USA > Washington DC > History of the Grand lodge and of freemasonry in the District of Columbia : with biographical appendix > Part 18
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Coming into existence on the eve of the period of Masonic depression, the life of the lodge was comparatively short, and little data in relation to it is of available record.
The Grand Lodge, following its nomadic habit of the period. occasionally met in the hall of this lodge, and it is of record that on at least one of these occasions, altho the constitutional hour of meeting was 4 P. M., the boat from Washington being delayed (probably by adverse winds), the Grand Lodge was not opened until 7 P. M.
At the meeting of the Grand Lodge, December 27, 1842, there was laid before that body a copy of the proceedings of Evangelical Lodge, of the 23d of the same month, wherein it was decided to surrender the charter; but the Grand Lodge being loath to see so promising a body dissolved, declined to accept the charter and appointed a committee to visit the
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lodge and endeavor to effect an adjustment of the difficulties under which they were laboring. The subsequent report of this committee was discouraging, showing that of twenty-seven resident members but one favored retaining the charter. The Grand Lodge, however, being still reluctant to give up hope, on May 2, 1843, appointed another similar committee, but be- fore the latter made any report another formal surrender of the charter was made December 27th of the same year, and was again declined.
Altho on May 7, 1844, elaborate resolutions were passed by the Grand Lodge commendatory of the membership of the lodge and appointing Bro. Isaac Kell, P. Dep. Grand Master for Alexandria, an emissary to endeavor "to call the Craft from repose to labor," and altho Bro. H. N. Steele, of No. 8, was elected Dep. G. Master for Alexandria for the year 1844, the lodge was sleeping the sleep that knows no waking, and the date of the last surrender of the charter, December 27, 1843, may be accepted as the day of its demise.
While no member of this lodge reached the Grand East, the above-mentioned and Bros. Isaac Kell and Levi Hurdle served as Dep. Grand Masters, and the lodge contributed quite a num- ber of incumbents for the positions of Senior and Junior Grand Wardens.
The first return to the Grand Lodge, that of 1824, contains sixteen names, as follows : Humphrey Peake, Benj. G. Thorn- ton, Isaac Kell, James Berkley, John Hoff, James Miller, John Lymburn, Robert T. Degge, Geo. W. Catlett, Isaac Robbins, John Fenerden, James Jack, John T. Wheat, Pharez Throop, Samuel Isaacs, and John F. Andrews, with the additional, and, shall we say, irrelevant information that three of the list were ministers of the Gospel.
THE NEW JERUSALEM LODGE, NO. 9.
October 14, 1824, Grand Master Seaton granted a dispensa- tion, in compliance with the request of certain petitioners, em- powering them to meet as a lodge, and by the power in him vested appointed William Hewitt as the first Master; Henry
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Whetcroft as the first S. W .; and Thomas Stanley as the first J. W., and upon the following evening attended a meeting of the new lodge and installed the officers thereof. These facts being laid before the Grand Lodge at its annual communica- tion November 2, 1824, together with the petition for a char- ter, the matter was referred to a committee, and upon their favorable report, in which they took occasion to say that they had examined the by-laws and proceedings of said lodge and found " them perfectly consonant with the principles of Ma- sonry," a charter was the same evening ordered to issue under the name of " The New Jerusalem Lodge, No. 9."
By the first return of the lodge the date of institution is given as November 2, 1824, the charter date, but there exists no record of any ceremony connected with that event. Said return, which bears date of December 27, 1824, gives the following list of members; William Hewitt, Master; Henry Whetcroft, S. W .; Thomas Stanley, J. W .; William Kerr, Jr., Sec .; Thomas Donaho, Treas .; Gotlieb Long, S. D .; John Robinson, J. D .; and Robert Boyd, an Entered Apprentice.
The next return, that of 1825, shows an increase to sixteen Master Masons with two Entered Apprentices; the next eight years added but eight names, and the anti-Masonic period being now under way, the lodge fell upon troublous times, but with the advent of the '40s came a reawakening and rapid growth, the membership in 1847 reaching the handsome ag- gregate of sixty names, since which time, with the exception of the usual seasons of depression that come to all bodies, the increase has been steady, and at the present it stands in the front rank of the local lodges with a roster of 515 names.
The lodge has been something of a wanderer during its life, as there is evidence to show that it met originally in Union Lodge Room, Eleventh Street, N. W., in Central, or Free- masons' Hall, D Street and John Marshall Place; the old Cir- cus Building (now Havenner's Bakery), on C Street, near John Marshall Place; (probably) in Odeon Hall, corner Penn- sylvania Avenue and John Marshall Place ; old Medical College Building, Tenth and E Streets, N. W .; the new Central Ma-
.
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sonic Hall, Ninth and D Streets; Hiram Lodge Room, Nine- teenth Street and Pennsylvania Avenue, N. W .; Masonic Temple, Ninth and F Streets, and the new Temple.
That No. 9 has been an important factor in all that has made for the advancement of the Fraternity locally is evidenced by the fact that it has given to the jurisdiction five Grand Mas- ters : William Hewitt, 1820-21 (then of No. 7), and 1828-29 (as of No. 9) ; William W. Billing, 1835-37; E. H. Chamber- lin, 1883 ; Harrison Dingman, 1889, and William G. Hender- son, all of whom had previously filled one or more of the subordinate offices in the Grand Lodge, while H. B. Robertson served as S. G. W. in 1843 and 1845 and Dep. G. M. in 1846; Joseph H. Jochum, J. G. W., 1875-76, and Dep. G. M., 1877; C. Ashford, S. G. W., 1853 ; Grafton Powell, J. G. W., 1855, and S. G. W., 1856; F. A. Jackson, S. G. W., 1864; Wm. J. Rawlings, J. G. W., 1839; Robert Coltman, J. G. W., 1844; Wm. Kerr, Jr., G. Sec., 1830-32; Charles L. Coltman, G. Treas., 1835, and John M. St. John, G. Treas., 1840-41.
The present list of surviving Past Masters is as follows : Aug. Lepreux, Sr., 54-55; J. Tyler Powell, 68; Jos. H. Jochum, 69-70; Geo. J. Mueller, 71-72; Edmund F. Lawson, 76; Samuel T. Schofield, 77, 79; Andrew W. Kelley, 78; Wm. G. Henderson, 80; Martin O'Connor, 83; Samuel S. Burdett, 84 *; Harrison Dingman, 84; Geo. W. Nagle, Sr., 88 *; Jas. B. Henderson, 91; Jas. O. Roller, 93; John Henderson, Jr., 94; Thos. A. Chandler, 95; W. W. Trego, 97; Edward Matthews, 99; Howard D. Feast, 00; Chas. C. Coombs, 01; Geo. W. Smith, 03; J. Harry Jochum, Jr., 05; Thos. C. Henderson, 06; Wm. McNeir, 07; Edwin S. Clarkson, 08; John G. Scho- field, 09; Warren J. Coffin, 10.
Following are the officers for the centennial year :
W. Ivanhoe Jochum, W. M .; George W. Kennedy, S. W., and Thomas Keely, J. W.
OT IT
HARRISON, NEAR MONROE, STREET, ANACOSTIA. UPPER FLOOR USED FOR LODGE PURPOSES
Home of Anacostia Lodge, No. 21, from 1869 to 1880.
....... .
LOCATED ON PRESENT SITE; MOVED BACK WHEN PRESENT TEMPLE WAS ERECTED; LATTER ON LEFT.
Home of Anacostia I,odge, No. 21, 1880 to 1890.
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HIRAM LODGE, NO. 10.
On December 15, 1827, a petition for a dispensation to form a lodge to be known as " Hiram Lodge, No. 10," signed by twenty-two Master Masons who were recommended by the Masters and Wardens of Lodges Nos. 4, 5, and 6 as " of fair fame, good moral character, and respectable standing in society," was received by Grand Master John N. Moulder, who was pleased to grant the request and permit the assembly of a lodge to be known as above on Tuesday, December 18, 1827, and to also authorize, upon the nomination of the petitioners, Thos. Wilson as the first Master and Thos. Smith and Charles Wilcox as the first S. and J. Wardens, respec- tively.
Following are the names of the signers of said petition, and constitutes, therefore, the earliest list of members of the lodge: N. P. Washeart, Henry Ashton, Thomas F. Tebbs, Ellis J. Thompson, Levin Belt, John Keith, Thos. Smith, Andrew J. Watson, James C. Houghey, Patrick Leyne, Jno. Burke, Geo. Lamb, Joseph S. Wilson, Charles Little, Jonas Taylor, Thos. Wilson, Levi Washburn, Thomas Miller, Chas. G. Wilcox, Edward Koontz, and John D. Cox.
The Grand Master, accompanied by several other officers of the Grand Lodge, was present at the first meeting of the new lodge, December 18, in its room in the " Eastern Edifice of the Seven Buildings," corner of Pennsylvania Avenue and Nineteenth Street, N. W., and installed the officers. In a short time, however, the lodge found quarters in the Town Hall, in the reservation bounded by Pennsylvania Avenue, 'Twentieth and I Streets, where they remained until 1846.
At the Grand Lodge communication of December 27, of the same year, a petition for a charter or warrant of constitution was received, with practically the same list of signers as ap- pears on the former paper, and was unanimously granted, and thus came into existence, without recorded date of formal institution, the new lodge at a time when the dark clouds of persecution were beginning to gather in the Masonic sky.
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In view of this fact, it is understandable why the first dec- ade was a desperate struggle for existence, which finally culminated, in the late '30s, in a state of coma. This, how- ever, lasted only a few years, as is evidenced by the following extract from a report by the then Grand Secretary, James Lawrenson, dated November 2, 1841 :
But what will be their [the Grand Lodge] feelings of con- gratulation when they are informed of the resuscitation and entire re- organization of Hiram Lodge, No. 10, in the First Ward. This Lodge, as is well known, has not worked as a lodge for several years before; but our good brethren, who altho scattered " as sheep without a shepherd," have retained their love for the Institution, and have come forward in union and harmony and re-established themselves as a lodge. They have commenced under the most favorable auspices, and will receive the hearty support of their brethren throughout the District. May they go on and prosper.
The return for 1841 shows eight names, which was in- creased by 1843 to twenty-eight, and has since, with the ex- ception of the usual and natural periods of stagnation, shown a steady and encouraging growth, the return for the present year listing a total of 366 names.
In June, 1845, the Grand Lodge met in Hiram Lodge room to arrange for funeral honors to Gen. Andrew Jackson, the lodge at the time occupying the old Market House and Town Hall Building, on the triangular reservation bounded by Penn- sylvania Avenue, I and Twentieth Streets.
In 1846 a new home was found in what was known as " Smith's Stable," Nineteenth Street, between Pennsylvania Avenue and I Street. During the occupancy this building burned, and many of the lodge records were thus destroyed. Another move was made in 1867, on December 6 of that year the Grand Lodge dedicating a room over Redfern's store, northeast corner of Nineteenth Street and Pennsylvania Ave- nue (or H Street), but the stay here was brief, the present room at the southwest corner of Nineteenth Street and Penn- sylvania Avenue, being dedicated October 30, 1872. Through a series of alterations and improvements this has become a model lodge home.
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It is worthy of note that while in the course of its existence the lodge has met in five different buildings ; all of these have been within a radius of several squares, giving to No. 10 the prestige of antiquity among the institutions of that section of the city.
That the lodge has been foremost in all the movements for the betterment of the Fraternity is well illustrated by the fact that in 1878, when the Grand Lodge moved its Library to the ground floor of the old Temple and requested a contribution from each of the subordinate lodges for rental, Hiram was the only one to respond favorably, and the response was accom- panied by six months' assessments in advance.
An exhaustive and readable history of the lodge, from the pen of Past Master Ervin S. Hubbard, is about to be published, and will be available to all interested brethren.
Hiram has given three Grand Masters to the local Craft: John N. Moulder, 1826-27 (while of No. 3), and 1830-32, '38 ( as of No. 10) ; Wm. B. Magruder (a handsome marble bust of whom adorns the lodge room), 1845-46, '54, and George H. Walker, 1903, the first named (then of No. 3) serv- ing as S. G. W. in 1825, and the last filling most of the sub- ordinate positions in turn.
In addition to the above, T. J. Williams filled the office of Dep. G. M. in 1837; Louis D. Wine, J. G. W., 1872-73, S. G. W., 1874, and Dep. G. M., 1875-76; Thos. Smith, J. G. W., 1842-43, and S. G. W., 1844; Jos. E. Rawlings, J. G. W., 1864; Thos. J. Williams, G. Secty., 1834-35, and H. C. Williams, same office, 1844-47.
The present list of Past Masters follows: Martin R. Thorp, 75; Jas. B. Lambie, 76-77; Robert Armour, 79; Jas. W. Wrenn, 83; Ira W. Hopkins, 84-85; Warren C. Bickford, 86-87; Fielder I. Hunter, 88 *; Frederick W. Ritter, Jr., 89; Geo. W. Linkins, 94; John Breen, 95; Alva S. Taber, 96; Geo. W. Uline, 97; Wm. F. R. Phillips, 98; John T. Meany, 99; Edwin C. Brandenburg, 00; Henry C. Frankenfield, 01; Jacob A. Clevinger, 02 *; Isaac H. Strasburger, 02; S. Clifford Cox, 03 ; Claude J. Allen, 04; Wm. B. Stokes, 05 *; Ervin S.
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Hubbard, 05; Wm. W. Stevens, 06; Henry S. Baker, 07 *; Harry G. Kimball, 07; Mark F. Finley, 08; Calvin F. Hummel, 09; Wm. G. Pond, 10.
Officers for the centennial year :
Charles W. Pimper, W. M .; William P. Herbst, S. W., and August B. Douglas, J. W.
ST. JOHN'S LODGE, NO. 11.
This lodge, the first organized in nearly two decades, ap- plied for a charter December 27, 1845, the first officers nom- inated being George C. Thomas, Master; Joseph F. Brown, S. W .; and John W. Williams, J. W., and the petition signed by Geo. C. Thomas, James H. Birch, John W. Wil- liams, Jos. D. Ward, Ezra Williams, Thomas Copeland, Robert Boyd, J. C. Mullay, Jos. F. Brown, and Nahum Stone, and recommended by H. C. Williams, G. Secretary; J. Y. Young, D. G. M., Georgetown, and Robert Coltman, G. Treasurer.
The charter was unanimously granted by the Grand Lodge the same evening, but bears date of February 23, 1846, on the evening of which day the lodge held its first meeting, in Odeon Hall, Pennsylvania Avenue and John Marshall Place, N. W. (then Four-and-a-Half Street), when Grand Master Wm. B. Magruder, accompanied by a majority of the Grand Of- ficers, was present, delivered the charter, installed the officers, and formally constituted or organized the lodge.
The first officers of the lodge were: George C. Thomas, Master; Ezra Williams, S. W .; John W. Williams, J. W .; Joseph D. Ward, Sec .; James H. Birch, Treas. ; P. H. Hooe, S. D .; Albion Hurdle. J. D .; and Samuel Walker, Tyler.
By 1847 the original membership of ten had increased to twenty-one but in 1848 difficulties arose in the lodge of so grave a nature that it was at one time determined to surrender the charter at the annual communication of the Grand Lodge of that year. Happily, however, this decision was recon-
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sidered, the trouble amicably adjusted, and the members re- newed their labors with increased vigor, the roster for 1850 footing up fifty-three names, which, by 1860, was increased to 132, since which time the growth has been practically un- interrupted, until at present it ranks as one of the larger lodges with a membership of 475.
On the evening of January 8, 1858, the regular meeting night of the lodge, the unusual condition arose of a lodge with a large membership having no one present qualified to assemble it, whereupon Grand Master Whiting organized a " Lodge of Emergency," and installed the officers-elect for the ensuing year.
St. John's Lodge has not only long been in the front rank numerically, but has been preeminently a public-spirited and progressive factor in the local Masonic family, evidence of this being found in its contribution of $500 in 1854 toward the erection of a Temple, a project at that time being pushed by the Fraternity here, and its generous aid in all the various charitable and other activities of the last half century.
Particular credit must be given to this lodge for its noble work during the Civil War, at which time the city was filled with sick, wounded, and distressed brethren from every sec- tion, in taking the initiative in a concerted movement on the part of the lodges to extend systematic relief to these, which resulted in the liberal distribution of money, clothing, tobacco, and transportation, and was of incalculable benefit in miti- gating the suffering of the time, and a practical application of the tenets of the Order.
Three Grand Masters have come out of this lodge : Charles F. Stansbury, 1862, 1871-74; Jesse W. Lee, Jr., 1888; and Harry Standiford, 1901, the two latter also serving in the several subordinate chairs of the Grand Lodge. In addition to the above named, George C. Thomas filled the chairs of J. G. W. in 1842-43, S. G. W., 1844, and D. G. M., 1848; P. H. Hooe, J. G. W., 1853, and D. G. M., 1854-55; J. H. Russell, S. G. W., 1868-69, and D. G. M., 1870; E. Williams, J. G. W., 1849, and S. G. W., 1850; T. H. Baird, Jr., S. G. W.,
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HISTORY OF FREEMASONRY
1860; Wm. M. Smith, J. G. W., 1857; Hopkins Lightner, 1858-59; N. Morris Smith, G. Sec., 1862-66; Charles W. Hancock, G. Sec., 1872, and Christopher Cammack, G. Treas., 1855-72, with Joseph H. Milans, the present G. Pursuivant.
The present list of Past Masters is as follows: Chas. W. Hancock, 69; Geo. A. Abbott, 72, 76; Geo. Wright, 73; Jesse W. Lee, Jr., 79-80, 82; Geo. P. Bohrer, 85-86; Wm. H. Douglas, 88; Harry Standiford, 90; Frank J. Foster, 92; Edwin A. Heilig, 93; Robert A. Dellett, 94; Jas. E. Hutchin- son, 95; Vernon E. Hodges, 96; Edwin A. Niess, 97; Wm. T. Jones, 98; Chas. Fernald, 00; Robert A. Daniel, 01; Amadeo L. Thomas, 03; Jos. H. Milans, 04; Abram B. Hooe, 05 ; J. Marion Castell, 06; Allen Bussius, 07; Frank A. Steele, 08; Harry S. Wolf, 09; Charles E. Babcock, 10.
Following are the officers for the centennial year :
Levi H. David, W. M .; Charles E. Etchberger, Jr., S. W., and Fred M. Bock, J. W.
NATIONAL LODGE, NO. 12.
Upon the petition of Brothers J. B. Thomas, William Gor- don, W. Ogden Niles, T. P. Andrews, Samuel A. Allen, H. Langtry, R. Cochran, J. Knox Walker, James Shields, Jno. M. McCalla, Andrew J. McCalla, S. H. Laughlin, N. Lane, and Wm. Collins, Grand Master Wm. B. Magruder granted a dispensation sometime during the month of January, 1846, for the formation of National Lodge, and at the semi-annual communication of the Grand Lodge, May 7, 1846, a charter was ordered to issue with the above title.
The first roster, bearing date of October 27, 1846, is as follows: James Shields, W. M .; John M. McCalla, S. W .; H. Langtry, J. W .; Samuel A. Allen, Sec .; J. B. Thomas, Treas .; John Robinson, Tyler; and T. P. Andrews, J. H. Blake, R. Cochran, Wm. Collins, F. S. Evans, B. B. French, W. Gordon, F. Howard, P. C. Johnson, N. Lane, S. H. Laughlin, A. J. McCalla, W. Ogden Niles, N. A. Randel,
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J. Knox Walker, W. W. Woodworth, J. S. Wilson, Saml. Walker, C. S. Frailey, W. W. Curran, J. Scott Cunningham, P. G. Washington, J. C. McGuire, A. Porter, G. C. Whiting, Thos. Miller, Joseph Wimsatt, L. L. Loving, and D. E. Stanton.
This number had increased to thirty-nine at the next return, and to fifty-six by 1860; but two years later the lodge came to grief through the unfortunate handling of the trial of an accused brother, and in consequence thereof on January 21, 1863, in obedience to the order of the Grand Lodge, sur- rendered its charter, books, papers, seal, jewels, and other property to the custody of the Grand Master.
At the meeting of the Grand Lodge, however, on May 5, 1863, upon the petition of the then Master and Wardens, the charter and property were returned, and, this cloud having rolled by, practically unbroken well-being has been the lot of this lodge, and while it has not attained great numerical strength it has in the present year the handsome total of 238.
On the evening of April 18, 1871, in this lodge occurred an event of historical interest, to which allusion has been made in other pages of this work. In the presence of a large con- course of visiting Brethren Lord Tenderden, P. M. of Har- mony Lodge, England, acting under a dispensation from Grand Master Stansbury, and in his presence, conferred the third degree according to the English method upon Bros. J. N. Acker and Alex. Tait, balloted for and elected to that degree the same evening.
More than passing notice is due the first Master of Na- tional, Gen. James Shields, who at the time of the formation of the Lodge, was Commissioner of the General Land Office under President Polk, having previously been a member of the Illinois Legislature and a circuit judge. He was a contem- porary of Abraham Lincoln, and his rival to some extent in affairs both of the heart and politics. During his long career he represented three States in the Senate-the only man who has ever done so-and had frequent opportunities during more than thirty years to visit old National Lodge. He was
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thirty-six years old when he became National's first Master. His subsequent career may be briefly stated as follows: Brevet Major General for service in the Mexican war, in which he was desperately wounded; United States Senator from Illinois, 1849-55; United States Senator from Minnesota, 1858-9; Major General in the Union army; United States Senator from Missouri, January-March, 1879. Died at Ottumwa, Iowa, June 1, 1879, aged sixty-nine. A bronze statue of Gen. Shields stands in Statuary Hall at the Capitol.
Upon his return from the Mexican war the Grand Lodge was called in special session to tender him a reception.
Two Grand Masters have come from National Lodge : B. B. French, 1847-53, and I. L. Johnson, 1875-76, the latter also previously serving J. G. W., S. G. W., and D. G. M., while T. John Newton, the present J. G. W., who has come through the entire line, will, in the ordinary course, fill the office in a few years.
In addition to the above, E. M. Cunningham served as S. G. W. in 1852; M. C. Baxter, J. G. W., 1870, and Charles S. Frailey, G. Sec., 1848-54, who, as a member of No. 15, was Grand Master 1855-56.
The present list of Past Masters is as follows : Richard C. Lewis, 78-80; Edward Kern, 82-83; T. John Newton, 85- 86; Joseph M. Eggleston, 87-88; William E. Handy, 94; Joseph E. Falk, 98; Fred. W. Buddecke, 99; Abner P. Wilde, 00; Dan C. Vaughan, 01; Wm. T. Hastings, 02-03; Samuel W. E. Pegues, 04; Jos. A. McDannel, 05; Louis Kronheimer, 06; Lafayette Leaman, 07; J. E. Payne, 08; James E. Tib- betts, 09; Roger O'Donnell, 10.
The officers for the centennial year are :
George L. Sherman, W. M .; Robert Meyer, S. W., and John M. Jones, J. W.
EDWARD H. CHAMBERLIN, GRAND MASTER, 1883.
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CALIFORNIA LODGE, NO. 13.
[NOW CALIFORNIA LODGE, NO 1, UNDER THE JURISDICTION OF THE GRAND LODGE OF CALIFORNIA. ]
This lodge was the direct outgrowth of the gold fever which attended the discovery of the precious metal in California in the late forties. A number of brethren residing in Washing- ton and contemplating the long trip around the Horn, desired to take with them into the new country a warrant to meet and do Masonic work, and accordingly, at the communication of the Grand Lodge November 7, 1848, a petition, in the usual form and with the recommendation of Federal Lodge, No. 1, was presented, and, the prayer of the petitioners being granted, a charter was ordered to issue to them for a lodge to be known as "California Lodge, No. 13," to be located in the town of San Francisco, Upper California. The officers named were: Samuel Yorke AtLee, R. W. M .; Wm. Van . Voorhies, S. W .; and Bedney F. McDonald, J. W .; the first of whom was immediately installed in the Grand Lodge.
In addition to the three above named, the petition was signed by P. Allan Brinsmade, J. Brunson, E. M. Cunning- ham, Wm. R. Bradford, Samuel M. Edwards, and Levi Stowell.
Previous to their departure Brother AtLee resigned, and the Grand Master appointed, and caused to be installed in New Jerusalem Lodge, Levi Stowell in his stead, who received the charter and proceeded to the new field. The names appended to this charter were: Wm. Van Voorhies, Levi Stowell, P. A. Brinsmade, John W. Geary, A. G. Selover, and J. D. Stevenson.
A letter from W. Bro. Stowell to Chas. S. Frailey, G. Sec- retary, dated March 27, 1850, gives a most entertaining in- sight into some of the early difficulties encountered, and we quote the following brief extract as of special historical interest :
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