USA > Illinois > The rise and progress of Freemasonry in Illinois, 1783-1952 > Part 29
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35
Resolved, 2d, That the Secretary be directed to return to the Secre- tary of the Grand Lodge our charter together with a copy of the fore- going resolutions, signed by the Master, and countersigned by the Secre- tary.
The resolution was read on April 19; the question of adoption came up on April 22. The resolution was not adopted, whereupon Brother Helm
gave the lodge some wholesome advice and concluded by assuring them that in future he would refrain altogether from taking part in the ordinary business of the lodge.
On June 24 Brother Helm resigned as Master. The following resolu- tion was read and unanimously adopted:
Whereas Dr. M. Helm late Master of this Lodge has felt it his duty to resign the office which he so long exercised with distinguished ability and universal satisfaction; and
322
Freemasonry in Illinois
Whereas, it is just, proper, and Masonic that genuine merit should always be appreciated and openly approbated by the enlightened brother- hood of Freemasons, therefore
Resolved, That the brethren of this lodge unanimously tender to Dr. M. Helm, our late Worshipful Master thereof, their sincere and grateful thanks, for the able, efficient and satisfactory manner in which he discharged his trust while acting as Master, and for his disinterested, untiring, and successful efforts in the cause of Freemasonry.
In 1844 he resigned his membership and was elected an honorary member for life.
After completing his term as Grand Master he never again attended Grand Lodge.
In Capitular Masonry he received all the degrees in Potomac Chap- ter No. 8, Washington, D.C .: Mark, March 22, 1826; Past, March 22; Most Excellent, April 19; Royal Arch, April 19, all in 1826.
He dimitted on December 13, 1826.
We next hear of him as First High Priest of Springfield Chapter No. 1. He served under the dispensation and was elected High Priest on December 22, 1842 and again in 1843. He resigned on July 1, 1844.
Shortly before he resigned his lodge and chapter membership he became a convert under William Miller, a Baptist minister who taught that the end of the world would occur on March 21, 1843 and when that date passed he set October 22, 1844 as the time.
Brother Helm was highly respected and popular among his patients and fellow citizens.
ALEXANDER DUNLAP
Grand Master 1843
Born in 1785
Died November 10, 1853
He was born in Fayette County, Ky. in 1785 and was raised in Murray Lodge No. 105. In the war of 1812 he volunteered as a private and was taken prisoner at Dudley's defeat, in which battle he distinguished himself in protecting the wounded from the scalping-knife of the savage, and would have paid the penalty with his own life if he had not been recognized as a Mason by a British officer. He was afterwards in the battle of the Thames, and for honorable conduct on that occasion, was made a Captain in the U.S. Army. He served through the Creek war, and for sometime was a member of Gen. Jackson's military family. He
323
Grand Masters
was present and saw the execution of Arbuthnot and Ambrister. He was appointed a Major in the U.S. Army by President Polk; served with Gen. Scott in Mexico; and was present and assisted in the reducing of Vera Cruz; and was in several other engagements during the war.
As early as 1831, he removed to Jacksonville, and was elected Sheriff of Morgan county on several occasions.
At the organization of the Grand Lodge he was Grand Treasurer; at the subsequent sessions of 1840 and 1841, he was elected Grand Senior Warden; and in 1842 he was elected Deputy Grand Master, and Grand Master in 1843.
In all the relations of life, he showed himself to be a man of un- shaken firmness, probity and fidelity. No man had warmer or more de- voted friends; and no man deserved them more. His purse was ever open to the calls of the needy, and his voice ever ready to defend the inno- cent. It will be long before his manly form, his open and intelligent countenance, will be forgotten amongst our brotherhood.
-W. B. WARREN.
He died on November 10, 1853, aged 68 years. The Grand Lodge adopted the following:
Resolved, That in the death of Brother Alexander Dunlap, Past Grand Master of this Grand Lodge, the community have lost an exem- plary citizen, the fraternity a faithful brother, and this Grand Lodge one of its earliest and most devoted friends; one who, in the primary move- ment for the organization, as well as in the active operations of this Grand Lodge, filled every station assigned to him, whether subordinate or supreme, with honor to himself, and the entire satisfaction of the Brotherhood.
LEVI LUSK
Grand Master 1844
Born May 10, 1795
Died July 25, 1877
Brother Lusk was born at New Hartford, New York, on May 10, 1795. He came to Kentucky in his early years and joined Mt. Vernon Lodge No. 14, located at Georgetown, Kentucky. He received the de- gree of Entered Apprentice on April 2, 1821; Fellowcraft on April 23; Master Mason on April 24. In the same year he was elected Secretary, Senior Warden in 1823, Master in 1824 and filled various other offices until he left the state and came to Illinois. He purchased an eighty acre farm near Rushville in 1836. He was exalted in Mt. Vernon
324
Freemasonry in Illinois
Chapter No. 13 (present name Georgetown Chapter) on April 4, 1823 and was appointed Master of the First Veil the next December. He was elected High Priest in 1827 and received the Order of High Priesthood in the same year; was a member of the Finance committee in Grand Chapter in 1828; in 1832 served as chairman of the committee on Chapters U.D. He was elected Grand Treasurer on September 4, 1832, Grand King in 1833 and Deputy Grand High Priest in 1834. He was Grand Master of the Grand Council Royal and Select Masters of Illinois in 1855.
In 1842 a dispensation was issued for a lodge at Rushville to seven brethren with Brother Lusk as Master. He represented the lodge at Grand Lodge that year and was elected Senior Grand Warden. The following year he was elected Senior Grand Warden and Grand Lec- turer and sent to St. Louis to confer with the delegates that attended the Baltimore Convention and be thoroughly instructed in the ritual adopted by the Convention. In 1844 he was elected Grand Master. He was committee on correspondence in 1844-45-46-47. He was Grand Secretary in 1845-46.
Brother Lusk died at Mt. Sterling, Illinois, on July 25, 1877 at the age of eighty-two years. He was laid to rest with the Masonic rites. Here ended the life of one who for more than fifty years had been an active worker in the Masonic vineyard.
WILLIAM FREDRICK WALKER
Grand Master 1845
Born in 1810
Died April 3, 1875
The fifth Grand Master was born in 1810 at Bedford, Pennsylvania. He attended Hobart and Union Colleges in New York, graduating from the latter in 1832. He graduated from the Theological Seminary of New York in 1835 and is said to have founded the Episcopal Insti- tute at Troy, New York.
He was an Episcopal Rector and served a church in Connecticut and also possibly at Brooklyn, New York, before coming to St. James and Trinity Episcopal Churches in Chicago in August of 1843. He resigned as rector of St. James at Easter of 1844, and then devoted all
325
Grand Masters
his time to Trinity on the south side of Chicago until 1846. He later returned to New York where he remained in the ministry until 1853. Brother Walker died at his home in Brooklyn, New York on April 3, 1875 at the age of 65.
He is shown as a member of LaFayette Lodge No. 18 in 1844. In 1845 he appeared in Grand Lodge as proxy for the Senior Warden of Joliet Lodge No. 10 and for the Master of St. John's Lodge No. 13. The returns show him as chaplain of Apollo Lodge No. 32 and as Master of Oriental Lodge No. 33. It was unusual for a delegate attending Grand Lodge for the first time to be elected Grand Master but brother Walker received that honor. His strong personality apparently led to his election to the office of Grand Master without ever having held any previous office in the Grand Lodge.
He was a man of strong commanding individuality, whose thought dominated the action of the Grand Lodge. He was responsible for settling the disputed action of the Grand Lodge of Wisconsin in issuing dispensations for lodges at Galena and Elizabeth, Illinois and transfer- ring Milwaukee Lodge to the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Wisconsin.
It was during his administration that the excitement over the sup- posed admission of a negro to a Masonic lodge took place. The Grand Master was entirely innocent of any connection with the question and the matter was settled conclusively after his statement was read.
He seems to have been a man with very decided views on many subjects, both in his professional and Masonic activities. This differ- ence of viewpoint often caused some controversy with his associates, although some of his innovations of a century ago are accepted cus- toms today. He was a man of great ability, of an impulsive, impetuous temperament, and a most enthusiastic, earnest and zealous worker in Freemasonry.
Illness in his family prevented his presiding over the Grand Lodge meeting in October, 1846. He was appointed Grand Orator at this meeting but due undoubtedly to his return to New York, never ful- filled the duties of this office.
He was one of eleven to sign the petition for the dispensation for LaFayette Chapter and was named first High Priest. He conducted the correspondence with the chapter at Milwaukee, Wisconsin in ask- ing for the recommendation of that chapter. On July 30, 1845 he was installed High Priest by John Barney who "administered the oath of office."
326
Freemasonry in Illinois
On May 15, 1845 a dispensation was issued to "open and hold an Encampment of Knights Templar and Knights of Malta, and a Council of the Appendant Orders in the city of Chicago, by the name of Apollo Encampment No. 1." Brother Walker was named "Grand Com- mander." Eleven names were signed to the petition. Brother Walker was commander in 1845-46-47. He received his lodge degrees in Apollo Lodge No. 13 at Troy, New York; Entered Apprentice, Jan- uary 15, 1839; Fellowcraft, January 19, 1839; Master Mason, January 21, 1839. He withdrew in 1840.
He was exalted in Apollo Chapter No. 48 in March 1839 and listed as Chaplain. March 1841 he removed from the city. He evidently re- ceived the commandery orders in Troy also.
He was one of six charter member of "Ineffable Lodge of Perfec- tion" at Chicago in 1846. Gil W. Barnard is authority for the state- ment that: "Beyond the fact that this charter was authorized, no rec- ords can be found as to whether or not the Lodge was ever consti- tuted or entered upon their work."
NELSON D. MORSE
Grand Master 1846
Born in 1815
Died February 9, 1854
We have no record of where Brother Morse was born or when he came to Illinois. In 1844 a dispensation was issued for a lodge at Henderson with Brother Morse as Master. His first appearance in Grand Lodge was in 1844 as Master of Hiram Lodge, U.D. His great interest and activity resulted in his election as Junior Grand Warden that year. In 1846 he was elected Grand Master at the age of 31 years. He issued dispensations for seven lodges and when he left the office of Grand Master there were 42 lodges with approximately 850 mem- bers.
At the close of his administration the Grand Lodge voted to issue dispensations for Military Lodges during the war with Mexico, but the Grand Master declined to issue any. Also legislation was presented to endorse the formation of a General Grand Lodge but was defeated.
Brother Morse was very active in Hiram Lodge, serving as Master five years and was Treasurer the year he was Grand Master. He
327
Grand Masters
dimitted from the lodge and obtained a dispensation from the Grand Master to form and open a lodge in California when he decided to join the gold rush. He opened "Pacific Lodge" at Long's Bar, Cali- fornia, in 1850. This was about two and one-half miles north of Oro- ville. The lodge met in a log house about four feet above the ground but the floor was excavated enough to permit members to stand erect. The altar and pedestals were stumps of trees and the jewels were cut from tin cans. Brother Morse was a member of the legislature in 1852, representing Butte County. He returned to Illinois and brought the dispensation with him which he returned to the Grand Secretary. He at once resumed his activity in Grand Lodge and was Grand Lecturer for Northern Illinois at the time of his death. He was the first High Priest of Horeb Chapter No. 4 and again in 1853 after his return from California.
He was a wagon maker and at the time of his election as Grand Master was described as a most impressive workman and as decided and courteous a gentleman as ever presided over the Grand Lodge. He was in straitened circumstances at the time of his death. The Grand Lodge voted an annual appropriation to assist in the education of his oldest daughter and in 1859 appropriated money to erect a monument over his grave. N. D. Morse Lodge No. 346 was named for him.
WILLIAM LAVELY
Grand Master 1847-48
Born August 28, 1810
Died January 23, 1888
Brother Lavely came to Springfield in 1830 and engaged in the mercantile business. He was mayor of Springfield in 1852; justice of the peace for many years; chairman of the board of supervisors of Sangamon County; city weigher when he died. At the time of his death he was the Senior Past Grand Master. He was raised in Spring- field Lodge No. 4 on June 6, 1842 and served the lodge as Master for 12 years and then as Treasurer for 20 years.
He was active in Grand Lodge, serving on committees and in ap- pointive offices. He was elected Deputy Grand Master in 1846 and then Grand Master in 1847 and 1848. He issued dispensations for 30 new lodges, including two for lodges in California. In 1850 he
328
Freemasonry in Illinois
served as Grand Secretary following the fire that destroyed most of the Grand Lodge records.
When he went out of office there were 74 lodges with several thousand members. A resolution was passed during his term of office that all lodge business should be transacted in the third degree. He was the first Grand Master to compel a proper recognition of our terri- torial jurisdiction, and all his acts were marked by judgment and ability.
Lavely Lodge No. 203 at Williamsville was named for him and one of the California lodges was named Lavely.
For several years he was Treasurer of Springfield Chapter No. 1 and held membership in Elwood Commandery No. 6.
He passed away at the age of 77 years.
WILLIAM C. HOBBS
Grand Master 1849
Born in 1799
Died February 10, 1861
Grand Master Buck said of him:
The composite column of our Grand Lodge has fallen. His early years were employed in teaching. From 1847, until his death, he re- sided in Bloomington, and was initiated in Bloomington Lodge, No. 43, May 26, 1847, passed June 23, and raised July 10. He attended the session of the Grand Lodge the same year, and was appointed Senior Grand Deacon; the following year he served as Senior Deacon of his Lodge, represented it in Grand Lodge, and was elected Junior Grand Warden. In 1849 he was elected Master of his Lodge and Grand Master of the Grand Lodge.
The records and papers in the office of the Grand Secretary were, in February following, destroyed by fire, and to remedy the loss as far as practicable, he convened a Grand Lodge of Recovery in Springfield, on the 8th of April following. The proceedings published soon after, represent the proceedings of 1849, although very much that was tran- sacted at the regular meeting, I am informed, was never recovered. His year's service was the most difficult, tedious and embarrassing ever ren- dered to this Grand Lodge. He discharged his duties with great fidelity and remarkable ability, and retained an ascendency and influence in the Councils of this Grand Lodge seldom vouchsafed to any retiring officer. The Grand Lodge enjoyed the benefit of his wisdom and counsel, as Representative of his Lodge, in 1852-53-56,-58-59. and during most of
329
Grand Masters
the time since 1851, he has served as Chairman of the Committee on Masonic Jurisprudence. He was exalted in Peoria Chapter No. 7, some time previous to the session of the Grand Lodge in 1848; during said session he received the degrees of Royal and Select Master, at Upper Alton; and during the session of the Grand Lodge at Chicago, in 1849, he was Knighted in company with brothers Noyes, Whitaker, Mitchell, Cabinis and others, in Apollo Commandery No. 1.
He served as the first high priest of Bloomington Chapter No. 26, and was the first Generalissimo in Elwood Commandery No. 6 in this city.
He was a polished gentleman and a polished writer, scrupulously neat; with his intimates, cheerful, affable and agreeable; in general so- ciety, reserved but polite. No man could be more beloved by those who knew his whole heart, for his hand and heart were ever open to the cry of the needy, the wail of the orphan, the petition of the poor or the oppressed. In spite of repeated losses, he always found something for the way-worn preacher, the indigent Mason, and the indigent Mason's child. While no widow, no child remain to heap flowers upon his tomb, there are several educated young men and women, now engaged in use- ful pursuits, who owe all their prosperity to his bounty. The Masonic rites at the funeral of our deceased brother, in February last, were impressively performed by his early pupil, Past Grand Master Pickett. It is understood that he died poor. Such being the case, I trust this Grand Lodge will show its gratitude for his eminent services, by assist- ing his lodge and chapter in erecting a suitable monument to his memory.
His memorial page in the proceedings reads:
Initiated in Bloomington Lodge No. 43 Exalted in Peoria Chapter No. 7
Knighted in Apollo Commandery No. I Past Master Bloomington Lodge No. 43
Past High Priest Bloomington Chapter No. 26
First Generalissimo Elwood Commandery No. 6
Past Grand Master Grand Lodge of Illinois At the time of his decease, Clerk County Court McLean County.
Died February 10, A.D. 1861, aged 62 years. "All his works praise him."
330
Freemasonry in Illinois
CHRISTOPHER G. Y. TAYLOR
Grand Master 1850
Born May 26, 1806
Died September 5, 1851
FROM HISTORY OF ST. CLAIR LODGE NO. 24
Brother Christopher G. Y. Taylor, who served as Worshipful Master of St. Clair Lodge No. 24 in 1847, was elected and installed as Grand Master of the State of Illinois in October 1850, but died the following September, before he presided over the Grand Lodge. Brother Taylor was one of the youngest members of our Fraternity to be elected and installed as Grand Master. At the time of his death, September 5, 1851, he had reached but his 45th year, yet his life was a busy one, full of many activities.
Brother Taylor was a native of the state of New York, having been born in Schenectady County. When quite a young man, he determined to seek his fortune in the great west. He landed in Louisville, Ken- tucky, where he lived for several years, and made a host of friends.
He then moved to Belleville, which became his permanent abode. On January 6, 1841, he married Miss Nancy Williams, and to this union four children were born.
It was soon that he gained an honorable position in society at large, and by his habits of industry, his exemplary moral deportment, and his piety as a Christian, he won for himself the reputation of a good man and a useful citizen. He was raised in St. Clair Lodge U.D. on March 9, 1842.
On October 20, 1842, he was elected Secretary of St. Clair Lodge No. 60, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons. On December 22, 1842, he opened a saddlery shop in a brick building which also housed the office of Dr. W. G. Goforth, who was Junior Deacon when St. Clair Lodge No. 24 received its charter from the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of Illinois. On March 7, 1846, he was elected Treasurer of the Belleville Washingtonian Temperance Society. On August 5, 1847, he was elected Justice of the Peace.
On April 13, 1848, he was elected Officer of the Sons of Temper- ance. On May 4, 1848, he was elected Treasurer of the Colonization Society, organized by the Baptist Church. On August 8, 1850, he was elected Secretary of the Belleville Sabbath Association.
331
Grand Masters
Brother Taylor was buried on the Sabbath following his death, and his funeral was the largest ever held in Belleville up to that time.
On September 10, 1851, St. Clair Lodge No. 24 passed a resolution of condolence.
The Grand Master had this to say when the news of Brother Tay- lor's death reached his office:
that he was an affectionate husband and father; that he was an ornament to our Fraternity, a just and upright Mason, and an humble and faithful follower of that Gentle Teacher of Galilee. Firm and un- wavering in his purpose, he was kind and conciliatory in his dealings with his Masonic brethren. A mechanic, who earned his bread by the sweat of his brow, he found means to aid liberally the benevolent enter- prises of the day. His conduct on all occasions proved that with him Masonry was no unmeaning mummery, that all was not tinsel and show, but that its sincere holy teachings found an echo in his breast.
His passing threw the affairs of the office of the Grand Master into confusion, and it was quite some time before the regular dispatch of business again became normal.
THOMAS JOHNSON PICKETT
Grand Master 1851
Born March 17, 1821
Died December 24, 1891
Thomas J. Pickett was born on March 17, 1821 at Louisville, Ken- tucky. He came to Peoria with his parents in 1836. He learned the printer's trade there, becoming a journalist and publisher, publishing papers in Peoria, Pekin, and Rock Island, Illinois, Paducah, Kentucky and Lincoln, Nebraska. He died on December 24, 1891 at Ashland, Nebraska and was laid to rest by Pomegranate Lodge of Ashland.
Brother Pickett was very active in public affairs, probably more than any other of the Grand Masters that had preceded him in this office. He was a delegate to the National Convention of the Repub- lican Party in Philadelphia in 1866 and took part in the nomination of Fremont for President. He was also elected to two terms as State Senator from Rock Island County, Illinois, 1860-62 and 1862-64, and later was Postmaster and then Clerk of the United States District Court at Paducah, Kentucky.
332
Freemasonry in Illinois
He served throughout the civil war, becoming Lieutenant Colonel of the Sixty-ninth Illinois Volunteers in 1862. At the close of the war he moved his home and business interests to Paducah, Kentucky.
Brother Pickett's rise in Masonry was rapid. He was made a Mason in Peoria Lodge No. 15 on November 26, 1846 and five years later he was elected Grand Master. He was Master nine years in all, eight in Peoria Lodge. Later he was a member of lodges in Rock Island, Illinois, Paducah, Kentucky and Lincoln, Nebraska. After the death of W. B. Warren he was appointed Grand Secretary and had the contract to print the 1849 proceedings, but an explosion on the first floor of the building in which his printing press was located started a fire that destroyed all the 1849 records. In 1850 he was elected Deputy Grand Master and the next year he was elected Grand Master. At the time he was 31 years of age, being the second youngest member ever elected Grand Master. In 1873 he was elected Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Kentucky.
He issued dispensations for 11 new lodges and it was during his year that the law was adopted requiring a full year's residence in the state before candidates were eligible to petition for the degrees.
T. J. Pickett Lodge No. 307 was named for him.
ELI B. AMES
Grand Master 1852
Born August 8, 1820
Died February 12, 1898
Brother Ames was born in Colchester, Vermont on August 8, 1820 and came to Hennepin, Illinois in 1842, the same year that he was admitted to the bar. During the next 15 years he not only practiced law but was also Postmaster, Judge of the Probate Court and finally United States Consul to the Independent City of Hamburg.
He moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1857, where he organized the First General Insurance Company, a very successful enterprise. He also served as the Secretary of the Senate of Minnesota and was Mayor of Minneapolis.
He was raised in Social Lodge No. 70 of Hennepin in 1848, served as Secretary in 1849 and was Master in 1849-50 (6 month term). He
333
Grand Masters
was elected Senior Grand Warden in 1851 and Grand Master in 1852, being the eleventh Grand Master.
He affiliated with Hennepin Lodge No. 4 in the late fifties and at the time of his death was a charter member of Khurum Lodge No. 112, both of Minneapolis.
Fourteen new lodges were granted dispensations. Money was appropriated under his leadership to purchase copies of "the best printed authorities on Masonic Law and Usage." That year the Grand Lodge voted against the organization of a General Grand Lodge.
His brother, Alfred Elisha Ames, was equally active in Masonry, having formed lodges at Belvidere, Roscoe, Rockton and Rockford, Illinois. Later moving to Minneapolis he petitioned the Grand Lodge of Illinois for a dispensation for Cataract Lodge at St. Anthony's Falls, Minnesota of which he was the first Master. When the Grand Lodge of Minnesota was formed he was the first Grand Master. Part of his term coincided with that of his brother in Illinois. This is the only record of a Grand Master in Illinois having a brother serving as Grand Master of another state at the same time.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.