of Farmington, and Montgomery Lodge, of Salisbury. Those twelve Lodges adopted a Constitution which, among other things, provided for semi‑annual meetings. One such meeting was to be held in New Haven during October, and one was to be held at Hartford in May. Officers were chosen, and Pierpont Edwards, a Past Master of Hiram Lodge, became the first Grand Master. For some unknown reason St. John's Lodge, of Norwalk; Union Lodge, of Stamford; King Hiram Lodge, of Derby; Columbia Lodge, of Norwich, and St. Alban's Lodge, of Guilford, were not present.

 

With the institution of the Grand Lodge, Masonry seems to have begun to grow immediately. The first new Charter granted is thought to have been a result of the death of General Israel Putnam, which occurred on May 29, 1790. At that'Itime many of his former companions in arms gathered to honour him with a Masonic funeral. After the ceremony they probably met around the refreshment table as usual, and there they may have discussed the advisability of having a Lodge nearer than Hartford or Colchester, fifty miles distant. At any rate, Moriah Lodge, No. I5, was Chartered at the October meeting of that year, with jurisdiction in Windham County. At the next meeting, held in May 1791, all the original Lodges were represented except St. Alban's Lodge, of Guilford, and Columbia Lodge, of Norwich. In addition there were eight new members of the official family. In the May session of 1796, Grand Secretary John Mix announced that he had assigned numbers to the thirty‑seven Lodges that had applied for Charters under the new Grand Lodge. Union Lodge, of Danbury, which was one of those that had taken part in the formation of the Grand Lodge, had not then applied. When it did apply, it was Made No. 40, a number that does not correctly indicate its age. By 1826 the numbers assigned had mounted to seventy, but no report was made at that time as to the number of members. No list of members was preserved by the Grand Secretary, and it is now difficult to trace membership in many of the Lodges of those days.

 

In no State where the political anti‑Masons exhibited strength did the Masons afford a stronger resistance to those enemies than in Connecticut. Although there were seventy Lodges listed in 1826, as has been said the effect of " The anti‑Masonic Excitement " was nevertheless soon felt. The records of the Grand Lodge Session held in May 183 1 give no account of the number present, nor do they list the representatives. A quorum is merely acknowledged. The Officers, with the exception of the Grand Treasurer, R .'. W .'. Laban Smith, FREEMASONRY IN CONNECTICUT 89 who had held Office since 1822 and was to continue to do so until his death in 1841, refused re‑election, and a new corps was selected. Dr. Thomas Hubbard, of Pomfret, was the courageous Brother who accepted the Office of Grand Master. In 1832 an anti‑Masonic convention was held in the State, and in it Henry Dana Ward of New York City was conspicuous. At the Annual Communication of that year, the Connecticut Grand Lodge followed the example of that of Massachusetts by adopting and publishing not only in the Masonic Proceedings but also in the newspapers, a " Declaration " of principles. Thus those Principles, bearing the signature of many of the best citizens of Connecticut, were broadcast over the land. In a measure this declaration tended to allay the anti‑Masonic feeling, but it did not heal the wound that had been inflicted. Work was reported in a very few Lodges during 1833, but in 1841 only twentyfive Lodges were represented and only thirty‑one made returns. At every Session delinquency was a source of constant vexation that resulted in the surrender and revocation of many Charters. In 1845 the improvement was more marked. It continued until, in 1865, eighty Lodges were listed. The religious phase of the movement lasted longer than the political phase and brought forth such rabid leaders as the Rev. Daniel Dow, of Thompson, as well as such loyal defenders as Joseph Emerson, of Wethersfield. When his church council gave him the choice of renouncing either his church or his Lodge, Deacon Terry, of South Windsor, is said to have remarked that since he knew several kinds of religion, but only one kind of Masonry, he preferred to cling to the latter.

 

The history of the Grand Lodge of Connecticut from 185o onward is too much like that of other Grand Lodges to require great attention here. At the Annual Communication held in February 1935, the Grand Secretary reported the membership as being 39,7oo and the number of Lodges listed as being 128. Most of the Lodges own their own buildings and are in good financial condition. Symbolic Masonry in this State has suffered little from clandestine troubles. In 1803 the Grand Lodge issued a warning against the activities of a certain Joash Hall. Three Lodges are known to have been formed by that imposter, but they soon passed out of existence. The McBain‑Thompson trouble of recent years affected Connecticut Lodges very little. The old records reveal a very consistent attitude of opposition to a General Grand Lodge, although the matter has frequently been brought up for discussion.

 

A great deal might be written about the remarkable Army Lodge, known as American Union Lodge, previously mentioned. Chartered by Deputy Grand Master Richard Gridley, of St. John's Grand Lodge, of Boston, on February 15, 1776, by order of Grand Master John Rowe, it moved about with the Colonial troops during the War for Independence, conferred Degrees upon soldiers of every rank, and welcomed distinguished Brethren, among them George Washington. Jonathan Heart, Master of the Lodge during the greater part of its military existence, carried the Charter with him to Ohio, There, under the same name, the Work of the Lodge was continued. This Lodge, together with Erie Lodge, No. 47, and New England Lodge, No. 49, which were Chartered by the Grand 9o FREEMASONRY IN CONNECTICUT Lodge of Connecticut in 1803, was instrumental in forming the Grand Lodge of Ohio in 1808. Connecticut also had a hand in founding the Grand Lodge of Vermont, by Chartering Temple Lodge, of Bennington, in 1793, and Union Lodge, of Middlebury, in 1794. One Lodge having a Connecticut Charter obtained during the gold excitement of 1849 was among those that later formed the Grand Lodge of California.

 

On June 6, 1861, a Dispensation was granted to twelve Brethren belonging to the Fourth Connecticut Regiment of Volunteers, then about to leave for the seat of hostilities. The document, which was for a Lodge to be called Connecti cut Union Lodge, No. 9o, was signed by Howard B. Ensign, Grand Master. No returns were ever made, and no record of the Lodge's proceedings has ever appeared on the Minutes of the Connecticut Grand Lodge. The first meeting of that Army Lodge was held at Camp Ingalls, near Fort Richardson, Virginia, on Saturday evening, January 4, 1862. Then the Lodge was organized by the appointment of Officers, after which it proceeded to business. Three other Communications were held during that January, and the names of several candidates were proposed and accepted. One of them, George Ayer, was initiated as an Entered Apprentice at the Lodge's last meeting. That was the only Masonic Labour reported. One other petition for a Dispensation to organise an Army Lodge was refused. It was to be located with the Fifth Connecticut Regiment and to be known as Ensign Lodge, No. 9i.

 

During those years of bloody strife which have become so notable in the history of the country, the Craft became exceedingly prosperous. It continued to be in a state of harmony largely because of the unusual activity in all depart ments of business which was stimulated by the immense military preparations and the reckless expenditure of public money. Hundreds were annually added to our numbers. This condition continued for several years after the cessation of hostilities, and at the close of the decade ending with 1870 there were a hundred Lodges on the Roll and a total membership of 13,072. This was a gain of 7,218 members in ten years.

 

Similar conditions were a result of the World War. Lodges were thronged with applicants and there were many requests to shorten the time of probation because our young men were going either to camp or abroad. Though honour rolls were erected in Lodge rooms and records were kept of the members' war service, no Travelling or Army Lodges were Chartered. The experience of Lodges throughout the country during the war between the States had taught Masons that on the whole the results of such Lodges were unsatisfactory.

 

In 1872, at the time of the great fire in Chicago, Connecticut Masonry extended charity in the form of funds for the destitute. When everything had been done that was deemed wise, there remained a balance in the fund contributed by the various Grand Bodies. This was distributed pro rata among the donors. Connecticut's share, which amounted to about sixty dollars, became a nest egg for the Masonic Charity Foundation. The fund grew, and in 1895 a large property was purchased in Wallingfo‑rd and converted into a Masonic Home. During FREEMASONRY IN CONNECTICUT 91 the thirty years that have passed since then, the old building has been replaced by a fireproof structure and additions have been made to the plant. These additions include an infirmary known as the Eastern Star Hospital. Connecticut Masonry now finances a charitable project valued at more than $9oo,o0o. In 1930 the cost of this undertaking to the Craft was $203,ooo. During that year the Mason's Connecticut Foundation was caring for 251 people at the Masonic Home and for 163 others elsewhere.

 

Connecticut followed up her contribution of $5oo made in 1826 toward a monument to George Washington at Mount Vernon, by joining wholeheartedly in the support of the George Washington Masonic National Memorial. The State was also one of the prime movers in The Masonic Service Association. It endeavoured to do its part in the educational work of that organisation. In addition the Masons of Connecticut contributed freely toward alleviating the distress of the sufferers in Charlestown in 1886, of those in San Francisco in 19o6, and of those who were in the Florida and Mississippi disasters during recent years.

 

Many men of national importance have encouraged and promoted Masonry in Connecticut. Mention of Israel Putnam has already been made. Although his Lodge memberhsip is not certainly known, he was a Masonic resident of this State. Of like prominence was General David Wooster, Charter Master of Hiram Lodge, No. i, of New Haven. This Brother was probably made a Mason in England about the year 1745. Upon his return to America, he obtained a Charter from R.‑.W.‑.Thomas Oxnard, Provincial Grand Master of St. John's Grand Lodge of Boston, under date of November 12, 175o. Thus he became the founder of duly constituted Masonry in Connecticut. All Masons regret that Benedict Arnold, of the same Lodge, did not always remain in as good standing as Bro. David Wooster. Oliver Wolcott held the office of Grand Master and Governor of the State at the same time. Of the first six Grand Masters, five have Revolutionary War records, and the sixth was the first chief justice of the Supreme Court of Connecticut. In more recent times such men as Gideon Welles, Secretary of the Navy under President Lincoln, Governor Thomas H. Seymour, Governor Morgan G. Bulkley, Governor John H. Trumbull, Senator Orville H. Platt, and Senator George M. McLean have been proud of their Masonic membership. It therefore behooves us to see to it that Connecticut Masons of the future will be proud that our names were upon the Records of the Lodge.

 

The Grand Chapter of Connecticut was organised in 1798. There is ample evidence to prove that even before that time semi‑annual Convocations of the six Chapters then in existence were held to legislate for the good of the Craft. The first recorded Convocation was held in Hartford on July 5, 1796. On October Zo, 1798, the six Chapters met in New Haven and organised the Grand Chapter of Connecticut. All but one of those Chapters had a Charter from Washington Chapter of New York City. It is likely that the other Charter also came from the same source, although this is disputed.

 

At a Convention held in Hartford on January 24, 1798, the Grand Royal 92 FREEMASONRY IN CONNECTICUT Arch Chapter of the Northern States of America was organised. It embraced the States of New Hamsphire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Vermont, and later became the General Grand Chapter. Apparently the Connecticut Representatives at first stood aloof, but by tactful diplomacy they were led to join in the deliberations and to unite with the others. In 1827 an Act of the State Legislature incorporated the Grand Chapter as " The Grand Chapter of the State of Connecticut." Although some Chapters fell into a state of apathy and forfeited their Charters during the anti‑Masonic period, most of the Charters were later restored and the Grand Chapter continued to hold Convocations. Since that time Capitu lar Masonry has normally progressed onward and upward. On May 1, 1934, Connecticut had forty‑six Chapters and 14,400 members.

 

In its organised form, Cryptic Masonry began in Connecticut in 1818. In that year Jeremy L. Cross, claiming authority from the Grand Chapter of Maryland, established Councils in Hartford, Ashford, Norwich, New London, Col chester, Stamford, Kent, New Haven, Middletown, and Canterbury. The first of those, afterward called Wolcott Council in honor of its Thrice Illustrious Master, was Chartered on February 7, 1818. The others were Chartered in the order in which they are named above. Those, together with the Council established at Newtown in February 1819, organised the Grand Council at a meeting of their Representatives held in Hartford on May 18 and 2‑o, 1819. At the beginning of the anti‑Masonic period the number of Councils had reached sixteen, but at the close of the Grand Council held in May 1840 only six were in good standing. That, however, seems to have been the low point. The next year a Charter was restored, and from then on new Councils were added. Membership in General Grand Council of the United States was debated a number of times, but Connecticut has never joined that organisation. Conferences were held for the purpose of making the Ritual uniform, and the present Ritual is the result of the Annual Meeting of 1915. The Super‑Excellent Degree was adopted in 1864. The Grand Council of New York was the result of three Councils Chartered by Connecticut in that State. The same is true of the Michigan Grand Council. At present twenty‑four Councils make up the Grand Council of Royal and Select Masters of Connecticut.

 

In 1858 a Lodge of Perfection Chapter of Rose Croix and a Consistory were Chartered in Bridgeport by the then so‑called " New York Supreme Council." These were followed by a Council of Princes of Jerusalem established in 1859.

 

In 1864 a Lodge, Council, Chapter, and Consistory were Chartered in Norwich by the " Boston Supreme Council." After the union of the two Supreme Councils in 1867, Connecticut was allowed to retain both Consistories, although the policy of that period was to allow but one Consistory to each State regardless of the State's area of population. Later, Bodies other than Consistories were formed in Hartford, New Haven, and Waterbury.

 

The total Scottish Rite membership in Connecticut is now about as follows Lodges of Perfection, 4153; Councils of Princes of Jerusalem, 4116; Chapters of FREEMASONRY IN CONNECTICUT 93 Rose Croix, 4111; Consistories, 3979. 'In the Connecticut Council of Deliberation there are two Active Members of the Supreme Council of Thirty‑third Degree Masons, and forty‑two Honorary Members.

 

The history of Washington Commandery, No. i, is the story of the beginning of the Templar Order in Connecticut. This Commandery claims to be the oldest Body of Knights Templar existing in the United States. It was the first organised at Colchester in July 1796 by virtue of that inherent right delegated to Knights Templar by ancient usage and conferred Degrees. Two meetings were afterward held by the same authority. On June 9, 18oi, the members effected a permanent organisation and applied to the Knights Templar in London for a Warrant. That this was the first Encampment Chartered in this country is indisputably proved by the Charter. It was issued from the Grand Encampment of the United States over the signature of Thomas Smith Webb, then Deputy General Grand Master. The document recognises and establishes September S, 1803, as the date of the London Charter. This is the only Encampment in the United States that ever received a Charter from the Grand Encampment of England. Meeting at various times in Colchester, New London, and Hartford, this Encampment finally became permanently located at the latter place in 1844.

 

The Grand Commandery of Connecticut was organised on September 13, 1827, having as its members Washington Commandery, No. 1, New Haven Commandery, No. 2, and Clinton Commandery, No. 3, the last situated in Norwalk. At that time there were only about a hundred members. Now there are 12 commanderies and over 6ooo members.

 

FREEMASONRY IN DELAWARE THOMAS J. DAY HE first record of a Masonic Lodge in Delaware is that of Lodge No. 5, of and under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania, of which R.‑. W.‑. Bro. William Ball was Provincial Grand Master. On June Z4, 1765, the Grand Officers granted a Warrant for a Lodge to be held at Cantwell's Bridge, a small hamlet in New Castle County, where the post‑road crossed the Appoquinimink Creek, about twenty‑one miles southwest of what is now the city of Wilmington, or, as was said in those early times, " within five miles thereof." This Warrant was the first to be granted by the Provincial Grand Lodge (Ancients) of Pennsylvania, for a Lodge to be held beyond the bounds of that Province. The Warrant Officers were: Bro. William Bradford, Worshipful Master; Bro. Peter Wyatt, Senior Warden, and Bro. Duncan Beard, Junior Warden.

 

A copy of the Minutes of that Lodge, covering the period from June 23, 1770, to December 27, 1787, is now in the archives of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania. This Minute Book is of especial value to the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania, for it also gives some information about the proceedings of that Grand Lodge, whose Minutes prior to July 29, 1779, are not known to exist. They were either lost or destroyed during the British occupation of Philadelphia in 1777 and 1778.

 

Lodge No. 5 was strictly a country Lodge, located in a sparsely settled agricultural region. Thus, in the entry made on the Minutes on June 23, 1770, it states that the " Lodge met this day on account of harvest, instead of the day in course! " The Minutes also show that Lodge No. 5 celebrated St. John the Baptist's Day in 1773, at Georgetown, Md., together with Lodge No. 6. Another entry states that on April 27, 1775, it was resolved to remove the Lodge to Bro. Thomas Sculley's, at Middletown.

 

During 1776 and 1777 quite a number of emergency Petitions were received from soldiers in the Continental Army. An item of the Minutes of September 27, 1777, says: " The confusion we were thrown into by the British Army landing at Elk prevented us from meeting on last month." Another item notes that Lodge No. 5 was one of the twelve Lodges represented on the memorable September 25, 1786, when it was decided to close forever the Grand Lodge then acting under the Warrant from the Grand Lodge of England, and to re‑open it as an independent Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania. The Lodge No. 5 continued to be under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania until January 30, 1816, when its Warrant was finally surrendered, five days before it had received a Warrant from the Grand Lodge of Delaware.

 

94 FREEMASONRY IN DELAWARE 95 On December 27, 1769, another Warrant was granted by the Provincial Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania, this time for a Lodge to be held at Christiana Ferry, now Wilmington, Delaware. The Warrant was registered as No. 14. It named Bro. Hugh McConnell, Worshipful Master, Bro. Jonathan Jordon, Senior Warden, and Bro. Joseph McGarraugh, Junior Warden. Two old Minute Books of this Lodge, covering the period from November 18, 1779, to December 16, 1784, are also in the archives of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania.

 

During the early years of the American War of Independence, the Brethren of this Lodge suffered more or less. Their meetings were irregular, and the Records of the Lodge were either lost or destroyed. Meetings had to be held at various places. The house of Bezlin Bentley seems to have been used more than any other. At the meeting held on September 25, 1786, when the Provincial Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania ceased to exist and the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania was organised, Lodge No. 14 was represented by Bro. Francis Robinson, of Wilmington, a Past Master.

 

Lodge No. 14 applied for a new Warrant under the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania on November 29, 1788. This request was read before the Grand Lodge on the following December 15, whereupon it was ordered that the request be com plied with. On January Zo, 1789, the new Warrant was acknowledged by Daniel J. Adam, Secretary. Later, however, on September 15, 18o6, the Warrant of this Lodge was vacated by the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania because its proceedings during the establishment of the Grand Lodge of Delaware were considered to have been un‑Masonic.

 

On August 26, 1775, still another Warrant was granted by the Provincial Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania for a Lodge to be held in the town of Dover. The Officers appointed for this new Lodge were Mark McCall, Master; George McCall, Senior Warden, and Henry Bell, Junior Warden. The first meeting of the Lodge took place on October 11, 1775. It was held at a tavern known as the " Sign of General Washington. " Eleven Brethren were present. Alexander Rutherford, a Past Master of Lodge No. 2, of Pennsylvania, was on hand to install the Officers. On that occasion three Petitions were received from men who had previously been initiated into a clandestine Lodge. Since the Petitioners were well known, they were severally elected, entered, passed, and raised, and regularly made Master Masons. The second Tuesday of each month was then selected as the time for holding stated meetings. This Lodge seems to have been very active in initiating new members, many of whom were soldiers in the Delaware regiment of the Continental troops. In October 1786 the Roster of the Lodge contained the names of 1o6 persons. The old Provincial Warrant was surrendered and renewed on May 31, 1787.

 

Although the Records of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania do not state the day on which a Warrant was granted to Delaware Regimental Lodge, No. 30, the following memorandum is available The Warrant and jewels on Hiram's Delaware Regimental Lodge were taken at the Battle of Camden, the 16th of August, 178o, by the British Troops, 98 FREEMASONRY IN DELAWARE Past Master; Bro. Edward Roche, Past Master; Bro. John Hendrick, Senior Warden of Lodge No. 14, and Bro. William Pluright, Secretary of Lodge No. 14. The following Brethren served as Officers at that time: Bro. Jesse Green, Worshipful Grand Master; Bro. Evan Thomas, Senior Grand Warden; Bro. James Snow, Junior Grand Warden; Bro. Edward Roche, Grand Secretary; Bro. Thomas Stockton, Senior Grand Deacon; Bro. John Crow, Junior Grand Deacon, and David Robinet, Grand Tyler.

 

Thereupon the Grand Lodge of Delaware was opened in due form and with due solemnity, according to the ancient usages of Masonry. The Committee appointed to form a set of Regulations submitted its report, which, after being somewhat amended, was unanimously approved.

 

Warrants for the Lodges which organised the Grand Lodge were authorised as follows. The original number of each Lodge mentioned below was that inscribed on the Register of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania. Lodge No. 14, at Wilmington, became Washington Lodge No. i; Lodge No. 33 became St. John's Lodge No. z, of New Castle; Lodge No. 96 became Hiram Lodge No. 3, of Newark; and Lodge No. 31, formerly under the Jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Maryland, became Hope Lodge No. 4, of Laureltown, Sussex County, Delaware.

 

The first Grand Officers were then elected: Bro. Gunning Bedford, Jr., was elected to be Grand Master; Bro. Jesse Green, Deputy Grand Master; Bro. Joseph Israel, Senior Grand Warden; Bro. John McBeath, Junior Grand Warden; Bro. Thomas Stockton, Grand Treasurer; Bro. Edward Roche, Grand Secretary; Bro. John Sellers, Grand Marshal, and Bro. David Robinet, Grand Tyler.

 

The first Dispensation granted by the new Grand Lodge was issued on November 14, 1806, to William Huston, Ralph McConnell, and Thomas Harlin, for the purpose of holding a Lodge to be known as Hiram Lodge No. 6. This was at the Buck Tavern. A Charter was issued to this Lodge on June 24, 1807. At this Communication of the Grand Lodge, the Deputy Grand Master reported that he had conferred with the Grand Lodge of Maryland and found that the establishment of a Grand Lodge in the State of Delaware was well approved by them, and that they were eager to maintain friendly intercourse and correspondence with the new Grand Lodge.

 

The Returns from the five Lodges which were made on June 24, 1808, showed a total membership of 118. The amount due the Grand Lodge at that__time was $135.52.

 

Gunning Bedford, Jr., the first Grand Master of Delaware, was a man of great distinction. Born in Philadelphia in 1747, he was educated at Nassau Hall, New Jersey, from which institution he graduated in 1771. He then studied law in Philadelphia, and later practised his profession in Delaware. He received his commission as colonel of the Continental Army from George Washington, with whom he was closely associated during the Revolutionary struggle of 1776. He was attorney‑general of the State, and a member of the General Assembly of Delaware from 1783 to 1787, as well as a member of the Conventio_i FREEMASONRY IN DELAWARE 99 which framed the Constitution of the United States. He was a signer of that epoch‑making document. It was largely through Bro. Bedford's efforts that Delaware, Rhode Island, and the other smaller States were put upon an equality with the larger States as far as concerned numerical representation in the United States Senate. Bro. Bedford was distinguished for his eloquence. In 1789 President Washington appointed him a judge of the United States Court for the District of Delaware, an office which he held until his death.

 

Bro. Bedford was a member of Lodge No. 14, under the Grand Jurisdiction of Pennsylvania. He received the Entered Apprentice Degree on March 21, 1782, the Fellow Craft Degree on August io, 1782, and the Master Degree on Septem ber 11, 1782. His Lodge afterwards became Washington Lodge, No. 1, of Delaware. Bro. Gunning Bedford was elected most Worshipful Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Delaware on June 7, 18o6, at the time of that Body's organisation and was re‑elected in 1807 and 18o8. Upon his death a Special Communication of the Grand Lodge was held, on March 31, 1812, for the purpose of attending his funeral. The Lodge assembled at the town hall in the Borough of Wilmington at four o'clock in the afternoon of that day, and proceeded from thence, by Lodges and according to Juniority, in procession to Market and Second Streets. Thence the procession preceded the hearse until the funeral cortege reached the Upper Presbyterian Church, where services were held. After that the Masonic Bodies went to the grave in the cemetery adjoining the church, and there Masonic funeral services were performed by the Deputy Grand Master and Grand Chaplain. The Masonic Honours were given by the Brethren.

 

Due to the growth and expansion of the city of Wilmington, this cemetery was later vacated; at the time the remains buried there were removed to other places. Since there were no relatives of Past Grand Master Bedford living at that time, the Grand Lodge of Delaware took charge of the remains of its first Grand Master, and on March 31, 1921, a hundred nine years after interment, the Grand Lodge held an Emergent Communication in the town hall, the very building in which that Body had been organised in 18o6. From thence the Grand Lodge proceeded to the Masonic Home grounds, where the remains were re‑interred. On that august occasion the solemn Masonic burial service was again followed. The monument that marked the first grave was then removed and re‑finished. Again it marks the resting‑place of the earthly remains of Bro. Gunning Bedford.

 

At an Adjourned Communication held on September 1o, 1813, the following Resolution was adopted: " Whereas, the Grand Lodge, being duly impressed with a high sense of merits of the late worthy Brethren Captain James Lawrence and Augustus C. Ludlow, of the late American Frigate Chesapeake, Therefore be it Resolved, That an oration be delivered, commemorative of the character of those Brethren and in honor of their memories, and that there be a procession on the occasion, formed by the Grand Lodge and the several subordinate Lodges under its jurisdiction." This event took place on September 25, 1813. The Grand 100 FREEMASONRY IN DELAWARE Lodge led the procession, which was composed of members of the subordinate and visiting Lodges, together with Commodore Angus and other officers and seamen of the navy, a group of military men having arms reversed, men from the cavalry and the artillery, and citizens. They proceeded to the Hanover Presbyterian Church, where the oration was delivered by Bro. George Read, Most Worshipful Grand Master pro tempore. After leaving the church, the procession then returned to the town hall, where the participants partook of refreshments provided for the occasion.

 

On October 6, 182.4, a Special Communication was held for the purpose of uniting with the citizens of New Castle County in escorting General the Marquis de7Lafayette to Wilmington. At that time the distinguished Frenchman was making a tour of America. The Grand Lodge, escorted by the Brethren, proceeded to a point known as Prospect Hill, about two miles from Wilmington. There they joined the procession that had met the General at the State line. Returning in the procession to a point near the town hall, the Brethren opened ranks to the right and left, facing inward, and as Bro. Lafayette passed between them they gave him the Grand Honouis. Entering the town hall, the distinguished guest was then greeted in an eloquent address made by the Most Worshipful Grand Master, Bro. J. Gordon Brinckle. In reply, Bro. Lafayette said in part: " Freemasonry is distinguished for the enlightened liberality of its principles, its inculcated toleration of religious opinions. And although, as a Society, Masons do not interfere with politics, they consider every member as a Brother and as standing on the same natural level." The members of the Grand Lodge were then severally introduced to Bro. Lafayette.

 

Later, on June 2.7, 18zs, at the Communication held in Wilmington, General Lafayette was unanimously elected a member of the Grand Lodge of Delaware. At a Special Communication held on July 2..s, of that year, he visited the Grand Lodge and was there presented with a box made from an oak tree that had grown on the battle‑ground of Brandywine. The box, containing Bro. Lafayette's Certificate of Membership, was presented by M.‑. W.‑. Bro. Arnold Naudain, Grand Master. In accepting the gift Bro. Lafayette said in part: " Of all the high gratifications I have experienced in my progress through my adopted country, my receptions by the twenty‑four Grand Lodges of the United States have afforded me the greatest gratification. Accept, Most Worshipful Grand Lodge, my thanks for the honor you have conferred by enrolling me among your members." At this Communication General Lafayette, his son, George Washington Lafayette, and his secretary, M. Levasseur, signed the Charter of Lafayette Lodge No. 14.

 

On June 2.s, 1816, a Committee was appointed to visit the several Lodges of the State for the purpose of ascertaining their mode of Working, and of directing them in the Work. The Committee was also instructed to address a circular letter to the Lodges, enjoining promptness in the punishment of all un‑Masonic misconduct, carefulness in the admission of new members, and the FREEMASONRY IN DELAWARE passage of such general regulations relative to the premises as they should think proper. Bro. James Rogers, Bro. James Dirickson, and Bro. William Hall formed this Committee.

 

" It appears to this R.‑. W.‑. Grand Lodge that the tickets for the said election, which took place in the said Hiram Lodge, No. 6, on June 15, 1816, were formed and written out in the Lodge. The Grand Lodge considers this to be un Masonic, and that every election so conducted ought to be considered void, and the above election is void." On January 18, 1819, it was " Resolved, That a petition to the Legislature be drawn by J. Gordon Brinckle, and signed by Bro. James Millechop, Senior Grand Warden and Worshipful Grand Master pro tempore, on behalf of the Grand Lodge, praying the Legislature to strike out certain names from the list of Managers of a Lottery, authorised by the Legislature, for raising the sum of Fifteen Thousand Dollars for the purpose of erecting a Grand Masonic Hall in the Borough of Wilmington, and to substitute in their room the names of others." On January 2‑5, 1825, a Special Communication was called for the purpose of attending the funeral of M.‑. W.‑. Grand Master Joshua Gordon Brinckle. The Grand Lodge, together with the visiting Brethren present, proceeded to the house of the deceased Brother, and from thence to the grave in Trinity churchyard, where the body was interred in Masonic form.

 

On June 27, 1840, a Stated Communication was held at Wilmington, with M.‑. W.‑. Alexander Porter acting as Grand Master pro tempore. The three Lodges represented were Lodge No. 9, Lodge No. i, and Lodge No. 14. The total expenses were $47.5o, and the receipts $72.oo. At that time James P. Lofland was elected Grand Master.

 

A Special Grand Communication was held on October 26, 185o, with M.‑.W.‑.Bro. William T. Read acting as Grand Master. The object of the Communication was " the interment of the remains of Bro. Commodore Jacob Jones." The Minutes of the meeting read as follows: At the request of a Committee of Arrangements, the M.‑.W.‑.Grand Master appointed Bro. George W. Claytor, Grand Scribe, to be Grand Marshal pro tem.

 

At High Noon, the Grand Marshal, accompanied by William Hemphill Jones, proceeded to the Railroad Depot to receive and escort the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania to the Masonic Hall.

 

At half past High Noon, the Grand Lodge of Delaware received the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania in due form, after which they were escorted by the Grand Marshal Pro Tem to the Delaware House, where they partook of a dinner provided for them. The Grand Lodge consisted of forty Members present.

 

102 FREEMASONRY IN DELAWARE At two hours past High Noon, the Brethren were formed in due Masonic order and proceeded under charge of the Grand Marshal to their place in the Procession, and thence to the cemetery, and there performed the usual Cere mony prescribed for the burial of a deceased Brother, after which they returned to the Hall, and the Grand Lodge was closed in Ample form.

 

From the day of the organisation of the Grand Lodge in i8o6, up to the year 1828, eighteen Lodges were Chartered. The force and the effect of the blow given to Masonry throughout the Country by the anti‑Masonic frenzy, which lasted for several years, affected the Grand Lodge of Delaware to the extent that the Charters of seven of the Lodges were surrendered, while the remaining Lodges merely existed and that was all. Since 1840, when Freemasonry took on new life, the Craft has continued to grow. Altogether thirty‑three Charters have been granted, and twenty‑two of those are in healthy condition, with a total membership of over 6ooo.

 

At the Annual Communication held in Wilmington, on June 2'7, 1866, a Resolution was adopted that provided for a Communication of the Grand Lodge to be held. At that time the Grand Lecturer of Maryland was authorised to appear before the Grand Lodge and exemplify the Work, as transmitted in his own jurisdiction. At the Annual Communication held in October 1886, Bro. Thomas Davidson, Grand Master, called the attention to the lack of uniformity in the Work, and suggested that a Committee, of three members, should be established. The Grand Lodge approved the recommendation and increased the Committee to five, designating the M.‑. W.‑. Grand Master as Chairman. The other Committee members were then appointed, but for some reason very little was accomplished. In 1889 the regulation was changed and by adding to it the words, " who shall establish a Work for this jurisdiction. " In his address delivered in 189o, M.‑. W.‑. Grand Master James S. Dobb said in part: " We now have completed the opening and closing in all Degrees, and the Work of the first two Degrees, and have communicated the same to the Lodges in this city, and they are substantially proficient in the revised Work. The Work was completed in 1891, and to‑day it is the same in all of the Lodges in the Jurisdiction. It is kept uniform through the efforts of a Grand Instructor. The Worshipful Master, Wardens, and Senior Deacon are required to pass an examination in the Work assigned to them before they can be installed into their respective Offices." A notable event in the history of Delaware Masonry occurred at Wilmington on June 7, 19o6, when the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge celebrated its one hundredth anniversary. With M.‑. W.‑. Levin Irving Handy acting as Grand Master, the Grand Lodge was opened in Special Communication at high noon. Distinguished guests from several other Grand jurisdictions were first introduced and cordially welcomed, then, at two o'clock that afternoon, the Brethren assembled in the auditorium of the Masonic Temple where they were entertained with interesting and instructive addresses by Bro., the Honorable Jonathan P. Dolliver, United States Senator from Iowa, R.‑. W.‑.John L. Kinsey, District FREEMASONRY IN DELAWARE 103 Deputy Grand Master of Pennsylvania, and M.‑. W.‑. Bro. Levin Irving Handy, Grand Master of Delaware. At seven‑thirty that evening the members of the Grand Lodge and the visiting Brethren assembled at the Masonic Temple. Then, under the direction of the Grand Marshal, they marched in a body to Turn Hall, where a sumptuous banquet was served. The M.‑. W.‑. Grand Master of the Delaware Grand Lodge acted as toastmaster, and many eloquent toasts were given.

 

At the time of its one hundredth anniversary the Grand Lodge of Delaware had under its jurisdiction twenty‑two Chartered Lodges having a total membership of 2772.

 

The Grand Lodge of Delaware was represented at the preliminary meeting held at Alexandria, Virginia, on February 22, 19io, for the purpose of organising The George Washington Masonic National Memorial Association. The Grand Lodge of Delaware has also been represented at every subsequent annual meeting of the Association. It has always been among the leaders in raising funds for this magnificent testimonial to " George Washington, the Mason," and to the Masonic Fraternity throughout the United States. At present it is second in the list for contributions per capita, having raised 222.8 per cent on the quota of one dollar per member.

 

The M.‑.W.‑.Grand Master of Masons of Delaware, Bro. Harold W. T. Purnell, granted a Dispensation to Lafayette Lodge, No. 14, to hold a Special Communication of the Lodge in May 1934 in this Memorial Temple, the request for this privilege having been granted by M.‑.W.‑.Bro. William Moseley Brown, Grand Master of Masons of Virginia; M.‑.W.‑.Bro. Harry Galbraith, P. G. M., and R.‑. W.'. Bro. Harry W. Lowe and Harry F. Newlin, P. G. S. Wardens were appointed by the Lodge a Committee to make the necessary arrangements. May 15, 1934, was selected for this Special Communication. It was decided to confer the Master Degree upon a Candidate of the Lodge by a Degree Team composed of Past Masters. More than 2_5o of the Brethren from Wilmington and other parts of Delaware made the special trip, and an equal number from Washington, District of Columbia, and Alexandria, Virginia, were present. Both Grand Masters were in attendance. This was the first time the Master Mason Degree had been conferred in the Memorial Temple.

 

The question of providing a Masonic Home in Delaware, where indigent Brethren and their wives or widows might be well and comfortably cared for, was agitated for several years. At the Annual Communication held on October 5, igio, M.. W.‑. Grand Master Edward B. Mode recommended that a Committee, to be known as the Masonic Home Committee, should be appointed, " with power to procure a Masonic Home for this Grand Lodge, at any time in their judgment they feel justified in so doing, provided they have sufficient funds pledged to pay for same in full, without placing any debit for purchasing such Home upon this Grand Lodge." This recommendation was approved by the Grand Lodge, and a Committee of Nine was then appointed to act, but little was accomplished during the year. Then, on October 5, 1911, the Grand Lodge 104 FREEMASONRY IN DELAWARE appropriated all the Grand Reserve Fund and three‑fourths of the Grand Charity Fund, a total sum of $32‑36, for the purpose of procuring a Home. Vight days later, at the Stated Communication of Du Pont Lodge, No. 29, a voluntary subscription was started. The other Lodges in the jurisdiction immediately took similar action, with the result that at the next Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge, a Home situated about two miles from the city of Wilmington was dedicated. At that time it was announced that the Home would be ready for guests on November i, igi2‑. Of the $16,932 which had been received by the Home Committee, $12‑,833 had been expended for the property and in making the necessary alterations. The Report made on October 1, 1913, states that there were at that time eight residents in the institution, four men and four women, and that the total valuation of the resources of the Home was $2‑8,2‑91. There were no liabilities. The total membership of the Grand Lodge at that Communication was 3358.

 

In 192‑1, upon the recommendation of M.‑.W.‑.Grand Master William J. Highfield, it was resolved to raise a fund of $5o,ooo to build additional quarters at the Masonic Home. A'period of two years was allotted in which to raise this amount, and contracts amounting to $79,662‑ were negotiated to carry out the proposed additions and alterations. The new building was dedicated with appropriate ceremonies on May 30, 192‑3. The attendance at the dedication was estimated to be more than 5ooo persons. More than $2‑2‑ per member has been contributed by the Fraternity in Delaware to provide a Home for those members and their dependents who are unable to care for themselves The annual dues for the maintenance of the Home from its opening until the Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge, held in October 1933, were two dollars per member. At this Communication, owing to the increasing receipts from the Permanent Endowment Fund, an amendment to the by‑laws was recommended by the Board of Managers of the Home reducing the annual dues for maintenance to one dollar per member. This amendment was approved by Grand Lodge and a refund of one dollar per member was made to the several Lodges for the year 1933 The first guests were admitted in 1913. Since then over loo guests have been cared for. Of those two have left to reside with relatives, and more than 6o have passed away. The average length of time that each guest has spent at the Home is four and a half years. One of the guests lived there more than fourteen years. The total valuation of the Home, including the Trust Fund, is $284,093 With one exception only, all Delaware Lodges were represented in the military or naval service of the United States during the Great War. Of a total membership of 42‑50 in 1918, 352‑ were in the different branches of military service. Three of those were killed in France, and five died of illness.

 

Upon the recommendation of M.‑. W.‑. Grand Master William J. Highfield, made on October 5, 1921, a Resolution was adopted organising what is known as the Gunning Bedford, Jr., Memorial Masonic Scholarship. Its object is to FREEMASONRY IN DELAWARE 105 assist Masons or their descendants who are financially unable to get a college education. Since the establishment of this scholarship, twenty‑three young men and six young women have been assisted. The Grand Lodge levies an annual assessment of fifteen cents on each member in the jurisdiction for the maintenance of this fund.

 

The first record of a Chapter of Royal Arch Masons in Delaware is found in the Minutes of Washington Royal Arch Chapter of Super‑Excellent Royal Arch Masons. These Minutes tell of a meeting held on January 2‑4, 18og, in the borough of Wilmington, under the authority of a Warrant from the Grand Lodge of Delaware for holding a Lodge in that borough under the name and title of Washington Lodge, No. i. The Lodge was convened by special agreement. Six Companions present " having conferred, examined and approved each other and found to agree, proceeded to open, and did open, the Royal Arch Chapter with due form and solemnity." David Robinette was the first candidate. Chapters were later formed in the several Lodges, and on June 24, 1817, a Convention of Delegates assembled in the town hall at Wilmington for the purpose of organising a Grand Royal Arch Chapter. Six Chapters were represented. A Committee was then appointed. It reported ` ` that it appears to the Committee necessary and expedient to form a Grand Royal Arch Chapter in this State," and recommended that a Committee be appointed whose duty it should be to report a Constitution at a future time. The Report was adopted and the Committee was at once appointed. The Convention then adjourned to meet at Dover on January i9, 1818. At that meeting the Committee reported a Constitution, which was adopted. Thereupon the Convention adjourned sine die, and the Grand Chapter of the State of Delaware was opened in due form with Companion J. Gordon Brinckle presiding. The Grand Chapter then elected its Officers for the ensuing year. Alexander Hamilton was elected Most Excellent Grand High Priest, and J. Gordon Brinckle Excellent Grand Secretary.

 

From then till 1833 the Grand Chapter held regular Stated Communications. There was then an intermission from 1833 until 1848. Nor are there any Records of any Convocations having been held between 1859 and 1868. In 1868, however, a Convention was held at Dover. The Grand Chapter was recognised on January Zo, 1869, the General Grand High Priest of the General Grand Chapter installed the Officers, and on January 30, 1869, the Grand Chapter was enrolled under the jurisdiction of the General Grand Chapter.

 

The centennial anniversary of the introduction of Capitular Masonry into Delaware was celebrated on January 16, 1918, at which time an interesting programme was given. The principal address was delivered by the Hon. Thomas R. Marshall, Vice‑President of the United States. The Report of the Grand Secretary at that time showed four Chapters and a total membership of 1371. The Report for 1934 showed five Chapters and a membership of 1685.

 

The first Council of Royal and Select Masters, known as Gunning Bedford Council, No. 1, was organised at Wilmington in 1918. In 1933 a Council was also organised at Dover and at Georgetown.

 

io6 FREEMASONRY IN DELAWARE On February Zo, 1926, a Convention was held in Wilmington for the purpose of organising a Grand Council for Delaware. At that meeting Most Illustrious Companion Warren S. Seipp, personal representative of General Grand Master Bert S. Lee, presided. Representatives of the three Councils were present. A Committee on Constitution was appointed. It later reported that a Constitution had been adopted. At the first election held under this Constitution, Companion Harvey W. Bentley was elected Most Illustrious Grand Master, and Marshall M. Carpenter, Right Illustrious Grand Recorder. At the time of the organisation of the Grand Council the three Councils reported a membership of 225 Companions.

 

Early in 1868 several Sir Knights made application to Eminent Sir H. L. Palmer, Grand Master of the Grand Encampment of the United States, for a Dispensation to form a Commandery in Wilmington. The Dispensation was granted on March 1o, 1868, and on September 18, 1868, a Charter was issued. The present membership is 700.

 

The first Body of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite to be Chartered in Delaware by the Supreme Council of the Northern Jurisdiction of the United States was Wilmington Lodge of Perfection, which was Chartered on May 27, i91o. Then on February 24, 1911, Wilmington Council of Princes of Jerusalem was Chartered. The Chapter of Rose Croix received its Charter on March‑24, 1911, and the Delaware Consistory was Chartered on March Zo, 1912. Since the Organisation of the Consistory, 25 members have received the Thirty‑third Degree. The present membership is over Zooo.

 

FREEMASONRY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA CARL H. CLAUDY CREATED in 179o by being carved from Maryland and Virginia, the District of Columbia, originally ten miles square, was divided by the Potomac River. In 1846 the Federal Government ceded back to Virginia the area originally taken from that State. Freemasonry came into the District of Columbia from those two States, but the influence of Virginia Masonry upon that of the District of Columbia was of less importance than was that of Maryland. Maryland Masonry was derived from Massachusetts (Moderns), England (Moderns), and Pennsylvania (Ancients). Unsubstantiated tradition also couples Masonry from Scotland and Germany to the Maryland Craft.

 

Of what may be termed Apocryphal Masonry in the District of Columbia, there are vestiges, but they rest at only a point or two upon any real evidence and are mainly supported by tradition. A Masonic Bible in possesion of Po tomac Lodge, No. 5, is inscribed, " A present from Mr. Colin Campbell to St. Andrew's Lodge, the 3oth January, 1773, Bladensburg." Tradition credits a Rev. Bro. Thomas Balch, of Georgetown (District of Columbia), with possession of a diploma showing that his great‑grandfather, Colonel James Balch, was made a Mason in " St. Andrew's Lodge " in 1737. No written evidence can be adduced, however, that any " St. Andrew's Lodge " ever existed in the territory which later became the District of Columbia. Nor has the Grand Lodge of England or of Scotland any records of a Lodge having been Chartered in Maryland as early as 1740.

 

Nevertheless, a certain weight must attach to this Masonic tradition, even though it is unsupported by a diploma or by records in the Grand Lodge of England or of Scotland. Certainly, Lodges existed in the Colonies in 1733. It is noteworthy, for example, that in 1931 the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania celebrated the two hundredth anniversary of Masonry in that State, though upon what evidence it is not necessary to inquire here. Early Lodges met by " immemorial custom " with no better authority than that of a number of Brethren getting together, tiling, opening, and meeting as a " Lodge." Fredericksburg Lodge, No. 4, of Virginia, then " The Lodge of Fredericksburg," did not procure a Charter until long after it was formed and had Worked‑indeed, not for several years after it initiated, passed, and raised George Washington, in 1752‑53.

 

That no Grand Lodge Records exist showing an early " St. Andrew's Lodge " in Maryland is no proof that such a Lodge did not exist. Indeed, the 107 io8 FREEMASONRY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA documentary evidence of the inscribed Bible is far stronger proof of the existence of a " St. Andrew's Lodge " than absence of other records is proof to the contrary. Masonic history in this country is replete with instances of " occasional Lodges," meeting under " immemorial custom," which later accepted Charters from newly formed Grand Lodges, or which, like " The Lodge at Fredericksburg," asked for and received Charters many years after the Lodge's formation. It is thus possible that " St. Andrew's Lodge " did exist and Work.

 

However this may be, Freemasonry not only existed in the District of Columbia when the District was created in 1790, but it was also even intimately and actively concerned with bringing the Federal reservation into being. The corner‑stone of the District of Columbia‑a real stone marker‑was laid by Alexandria Lodge, No. 22. This Lodge was originally Chartered as No. 39 by the Provincial Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania. Later it was known as Alexandria Lodge, No. 22, under a Charter from the Grand Lodge of Virginia. Still later, it became known as Alexandria‑Washington Lodge, No. 22. after the death of George Washington. Washington had been its Charter Worshipful Master. The Masonic laying of the corner‑stone of the District of Columbia occurred on April 15, 1791. The following contemporary newspaper account of the ceremonies, dated April ZI, 1791, is both short and quaint enough to quote in full: Alexandria, April ZI, 1791.

 

On Friday, the 15th inst. the Hon. Daniel Carroll and Hon. David Stuart arrived in this town to superintend the fixing of the first cornerstone of the Federal District.

 

The Mayor and the Commonalty, together with the members of the different Lodges [?] of the town, at three o'clock, waited on the commissioners at Mr. Wise's, where they dined, and, after drinking a glass of wine to the fol lowing sentiment, viz.: " May the stone which we are about to place in the ground, remain an immovable monument of the wisdom and unanimity of North America," the company proceeded to Jones Point in the following order: 1st. The Town Sergeant. Zd. Hon. Daniel Carroll and the Mayor. 3d. Mr. Ellicott and the Recorder. 4th. Such of the Common Council and Aldermen as were not Freemasons. 5th. Strangers. 6th. The Master of Lodge No.

 

22, with Mr. David Stuart on his right, and the Rev. James Muir [for many years an active Mason] on his left, followed by the rest of the Fraternity, in their usual form of procession. Lastly, the citizens, two by two.

 

When Mr. Ellicott had ascertained the precise point from which the first line of the District was to proceed, the Master of the Lodge and Dr. Steuart, assisted by others of their brethren, placed the stone. After which a deposit of corn, wine, and oil was placed upon it, and the company partook of some refreshments, and then returned to the place from whence they came, where a number of toasts were drank; and the following was delivered by the Master of the Lodge [Dr. Dick], and was received with every token of approbation: " Brethren and Gentlemen: May jealousy, that green‑eyed monster, be buried deep under the work which we have this day completed, never to rise again within the Federal District." FREEMASONRY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 109 In what is now the territory of the District of Columbia (north of the Potomac River), the first Lodge to receive a Charter was " Lodge No. 9," Chartered by the Grand Lodge of Maryland on April 2.1, 1789, to be held at " George‑Town, Maryland." This Lodge lived only a few years. It committed suicide, so to speak, by a very unusual method. " The Worshipful Lodge of Ancient York Masons, No. 9, in George‑Town " issued a Dispensation to some of its members to form a Lodge at Port Tobacco, Maryland. Such an irregular proceeding, even if excused by difficulties of transporation and communication, was frowned upon by the Grand Lodge of Maryland, yet that Body confirmed the Dispensation by granting a Charter to St. Columbia Lodge, No. 1 i. The heavy loss in membership to " Lodge No. 9," due to the removal of its members to Port Tobacco to form the St. Columbia Lodge, No. 11, resulted in the death of " Lodge No. 9 " in 1794. Before it ceased to exist, however, it was presided over by W .'. Bro. Valentine Reintzel, later to become the first M.‑. W.‑. Grand Master of Masons of the District of Columbia. W.‑. Bro. Reintzel was to be further immortalised by receiving from the hands of W.‑. Bro. George Washington, then President of the United States and Past Master of Alexandria Lodge, No. Zz, of Alexandria, Virginia, the gavel he had used at the laying of the corner‑stone of the United States Capitol. This gavel is still the prized possession of the successor of " Lodge No. 9 "‑Potomac Lodge, No. S, Free and Accepted Masons of the District of Columbia.

 

In the 179o's, Georgetown, District of Columbia, now and for many years quite as much part of the city of Washington as so‑called Greenwich Village is part of the city of New York, was distant a long, hard journey from almost anywhere inside the limits of the present District. Actually, the eastern limits of the old town are within three miles of the United States Capitol. In terms of a bad road, wooded hills, and lack of illumination, the little town was in those days at least an hour's journey. These conditions, coupled with the near prospect of the laying of the corner‑stone of the Capitol, resulted in certain Brethren desiring a Lodge nearer home. On September 6, 1793, they made formal Petition to the Grand Lodge of Maryland for a Charter. The Petition was granted and Federal Lodge, No. 15 (now Federal Lodge, No. i, of the District of Columbia), came into being. Bro. Clotworthy Stephenson, one of the petitioners, and Senior Warden of the new Lodge, acted as Grand Marshal at the Masonic corner‑stone laying of the United States Capitol on September 18, 1793. Bro. Collin Williamson, a Charter member of the Lodge and master stonemason of the Capitol building, in full Masonic regalia, personally superintended the laying of the stone by W.‑. Bro. George Washington, who acted as Grand Master of Maryland pro tempore.

 

History records a curious sidelight upon Ancient Craft Masonry of the early days in records of Bro. James Hoban, devout Romanist and ardent Freemason! He was the architect of the Capitol, an influential man in civic affairs, and an enthusiastic and potent force in the spread of Freemasonry in the District of Columbia in those formative days.

 

110 FREEMASONRY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Brooke Lodge, of Alexandria, Virginia, was Chartered by the Grand Lodge of Virginia on November 29, 1796. Later it was to become Lodge No. z of the District of Columbia. " Two " is now a vacant number, Brooke Lodge having ceased to exist in 1833 during the anti‑Masonic wave of " The Morgan Excitement. " Next on the list of pre‑District‑of‑Columbia Grand Lodge Lodges is Columbia Lodge, now known as No. 3, though it was Chartered as NO. 35 by the Grand Lodge of Maryland on November 8, 18o2. Its early history is enriched by the fact that it joined with Federal Lodge, No. 15, in erecting the first Masonic Temple in the District of Columbia. This was the old Union Lodge Hall, long since torn down. Columbia Lodge's first Worshipful Master, Bro. Charles Jones, became the first Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia.

 

Washington Naval Lodge, No. 41, Chartered by the Grand Lodge of Maryland on May 14, 18o5, is now Naval Lodge, No. 4, on the District Grand Lodge register. This very active and vigorous old Lodge is justly proud of the fact that during its century and a quarter of life it has never suffered either a suspension or an arrest of its Charter. During " The Morgan Excitement '' this Lodge held regular meetings, though they were unduly secret.

 

Potomac Lodge, No. 5, is naively proud of the fact that it has had four different dates of Warranty, three different names, and four different numbers This statement can only be considered correct if it is admitted that continuous existence of a Lodge can be interrupted by periods of slumber, coma, and even death! " Lodge No. 9 '' was its first appellation and number, as already explained. As " Columbia Lodge, No. i9," many of the original members of " Lodge No. 15 " received a Charter from the Grand Lodge of Maryland in 1795. This Lodge passed quietly out of existence in 1797, but the records it left have ever been precious material for this historian. Nine years later, in 18o6, the Grand Lodge of Maryland‑which certainly showed exemplary patience with the Brethren of George‑Town‑granted a Charter to Potomac Lodge, No. 43, with some reluctance.

 

This, then, is the present Potomac Lodge, No. 5, of the District of Columbia Grand Lodge, an organisation with historic traditions and one of the leaders in the movement for a District of Columbia Grand Lodge.

 

FORMATION OF THE GRAND LODGE Agitation for the formation of a Grand Lodge in the District of Columbia was probably coincident with the setting aside of the area as a Federal reservation. It came to a head in 181o. On December 11 of that year, delegates from Federal Lodge, No. 15; Alexandria Brooke Lodge, No. 47; Columbia Lodge, No. 35; Washington Naval Lodge, NO. 41, and Potomac Lodge, No. 43, met in Union Lodge Room on 11th Street, Northwest, the first Masonic Temple of the District, to consider the formation of a Grand Lodge. Alexandria‑Wash‑ FREEMASONRY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA III ington Lodge, No. 22‑of which, as Alexandria Lodge, George Washington was the Chartered Worshipful Master‑was invited, since that Lodge was at the time within the then District of Columbia. But that old Virginia Lodge, though friendly and interested, refused to join in the movement. It was satisfied with its historic Charters from the Provincial Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania and from the Grand Lodge of Virginia, and did not wish to sever the ties, rightly considered as being almost hallowed, which bound it to Washington's home State. The delegates who were present did, however, determine that a Grand Lodge should be formed but, cautious, they returned to their several Lodges for further instructions and to await the appointment of delegates having power to act.

 

Authorised delegates met again at the Union Lodge Room, on January 8, 1811, and elected the first Officers of the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia Free and Accepted Masons. Those were: Bro. Valentine Reintzel of Po tomac Lodge, No. 43, Grand Master; Bro. John Kinkaid of Brooke Lodge, No. 47, Deputy Grand Master; Bro. Alexander McCormick of Federal Lodge, No. 15, Senior Grand Warden; Bro. Joseph Cassin of Washington Naval Lodge, No. 41, junior Grand Warden, and Bro. Charles Jones of Columbia Lodge, No. 35, Grand Secretary.

 

The Grand Lodge actually came into being on February I9, 181 1, for at that Communication the Officers who had been elected were installed. Bro. John Richards of Brooke Lodge, No. 47, was installed as Deputy Grand Master, however, in place of Bro. John Kincaid, who had died since the earlier meeting. Bro. John Davis, of Abel, a member of Washington Naval Lodge, No. 41, was installed as Grand Treasurer. The Roster was increased by the appointment of Bro. Daniel Kurtz of Potomac Lodge, No. 43, as Senior Grand Deacon; Bro. William O'Neale of Federal Lodge, No. 15, as junior Grand Deacon, and Bro. Thomas Summers of Brooke Lodge, No. 47, as Grand Tiler. Warrants were also issued at this Communication. Federal Lodge became No. I; Brooke Lodge became No. 2; Columbia Lodge became No. 3; Naval Lodge became No. 4, and Potomac Lodge became No. 5. The one other important act of the Grand Lodge at this Communication was the recommendation that the respective Lodges pay their dues to the Grand Lodges under which they had previously held Charters, and that a committee be formed to inform the Grand Lodges of Maryland and of Virginia that the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia had been formed.

 

The official line was completed on May 2.i, 1811, by the election of Bro. Andrew T. McCormick as Grand Chaplain; of Bro. Thomas Arbuckle as Senior Grand Deacon; of Bro. Thomas Holliday as junior Grand Deacon; of Bro. Nicholas L. Queen as Grand Marshal; of Bro. Francis Clark as Grand Steward; of Bro. Ninian Beall as Grand Sword Bearer, and of Bro. John McGill as Grand Pursuivant. Bro. Barney Parsons was then elected as Grand Tiler to take the place of Bro. Thomas Summers who had resigned. At this meeting, also, the " Committee on Communication and Correspondence " was authorised.

 

III FREEMASONRY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA The Constitution was adopted on July 9, 1811, and a hundred copies were ordered to be printed. A Communication from the Grand Lodge of Maryland was read. It courteously and fraternally recognised the new Grand Lodge and per mitted the Lodges formerly of its own obedience to retain their Charters. Between these two Grand Bodies this warm‑hearted action cemented bonds of union which have ever since been of the closest and most fraternal character.

 

The Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia presently received good wishes from those of New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio, Kansas, Tennessee, and England. The Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania was not satisfied at the time, however, and more than ten years were needed to complete the correspondence which finally resulted in full fraternal relations with the Grand Lodge of the Keystone State.

 

At present forty‑five Lodges in the District of Columbia owe obedience to the Grand Lodge. The most recently Chartered is Semper Paratus Lodge, No. 49. There are, though, four vacancies in the list of Lodges; they are No. 2‑, No. 6, No. 8, and No. 13. Lodge No. 2‑ was Alexandria‑Brooke Lodge; Lodge No. 6 was Union Lodge; it having been the first Lodge to receive its original Charter from the newly‑formed Grand Lodge. Union Lodge No. 6 expired in 1835 after twenty‑four years of existence. Lodge No. 8 was Evangelical Lodge, of Alexandria, Virginia, which had been Chartered on May 4, 182‑4. Unable to survive the anti‑Masonic excitement of the period from 182‑6 to 1840, this Lodge died in 1843.

 

Lodge No. 13 on the register of the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia was " California Lodge," which was Chartered on November 9, 1848, " to be held in the Town of San Francisco, Upper California." As may be imagined, this Charter was granted to an adventurous company of Masons who desired to carry Freemasonry with them to the far and unknown West during the gold rush of 1849. California Lodge, No. 13, adhered to the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia until 185o. Then it united with other Lodges to form the Grand Lodge of California, on whose register it became Lodge No. 1. It furnished the first Grand Master and the first Grand Secretary of that great jurisdiction. The Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia bade its daughter Lodge Godspeed in the new allegiance, and has ever since been proud that the magnificent Freemasonry of California first came to the Golden Gate from the District of Columbia.

 

Space does not permit a detailed history of the formation of the many daughter Lodges of the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia. It must be related, however, that although the Grand Lodge had its early troubles, its periods of depression and discouragement, and its time of slow growth, especially during " The Morgan Excitement " and the decade immediately following, none the less it never ceased to meet nor did it ever suspend activities or become dormant. When, finally, it began really to grow and to prosper, it started a career of Masonic activity, high in its standards and unswervingly devoted to Masonic ideals, which was nothing less than fitting for the Grand FREEMASONRY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 113 Lodge of the Nation's Federal District in which stands the Capital City of the Republic.

 

CORNER‑STONE LAYINGS The corner‑stone of the United States Capitol was laid September 18, 1793, by W.‑. Bro. George Washington, who was Charter Worshipful Master of Alexandria Lodge, No. 22, and then President of the United States. Lodge No. 9, of Georgetown, played an important part in the procession and ceremonies on that occasion, and as has been noted, its successor, Potomac Lodge, No. 5, now treasures the gavel used by President Washington that day.

 

The corner‑stone of the Washington Monument was laid July 4, 1848, by the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia. M.'. W.'. Bro. B. B. French officiated. But this Grand Lodge was, figuratively, much more bound up with the great shaft to Washington's memory than the mere ceremonial deposit of the corner‑stone implied. As early as 1825 the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia had initiated the movement that looked to the erection of the mighty memorial. It had encouraged the building of the monument and had been intimately concerned with settling the troubles into which this project eventually fell. It is hardly too much to say that the Washington Monument would never have been constructed had it not been for the loyal encouragement and staunch support of the Masonic Fraternity throughout the United States of America.

 

There is a tradition that the corner‑stone of the White House, home of the Presidents of the United States, was laid by Masons of the District of Columbia, but no contemporary accounts of any such event are to be found. Therefore it cannot be affirmed as a fact. In view of President Washington's interest in Masonry, however, and the fact that the corner‑stone of the Capitol was laid by Masons only a year later, it is not unlikely that laying the corner‑stone of the White House was also a Masonic affair.

 

Other important corner‑stones laid by the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia were that of the Smithsonian Institution; that of the House Office Building, upon the occasion of which Bro. Theodore Roosevelt uttered the famous phrase‑" muck‑raking "; that of the War College, and that of Continental Hall, home of the Daughters of the American Revolution. The participation of the Fraternity on the last‑named occasion was highly appropriate, in view of the many patriots of the War for Independence who were Freemasons.

 

The Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia has laid the corner‑stones of many Masonic Temples. The laying of that of the old Temple at 9th and F Streets, Northwest, still standing although no longer used by the Fraternity, must be especially noted, however, since at that ceremony Bro. Andrew Johnson, President of the United States, marched in the Masonic procession from start to finish in his character as a Master Mason.

 

GRAND VISITATIONS A practice peculiar to the District of Columbia is the Grand Visitation annually paid to each Lodge in the Jurisdiction by the Grand Master and the 114 FREEMASONRY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Officers of the Grand Lodge. The District of Columbia is small enough to permit what would be impossible in a larger territory. Each Lodge is notified well in advance of the Visitation, which occurs in October or November. The Grand Master and his Officers are received with a colorful ceremony in which they take part. They then assume the stations and places of the Officers, and the Grand Secretary and Grand Treasurer review the Work of the Lodge Secretary and Treasurer. The Grand Master thereupon comments upon the Work of the Lodge as a whole. Another interesting ceremony then marks the retirement of the Grand Master and his Officers. Then, following an old custom, the Grand Master returns to the Lodge, closes it " in ample form," and remains as the guest of the Lodge for an evening of entertainment. The increased number of Lodges has made this pretty custom difficult, and in consequence several attempts have been made to abandon it. The Grand Lodge, however, has insisted upon continuing it. Because of the time required for these functions, the Grand Visitations are now often paid to two or more Lodges at once. The Lodges meet and open separately, then receive the Grand Visitation jointly.

 

MASONIC AND EASTERN STAR HOME The corner‑stone of this institution was laid May 17, 1905, by M.‑. W.‑. Bro. Lurtin R. Ginn, Grand Master, who used Washington's gavel, loaned for the occasion by Potomac Lodge, No. 5. A recent report of the President of the Home listed as guests thirty‑seven women, seventeen men, twenty girls, and twenty‑eight boys. The Home is supported by per capita contributions from Masons and ladies of the Eastern Star Chapters, by donations of money and other gifts, by interest on securities, and so on. The yearly income has exceeded $86,ooo. The Home possesses an endowment fund exceeding $167,000, most of which came from the proceeds of a yearly baseball game and field day. This method of creating an endowment fund was started in 1914 by Harmony Lodge, No. 17, at the suggestion of W .'. Bro. Robert H. Young, son of " Uncle Nick '' Young, a famous baseball player and president of the National Baseball League. Through his efforts Harmony Lodge, No. 17, challenged the Lodges of the entire jurisdiction to select a competing team. The challenge was accepted, and on June Zo, 1914, the team of Harmony Lodge, No. 17, was soundly beaten. From this field day the first contribution of $2942 was made to the endowment fund of the Masonic and Eastern Star Home. The field day was continued for fifteen years, during which the proceeds reached the substantial sum mentioned above.

 

THE SCHOOL OF INSTRUCTION The Grand Lecturer, assisted by the Committee on Work and Lectures, conducts a weekly school of instruction during ten months of every year, in the Grand Lodge Temple at 13th Street and New York Avenue. Although especially designed for Officers of Lodges, this school is free to all Masons. An Emergent Lodge is opened and closed at every school session. Following that, all three FREEMASONRY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 115 Degrees are conferred in each of three Lodge rooms of the Temple. The cast is made up of Officers who desire instruction in the various parts. Only school instructors who hold a certificate of proficiency may rehearse the Degrees or give private instruction in the Esoteric Work. The certificates are held by very few persons. They are difficult to obtain, since a candidate applying for one must pass a practically perfect examination in all the Esoteric Work of the ,Jurisdiction. He is allowed error only to the extent of one one‑hundredth of a per cent. As a result of this training the Work of the Lodges in the District of Columbia is of a carefully preserved uniformity. This is true of all Lodges except Naval Lodge, No. 4, which retains its old forms of Work in the Master Mason Degree, according to an agreement made when it came into the Grand Lodge. The differences between a Naval Lodge, No. 4, Third Degree and the Third Degree of the other District of Columbia Lodges are not many, but nevertheless they are jealously guarded by the Brethren of Naval Lodge, No. 4. A Regulation of the Grand Lodge provides that the lecture pertaining to any Degree must be given at the Communication during which the Degree is conferred.

 

MASONIC TEMPLES IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Ancient Craft Masonry in the District of Columbia is housed in fourteen Masonic Temples. The Temple at 13th Street and New York Avenue, an imposing though somewhat ill‑arranged building, contains three Lodge rooms, two auditoriums, a Commandery room, a Chapter room, and a basement banquet hall. Several particular Lodges own their own Temples, since the neighbourhood Lodge idea is popular in the District of Columbia. Some of the smaller Temples rent the first floor for commercial purposes and so are self‑supporting. Others depend entirely upon Masonic use for their upkeep. The Southern jurisdiction of Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite Masons owns the magnificent House of the Temple at 16th and S Streets, Northwest, one of the most beautiful existing structures devoted exclusively to Masonic purposes. Local Bodies of Scottish Rite Masons own and occupy the original House of the Temple at 433 3d Street, Northwest, an edifice hallowed by memories of Albert Pike, who lived and worked in it for so many years.

 

TEMPLE HEIGHTS At the corner of Florida and Connecticut Avenues, Northwest, the Grand Lodge owns a tract of some nine acres on which it intends to erect a Masonic Temple in keeping with the dignity and beauty of Government buildings in the Nation's capital. The beautiful site is elevated and wooded. At the top of the hill is an old mansion, and right at hand is the so‑called " Treaty Oak." Beneath the branches of this oak, so it is said, early settlers and Anacostia Indians, primitive inhabitants of what is now the District of Columbia, signed a treaty of purchase for the land on which the city of Washington was later built. During the summer non‑denominational religious services are held in 116 FREEMASONRY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA the shade of this mighty oak tree. Chairs are placed about the lawn, piano and pulpit stand on the porch of the mansion, and a different minister addresses the congregation each Sunday. Services are held under the auspices of some one Masonic Body or under the auspices of a group of Masonic Bodies. There is a Commandery Day, for example, a Scottish Rite Day, a Royal Arch Mason's Day, and so on. All services are conducted by the Grand Chaplain, with the approval and co‑operation of the Grand Lodge.

 

DISTINGUISHED BRETHREN IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA GRAND LODGE The long Roster of distinguished Masonic leaders in the District of Columbia includes the names of many men famous in literature and science, and in governmental, political, and social activities. To list all those names would be only to catalogue persons prominent in many lines of work who have lived and laboured in Washington for the past century and a quarter. A few names stand out so distinctly in the annals of the Craft, however, that even an account so brief as this must be considered incomplete without them.

 

Benjamin Brown French, Grand Master of Masons in the District of Columbia from 1847 to 1853 and again in 1868, left his mark on national as well as local Masonry. To the many high positions to which his Brethren called him he brought scholarship, culture, an easy style of writing, marked executive ability, active citizenship, and a reverent Freemasonry. Before becoming Grand Master of the District of Columbia‑a position he finally relinquished only because he refused further service‑Bro. French was District Deputy Grand Master of New Hampshire and later (1832‑33) Grand Marshal of that Grand Lodge. From 185o to 1855 he was Grand High Priest of Maryland and the District of Columbia. He finally refused to serve again. In 185o he was Grand Recorder of the Grand Encampment of Knights Templar of the United States and General Grand Secretary of the General Grand Chapter of the United States. He held these offices until 1859, when he left them to become Grand Master of Knights Templar of the United States, a position he retained for six years. During this period he made a powerful impression upon Templary. All with whom he came in contact were inspired by his vigour and vision. In 1859 he received the Thirty‑third and Last Degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry of the Southern Jurisdiction. He was an active InspectorGeneral of the Supreme Council. Later he became the Grand Chancellor. In 1870, a few"months before his death, he became Lieutenant Grand Commander. Bro. French's sane outlook, his masterly knowledge of Masonic law and precedent, and his ability as a leader, have never ceased to inspire. His name is perpetuated in the jurisdiction he so well served, not only by his distinguished services but also by the title of Benjamin B. French Lodge, No. 15, which received its Charter from the hands of that Grand Master whose name it bears.

 

Any jurisdiction having even the slightest vestige of a right to do so would like to claim Albert Pike, since that great poet, scholar, mystic, and Freemason FREEMASONRY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 117 left an indelible impress upon all branches of the Ancient Craft. The District of Columbia needs no better claim to Bro. Albert Pike than is given by his long residence there, by his intense interest in local Masonic affairs, and by the pride and veneration which the jurisdiction has for the Mason who " found Scottish Rite Masonry in a hovel and left it in a palace." But Washington Commandery, No. i, Knights Templar, has on its Roll the name of the great leader as one who was there Knighted on January 12, 1853, who acted as Recorder and remained in that position until January 9, 18 In 186o Bro. Pike handed to R.‑. E.‑. Sir Benjamin B. French the historic sword which the Grand Encampment presented to him after nine years service as its Recorder.

 

From the point of view of the Freemasons in the District of Columbia, what is of even greater importance is the fact that for three years Bro. Albert Pike was a member of Pentalpha Lodge, No. 23. He affiliated with this splen did Lodge on October 4, 188o, having come to it from Magnolia Lodge, No. 6o, of Little Rock, Arkansas, of which he was a Charter member. As is well known, Bro. Pike received his Degrees in Western Star Lodge, No. 2, of Little Rock. He twice served Magnolia Lodge, No. 6o, as Worshipful Master (185354) and later returned to it from Pentalpha Lodge, No. 23. He dimitted from the latter Lodge on January 1, 1883. Bro. Pike died a member of Magnolia Lodge, No. 6o.

 

As Grand Commander of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry for the Southern Jurisdiction of the United States, Bro. Pike was a familiar figure in Craft Lodges during his long residence in Washington. His striking beard, long and white, the hooked pipe that he rarely laid aside, his kindliness, his benignant bearing, and his vast learning made him a venerated and beloved visitor wherever he might elect to spend an evening. During his later years Bro. Pike visited less and less, for it was then that he devoted himself to the preparation of those treatises on Freemasonry and Masonic philosophy which are his monuments.

 

The death of Bro. Pike, in 1891, was felt keenly by Masons of the city which had so long been his home. It was, indeed, keenly felt by Masons everywhere, for he belonged to the whole Masonic world rather than to any one jurisdiction. Members of the Craft in the District of Columbia were privileged to have this great man and Mason among them for many years. As fellow townsman and as fellow Mason he was sincerely and truly mourned by all Brethren of all Bodies of the Ancient Craft.

 

Like the great Pike, Albert Gallatin Mackey, whose influence upon Craft Masonry has probably been more profound than that of any other Mason, was a resident of Washington for the eleven years that preceded his death. Bro. Mackey affiliated with Lafayette Lodge, No. i9, on January 5, 1871, after spending nearly twenty‑five years as Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of South Carolina, during which time he was General Grand High Priest (1859). He was Past Master of Landmark Lodge, No. 76, in the jurisdiction he served so long. During his membership in Lafayette Lodge, No. 19, he served the 118 FREEMASONRY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Grand Lodge in many unofficial ways. He was an honoured and venerated Chairman of its jurisprudence Committee. On September 13, 1871, he affiliated with Washington Commandery, No. i. Bro. Mackey was a habitual visitor of all Masonic Bodies. His capacity for Work was as enormous as his scholarship was profound. Any of his larger Masonic treatises might well be regarded as of sufficient scope to occupy one man for a lifetime. Yet Bro. Mackey produced a series of Masonic books of such quality that for many they are an authority of last resort.

 

As was Albert Pike, so, too, Albert Gallatin Mackey was intimately identified with the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry for the Southern jurisdiction. He served it as Secretary General for many years. Rooms of the old House of the Temple, now the Cathedral for the local Bodies of the Scottish Rite, in which Bro. Pike and Bro. Gallatin so long worked together, still breathe of those two great leaders, scholars, and constructive geniuses. The District of Columbia claims Albert Gallatin Mackey not only because of his membership in Lafayette Lodge, No. i9, and in Washington Commandery, No. 1, but also because of his intense interest in all local Masonic matters.

 

No account of Masons of the District of Columbia who have reached national prominence would be complete without mention of R.‑. W.‑. Bro. George E. Corson, General Grand High Priest of the General Grand Chapter from 1915 to 1918‑ In i88o he was junior Grand Warden of the Grand Lodge of the District.

 

M.‑. W.‑. Bro. Harrison Dingman, Grand Master of the District of Columbia in 1889, received many distinguished honours from the Craft he loved and served. In 1896 he was elected Imperial Potentate of the Ancient and Ac cepted Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine of North America. He became a life member of the Imperial Council of that Body.

 

Admiral George W. Baird, Grand Master of the District of Columbia in 1896, was probably better informed about Freemasonry throughout the world than any other man who ever served a Grand Lodge as Chairman of its Com mittee on Foreign Correspondence. M.‑.W.‑.Bro. Baird had travelled widely and made it a point to visit and investigate Masonic conditions in many foreign lands. This interest was undoubtedly an outcome of the fact that when a young man he had been initiated, passed, and raised in Lodge Tolerancia, No. 4, of Lisbon, Portugal. Following Bro. William R. Singleton as Fraternal Correspondent, Bro. Baird had a difficult task. Mourning throughout the Masonic world, particularly among Fraternal Correspondents, at the death of Bro. Baird in 1930, was testimony as to how well he had filled his difficult position. Bro. Baird's reviews were filled with homely wisdom and sound common sense. He was unyielding in his refusal to recognise sporadic and doubtful Grand Lodges, and his acumen, knowledge, and first‑hand acquaintance with the Masonry of many lands served not only his own Grand Lodge but also all other Grand Lodges throughout the world.

 

Less well known to the Masons of this generation than his attainments FREEMASONRY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 119 and merit should have made him, Bro. William R. Singleton, Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia from 1875 to 1go1, was a Mason pre‑eminently distinguished. No other person who has filled so important a position in Masonry for so long a time has ever been more noted for gentleness of character and for tolerating the opinions of others. With these qualities Bro. Singleton combined real Masonic scholarship. His collaboration with Bro. Albert G. Mackey and with Bro. O. O. Hughan were often praised by those Masonic scholars. Though Bro. Singleton's writings are perhaps little known to Masonic students of the present day, they have nevertheless left a profound impress upon the body of Masonic knowledge of his own time.

 

Few Brethren have rendered more valuable service to the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia than did Bro. Kenton N. Harper, the distinguished historian. His monumental History of Freemasonry in the District of Columbia was published by the Grand Lodge as part of the celebration of its one‑hundredth anniversary in 1911. Records of to‑day that seem so secure to‑morrow become data which are scattered and hard to find. Bro. Harper's tireless energy and resourcefulness, his patient delving into old records, his scholarship, and his marked ability as a writer, enabled him to produce a history of Freemasonry in the District of Columbia, and of the Grand Lodge, which must inevitably increase in value as the years go on. Bro. Harper twice served Naval Lodge, No. 4, his Mother Lodge, as Master (1896‑97). He was elected Secretary in lgoo and a Life Member in 1905.

 

No Brother of to‑day is better known to the Masonic world than is M.'. W.‑. Bro. J. Claude Keiper, present Grand Secretary and Past Grand Master (1911) of the District of Columbia. As fifty‑seventh Grand Master of the Dis trict of Columbia, he supervised the plan for celebrating the one‑hundredth anniversary of the birth of the Grand Lodge. Further, he played a leading part in the celebration. Scarcely less important in the minds of all who witnessed the ceremony is the fact that, as Grand Master, he laid the corner‑stone of the imposing and beautiful House of the Temple, home of the Supreme Council of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry for the Southern Jurisdiction. He was editor and reviser of the Code of the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia, a Code that has served as a model for many jurisdictions. Since 1921 Bro. Keiper has served the George Washington Masonic National Memorial Association as Secretary‑treasurer. He was one of the great driving forces behind the magnificent memorial that stands on Shooter's Hill near Alexandria, Virginia. Since 1927 Bro. Keiper has served as Secretary to the Conference of Grand Masters of the United States which meets annually in Washington, District of Columbia. He is the author of History of Washington Commandery No. 1: Knights Templar. Into this work he has woven a fascinating story of Templary in the District of Columbia.

 

Bro. Keiper's reputation rests upon more than his distinguished service to the Craft as business man and as Masonic leader. He not only has personal acquaintance and active communication with practically every Masonic leader 12o FREEMASONRY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA in the United States, but he is also noted for his deep learning in Craft customs, precedents, and jurisprudence. A speaker of note, his gracious language, sympathetic voice, and good articulation are embellishments of that wise counsel and inspiration contained in his addresses.

 

FREEMASONRY IN FLORIDA WALLACE R. CHEVES AND ELY P. HUBBELL FOR many years doubt and uncertainty overshadowed the origin of Freemasonry in Florida. Mackey's Encyclopedia of Freemasonry, in an edition as late as that of 192o, lists St. Fernando Lodge, at St. Augustine, Chartered by the Grand Lodge of Georgia in 18o6, as the first Lodge. A previous American edition of Gould's History of Freemasonry mentions an earlier Lodge, and says that its origin is unknown though it may be the East Florida Lodge Chartered by the Grand Lodge of Scotland in 1768, " of which there is now no trace." Nevertheless there was long‑persistent tradition to the effect that a Lodge of Masons Worked at Pensacola during the English occupation from 1763 to 1781. Happily all doubt about this matter was removed and all uncertainty respecting the origin and history of early Masonry in Florida was cleared up in 1898. Early that year there came into the hands of the late M.'. W.. James M. Hilliard, then Grand Master, a rare old copy of Preston's Illustrations, a gift to the Grand Lodge of Florida from Bro. F. F. Bond, M.D., of Thorncliff, Brighouse, England. On the title‑page of the book was this inscription: The gift of James Murray to St. Andrew's Lodge, No. i, West Florida, June z7, 1776.

 

When this priceless old relic came to the attention of M.'. W.'. Bro. Hilliard, he appointed the late M.. W.'. Silas B. Wright, then Deputy Grand Master, " as a special committee to prepare and report at this Grand Lodge (1899) all matters pertaining to this particular subject." This was the first quasi‑authentic information that such a Lodge had ever existed in Florida. It was eagerly seized upon as a lead in unravelling the mystery of early Masonry in this State.

 

Knowing that the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania had Chartered many Lodges outside its own domain during the Colonial period, Bro. Wright sought the help of W.‑. Charles E. Meyer, Past Master of Melitia Lodge, No. 295, of Philadelphia, one of the Board of Editors of The History of the Ancient and Honorable Fraternity of Free and Accepted Masons and Concordant Orders, but without avail. Having made this failure, and being still unsatisfied, Bro. Wright appealed to the Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania. There he met with success beyond his fondest hopes. Some two years before that time, R.‑. W.‑.John S. Perry had uncovered some long‑lost original documents dating back to the earliest history of organised Masonry in Pennsylvania, and probably to the earliest history of organised Masonry on the American continent. Concerning this happy incident we quote the following from Old Masonic Lodges of III 122 FREEMASONRY IN FLORIDA Pennsylvania. Moderns and Ancients. 1730‑1800, compiled by the Library Committee of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania.

 

Heretofore it was believed that at the burning of the Masonic Hall in Philadelphia . . . on the night of March, A. D. 1819 (A.L. 5819), that all the old records of the Provincial Grand Loge . . . and the records of the present Grand Lodge, were destroyed. . . . Many of these old records and papers were saved on that eventful night, however, by the then Grand Secretary, R.‑.W.‑.George A. Baker, Jr., . . . and were listed and securely locked and sealed in six strong wooden boxes by R.‑.W.‑.Bernard Dahlgren, Bro. Baker's successor, in February, 1824. . . . These boxes were removed from Hall to Hall through the years . . . and lastly stored in one of the vaults of the new Masonic Temple at Broad and Filbert Streets in 1873. Here these boxes remained for years, unknown and forgotten . . . until 1896, when it occurred to Bro. John A. Perry, Deputy Grand Secretary, to open them and investigate their contents.

 

Among the old documents found in those boxes was a certified copy of the original Charter of St. Andrew's Lodge, No. i, of West Florida, and other Florida Masonic records of the period between 1768 and 1783. * Bro. Perry kindly loaned all those Florida records and papers to Bro. Wright for examination, copying, and filing. That was done and the documents are now filed in the archives of the Grand Lodge of Florida. Together with Bro. Wright's exhaustive report they were published in the Proceedings of 1899.

 

The Charter of St. Andrew's Lodge, No. 1, of West Florida, dated May 3, 1771, was issued by the Provincial Grand Lodge of the Southern District of North America. It was signed thus: " James Grant, G. M.; William Drayton, D.G.M.; p.t.; Alexr McKenzie, S.G.W. ; Fredk. Geo. Mulcaster, J.G.W.: David Yates, G.S. and John Faley, G.C." In this Charter it was set out that the Petitioners for a new Lodge at Pensacola were members of " Lodge No. 108 of the register of Scotland, attached to the Thirty‑First Regiment of Foot of the British army, lately stationed at Pensacola, but recently transferred." Since this was the first authentic information of the existence of St. Andrew's Lodge, as well as of the Grand Lodge that Chartered it, and since both documents were of undoubted Scottish origin, Bro. Wright applied to the Grand Lodge of Scotland for authoritative data. His request brought the following letter from R.‑. W.‑. D.‑. Murray Lyon, Grand Secretary, under date of March 17, 1898: In searching our Grand Lodge records I find under date of 15th March 1768: " Having read a petition from James Grant, Esq., Governor of the Province of East Florida, Henry Cunningham, late Senior Warden of the Grand Lodge of Scotland, and many other brethren residing in the province aforesaid, * The original letters and other papers coming from the Grand Lodge at St. Augustine were kept by the Lodge at Charleston, since the papers that were sent to the Grand Lodge at Philadelphia were certified as being true copies by John Troup, Notary Public. The facsimile of the Charter, now on file in Philadelphia, is so certified.

 

FREEMASONRY IN FLORIDA 123 craving a Charter for holding a Lodge there by the stile and title of Grant's East Florida Lodge, and also entreating the Grand Lodge would appoint the said Governor James Grant Provincial Grand Master over the Loges in the Southern District of North America, the Grand Lodge granted the desire of that petition, and authorised a Charter to be made out accordingly, and likewise a Commission appointing Governor James Grant, Provincial Grand Master over the Lodges in the Southern District of North America.