USA > Indiana > A history of freemasonry in Indiana from 1806 to 1898 > Part 33
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He was one of the brightest, most conscientious and painstaking Masons in the State, and but few prior to his time left the impress of their individuality on the legisla- tion of the Grand Lodge more indelibly fixed than did he.
CYRUS NUTT, D. D., LL.D., was Grand Chaplain of the Grand Lodge in 1871 and Deputy Grand Master in 1873. He was born in Trumbull county, Ohio, September 4, 1814. He graduated at AAllegheny College, Meadville, Pa., in 1836, and immediately began his educational labors in that institution as the principal of the preparatory department. In 1837 he was elected professor of languages in the In- diana Asbury University, and in 1841 .professor of Greek and Hebrew. In 1849 he was elected president of Fort Wayne College, and afterward had charge of the White Water College, located at Centerville. Subsequently he was connected with Asbury University, and in 1860 was
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elected president of the State University at Bloomington, which position he held until a short time prior to his death.
One who knew him well says that he endeavored to make the deeds of his life speak for themselves. He studied to cultivate his capacity for usefulness rather than for orna- ment or display, and, as he was guileless in policy, and al- ways polite and conciliatory, both in his manners and ex- pression, he made friends of all faiths, of all parties, and all conditions in society. He had no ordinate ambition either to govern or rule, and yet he ever maintained, in a firm and quiet way, his official and personal dignity in every relation in life.
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GRAND SECRETARIES.
THE following is a list of the Grand Secretaries of the Grand Lodge since its organization in 1817 to the pre -- ent time, with a brief biographical sketch of each:
Davis Floyd, Corydon, secretary of convention, 1817.
Henry P. Thornton, Madison, January to September, 181S.
Isaac Howk, Charlestown, 1818 to 1819.
William C. Keen, Vevay, 1819 to 1826.
James F. D. Lanier, Madison, 1826 to 1830.
Austin W. Morris, Indianapolis, 1830 to 1835, 1839 to 1841, 1842 to 1852.
Daniel Kelso, York, Switzerland county, 1835 to 1837.
A. W. Harrison, Indianapolis, 1837 to 1838.
Charles Fisher, Indianapolis, 1838 to 1839.
William H. Martin, Rushville, 1841 to 1842.
Francis King, Indianapolis, 1852 to 1865.
William Hacker, Shelbyville, 1865 to 1868.
John M. Bramwell, Indianapolis, 1868 to 1878.
William II. Smythe, Greencastle, 1878 to present.
DAVIS FLOYD, the secretary of the convention that assem- bled at Corydon, December 3, 1817, to take into considera- tion the propriety of forming a Grand Lodge for Indiana, was at that time Master of Pisgah Lodge, Corydon. He was one of the prominent men in Territorial days, and after the organization of the State. In September, 1815, he was elected Deputy Grand Master. Under that head will be found a sketch of his official, personal and Masonic ca- reer.
HENRY P. THORNTON, the first Grand Secretary after the permanent organization of the Grand Lodge. served from the beginning until the first meeting of the Grand Lodge,
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in September, 1818. He was elected and served as Grand Orator for the years 1823-4 and 1826-7, after which he dis- appeared from the Grand Lodge. By profession he was a lawyer. In 1817, having just returned from Bourbon county, Kentucky, and located in Madison, he formed a partnership with Alexander A. Meek, which lasted for sev- eral years. Brother Meek was appointed brigadier of the State militia, and he appointed Major Thornton brigade in- spector. Hle removed from Madison about 1830 and lo- cated either in New Albany or Jeffersonville, where he died.
ISAAC HOWK, of Charlestown, was a distinguished citizen in the early days, and after serving a term as Grand Secre- tary, in 1826, was elected Grand Master. Under that head will be found a biographical sketch of his career.
WILLIAM C. KEEN represented Switzerland Lodge U. D. at the organization of the Grand Lodge, and was appointed by Alexander A. Meek, temporary presiding officer, as Sec- retary, to act until the Grand Lodge was organized and an election held. Later, when the election was held, Henry P. Thornton was chosen. Brother Keen was elected Grand Secretary in 1819, and was annually re-elected, serving until 1826. When Vevay Lodge was granted a charter he was named as the first Master. He was engaged in the printing business. In 1825 bids were received for printing the proceedings. His bid was, "composition, thirty-seven and half cents per 1,000 ems; press work, thirty-seven and half cents per token; paper, three dollars per ream; folding and stitching, two dollars fifty cents." There were other bids lower than his, but the Grand Lodge gave it to him, believing his bid to be the most satisfactory, all things con- sidered. Ile was succeeded in 1826 as Grand Secretary by James F. D. Lanier, of Madison. He was short in his ac- counts, and had failed to deliver the books, etc., to his suc- cessor: whereupon, it was "resolved that he be directed to deliver to Brother Lanier all books, papers and money in his hands belonging to this Grand Lodge." At the session of 1828 the committee found his indebtedness to the Grand
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Lodge to be $75.873, and the Grand Secretary was ordered to settle the account by note or otherwise. No settlement could be made with him, and at the session of 1829 he was cited to appear and show cause why he had failed to make settlement. He did not appear, and no further action seems to have been taken in regard to the matter. He did not afterwards appear in the Grand Lodge.
Ile was a native of Pennsylvania, and came from Phila- delphia to Vevay while Indiana was yet a Territory. He served in Commodore Perry's fleet, and for valiant conduct was awarded a medal.
He was for a time editor of one of the early Switzerland county papers, and was afterwards postmaster at a place called "Printer's Rest," in Switzerland county. While fill- ing this position he was detected in robbing the mails, was tried and found guilty, and sent to the penitentiary from Indianapolis for a term of years. He was, however, grant- ed a pardon by President Van Buren. In politics he was a Democrat during Andrew Jackson's time, but afterwards renounced Democracy and joined the Whig party. After a somewhat checkered career he died many years ago.
JAMES F. D. LANIER, of Madison, later of New York, was one of the most distinguished men in the early history of Indiana and of the Grand Lodge. He was born in Beau- fort county, North Carolina, November 22, 1800. With his father's family he settled in Madison, Ind., in 1817. Two years later he commenced to study law with General Alexander A. Meek, of Madison, at that time Grand Master of Masons, and it is quite probable that he received his favorable opinion of the ancient and honorable Fraternity from him. He graduated from a law school in Kentucky in 1823, and commenced practicing law in Madison, which at that time had a population of about three hundred. He was diligent and strove to be respected, and made it a point to be punctual in every duty and appointment. It was early his purpose in life to respect scrupulously the rights of others, but always to be firm in the assertion of his own. It was the rigid adherence to this plan to which he attrib-
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uted his success in life. He soon found that the labor and anxiety of the practice of law was too much for his strength, and he abandoned it for more congenial pursuits.
In 1824 he was appointed assistant clerk of the House of Representatives of Indiana at the last session of that body at Corydon. The next meeting was at Indianapolis. He continued as assistant clerk until 1827, when he was elected principal clerk, at a salary of $3.50 per day. He kept the journal in which all the proceedings of the House were re- corded. and did the reading. The experience he gained while clerk in familiarizing himself with legislative pro- ceedings he regarded as one of the chief causes of his future success. While clerk of the House the trip from Madison to Indianapolis required three days of fatiguing travel on horseback. Now the distance can be traveled over by rail in less than three hours!
In 1833, upon the chartering of the State Bank of In- diana. he became connected with that institution and took a prominent part in its management. It consisted of a cen- tral bank, located at Indianapolis, with ten branches in as many leading cities of the State. He was the first presi- dent of the branch at Madison. Notwithstanding the panic of 1537, which swept everything before it, this bank proved to be panic-proof, being the only banking institution in the Western country that did not succumb to the disastrous financial crash of that year. When its charter expired, in 1654. the profits had doubled the original investment. For the $1,000,000 invested by the State it drew in profits fully $3.500,000. This bank was the only one of the numerous enterprises in which the State engaged that did not prove almost an entire failure.
In 1649 he turned his attention to railroad building and dealing in railroad stocks and bonds. At that time in the States of Ohio, Indiana, Michigan and Illinois there were but 655 miles of railroad, 186 of which was the Madison & Indianapolis, the first railroad in the State. At the end of twenty years ( 1869) there were 16,889 miles of railroads in operation, the capital invested being estimated at $675,-
JAMES F. D. LANIER.
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[000,000. The success of the various enterprises in which he was engaged was remarkable, and made him one of the richest men in the country. He took a lively interest dur- ing the late war in the cause of the Union, and his firm, the great banking house of Winslow, Lanier & Co., of New York, loaned Indiana $400,000 for the equipment of her troops. He was also sent by the government of the United States during the war on a secret financial mission to Eu- . rope, and was eminently successful.
Brother Lanier made his first appearance in the Grand Lodge as the representative of Union Lodge No. 2, Madi- son, at the annual communication October 7, 1822. He was appointed a member of the Committee on Credentials, and to examine the returns of subordinate lodges, and also of the Committee on Dispensations. He reported on the dispensation of Albion Lodge, Illinois-which was then un- der the jurisdiction of Indiana-recommending that its dis- pensation be continued as per request.
At the next session (1823) he appeared as proxy for Olive Branch Lodge at Evansville. He seems, however, to have taken no part, as his name does not appear in connection with the business of the session. ,At that time a lodge was authorized to select any affiliated Master Mason to repre- sent it in the meetings of the Grand Lodge, and it fre- quently occurred that, when a brother asked leave of ab- sence, a motion was made that a brother named be author- ized to act as proxy for said brother. This was how Brother Lanier happened to represent Evansville Lodge, as above stated.
At the next meeting (1824) of the Grand Lodge, Brother Lanier appeared as the representative by proxy of Vin- cennes Lodge No. 1, and was appointed a member of the Committee on Foreign Communications. At the same ses- sion the minutes state that "Brother Lanier presented the written request of Brother James Morrison that James F. D. Lanier be permitted to act as proxy for Blazing Star Lodge; which request was granted." It was also "resolved that J. F. D. Lanier be the proxy of Lawrenceburg Lodge
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No. 4." Thus Brother Lanier was the duly accredited representative of three lodges, to none of which he be- longed. At this meeting the minutes state: "Brother Lanier presented the petition of seven Master Masons re- siding in the town of Madison, praying for a dispensation for a new lodge in said town, recommended by Union Lodge: which was laid on the table."
He was present at the session of 1825, but not as a repre- sentative of any lodge. When the election was held he was chosen Senior Grand Deacon. At the session of 1826 he was present as Senior Grand Deacon, also as the repre- sentative of I'nion Lodge No. 2, and was appointed to ex- amine the books and papers of the Grand Secretary and Treasurer, and of the committee on returns of subordinate bodies. At this session he was elected Grand Secretary.
In 1527 he was present as Grand Secretary and repre- -entative of Union Lodge. As Grand Secretary he re- ported having paid to the Grand Treasurer, of moneys col- lected by him, the sum of $445.682. He was re-elected Grand Secretary.
IIe was present in 1828 as representative of his lodge and Grand Secretary, and was again re-elected. He was pres- ent in 1529 as representative and Grand Secretary, and was made chairman of the Committee on Unfinished Busi- He was also re-elected for another term. The fol- lowing was adopted :
"On motion of Brother Lanier, the sum of six dollars was appropriated to pay the subscription of two copies of the . Masonic Mirror,' printed at Rochester, N. Y., and the Grand Secretary is directed to subscribe for one copy of the American Masonic Record, a paper published at Albany, in said State, for the use of this Grand Lodge."
At the annual meeting in October, 1830, there was not a sufficient muumber present to transact business. An ad- journment was taken until December 1st. Brother Lanier was present, but did not appear at the adjourned meeting, and his name does not appear in the Grand Lodge proceed- ings thereafter.
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AUSTIN W. MORRIS, of Indianapolis, served as Grand Secretary for a period of over sixteen years, and died in office June 21, 1851. He was born in Kentucky, August 9, 1804, and with his parents came to Indiana in 1821. He was one of the most prominent citizens of Indianapolis, filling many positions of trust, always with great accepta- bility to the people whom he served.
But it was as a Mason that his name will be best remem- bered. He was elected Junior Grand Warden in 1835, Senior Grand Warden in 1836, and Deputy Grand Master in 1837. For some reason, which was and is unknown, his remains were not buried with Masonic honors. The Grand Lodge, however, erected a monument in Crown Hill Ceme- tery, Indianapolis, to his memory, upon which the follow- ing inscription was engraven:
"The Freemasons of Indiana, in token of their sincere fraternal affection for Austin W. Morris, who was a zealous and charitable Mason, a faithful and efficient Grand Secre- tary, have made this inscription :
" WHOM VIRTUE UNITES DEATH CANNOT SEVER."
"Done by order of the Grand Lodge."
Upon being informed of his death, the editor of the "Masonic Review," who had known him long and well, wrote of him as follows:
"We have known many excellent men in our day, men of rare piety and uniform, consistent goodness; but we have known few, if any, who combined so many traits of excel- lence, so good, so kind, so true, as Austin W. Morris. We knew him well; we had known him long, and we loved him. As Secretary of the Grand Lodge of Indiana, and as a prom- inent and leading Mason of that State, we have been fa- miliar with his deportment as a Mason for a number of years. He was in our eye the beau ideal of a Freemason. Frank, generous, firm, consistent, unwavering in his attach- ment to the principles of the Order, determined and con- sistent in his efforts to preserve Masonry in its purity, and exhibiting in his own character a living illustration of what a Mason ought to be. He taught by example. Few, very few, have passed from this earth who left behind a more stainless reputation than Austin W. Morris."
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What more need be said? Nothing!
DANIEL KELSO, of York, Switzerland county, was Senior Grand Deacon in 1831, Deputy Grand Master in 1832, Grand Master in 1834, and Grand Secretary in 1835-6. A sketch of his career will be found under the head of Grand Masters.
ABRAM W. HARRISON, of Indianapolis, was elected Grand Secretary in 1837 and served one year. This was his only appearance as a member of the Grand Lodge, and little is known concerning him. He was a member of Center Lodge, Indianapolis, and served part of a term as Secretary of that lodge. For many years he was a prominent mer- chant of Indianapolis.
CHARLES FISHER, of Indianapolis, was elected Grand Sec- retary in 1837 and served one year. In 1847 he was elected Grand Treasurer, and was re-elected annually until the time of his death, in 1884, serving continuously for a period of thirty-seven years, a record not equalled, probably, by any other Grand Treasurer in this country. Every penny of the vast sums of money that passed through his hands was properly accounted for. He had the utmost confidence in the honesty and integrity of the members. In the later years of his official service, when he became feeble and par- tially blind, he never hesitated to turn over to the Com- mittee on Pay-Roll at each annual session his tin box, con- taining from $6,000 to $8,000 in currency, and it is gratify- ing to know that his confidence was never betrayed.
IIe was born in Dauphin county, Pennsylvania, February 26, 1806, and came to Indiana in 1834, residing in Indian- apolis the remainder of his life. He was a man full of gen- erosity and tenderness of heart, and went through life doing good to all, and died with the esteem of all who knew him.
WILLIAM H. MARTIN, of Rushville, was elected and served as Grand Secretary one year, from May, 1841, to May, 1842. He was elected and installed Master of Rushville Lodge No. 42 in 1840, and was the representative of that lodge in the Grand Lodge that year, but took no part in the proceedings other than to move that his lodge have an
H,M.A.
CHARLES FISHER.
Francis Ming
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extension of twelve months for the payment of the balance due the Grand Lodge.
In 1841 he was present and was made chairman of the Committees on Unfinished Business, Charters and Dispen- sations, and Foreign Correspondence. His reports from all these committees indicate that he was a man of education and excellent judgment. In that session he was the ruling spirit, his name being connected with all the business trans- acted, and was honored by being elected Grand Secretary, and served until the next annual election, when he was succeeded by Austin W. Morris.
FRANCIS KING, of Indianapolis, was elected Grand Secre- tary in 1852, and annually thereafter re-elected until 1865, when he died in office. He was born in Georgetown, D. C., March 5, 1800, and was made a Mason in Potomac Lodge No. 5, District of Columbia, in April, 1826. In 1835 he came West and located at Centerville, and became a mem- ber of the Grand Lodge in 1847, and, on the death of Grand Secretary Morris, was appointed to fill the vacancy, and at the next session was elected Grand Secretary, and annually re-elected until the time of his death.
During his residence in the District of Columbia he was employed in the government departments, and after his re- moval West was the private secretary of Governor Wright during the time he held that office, after which he was elected treasurer of the city of Indianapolis, serving as such for some time.
Few, if any, member of the Grand Lodge has left more pleasant memories clustering around his name than has Brother King. He was well posted on all that goes to make up a well-informed Mason, and this, with his uniform cor- diality and affability, made him a general favorite in all the Masonic bodies with which he was connected. He loved Masonry for the purity of its teachings, its uncompromising opposition to every species of vice, its veneration for re- ligion, its devotion to suffering humanity, and the beauty and loftiness of the sentiments contained in its symmetrical and sublime ceremonies.
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On the tablet to his memory is this inscription:
"He has completed the volume of the record of his trans- actions in this earthly temple, entered the celestial Grand Lodge, and there, among saints and angels, found his name recorded in the Book of Eternal Life."
WILLIAM HACKER, of Selbyville, 1865 to 1868. See sketch as Grand Master.
JOHN M. BRAMWELL was a native of Jefferson county, Indiana. He was a merchant's clerk in Madison for sev- eral years, and afterwards went into business on his own ac- count. He was the first auditor of Jefferson county, being elected in 1841 and serving until 1848, when he resigned and removed to Indianapolis to engage in mercantile pur- suits.
He was made a Mason in Marion Lodge, Indianapolis, in 1850, and later received the Royal Arch, Royal and Select Master and Knights Templar degrees in the bodies in that city. He was elected Secretary of the Grand Lodge in 1868, and served as such until 1878, when he was succeeded by William HI. Smythe. He still continued to hold the secretaryship of the Grand Chapter and Council and Re- corder of the Grand Commandery until 1888, when an un- pleasant episode occurred in his financial management of funds which came into his hands as Grand Secretary of the various bodies which caused his removal from all these offices, the details of which it is not deemed necessary here to record. He died shortly after the discovery was made, and lies buried in Crown Hill Cemetery, Indianapolis.
WILLIAM H. SMYTHE was elected Grand Secretary at the meeting of the Grand Lodge in May, 1878, and has served continuously as such until the present time. He is splen- didly equipped for the position, and, without disparagement to any of those who preceded him, it is but the truth to say that he has made the best Secretary the Grand Lodge has ever had.
Ile was born on a farm in Putnam county, Indiana, near the village of Filmore, July 2, 1846. His father died when he was but nine years old, since which time he has
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William Ho Sing The
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practically been dependent upon himself for a living. When twelve years old he received an injury to his left knee which made him a cripple for life. At the age of six- teen he decided that the best thing for him was to learn a trade, and chose that of shoemaker as being best adapted to his physical condition. This he followed for sixteen years in the city of Greencastle, thereby providing a comfortable living in a modest way for himself and family. His indus- try and strict integrity gave him the confidence and esteem of all with whom he came in contact, and when the time came for him to leave the bench and take the responsible position of Grand Secretary that required him to give a thirty-thousand-dollar bond, all Greencastle stood ready to back him.
October 4, 1870, he was united in marriage to Miss Lizzie J. Williams at Greencastle. To them have been born two sons, Elmer A. and Donn V., and one daughter, Myrtle.
He was made a Mason in the lodge at Filmore, Ind., in 1869. Filling the subordinate offices, he arose to Worship- ful Master in 1877, serving two years. He received the Royal Arch degrees in Greencastle Chapter in 1871 and served as High Priest four years, 1873-7. He received the order of High Priesthood in 1874 and became Grand Secretary in 1878, which position he still holds.
He received the Royal and Select Masters degrees in Greencastle Council in 1874, and was appointed Grand Re- corder in 1888, and still holds that office.
He was made a Knights Templar in Greencastle Com- mandery in 1876, and was Eminent Commander in 1878, and appointed Grand Recorder of the Grand Commandery in 1888, and has annually been re-elected ever since.
He received the degrees of the Ancient Accepted Scot- tish Rite in the consistory at Indianapolis, reaching the 32d February 20, 1884, and received the 33d at Chicago in 1886.
His membership is at present in the various subordinate bodies at Indianapolis, in all of which he is an active worker.
The foregoing is but a brief summary of his Masonic
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career, from which it must be evident to everyone that he has been an indomitable worker in the interest of the great- est of human institutions. Under the benign influence of the principles taught in Masonry, his purse is always open to the needy and his hand extended to help the suffering. His strict adherence to his own opinions of right and duty is a peculiarity that sometimes brings him in conflict with those who think differently, but no one is more ready to vield than he when convinced he is wrong. Such a man can always be trusted, and such a man is William Henry Smythe.
GRAND TREASURERS.
Samuel C. Tate, Charlestown, January, 1818.
Henry L. Miner, Charlestown, September, 1818. Richard C. Talbott, Madison, 1819.
William H. Lilly, Corydon, 1820-1-2-3-4-5. Harvey Gregg, Indianapolis, 1826-7-8-9. John Walker, Shelbyville, 1830-3-4. John Tipton, Logansport, 1831. John McMahan, Salem, 1832. Philip Mason, Connersville, 1835. Zera T. Percival, Lawrenceburg, 1836. John Foster, Indianapolis, 1837-8-1842-3-4-5-6. Benjamin I. Blythe, Indianapolis, 1839-1840.
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