USA > Pennsylvania > Allegheny County > The history of the Masonic fund society for the county of Allegheny from the year 1847 to 1923; with biographical sketches of deceased members of the Board of trustees By Hiram Schock. > Part 19
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Resolved, That the Trustees of the Masonic Fund Society for the County of Allegheny recommend to the shareholders of said Society the adoption of the following resolution:
"Resolved, That the Trustees of the Masonic Fund Society for the County of Allegheny be and they are hereby authorized and di- rected to dispose of the property on Fifth avenue, Pittsburgh, Pa., now owned by said Society, and to procure a suitable site and erect thereon a building for the accommodation of all the Bodies of the Masonic Fraternity. The said site and building to be, in general terms, in accordance with Plan No. 4, as shown in the Report of the conference of the Trustees of the Masonic Fund Society for the County of Allegheny and the Committee of Gourgas Lodge of Per- fection, A. A. S. R."
It was then decided to call a special meeting of the shareholders of the Masonic Fund Society, Thursday, Au- gust 29, 1912, to adopt or reject the above resolution, and which if adopted would at last end the many efforts, which had now extended over a period of ten years, to bring about the erection of a great Masonic Temple. The shareholders met in special session on August 29, 1912, Brother James B. Youngston being in the chair and Brother Andrew D. Arm- strong acting as secretary. The long report was discussed at great length, and particular attention was given to "Plan No. 4," which recommended the purchase of a site in the Schenley Park district. The trend of the discussion indi- cated that this plan met with general approval among the stockholders at this gathering; but it was finally decided to postpone definite and conclusive action until, as the minutes
202
HISTORY OF THE MASONIC FUND SOCIETY
state, "the matter could be referred to the different Masonic Bodies interested, in order that they might have an oppor- tunity to instruct their representatives as to how they de- sired them to vote." A month was therefore given to the brethren in general to study the report, and the stockhold- ers adjourned their meeting with the understanding that final and decisive action should be taken at the very next gathering of the shareholders of the Masonic Fund So- ciety. Let us here go into some detail concerning this Re- port, in order to be able to keep before us the details of this much discussed document. While, it is true, its pro- visions are still fresh in the minds of the Pittsburgh breth- ren; yet as the years go on the future development of our great Order in Pittsburgh will continually increase the in- terest and value of the Report as an important factor in local Masonic history. In the printed copies of the Report sent out to the members are the following words, addressed by the Trustees of the Masonic Fund Society to the Craft:
To the Shareholders of the Masonic Fund Society for the County of Allegheny:
The Board of Trustees respectfully submits for your consider- ation the following data relative to the disposal of the property of the Society, Fifth avenue, Pittsburgh, Pa., and the purchase of a site and the erection of a building thereon, suitable for the accommoda- tion of all the Masonic Bodies.
The plan to co-operate with the Society in the purchase of a site and the erection of a building originated in the Lodge of Perfection, A. A. S. R., and the resolution therefrom leading to the joint action of the Committee from the Lodge of Perfection and the Trustees of the Society are submitted herewith in full.
We shall quote a few of the paragraphs of the Report which have direct bearing upon the sale of the old property, the purchase of a site in the Schenley Park district and the construction thereon of the present Masonic structure, as follows :
It is stated that the net proceeds of the sale of the present prop- erty on Fifth avenue, after the cancellation of the shares held by other than Masonic Bodies, will approximate $800,000.00, and it is assumed that Masonic organizations, including the Scottish Rite Bodies, will contribute $400,000.00, making the total sum available for the purchase of a new site and the construction of a building $1,200,000.00.
The report then presented in careful detail elaborate
203
HISTORY OF THE MASONIC FUND SOCIETY
facts and figures with regard to the construction, operation and maintenance of a Masonic building, part of which should be devoted to commercial uses in order to obtain a rental income. Then it described another kind of structure to be devoted exclusively to Masonic purposes, with no in- come except from Masonic sources. Four different estimates were embodied with this valuable data in the report, and then coming down to a definite location, the Report recom- mends the purchase of ground in the Schenley Park district, in the following terms:
A definite proposition will be made to the Masonic Fund Society, the legal representatives of the properties of the Bodies, when they are prepared to receive and accept it, for the purchase of their Fifth avenue property, coupled with the sale to the Society of a plot of ground of suitable dimensions in the Schenley Farm district of the city. This purchase and sale will bring into the possession of the Masonic Fund Society funds which, with the amounts to be con- tributed by the Scottish Rite Bodies and such other Bodies as are able to contribute, will be sufficient to erect upon this site a building for the accommodation of all of the various Bodies of the Fraternity, of a capacity ample for their requirements for many years to come, and to provide a small fund for contingencies and for the furnishing of the building.
This report and its recommendation as to the choice of a site and the kind of edifice to be erected were left in the hands of the brethren, to whom it had been mailed, for a period of thirty days. It was then taken up for final con- sideration by the shareholders on April 29, 1912. This final meeting was held October 31, 1912. It had become gener- ally known that the location decided upon in the Report was acceptable to the Board of Trustees and to the shareholders generally, so that by the time the October meeting was held most of the opposition to the proposition to build in a locality distant from the "down-town" section of the city had simmered away to small proportions. When, therefore, the shareholders assembled in old Freemasons Hall on Fifth avenue on the evening of October 31, 1912, it was under- stood that the predominant sentiment favored the site in the Schenley Park district. The session was largely at- tended and the total number of shares voted was 5,580. Brother James B. Youngson was elected Chairman, and Brother Andrew D. Armstrong was secretary. The record
204
HISTORY OF THE MASONIC FUND SOCIETY
of this historical gathering is particularly interesting and important because of the details it gives, and it is transcribed here in full, as it was written down in the minutes :
A special meeting of the shareholders of the Masonic Fund So- ciety for the County of Allegheny was held today at 7:30 P. M., in pursuance of a call by the President of the Society, issued in accord- ance with a resolution passed at the special meeting of the share- holders held August 29th, 1912. Total number of shares represented, 5,580. More than 50 per cent. of the shares being represented, on motion, James B. Youngson was chosen chairman and A. D. Arm- strong secretary.
The following resolution presented at the special meeting held August 29th, 1912, was then read:
"Resolved, That the Trustees of the Masonic Fund Society for the County of Allegheny be and they are hereby authorized and di- rected to dispose of the property on Fifth avenue, Pittsburgh, Pa., now owned by said Society, and to procure a suitable site and erect thereon a building for the accommodation of all the Bodies of the Masonic Fraternity. That said site and building be, in general terms, in accordance with Plan No. 4, as shown in the Report of the Trustees of the Masonic Fund Society for the County of Allegheny and the Committee of Gourgas Lodge of Perfection, A. A. S. R., a copy of which is hereto attached."
On motion of Joseph S. Brown, seconded by Fager J. Shidle, the resolution was adopted by the following vote:
Lodge
No. 45 represented by Roland S. Wilson
638
"
" 219
James Chambers
794
" 221
¥
Alfred S. Bishop
1442
" 231
"
Henry E. Arnold
143
" 253
¥
¥
George W. Wilson
60
" 508
William F. Hughes
100
" 576
66
Edward Haslem
22
Chapter
" 162
Oliver S. Ferguson
523
193
"
James W. Barber
24
Com'dry
48
George W. McCandless 150
5
Gourgas Lodge
Wm. B. Speer
101
Encam't No. 1
"
M. M. Felker
10
Syria Temple Asso.
" James W. Barber 26
Total number of votes cast by the different Bodies
4198
14
Individual votes
Grand total of votes in favor of the resolution 4212
Shares
Albert W. Nicholson 160
" 484
59
John A. Murphy
"
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HISTORY OF THE MASONIC FUND SOCIETY
Negative votes cast by ballot 1364
Negative votes cast by individuals 4
Total number of negative votes 1368
On motion of A. S. Bishop, seconded by William M. Hamilton, the following resolution was adopted:
"Resolved, That any and all action taken by the shareholders of the Masonic Fund Society for the County of Allegheny prior to Au- gust 29th, 1912, concerning the sale of the present property and the purchase of a site and the erection of a building, be and the same is hereby rescinded."
Only one lodge had voted its shares against the report, but in a short time later, that body reconsidered its action and adopted, at a lodge meeting, a resolution in which it "gives its support to the officers of the Masonic Fund So- ciety in carrying out the expressed wishes of the majority of its shareholders."
The lot upon which it was now decided to erect an im- posing structure, a splendid Temple devoted solely to the uses of the Craft, is situated in a locality notable and his- toric in the annals of Pittsburgh. It is a most attractive section and can be properly designated the center of the artistic and the educational life of the city. The ground which fronts on Fifth avenue, at the corners of Lytton and Tennyson avenues, was originally part of the old Schenley estate and is at the very edge of the spacious and beautiful Schenley park. This park is a creation of the noble munifi- cence of the late Mrs. Mary S. Schenley, who in 1889 pre- sented to the city of Pittsburgh a tract of land of over four hundred acres, close to the leading thoroughfares, Forbes street and Fifth avenue. This became known as Schenley park and subsequent additions have increased its area to over six hundred acres. Within the limits of this extensive and ornate extent of land are to be found the varied beauties of nature in valleys and sloping hills and grassy plains. There, too, are to be seen some of the most notable edifices in the United States. There are the various ornate build- ings of the University of Pittsburgh, with its 6,000 stu- dents, the imposing Carnegie Institute, with its great library and renowned museum which in popular importance and scientific value ranks with the great museums of the
206
HISTORY OF THE MASONIC FUND SOCIETY
world. There,too, are the numerous buildings of the Car- negie Institute of Technology and the extensive Conserva- tory given to the city by Henry Phipps. Near the site of the splendid Masonic Temple are the great Soldiers Mem- orial Building and the buildings of the Century Club, the Pittsburgh Athletic Association and the beautiful Syria Mosque of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine.
The large plot of ground, thus so finely located, which the Masonic Fund Society had, as we have seen, decided to buy, was at that time a part of a large acreage known as the Schenley Farms and was owned by the Schenley Farms Company. Negotiations had of course been going on for some time prior to the meeting of the shareholders on Oc- tober 31, 1912, for the purchase of the lot, which fronts on Fifth avenue at its intersection with Lytton avenue, and in fact it required only the final favorable action of the Board of Trustees of the Masonic Fund Society to bring this real estate transaction to a close. At a meeting of the Trustees on February 13, 1913, there was presented "an Agreement between the Schenley Farms Company and the Masonic Fund Society for the exchange of the present property on Fifth avenue, known as Freemasons Hall, for a piece of ground in the Schenley Farms Plan, and the erection there- on of a Masonic Temple." This agreement provided not only for the sale of the old premises and the purchase of a new site, but also for the erection of the proposed Temple by the Schenley Farms Company, of course under the plans and supervision of the Masonic Fund Society. But at this meeting after some discussion final action was postponed until another meeting to be held February 17, 1913. But it had been settled at the February 13 session that Brothers Alfred S. Bishop and William M. Hamilton, representing the Masonic Fund Society, and Brother Frank D. Hartman, representing the Scottish Rite Bodies, should constitute the Building Committee.
When the Trustees met at the session of February 17, 1913, the "Agreement" was again considered and then adopted. This agreement, which is of the date of February 26, 1913, provided, in brief, that the Schenley Farms Com- pany would buy from the Masonic Fund Society their prop-
207
HISTORY OF THE MASONIC FUND SOCIETY
erty on Fifth avenue, known as Freemasons Hall, for the price of $850,000. As part payment, the Trustees were to take over, by deed in fee simple, the plot of ground at Fifth and Lyton avenues, in the Schenley Park district, at a valuation of $400,000, the remaining $450,000 to be secured by bond and purchase money mortgage on the Freemasons Hall property. Two weeks after the agreement was accept- ed, title to the Schenley Farms lot was transferred by deed to the Masonic Fund Society, and shortly after a bond and mortgage for the remaining $450,000 was executed and re- corded. As has been stated, this agreement also provided that the Temple, plans and specifications for which had already been made and accepted, should be built by the Schenley Farms Company at a cost to the Masonic Fund So- ciety, of $848,432. It was also a part of the agreement that until the new edifice should be ready for occupancy the Ma- sonic Bodies were to continue to use Freemasons Hall at a stipulated annual rental.
In the meantime, it had come to the minds of the brethren that while the site of the proposed Temple might be large enough for their day and for years to come; yet, as past experience had invariably shown, a period would certainly arrive when even so extensive an edifice as the one about to be erected would be found inadequate for the increasing membership of the Fraternity. It was there- fore decided to buy the lot in the rear of the one already purchased and it was bought by the Masonic Fund Society from the Schenley Farms Company; and since then the wisdom of that action has been confirmed by the fact that already, due to the tremendous growth of the Scottish Rite Bodies in the Valley of Pittsburgh and the other Masonic Bodies, space in the present great Temple is already lacking, and upon the additional property bought since 1913, em- bracing practically the entire block bounded by Fifth, Lytton, Tennyson and Bayard avenues, there will be constructed a magnificent Scottish Rite Cathedral.
Thus, with all the preliminary matters adjusted, the real estate transfers concluded, and the style of edifice de- cided upon, arrangements were made for the speedy erec- tion of the Temple. The Schenley Farms Company, who
208
HISTORY OF THE MASONIC FUND SOCIETY
were to put up the new structure, employed, by agreement with Trustees of the Masonic Fund Society, Benno Janssen and Franklin Abbott as the general architects, and the Trustees engaged the services of Edward Stotz, of Pitts- burgh, as their consulting architect, and at a meeting of the Trustees held November 4, 1913, Brother William M. Hamilton, then a member of the Board of Trustees and D. D. Grand Master of the 28th District, was elected as the "Society's representative for the erection of the new build- ing," thus acting in the capacity of supervisor of con- struction.
The announcements in the local newspapers at the time, telling of the sale of the old Freemasons Hall, the purchase of other property and the project for the erection of a great Temple aroused very general interest. In its issue of August 29, 1913, the Pittsburgh "Gazette-Times" had this to say:
Prominent contractors are here from leading cities figuring on plans and specifications for the new $1,000,000 Masonic Temple, which will have a large ground area at the corner of Fifth, Lytton and Tennyson avenues. Plans and specifications for the building on which the architects, Janssen & Abbott, have been at work for six months, have been completed and approved. The character of the construction makes the building a desirable type of work, and much interest is being taken in the contract by the foremost builders. The locating of and arranging for this structure realizes the dream of the various Masonic Bodies that a central Temple should be estab- lished suffciently large to meet all needs, and at the same time be monumental in character. The site purchased for the building is 240 feet square. The structure will practically cover the entire space and will be of granite, light in color, it being the aim of the Masonic Fraternity that their building should fit in with the great archi- tectural group of educational and semi-public buildings in the Schen- ley Park district. The Masonic Fraternity have not only shown their faith in the growth of Pittsburgh, but have also given evidence of their progressive spirit in arranging an enterprise which will cost when completed $1,500,000.
So the work of construction made satisfactory ad- vances and a report of the progress of the undertaking made to the Masonic Fund Society January 28, 1914, had the following :
The growing interest evinced by the members of the Fraternity in the new building, and the bright prospects for the establishment
209
HISTORY OF THE MASONIC FUND SOCIETY
of quite a number of new Bodies, confirm the wisdom of your So- ciety in thus providing for the comfort and welfare and for the future growth of the Craft.
With simple ceremonies ground had been broken for the foundation late in the year 1913, and the pick and shovel used on that occasion had been furnished by Lodge 45, the oldest, and Geter C. Shidle Lodge, No. 650, then the youngest, lodge in Pittsburgh. In their minutes of a meet- ing of the Trustees held August 5, 1915, is the following in connection with the above:
The president stated that the Masters and Secretaries of Lodges Nos. 45 and 650 had called on him and William M. Hamilton on be- half of Lodges 45 and 650 to present to the Society a pick and shovel as used in breaking ground for the new Temple; and that they would have the same nickle plated and turn the same over to the Society for safe keeping.
And the turf having been pierced and shoveled away with the aid of these two implements, they now, as treasur- ed mementoes of the occasion, hang conspicuously on the wall in the Museum room of the Temple.
Work on the building having reached the point for the laying of the corner stone, the Trustees of the Masonic Fund Society decided to signalize that event by impressive and elaborate ceremonies, and they fixed March 10, 1914, as the date. At a meeting February 3, 1914, the Trustees directed the secretary to "request the R. W. Grand Master to perform the ceremony," and at a meeting the next day Brothers Alfred S. Bishop, William M. Hamilton and An- drew D. Armstrong were named as a committee, "with power to add to their number," to arrange for the laying of the stone. This notable event took place upon the date selected. To the committee named above were added a number of other Masons, and the entire committee, as con- stituted, met for business on February 5, 1914, as follows:
J. Harvey Harrison Lodge No. 321
William D. McIlroy
219
James McClaren
223
Samuel Hamilton
66
510
M. Wilson Stewart
66 275
James I. Buchanan
219
Alfred S. Bishop
66
221
Andrew D. Armstrong
287
Frank D. Hartman
219
210
HISTORY OF THE MASONIC FUND SOCIETY
Theodore A. Motherell
374
Joseph E. Lewis
390
William H. Davis
287
Joseph S. Alexander
321
Eli Edmundson, Jr.
221
William M. Hamilton
576
Rowland S. Wilson
45
Americus V. Holmes
508
Harry M. Landis
219
George W. Gosser
66
508
James B. Youngson
219
Benjamin N. McClain
525
Brother William M. Hamilton was elected chairman of this general committee and Brother Andrew D. Armstrong was made secretary. As there was much and varied work to do in connection with the arrangement of the ceremonies, the procession and other matters, the auditorium in the Soldiers Memorial Building nearby was rented for the use of the committee, by which organization various sub-com- mittees were named. To the Committee on Programme and Entertainment was given the task of "entertaining all of the Grand Lodge officers from the time they arrive in the city until the services are concluded." With much detail the dress of the brethren who would be in the procession was arranged, as follows:
The dress will be in accordance with the instructions of the Deputy Grand Master, viz: Dark clothing, black tie, black shoes, white gloves and white lambskin aprons. Masters, Wardens, Secre- taries, Treasurers and Past Masters will wear black silk hats. All other members will wear black derby hats. Masters, Wardens, Sec- retaries, Treasurers and Past Masters will wear their respective jewels on the left lapel of the coat. Collars will not be worn.
March 10, 1914, when the great corner stone of the splendid Temple was laid will be a life-long memory to the brethren who participated in the solemn ceremonies. Over 10,000 Masons formed the great procession and thousands of the population of Pittsburgh and other places thronged the streets adjacent to the Temple. The weather was clear and the March air was a nipping one. But the brethren were in a joyous frame of mind and their contentment was not marred by cold weather or by an untoward event. The rendezvous for the Masons who were to constitute the pro-
211
HISTORY OF THE MASONIC FUND SOCIETY
cession was in a vast frame building at Bellefield avenue and Forbes street, which had been the "Tabernacle" wherein for weeks before Billy Sunday, the evangelist, had held forth. The building had been purchased by Brother John Eichleay, Jr., of Lodge 45, and he had turned it over to the Masons for the day. Many leading Masons from different parts of the country were present. The R. W. Grand Master, the late and greatly lamented Brother J. Henry Williams, had come to Pittsburgh, accompanied by a large retinue of Pres- ent and Past Grand Lodge Officers. The ceremonies were conducted mainly on an extensive platform erected by the side of the corner stone. On this platform stood the R. W. Grand Master and the other officiating officers, while a vast crowd of the brethren thronged around. The Grand Lodge officers who conducted the ceremnoies were as fol- lows:
Brother J. Henry Williams, Right Worshipful Grand Master. Brother Louis R. Watres, Right Worshipful Deputy Grand Master.
Brother James B. Krause, Right Worshipful Senior Grand Warden.
Brother John S. Sell, Right Worshipful Junior Grand Warden. Brother William B. Hackenburg, Right Worshipful Grand Treasurer.
Brother John A. Perry, Right Worshipful Grand Secretary.
Brother Edgar A. Tennis,
Brother George W. Kendrick, Jr.,
Brother George B. Orlady,
Brother George W. Guthrie,
Right Worshipful Past Grand Masters.
Brother William L. Gorgas,
Brother Grafton T. Reynolds,
Brother Maitland Alexander,
Brother J. Leonard Levy,
Grand Chaplains.
Brother Cortland Whitehead,
Brother Joseph W. Miles,
Brother George B. Wells, Senior Grand Deacon. Brother William H. Wren, Junior Grand Deacon.
Brother William H. Painter,
Brother Horace E. Campbell,
Grand Stewards.
Brother J. Warner Hutchins, Grand Marshal.
Brother Charles M. Clement, Grand Sword Bearer.
Brother August P. Kunzig, Grand Pursuivant.
Brother William B. Joslyn, Grand Tyler.
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HISTORY OF THE MASONIC FUND SOCIETY
The procession moved from the big "Tabernacle" at precisely 11 o'clock A. M., with Brother William H. Davis as Chief Marshal. When the head of the procession reached the west end of the platform prepared for the Grand Lodge at the corner stone, it halted and the ranks opened to the right and left, facing inward, and the brethren un- covered. Then R. W. Grand Master J. Henry Williams, pre- ceded by Grand Sword Bearer Charles M. Clement, and fol- lowed by the officers of the Grand Lodge and the Board of Trustees of the Masonic Fund Society, advanced, in reverse order, through the open ranks to the East of the platform where a band was stationed. Reaching the platform, the Grand Master assumed his station, as did the officers of the Grand Lodge. On the north side of the platform were grouped, among others, the Trustees of the Masonic Fund Society, the Mayor of Pittsburgh, the architects and others connected with the construction of the Temple. Then fol- lowed the ancient and impressive ceremonies peculiar to an event so Masonically significant. After the documents, coins and other articles had been deposited in the box by the Grand Treasurer, it was sealed and then placed by that officer in the cavity in the corner stone, amidst the im- pressive silence of the vast throng. The oration was de- livered by Brother Jesse E. B. Cunningham, of Pittsburgh, and then with a solemn benediction, the services ended.
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