MAGLJHammatt
JOHN B. HAMMATT 1778-1864
Junior Grand Warden, 1814
Senior Grand Warden, 1815
Deputy Grand Master, 1844
SIXTIETH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION
From Moore's Freemason's Monthly, Vol. XX, No. 2, December 1860, Page 58:
The Sixtieth Anniversary of the initiation of this venerable Brother occurred on the 26th ultimo, and was made the occasion, by St. John's Lodge, (of which he has been a member since the year following his admission into Masonry,) of one of the most interesting and gratifying festivals it has ever been our happiness to participate in. A special meeting of the Lodge was convened for the purpose, and especial pains were taken to call together as many of the older members of the fraternity in the city, as it was supposed might be able to attend without risk to their health. And there were accordingly present Brethren who had been Masons — one 60, another 56, another 54, and several ranging between 40 and 50 years, besides some two hundred or more of a later generation. Such an assemblage of the older members of the Order is rarely witnessed. The guest of the occasion was received in due form, the Brethren being arranged in double line, and was welcomed in warm and appropriate terms by the Master of the Lodge, Brother Wyzeman Marshall. A specimen of the work was then given on the third degree, — at the conclusion of which the W. Master again addressed the aged Brother in eloquent and touching words, and concluded by presenting him with a member's Jewel, in gold, suitably inscribed.
To this address Brother Hammalt made a brief reply, referring to his initiation in Columbian Lodge, sixty years ago, saying, that he soon after became a pupil of Thos. Smith Webb, of whom he learned the work and lectures of the first three degrees, and the following year united himself with St. John's Lodge, as a member; and in 1810, having filled most of the subordinate offices, he became its W. Master.
Our Brother was made a Royal Arch Mason in St. Andrew's Chapter, Boston, in 1801, and was elected its H. P. in 1810; and in 1811, he was elected Junior Grand Warden of the Grand Lodge of the State. He was knighted in the Boston Encampment in 1805, and continued an active member of it until 1815, when he removed to Alexandria, in the District of Columbia. While a resident there he was commissioned by the Grand Master of Virginia as District Deputy Grand Master, being at the time a member of Alexandria Washington Lodge, No. 22, of which Gen. Washington is said to have been Master at the time of its organization. In 1818, he served as H. P. of Potomac Chapter at Georgetown, and subsequently held the same office in Brook Chapter at Alexandria. In 1820, he became Master of Evangelical Lodge at Alexandria, and in 1826 was elected Dep. Grand High Priest of the Grand Chapter of the District. In 1830, he returned to Boston, and was subsequently appointed Deputy Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts.
He has also served as G. H. P. of the Grand Chapter of the State, and Grand Master of the Grand Encampment of Massachusetts and Rhode Island, and Commander of the Boston Encampment of Knights Templars. Indeed it would be difficult to name any office in Masonry, except that of Grand Master, which our Brother has not filled, and always to his own credit and the acceptance of his Brethren. He was born in Boston, June 12, 1778.
Brother Hammatt is not the oldest Mason in the United States, nor yet the oldest in our own State, but if there be one living whose whole life has been more earnestly, truthfully, or actively devoted to the best interests of Masonry in this country, he is unknown to us. But this is not the time to write his biography or his eulogy.
At the conclusion of the ceremonies in the Lodge-room, a procession was formed, and the Brethren, to the number of two hundred or more, including the invited guests, were marched to the banquet-hall, where an elegant and bountiful collation had been spread in the best style of the popular host of the Winthrop House. Here an hour or two were spent in a very agreeable way, and we doubt not to the satisfaction of all present.
MEMORIAL
From Proceedings, 1864, Page VI-524:
Whereas, it has pleased, the Supreme Architect of the Universe, to remove as we trust, to a better world, our late Brother R. W. John B. Hammatt,
Resolved. That in his death one of the brightest lights in the Masonic horizon has been extinguished; that one of the most devoted friends of the Order, has been called from among us.
Resolved. That his work has been well done, and that few, if any, in this community have done more to sustain and elevate the character of the Institution of Freemasonry, whether we refer to his Masonic efforts, or to the maintenance of that spotless character as a man, which ever sheds its lustre upon all associations with which its possessor is connected.
Resolved. That in calling to mind the virtues of our departed Brother, and his accomplishments as a Mason which endeared him to many friends, and exalted him to the highest honors, we lament that on this occasion so little justice can be done to his memory. For his fidelity to the Order, his punctuality and attention in the path of duty — his unassuming deportment — his courteous and cordial address, his spotless integrity in business, and we have reason to believe, his unfeigned Christian meekness during a protracted Masonic career of above sixty years, deserve more than a brief Resolution on such a life. But his character is written down in our memory. We knew him as among the foremost defenders of our Institutions in the dark days of persecution — He has since been with us in our meridian prosperity, and to Avhom can we compare this noble and exemplary mason, with more fitness than to one of those Sacred Three whose memorial stands in our memory among the most beautiful emblems of Masonry.
Resolved. That we sincerely condole with the relations and family connections of our late deceased Brother and that we tender to them the assurance of our participation in their sorrow.
Resolved. That these resolutions be entered upon the records of the Grand Lodge, and that an attested Copy thereof be sent to the family of our deceased Brother.
ABr. A. DAME,
JOHN R. BRADFORD,
JOHN H. SHEPPARD.
From Freemasons' Monthly Magazine, Vol. 23, Page 282:
If long and faithful services, steadfast and unwavering fidelity to principle, strict integrity of character, a blameless life, and a constant practice of the Christian virtues of Charity, Truth, and Benevolence, added to a warm and generous Friendship, can ever entitle the memory of a Brother to the respect and gratitude of generous and sympathizing hearts, then that tribute of love and honor will be freely paid to the memory of him whose recent death we are now called upon to record in our pages, and whose name we have placed at the head of this brief notice.
Brother Hammatt was born in Boston on the 12th of June, 1778, and having received such an education as the public schools of the town at that time afforded, he was apprenticed in 1792, at the age of 14, (the usual age at which boys at that day began their apprenticeship,) to the late Deacon Moses Grant, as an upholsterer and paper-stainer; and in 1799, at the. age of 21, he commenced business on his own account, and so successfully m anaged his affairs, as to secure to himself a competency through a long life.
He was initiated into Masonry by Columbian Lodge, of Boston, in the year 1800, and was admitted to membership in St. John's Lodge in 1801, and of which he was elected Master in 1810. He was exalted to R. A. Masonry in St. Andrew's Chapter in 5801, and became a member June 9, 5802. He filled the office of King in that body in 5808, 5809 and 5813, and of that of High Priest in 5810 and 5811. In the Grand Lodge he was appointed a Steward in 5802, by R. W. Isaiah Thomas; a Deacon in 5807, by R. W. Timothy Bigelow; was elected Junior Grand Warden in December, 5811, and Senior Grand Warden in December, 5814. He was Knighted in the Boston Encampment in 5805, and admitted to membership therein in 5806. Bro. Hammatt removed to Alexandria, D. C., in 5815, and returned to Boston in 5830. While in Alexandria he was commissioned by the Grand Lodge of Virginia as D. Deputy Grand Master, in which capacity he visited fourteen Lodges in his District. At the end of the year, he declined a reappointment. He was at the time a member of Alexandria Washington Lodge, No. 29, of which, it is said, Gen. Washington was its first Master. In 5818 he was appointed by the Grand Chapter of Maryland and District of Columbia, as the first High Priest of Potomac Chapter in Georgetown, which station he held three years, when he was called to preside over Brook Chapter, in Alexandria, which received a Charter from the same Grand Chapter. In 5820 he was elected Master of Evangelic Lodge in Alexandria, and served two or three years. In 5826 he was elected Deputy Grand High Priest of the Grand Chapter of the District of Columbia, over which body R. W. Wm. W. Seaton was at the time Grand High Priest. They both retained their offices until 5830.
While in the Grand Chapter Brother Hammatt was appointed Grand Lecturer by the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia. After his return to Boston in 5830, he was appointed Deputy Grand Master by R. W. Augustus Peabody; he served as Grand Commander of the Boston Encampment of Knights Templars; Grand High Priest of the Grand Chapter of Massachusetts ; and as Grand Master of the Grand Encampment of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Indeed there are few official places in Masonry that he had not filled, with credit to himself and to the great acceptance of his Brethren, by whom he was universally esteemed and beloved. He was rarely out of office, and as rarely absent from the meetings of any Body to which he belonged. Proficient in the Ritual of the various grades of the Order, he was always ready to fill, temporarily or otherwise, any place that might be vacant, or to aid with his counsel any officer who might need his services. He was probably the oldest Mason in this Commonwealth, and with few rare exceptions, the oldest in the country. He was certainly one of the most efficient and active. Until within the last few years, he had enjoyed almost uninterrupted health during his whole Masonic life, and his great happiness seemed to be in mingling with his Brethren and counselling them in their labors. About eighteen months since, being in feeble health, he fell in the street and sustained a serious injury, from which he never recovered, and which probably shortened his life some years. He died on the third day of June last, and was buried from the residence of his daughter in this city on the sixth. His remains were deposited in the Granary Burying Ground.
From Freemasons' Monthly Magazine, Vol. 24, Page 127:
The following Resolutions, commemorative of the death of the late Brother John B. Hammatt, were offered by Brother Moore, P. G. M., and adopted by the Grand Encampment of Mass. and Rhode Island, at its late communication in this city: -
In Grand Encampment, Oct. 28, 1864.
Whereas, it has pleased God to remove from his labors on earth, to his rest in heaven, our beloved Companion Sir John Barrett Hammett, who died in this city on the third day of June last, in the eighty-sixth year of his age; therefore.
Resolved, That, in the death of our aged and venerated Associate, we recognize with grateful hearts, the beneficence and wisdom of the Great Author of every good, in sparing him to us and his beloved family, until the "sere and yellow leaf" had ripened on his brow, and existence had become a burden. Then, wisely and mercifully was the "silver cord loosed", the "golden bowl broken", and the spirit, in joy and beauty, returned unto God who gave it.
Resolved, That we will cherish the memory of our deceased Brother, as one who, by his long services, his steadfast and unwavering fidelity, his strict integrity of character, - by a blameless life, and a daily practice of the Christian virtues of charity, beneficence, and truth, had endeared himself to the whole Masonic Family.
Resolved, That we affectionately tender our sympathies to his bereaved children, and other surviving relatives, and invoke for them the protection, guidance and blessing of our father in Heaven.
