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FIRST LODGE / SAINT JOHN'S LODGE (Boston)

Location: Boston

Chartered By: Henry Price

Charter Date: 07/30/1733 I-2

Precedence Date: 07/30/1733

Current Status: Active

NOTES

The oldest lodge in the jurisdiction of Massachusetts, St. John's Lodge Boston was granted the first charter by Grand Master Henry Price in St. John's Grand Lodge in 1733. Its history is inextricably linked with that Grand Lodge's history, and its records are commingled in Volume I of the Proceedings.

According to a note in the 1953 Proceedings (Page 1953-199), this Lodge was formally called "First Lodge" until 1783, when "Second Lodge" was merged into it. (This would be the first recorded merger in the history of the Craft in Massachusetts.)

Fourth Estate Lodge merged here, 05/23/1985.

NOTES ON ORIGINAL RECORDS

From New England Freemason, Vol. I, No. 2, February 1874, p. 82:

The Grand Lodge of Massachusetts lias recently regained possession of several volumes of Records which have long been missing, and which were supposed to have been irrecoverably lost. Among the most important and valuable of these are the Records of the Massachusetts Grand Lodge from 1769 to 1792 — being from the organization until the union with St. John's Grand Lodg ; the Records of the First Lodge in Boston, from 1738 to 1754; those of the Second Lodge in Boston, from 1761 to 1775, and those of the Master's Lodge, from 1738 to 1761.

Among the most interesting of these volumes is that containing the Proceedings of the First Lodge. The title page is as follows:

THIS
BOOK.OF REGISTERS
BELONGING TO THK ANTIENT AND HON:BLE SOCIETY OF
FREE AND ACCEPTED MASONS
IN
BOSTON NEW ENGLAND
WAS PRESENTED BY
Bro. Thomas Walker, Senior Warden.
Anno Domini 1738.
And of Masonry 5738.

The penmanship throughout the volume, with the exception of the first year, is beautiful, aud would be highly creditable to the most accomplished professor of the art in the present day. As a sample, we present a facsimile of the most elaborate page. The book opens with a copy of the deputation of Henry Price, granted by Montague, Grand Master, and dated "at London the thirtieth day of April, 1733, & of Masonry 5733." Next follow the By-Laws, which are so quaint and curious that we give them in full.

The following Regulations or By-Laws were unanimously Voted and ugreed upon by the Brethren of the first Constituted Lodge in Boston New England at their Meeting October 24, 1733—5733 and are as follows . . . Viz.:

• First. NO PERSON shall be made a Mason unless all the Brethren members Present are Unanimous, and if but one member be against him he shall be rejected.
• Secondly. NO BROTHER shall be admitted a Member of this Lodge unless all the Members Present are unanimous as aforesaid, and upon his or their admission shall pay twenty shillings, as also their Quarteridge, agreeable to a former vote, (so many Lodge nights as is past of that Quarter to be first discounted) and shall consent to the By-Laws and Regulations of this Lodge by subscribing their names to the same.
• Thirdly. NO BROTHER OR BROTHERS shall eat any victuals in the Lodge Room while the Lodge is open, without the leave of the Master or Wardens, nor call for Liquor or Tobacco without Leave as aforesaid.
• Fourthly. ANY PERSON OR PERSONS being balloted in may be made on a private night by dispensation from the Master and Wardens—Provided the Expence of that Lodge be not taken out of the money that is paid for such making, but every Brother present at such private making shall pay his Clubb or share of that Expence.
• Fifthly. NO BROTHER that lives within or about this Town (that is not a member of this Lodge) shall l>e admitted as a Visitor, before he has Signi¬ fied his desire of being a member and paying his Quarteridge, or else make it appear that he is actually a member of a Regular Lodge; Unless by a Dis¬ pensation of the Master and Wardens.
• Sixthly. EVERY VISITOR shall pay three shillings towards the Reckoning each night.
• Seventhly. NO BROTHER shall propose any Person in the Lodge to be made without first asking leave of the Master and Wardens.
• Eighthly. EVERY MEMBER of this Lodge shall pay eighteen shillings per Quarter for the Expence of the Lodge, and every member that does not pay his Quarteridge on the first l»dge night of the Quarter, or on the second at farthest (if Present), shall be Excluded from being a member, and all Privilidge of the Lodge.
• Ninthly. EVERY' MEMBER shall pay at least two shillings more per Quarter to be applied as Charity towards the Relief of poor Brethren.
• Tenthly. ANY MEMBER that proposes a Candidate, if voted or Balloted in, the member that proposed his friend, shall imediately deposit fourty shillings, in the hands of the Cashier, which shall be Allow'd as part of the Making, provided the candidate attends at the time he is proposed to be made, but if the candidate does not attend as aforesaid, being duly warned, the said Fourty shillings shall be forfeited and spent, and not allowed as part of that making.
• Eleventhly. THE TREASURER or Cashier of this Lodge, upon his quit¬ ting his office, or when another is chosen in his room, shall render a just and true Account to tha, Master and Wardens of the Lodge for the time being of all the money Received, Expended and Remaining in his hands, with the Lodge book and Accompts, which he is to deliver up to the Master and War¬ dens in order and fairly stated.
• Twelfthly. THE MASTER AND WARDENS of this Lodge shall take care that the Expence of a Lodge night (when there is no making) shall not Exceed three shillings per Member present for the Reckoning, which sum of three shillings per Member or Brother present, the Cashier has liberty to pay and no more.
• Thirteenthly. THE MASTER of this Lodge, or in absence (sic) the Grand Master, Deputy Grand Master, or Wardens, when there is a private Lodge ordered to be held for a Making, shall be obliged to give all the Mem¬ bers timely notice of the time and place in writing where such Lodge is held that they may give their attendance, and every member being duly warned as aforesaid, and neglecting to attend on such Private making, shall not be clothed. (THE above article voted November 14, 1733—5733).
• Fourteenthly. NO MEMBER that is absent from the Lodge of a Lodge night when there is a making shall have the Benefit of being cloathed for that time.

In many respects this seems to be an admirable code of By-Laws. They are brief and to the point, not, as is often the case in more modern days, overloaded with provisions drawn from the ancient constitutions and landmarks which every Mason is bound to have graven on his heart and to make the rule of his daily life. They are so brief that they might be read at every meeting without wearying the members, and they are so explicit that there is no room for doubt or uncertainty: "every member that does not pay his Quarteridge on the first Lodge night of the Quarter, or on the Second at farthest (if Present) shall be excluded from being a member and all Privilidge of the Lodge." They require a unanimous ballot for membership, a principle from which some Lodges have departed, as we think unwisely. They deny Masonic privileges to those drones in our hives who are too lazy, too indifferent, or too stingy to perform any Masonic duties, and therefore remain unaffiliated. Many of the Grand Lodges in this country are seriously considering the propriety of going back to the old rule in this matter, and some have already adopted it. The Grand Lodge of New York, by its revised Constitutions, denies to unaffiliated Masons the right of visiting, joining in Masonic processions, or receiving Masonic aid or burial.

Another good article in these By-Laws is the requiring of the consent of the Master and Wardens before proposing a candidate. In these degenerate days it would prove an additional safeguard against the admission of unworthy men, and in such cases would save the ill-feeling now so often engendered by rejection.

The regulation in regard to eating, drinking and smoking while the Lodge was open was important in old times, because the meetings were always held in taverns. This practice was due partly to the fact that such houses afforded the only rooms for large assemblies, and partly to the fact that the Brethren partook of some refreshment together on every Lodge night, which could be more readily furnished at a public house than elsewhere.

The thirteenth and fourteenth Articles undoubtedly refer to the use of aprons and gloves. Brother Lyon, in his History of the Lodge of Edinburgh, relates that "early in the seventeenth century it was a rule of the Lodge of Kilwinning that intrants should present so many pairs of gloves on their admission; but as the membership increased there was such an inconvenient accumulation of this article of dress that 'glove money' came to be accepted in its stead." He further informs us that "white gloves are known to have been worn in the Lodge of Kilwinning as the livery of the Craft, at the middle of the seventeenth century. About eighty years intervene before the Kilwinning records afford any trace of aprons or jewels (compass, square, plummet and level) being recognised as Masonic regalia. The minutes of the Lodge of Dunblane, January 8, 1724, contain a record of the presentation of aprons and gloves to three non-operative intrants. Liveries are not again mentioned in the Dunblane records till December 1, 1730, when "the members, taking into their consideration that it were very decent the Lodge were suitably cloathed every Saint John's-day, and did frankly wear the badges of a free and accepted Mason, conform to the order observed in many rightly constituted Lodges in Scotland and England, do therefore enact and ordain that each member of the Lodge shall on every Saint John's-day following put on and wear a white apron and a pair of white gloves as the � badge . . which gloves and aprons are to be kept by the Treasurer in a chest to be made for the purpose, to be given out to each member in due time each St. John's-day, or any other time which shall be thought necessary to put on the same." The sash, as part of the office-bearers' livery, was adopted in 1744; and jewels began to be worn in 1760, the year in which the Dunblane Fraternity joined the Grand Lodge, and in which also the custom of providing the young brethren with gloves and aprons was abolished. The item of gloves frequently appears among the payments recorded by the Secretary of the First Lodge, for example, in the second entry, under date of January 10,1738, "Gloves, &c, £10.16s.1d." In the same record appears "Memorandum 8 new aprons 40s." Immediately following the By-Laws, we find entered the Deputation granted to R. W. Robert Tomlinson as Grand Master by the Earl of Loudoun, under date of December 7, 1736.

The first record is as follows: "VI. Wednesday, the 27th December, being Lodge Night and the Feast of St. John the Evangelist; Our Brother Luke Vardy (at whose house the Lodge is usually held) being incapable of entertaining the society, from the afflictive circumstance of having this day buried his wife; the Lodge was held at Brother Andrew Halliburton's. The following Brethren met." Then follow the names of twenty-three Brethren, with that of R. W. Brother Benjamin Hallowell, as Master, at their head, followed by that of Brother Henry Price. Against the name of each Brother, except the Treasurer, is written "pd. 10s.," and the whole is summed up as follows:

Reconing, .... £15.13s.6d.
Tyler, ..... 3s
(total) £15.16s.6d.
The above Brethren pd. £11
Deficient, .....£4.16s.6d.

This is the entire record and is the counterpart of a large portion of those contained in the volume, many of them consisting solely of the names of the Brethren present, with the sum paid by each, and the amount of the Reckoning and the Tyler's fee.

Wednesday, the eighth of August, 1739, the Lodge being opened, Brother Murry presented a letter from the Grand Lodge holden at Antigua, which is as follows:

Right Worshipfull, Worshipfull, Thrice Worthy and Ever Dear Brethren:

We with the utmost Pleasure received your hearty congratulation Upon the Establishment of Masonry in this our Island, and return thanks to Our Brethren of Boston, for the good Opinion they entertain of the virtues of Our Countrymen, which we hope will be continualy encreasing as the Royal Craft comes every day to flourish and gain ground among us, not only by the accession of numbers of New Brethren, but especially under the happy Influence Of our thrice Worthy Right Worshipfull Grand Master his Excellency William Mathew, whom we boast of as a true good Mason and a sincere lover and encourager of our inestimable Craft.

We take kindly our Dear Brethren's offer of a friendly correspondence, and should before this time have signified the pleasure we hope to reap from it by an answer to yours of the fourth of April last, but that we waited for an Opertunity of sending our sincere and hearty good wishes to our Brethren and Fellows by the hands of one who might in our name greet you in a Brotherlike manner.

We are now so happy as to enjoy this wish'd for opertunity by Our well beloved Brother Major John Murrys intending for Boston in a Very few Days, whom we commend to you as a worthy upright Master Mason, who has for some time past executed the office of a S. W. of one of our Lodges to the intire satisfaction of all his Brethren and Fellows.

All the Brethren here salute you well beloved with the greeting of St. John, wishing that all Prosperity may attend you and that no Malicious Cowan may ever with profane ears and eyes approach even the lowest step of your Worshipfull Lodge, in order to listen to the Wisdom or pry into the Beauty or Disturb the order and harmony thereof.

We are, Dear Brethren,
Your sincer Effectionate Brethren and Humble Servants.
From the Grand Lodge held at the Court house in St. Johns the 27th June A. L. 5739.

Sign'd by the Command of the Ri't W'pfull the Grand Master.
William Mercer, G. S.

Wednesday, April 9, 1740.

The Lodge being open'd, the Committee appointed Last Lodge Night, to prepare a Remonstrance to lay before the R. W. Master and Brethren of this Society, were Introduced in due form; and Order'd to Present the same; Bro. T. Moffatt, one of the said Committee, was desired to Read it, in the Audience of the R. W. Master & Brethren; and, after due Attention Voted, Nemeni Con: that the Said Remonstrance be Ingross'd in the Book, and to pass into a Law, that, for the Future, the Premium to be paid by Can¬ didates, at their Initiation, to be Ten Pounds.

Voted, that the Said Committee be Respectfully Thanked for their Care and Trouble in drawing up Said Remonstrance; Which was perform'd by the R. W. Master & Brethren in due form.
Voted, that the Said Committee be continued, and, that our W. Brothers Oxnard and Waghorne be added to them, in order to prepare a Remonstrance (as soon as possible) for the Benefit of the Bank Stock &c. of this Society.
The R. W. Master Bro. Hugh McDaniel, Propos'd, and nominated, Mr. Box, (Rope Maker) a Candidate; and to answer 40s.

To the R. W. Master and W. Wardens, and the reft of the Members of this Lodge.

We whose Names are hereunto annex'd, being a Committee appointed by this Lodge to consider, whether it be Expedient that a greater Pnemium than that now Stipulated by a Quandam Vote of this Society, be required from Candidates before Admission into our Lodge.

We, after due Deliberation upon the present Circumstances of this Lodge, and Treasury thereof, do think that it is now, not only Proper, but absolutely Necessary for preserving the Honour and Dignity of Masonry in General, and advancing the Interest of this Lodge in perticular: That the sum paid by Novices before Initiation be Augmented, and that the said Augmentation when coneurr'd to, & agreed on, may presently have the Sanction of a Law hence-forward.

We, your Said Committee, are persuaded, that most of the Reasons which prevailed for then establishing the Inaugurating Fee at the present Rate, do not now Subsist; and consequently cannot be employ'd as Arguments against our Judgment, and Opinion, to abrogate, or alter that Decree. As that was a Resolution of this Lodge when in its Infant-state, and scarcely a sufficient Number to form One perfectly, much less to maintain it with spirit; We regard it only as a Result of Necessity, and good Policy, whereby the Society might be Encreased to a proper Number.

We, your Committee, are convinced that if the sum paid by Candidates was fixed at Ten Pounds, it would not prevent.any man of merit from making Application; on the Contrary—would Invite, and induce Them, inasmuch as it would discourage those of mean Spirits, and narrow, or Incumbered Fortunes from Solliciting to Enter with Us; both which are Inconveniences which We cannot carefully enough avoid, or provide against; because We apprehend the First to be a Disparagement to, and prostitution of Our Honour; And the Latter are often a heavy Charge, and Burthen, in a General and Particular Respect.

We, Your Committee, observe that at some Admissions, there has little or no part of the Money (after defraying incumbent Expences) been applyed towards the encreasing of Our Publick Bank-Stock—nay! that at Times, there has been Occasion Voluntarily to Contribute for discharging the Defficiency, or else Vote the same out of the Treasury; by both which pernicious Practices, that Fund, which should be encouraged, & encreas'd by all honest methods, & means—is Lessen'd, & the Noble Ends, & Purposes, for which it was destin'd, & appropriated—are frustrated, and rendered abortive.

Wherefore, We. Your Committee, move for Concurrence with us in Opinion. whereby tilt! General & Pellicular Interest, & Honour of Our Society may lie advanced: and by which Men of Eminence may be encouraged, and those of base Spirits, & embarrass'd Fortunes may be discouraged to associate with Us— And by which our Fund, which ought to be inviolably sacred towards the Relief of Indigent & Distress'd Masons, their Wives, & Children, may be presen-'d and encreas'd.

We, Your Committee, think there are Further Menus, whereby all these ndvantngcs might be further enlarged, and secured, which We heartily wish.

Thos. Moffatt,
Thos. Walker,
Peter Pelham.

April the 7th, 5740.

Wednesday, May the 27th, 1741.

The house being all taken up and engaged on some publick affairs, there was no Lodge held.
Wednesday, June the 24th, 1741.

The Lodge being Open'd, the Brethren proceeded to the Choise of Officers for the six months ensuing; Accordingly, our Right Worshipful M. James Forbes was continued Master of this Lodge; Bro. C. Phillips elected S. W.; Bro Row, J. W.; Bro. H. McDaniel, Treasurer; Bro. Pelham, Secretary, and Bro. C. Talis, Tylar.

Voted, that the Treasurer give Bond jus a security to this Society in the Names and to the Master & Wardens of the Lodge for the time being, or to the order of the Society, &c.
Voted, that the Wardens, with Bros. Johonnot, Tuthil, and Pelham, be a Committee to Inspect and Audit the Accounts of our Late Treasurer, Bro. Hallowell, & report the same to the Lodge.
This night being the Festival of St. John the Baptist, the same was observ'd in very perticular and eligant manner by all the Brethren present as nlxive Named; when Our R. W. Brother Thomas Oxnard held a Grand l«odge, and was pleas'd to Nominate and Appoint Bro. Steven Deblois S. G. W.; Bro. Robert Jenkins, J. G. W.; Bro. P. Pelham, G. S., and Bro. Stevenson, G. Tylar for the Year Ensuing.

I. Wednesday, July 8th, 1741. Lodge Night.

But the house being fill'd by the members of the General Court, and no possibility of a proper room to hold a Lodge; Order'd by our Right Worshipfull M. that the Brethren be summon'd to meet him to-morrow at seven o'clock in the Evening, being Thursday. Tylar, 5s.

VI. Wednesday, September 23, 1741.

The Lodge being open'd, Our Right Worshipfull Master recommended to the Brethren that it was his opinion, some perticular order should be observed in toasting the health of our R. W. Brother, the Honorable Mr. Belcher; and tbat a Committee might be appointed as soon as possablc to wait upon him, with acknowledgements from the Lodge, of his past favors, and to return our thanks, &c.
Voted, that next after the G. M. the Late Governor of this Province is to be toasted in the following manner, viz.: To our R. W. Brother, the Honorable Mr. Belcher, Late Governour of N. E. with 3-3-3=9.
Voted, that Our R. W. Bros., T. Oxnard, D. G. M., Bros. Phillips, Row, Price, Hallowell, Forbes, McDaniel and Pelham, be a Committee to form a speech, and wait upon the Hon. Mr. Belcher in behalf of this Society, and to make report of their proceeding the next Lodge.
Voted, that the Twenty-four Masons Glasses lately deliver'd to the Society, by our R. W. Bro. Forbes, be paid for out of the Treasury of this Society.

It is curious and interesting to trace in these Records the same practices and the same forms of expression as are reported by Brother Lyon as prevailing about that period among the Brethren in Scotland. In both cases, we find the Fraternity, and generally the Lodge, described as "the Society." The Mason Glasses were in use in both countries. They were made very heavy and strong, and after drinking a toast which met especial approval, the Brethren were wont to pound the table with their glasses by way of applause. The Boston Records frequently contain an item for broken glasses in addition to the "Reckoning" which is reported for each meeting. Upon this subject, Brother Lyon gives us the following curious information : —

"A predilection for 'Miison Glasses' was characteristic of the Craft in the latter half of the eighteenth century. The peculiarity of these glasses lay in having soles of extraordinary thickness—an essential requisite to the then form of Masonic toast-drinking—and not unfrequently they bore emblems of the Craft, along with the name of the Lodge owning them. Long-stalked ones, capable of holding an English quart, and called 'constables' were wont to be used by the Master and Wardens on high festive occasions. It was a custom of Kirk-Sessions in the last century to lend their Communion Cups to neighboring parishes not in possession of such articles, on payment of a stipulated sum for tile use of the poor. The lending of Mason glasses to meet the exigencies of anniversary communications, was a common practice among the Fraternity; and the charges that were made in respect of broken glasses was one of the curiosities of Lodge disbursements a century ago, as it was also in those of Mason Incorporations at and long prior to that period. The following, selected at random, is one of many similar entries in the books of the Mary Chapel Incorporation; Item, paid for sack, bread, and two glasses which came to the Chappell and were breken, at the election of the Deacons at Michalemas, 1685, seven pounds, six shillings. Articles of a more enduring texture than crystal were exposed to the risk of deterioration from the hilarity of the Brethren. October, 1756: The Lodge recommended to the Treasurer to get Br. Hutton's fiddle mended, which was broken by accident in the Lodge, and to take credit in his accompts for what he should pay in getting it rectified. Apropos of fiddles, the following curious entry appears in the minutes of the Lodge of Peebles: 5th May, 1727: This day the Honbl. Company of Masons conveened considering the sev'rl petitions given in by Marion Blackie, relict of John Wood, a Brother of this Lodge, that she had ane fiddle to raffle, and craved that the honbl. company would give in what they thought proper thereto—doe hereby ordain their box-master to give in five shillings ster. to the sd. raffle, and ordains the Deacon to raffle himself, or any other he pleases appoint for five throwes, and what is won to come into the box. In a more disinterested spirit, the Lodge, in 1747, instructed its Master to attend the raffle of two pistols belonging to a member, and to give in a crown out of the box, providing it be laid out for meall to the wife and children.

I. Wednesday, October the 14th, 1741.

Voted, that a Committee be appointed to wait on his Exellency, Governour Shirly, to Congratulate him on his advancement to the Government of this Province, &c., when it was propos'd and agre'd that the following persons should form said Committee, to act in behalf of this Society, viz.: Our R. W. Bros. Thomas Oxnard, Forbes, Overing, Price, Hallowell, Jenkins, McDaniel, Phillips, Johonnot, and Pelham, and to make report of their Proceedings next Lodge night.

On Fryday, September 25, 1741, the Committee appointed by this Lodge waited upon the Honorable Mr. Belcher, &c, and made the following Speech:
Thrice Worthy Brother: — We, being a Committee by the Mother Lodge of N. England held in Boston to wait on You, take this opportunity to Acknowledge the many favours You have always shewed (when in Power) to Masonry in General, but in a More Especial manner to the Brethren of this Lodge, of which we shall ever retain a most grateful Remembrance.

As we have had Your Protection when in the most Exalted Station here, so we think it's Incumbent on us to make the Acknowledgment, having no other means to testify our Gratitude but this; and to wish for Your future Health and Prosperity, which is the Sincere desire of Us, and those in whose behalf We appear, and permit us to assure You we shall ever remain, Honored Sir,
Your most Affectionate Brethren & Humble Servants,
Peter Pelham, Secretary, in behalf of the Committee.
To which, we rec'd the following Answer:

Worthy Brothers: I take very kindly this mark of your Respect. It is now Thirty-Seven years since I was admitted into the Ancient and Honorable Society of Free and Accepted Masons, to whom I have been a faithful Brother & a well-wisher to the Art of Masonry,

I shall ever maintain a strict friendship for the whole Fraternity, & always be glad when it may fall in my power to do them any Services.

J. Belcher.

"The Honorable Mr. Belcher," thus highly complimented, was born in Boston in 1681, graduated at Harvard in 1699, visited Europe, and had all the advantages of education and travel which the opulence of a fond father could give. It was at this time that he was presented to the Princess Sophia and her son, afterwards George II., and made a Mason, as he says, about the year 1704—thirteen years before the reorganization of the Institution in England in 1717. He returned to Boston, and engaged in business as a merchant. He was chosen a member of the Council, and in 1729 again visited England, this time as the agent of the Colony. While he was thus engaged, Go ernor Burnet died, and Mr. Belcher succeeded in obtaining the appointment of Governor of Massachusetts and New Hampshire, which he held from 1730 to 1741. His administration was an almost constant struggle with the General Court to enforce the grantiug of a fixed and annual salary as required by the King, and for the settlement of vexed financial questions. The animosities excited by these latter subjects led to his removal, and the appointment of Governor Shirley. Another visit to England enabled him to vindicate his integrity, and to secure the appointment of Governor of New Jersey. There he passed the remainder of his life in comparative repose, and died August 31, 1757, aged 76. The historian informs us that " added to his excellent endowments of mind were a peculiar beauty and gracefulness of person, in which he was equalled by no man in his day; and there was a dignity in his mien and deportment which com¬ manded respect."

Henry Price appointed as his first Deputy Grand Master the Governor's son Andrew, who was then Register of Probate for Suffolk Connty, and in the same year (1733) the Governor gave Price a Cornet's commission in his own troop, or body-guard. The relations between them must therefore have been very friendly and intimate.

At first thought, the Brethren of the olden time may be considered to have been extravagant in the indulgence of their convivial inclinations, judging from their "Reckonings," which frequently ranged as high as £15. During the time covered by these Records, the currency was continually depreciating, on account of frequent issues of paper money. About the year 1740, we think the proportion between this currency and sterling was as 12 to 1, thus reducing the expense of a meeting to six or seven dollars.

The Roman numerals at the head of each Record indicate the number of each meeting in the quarter.

From a somewhat hasty examination, we are inclined to the opinion that the volume under consideration consists of copies made from another book, or from memoranda, by Charles Pelham, a son of Peter Pelham. The latter was Secretary from 1739 to 1744. He died in 1751. We learn from Brother N. B. Shurtleff that Peter came over from England about the year 1726, having probably been previously made a Mason. He brought with him his son Charles, bom in 1722. At the age of 17 he probably commenced copying his father's records into this book, and continued the work until he came of age, when he was made a Mason (in 1744), and at the very next meeting his name appears as Secretary, and so continues until the end of the book. If our supposition in this regard be correct, it does not, in our judg¬ ment, in the slightest degree invalidate the authenticity or credibility of these Records. In a future number we hope to be able to give further extracts from and comments on these very curious and interesting minutes.

PAST MASTERS

YEARS

1733 -> 1791

1793 1805 1826 1848 1855 1857 1860 1863 1867 1869 1870 1872 1873 1874 1876 1877 1878 1880 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1888 1891 1892 1895 1896 1898 1899 1900 1903 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1911 1912 1913 1914 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1931 1933 1936 1940 1941 1942 1946 1947 1953 1954 1955 1958 1960 1962 1965 1966 1968 1970 1972 1977 1979 1982 1983 1984 1985 1990 1991 1992 1998 2003 2004 2005 2007 2008 2011

EVENTS

MASONIC LEVEE, FEBRUARY 1860

From Moore's Freemason's Monthly, Vol. XIX, No. 5, March 1860, Page 140:

St. John's Lodge, of this city — the Mother Lodge of America — numbering nearly two hundred and twenty-seven years since its first organization — was recently the scene of one of the most successful and interesting purely Masonic reunions it has been our good fortune to attend for many years past. The occasion was somewhat unique in its character. The Brethren of Rising Sun Lodge, at Nashua, N. H., had sometime previously signified to Brother Wyzeman Marshall, the accomplished and gentlemanly W. Master of St. John's Lodge, that it would afford them great satisfaction to witness the ceremonies of the third degree, as exemplified by his Lodge, at such time as might suit his convenience. The evening of the 8th February last was accordingly fixed upon for the purpose.

The Lodge was opened at 7 o'clock, and the large hall was soon after filled by the members and visitors, including, among the latter, about sixty Brethren from Nashua, with the R. W. Brother Hughes, Deputy Grand Master of New Hampshire, at their head. The Grand Master, Deputy Grand Master, and several of the other officers of the Grand Lodge of this State, together with a large number of the heads of the Lodges and other Masonic bodies in the city, were also present, — numbering altogether between three and four hundred Brethren.

This is not the place to speak of the ceremonies in other than general terms. They were given in a manner worthy of the reputation of this ancient Lodge and of its skillful officers. It would be difficult to say wherein the work as exhibited could have been improved.

At the conclusion of the ceremonies, the members of the Lodge, with their invited guests and visitors, repaired in procession to the banqueting-hall, were a collation was served up in all the variety, elegance and sumptuousness for which that prince of caterers, J. B. Smith, is so eminently and justly distinguished. The Brethren having satisfied their physical wants, the speaking was commenced by the W. Master of the Lodge, who gave as a sentiment, the M. W. Grand Lodge of the Commonwealth, which called up Dr. Lewis, the Grand Master, who spoke with his accustomed readiness and pertinence. He was followed by the R. W. Brother Hughes of Nashua, D. G. Master of the Grand Lodge of New Hampshire, who made a very excellent and effective speech. Speeches were also made by the Master of Rising Sun Lodge (Nashua), Dr. Smith, D. G. Master, and others — the speaking continuing until a late hour.

The occasion was one long to be remembered; and to it and its pleasant incidents, the minds of all who had the good fortune to be present, will often revert with pleasurable recollections.

BIOGRAPHIES

JONATHAN BELCHER 1681-1757

• MM in England in 1704; first American-born Freemason
• Member 1736 of First Lodge

From Moore's Freemason's Monthly, Vol. XXVIII, No. 2, December 1868, Page 33:

In our issue for October last, we spoke of the early history of Masonry in the Province of New Jersey, and incidentally using the name of Governor Belcher, intimated an intention of referring, at an early occasion, to his connection with our Order while a resident of Massachusetts. But before proceeding to do so, we may be allowed to remark generally, that the establishment of the Grand Lodge in Boston in 1733, was an event which seems to have been received with universal favor and encouragement by all classes of the community. It was a popular movement, and the ablest and most distinguished gentlemen of the Province soon began to enroll themselves among its members. And it is a notable fact, that between the date above given, and the closing of the Revolutionary War, the names of a very large majority of the master minds who inaugurated and successfully accomplished that great movement, are to be found in the record-books of the Lodges that had been established in Boston in the intermediate time. We do not undertake to account for this on any other ground, than the high character which the Institution early assumed, and the dignified and unexceptionable manner in which its affairs were conducted. A recital of the names which might be given from the records, in confirmation of this, would be of very little interest to the general reader, unaccompanied by such historical notices as would be necessary to illustrate their individual characters, and to indicate their private and public relations. For such sketches we have neither the leisure, nor the room in our pages to spare.

We may, however, mention such names as Governor Belcher; Jeremy Gridley, the king's attorney and the most eminent lawyer of his day in the country; his brother, Maj. Gen. Richard Gridley, the engineer at the reduction of Louisburg in 1746, and who also constructed the fortifications at Lake George in 1756; was with Wolfe on the Plains of Abraham in 1758; and erected the fortifications at Bunker's Hill in 1775: James Otis, one of the leading and ablest patriots of the Revolutionary period; Gen. Joseph Warren, of imperishable memory; Paul Revere and John Cutler, to whom, and the sturdy mechanics of Boston whom they led, the whole country owe a debt of gratitude, for effective services rendered in the early days of the great struggle which separated us from the oppressions of the mother country; and among the merchants, such men as John Hancock, Thomas Oxnard, John Rowe, and a long list of others equally distinguished among the business men of their profession. But our present purpose is with Governor Belcher.

He was born in Boston in 1681, and was the son of Andrew Belcher, who rendered efficient service in the IndianWars of 1675. He entered Harvard College at an early age. and graduated in 1699; soon after which he went to Europe, where he spent several years. On his return, he established himself in business as a merchant. He, however, engaged early in political life, and in 1729 was sent as an agent of the Province to England, where he discharged the duties of his commission with so much ability, that in the following year he was appointed to the Government of Massachusetts and New Hampshire, which appointment he held for eleven years, when he was superseded. He then again went to England, and so far succeeded in vindicating his official conduct from unfounded charges which had been made against him, as to obtain the appointment of Governor of the Province of New Jersey, where he arrived in 1747, and where he died ten years after, in the 76th year of his age.

In referring to his removal from the office of Governor of Massachusetts, Barry, in his excellent history of the period, says:— "The opposition of Mr. Belcher to the currency schemes of the Province, and his agency in their defeat, rendered him obnoxious to their numerous favorers ; and these, joined to other measures, afforded a sufficient inducement to his enemies to solicit his removal. By forged and anonymous letters, and the help of unscrupulous falsehoods, his friends in England were prejudiced against him; and, as he had failed to fulfill the expectations which had been formed of him, little difficulty was experienced in obtaining the consent of the lords of trade to his displacement. How far he would have succeeded in the management of affairs under the new state of things about, to be introduced, it may be difficult to say. His qualifications for the chief magistracy were certainly as good as those of his predecessors. He was a native of New England, and acquainted with its institutions, and, to a certain extent, imbued with its prejudices. He had early enjoyed the advantages of a good education, which were improved by travel, and by intercourse with intelligent circles in Europe. Graceful in his person, and generous in his hospitality, he was a favorite with all with whom he associated; and ambitious of distinction, he was enabled by his wealth to gratify his taste for public display. Condescending in his manners, he was popular with the masses ; and, though he was a known friend to the prerogative, and a moderate supporter of the claims of the crown, he was not suspected of disloyalty to liberty, or of a want of regard to the welfare of New England."

We are unable to say where or in what Lodge Governor Belcher was admitted into the Masonic Fraternity. His admission, however, took place in 1704; at which time, he was in Europe. But it is evident, from the annexed correspondence, that he early connected himself with the "First Lodge in Boston," and that he took so great an interest in its welfare, as to command the respect and gratitude of its members. The correspondence was occasioned by his being superseded in the office of Governor of the Province :—

"Thrice Worthy Brother,— We, being a Committee appointed by the Mother Lodge of New England held in Boston to wait on you, take this Opportunity to acknowledge the many favours you have always showed (when in Power) to Masonry in General, but in a More Especial manner to the Brethren of this Lodge, of which we shall ever retain a grateful Remembrance.

As we have had your Protection when in the most Exalted Station here, so we think its Incumbent on us to make this acknowledgement, having no other means to testify our Gratitude but this; and to wish for your future Health and Prosperity, which is the sincere desire of us, and those in whose behalf We appear, and permit us to assure you we shall ever remain,

Honored Sir,
Your most Affectionate Brethren and Humble Servants.
Peter Pelham, Secretary, in behalf of the Committee."

To the above the following answer was returned : —

"Worthy Brothers,— I take very kindly this Mark of your Respect.

It is now Thirty Seven years since I was admitted into the Ancient and Honorable Society of Free and Accepted Masons, to whom I have been a faithful Brother, and a well wisher to the Art of Masonry.

I shall maintain a strict friendship for the whole Fraternity, and always be glad when it may fall in my power to do them any services.

J. Belcher."

Mr. Belcher was succeeded in his office as Governor of the Province by Governor Shirley, who appears not to have been a Mason. The Brethren of "The First Lodge," however, having long enjoyed fraternal intercourse with their Brother Belcher, were naturally solicitous to establish similar relations with the new Executive. To this end the following correspondence took place, and was published in the papers of the day. Though not exactly pertinent to the matter in hand, we think it of sufficient interest to justify its insertion in this connection :—

"May it please your Excellency, — We, being a Committee appointed by the Ancient and Honorable Society of Free and Accepted Masons of the Mother Lodge of America, held in Boston, presume to wait upon you with the utmost Sincerity, to congratulate you on your advancement to the Government of this Province, and to assure your Excellency that our Desire is that your administration may be successful and easy.

We have had hitherto the Honour of His Majesty's Governor being one of our Ancient Society, who was a well wisher and faithful Brother to the Royal Art of Masonry.

And, as it has been the Custom for men in the most exalted Station to have had the' Door of our Society's Constitution always opened to them (when desired), we think it. our Duty to acquaint your Excellency with that Custom, and assure you that we shall cheerfully attend your Excellency's Pleasure therein; and as we are conscious that our society are legal and faithful Subjects to his Majesty, so we may reason ably hope for your Excellency's Favour and Protection, which is the Request of Your Excellency's most obedient humble Servants, Peter Pelham, Secretary, in behalf of the Society."

To which his Excellency was pleased to return the following answer : —

"Gentlemen, — I return the ancient and honorable society my thanks for their address, and invitation of me to the mother Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons in America: and they may rest assured that their loyalty and fidelity to his Majesty, will always recommend the Society to my favour and protection.

W. SHIRLEY."

This correspondence is marked with great delicacy on both sides. It does not appear, however, that the Governor either then or afterwards, availed himself of the invitation so courteously extended to him. If not personally the rival, he had been elevated to the distinguished place he occupied by the political enemies of Governor Belcher. Between the two there was a radical difference of opinion on important questions of public interest, and in respect to which he had every reason to suppose the Lodge were in warm sympathy with Governor Belcher and his friends. He therefore did that which every sensible and prudent man holding his high position would have done under similar circumstances. The connection would not have embarrassed him, but that he did not know.

On the arrival of Governor Belcher in New Jersey to assume the duties of Governor of that Province, the Grand Lodge forwarded to him the following congratulatory letter : —

"Thrice Worthy Brother, — It was with the greatest pleasure and the utmost Satisfaction We Received the News of your Safe Arrival at your Government of the Jerseys; and from a just Sense of the distinguishing marks of your Esteem shown to the Ancient and Honorable Society of Free and Accepted Masons, when you filled the Chair of Government in this Province (which upon all Occasions we doubt not but you would still Continue,) We cannot but hope the sincere and hearty Congratulations of Our Lodge on your present happy accession, may meet with a favourable acceptance.

You have sufficiently distinguished your adherence to our Three Grand Principles in your Firm attachment to his Majesty's Person and Government, which (with joy we find) has preferred you to a second Commission (an uncommon Instance of Royal favor) and as the weight of so great a Charge must be attended with many concerns, so we heartily wish a happy Concurrence of anything that may Render your Administration satisfactory to your Prince, Advantageous to your People, and Easy to yourself, so that full of Days and full of honor (which but little survives our actions) you may finally meet with a reward of that Honor and Happiness which will be as Internal as inconceivable. —

By Order of the Right Worshipful the Provincial Grand Master of North America, and the Right Worshipful Master, Wardens, and Fellows of the Lodge held in Boston, New England, September 3d, in the year of Masonry 5747, Annoque Domini 1747.

Charles Pelham, Secretary."

To this Governor Belcher returned the following admirable answer : —

To the Right Worshipful Thomas Oxnard Esq., Provincial Grand Master of North America,
The Right Worshipful Master, Wardens, and Fellows of the Lodge of the Ancient and Honorable Seciety of Free and Accepted Masons In Boston."

"Right Worshipful Brothers, — I have with much pleasure received your respectful Congratulation of my Safe Arrival to this Government, dated from your Lodge in Boston ye 3d of last month. — From the Testimonials I carried with me to London from your Lodge, I was Received by the Right Honorable the Grand Master; and at the Lodges where I attended, as a Worthy Brother: I shall always with great Alacrity show Respect and Kindness to any one that may fall in my way, who is a Brother of the Society of Free and Accepted Masons; and I am the more Gratified in the King's Repeated Grace and Favour as it does me double Honor, in Clearing my Character from all Imputation, and sets me at the head of this fine Province, and may Reflect some honor on the Society of Free and Accepted Masons that the King has so publickly justified the Conduct of a Brother in his administration of the Government of two of His Majesty's Provinces In New England for eleven years together.

I am much obliged to the Brothers of your Lodge for their kind Wishes of my welfare and Prosperity in the Arduous affairs of Government, but above all that they extend them to my Obtaining a reward of honor and happiness that shall be Eternal. — I have been received by the Good People here with uncommon marks of Respect and Kindness, which I shall return by all such acts of Goodness in my Power, as may most of all contribute to their Interest, and to their quiet and satisfaction.

May you Right Worshipful Brothers, and all and every one of your Lodge live long in much health and Ease, and in such other Circumstances of Life as you would wish for your Selves, and when this Life must be Exchanged for One that will have no end, May you all be Happy through the Mercy of God in Jesus Christ Our only Lord and Saviour; Amen.

From Kingswood House in the City of Burlington (New Jersey),
this sixth day of October, in the year of Masonry 5747, Annoque Domini 1747.
J. Belcher."

We can follow the Masonic history of our Brother no further; and here his active interests in the Fraternity probably ceased. It could not well have been otherwise, for at the time when he entered upon his new duties, there was not a Lodge in the Province of New Jersey, nor was there one, so far as we are informed, established there until 1762, — five years after his death, — when the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts, through its Grand Master, issued the necessary authority for one at Elizabethtown.

As we have already stated, Governor Belcher continued to preside over this Province until his death in 1757. Being highly educated himself, he took a deep interest in the general subject of education, and contributed by his means and influence in extending the usefulness of Princeton College. As a magistrate, he was popular with the people over whom he presided, and at his death left the fragrance of an honorable and useful life.

MEMORIALS

GALEN CARTER WALKER 1814-1856

From Moore's Freemason's Monthly, Vol. XVI, No. 3, January 1857, Page 95:

It is with no ordinary feelings of pain and grief, that we record the recent death of our Brother Galen C. Walker, Deputy Warden of the State Prison in Charlestown. While in full health, amidst the endearments of a beloved family, and in the assiduous performance of duty, he was stabbed, as the prisoners were returning from religious exercises in the Chapel, between seven and eight o'clock, on Monday morning of the 15th of December, and instantaneously deprived of life, by a convict named James Magee, who was under sentence for attempting the murder of his own wife.

The public mourns the loss of a valuable citizen and excellent officer, who for ten years had given universal satisfaction ; and an affectionate husband and a worthy Brother has thus suddenly been cut down by a vile assassin—a wretch who affected insanity to avoid the punishment of his crimes, and does not deserve to live!

Our lamented Brother has left a widow and four children to mourn their irreparable loss. He was a native of Fryeburg, Maine, and forty-two years of age. His sister was to have been married the very evening before his funeral. So mysterious and past finding out are the ways of Divine Providence ! We truly see through a glass darkly.

Brother Walker was a member of the De Molay Encampment, in this city, of which his brother, Dr. Clement A. Walker, is Commander, and the last honors were paid to his memory on Thursday by these Knights Templar. The funeral was very generally attended and a large procession, notwithstanding the severe cold weather, marched from the Prison to the cemetery, where the Masonic Solemnities were performed by the Prelate of the Encampment, the Rev. John T. Burrill.

It was a sad and touching sight, as we paused during the funeral services at the
 house, to see his cages of beautiful birds, and hearing their music, the same as ever, 
to reflect what deep sorrow was there darkening the bosom of a widow and chil
dren, now left desolate.

From Moore's Freemason's Monthly, Vol. XVI, No. 5, February 1857, Page 146:

We have in preceding numbers of this Magazine, noticed the melancholy death of this estimable Brother and Companion; but, notwithstanding which, our readers will require no apology for laying before them the following interesting proceedings had before the De Molay Encampment of this city — of which body the deceased was a member — on the evening of the 24th December last. That body being assembled in "open Asylum," Sir Kt. Charles Robbins arose, and amid "the deep stillness" of the place spoke as follows:—

Eminent Commander, — Since our last Regular Communication, — as, alas! is too well known to all, — a sudden and fearful calamity has fallen upon us. One of our number, whom we hoped to have taken by the hand t night, and by whose side we trusted to have worked for years, is absent from his accustomed place in our ranks. By the unlawful hand of violence his connection with us and with earth has been rudely broken, — a Brother has been torn from our side, and ourselves prostrated by the blow.

The great sorrow which fills our hearts, is visible on every countenance, and has once this evening found utterance, but not in words. Our grief is too oppressive, to be easily told in appropriate language, and I therefore move that a Committee of five be appointed to propose some suitable expression of our sense of the great loss this Encampment has sustained, through the sudden and untimely death of our courteous and beloved Brother Sir Knight Galen C. Walker, and of our deep sympathy with his bereaved family and relations.

A Committee was accordingly appointed, who reported the resolutions given below. Previous to their adoption, Sir Knight Benj. Dean, addressed the Encampment as follows:—

Eminent Commander, and Sir Knight Generalissimo.

A little more than two months have elapsed since we were railed to mourn the loss of Sir John J. Loring — one of the original members of this Encampment. Our ranks on the occasion of his funeral were in a great measure filled by the younger members. Many of them, myself among the number, — then attended from a sense of duty, the funeral obsequies of one whom they had never seen alive.

In our ranks on that occasion was our late Companion, Sir Galen C. Walker, who had just been created a Knight among us. As with his noble form and stalwart step he then joined in the last sad ceremonies attending the burial of one who belonged to another Masonic generation, how far from his thoughts was it, that it would be his turn next!—that in so short a time the same men would perform the same solemn services over his own grave! How little did be then think that he was wearing his own funeral badge! And when his brother, our own excellent and much loved Commander (Dr. Clement A. Walker, brother of the deceased) prepared that beautiful and appropriate badge of mourning, and when with prudent foresight he requested that it should be preserved for future use, how little did he then dream that it would be so soon wanted ! and how little did he then dream that the blow would be near his own heart!

Our late Companion, Sir Galen C. Walker, was rather taciturn in his habits, and always seemed to me to be one who "Gave his thoughts no tongue, Nor any unproportion'd thought his act."

And, therefore, when I noticed his presence at each of our public appearances, since he became a Knight Companion among us, at Springfield, on the 24th of June last; at the inauguration of the Franklin Monument, on the 17th of Sept. last; and at the funeral of the late Sir John J. Loring, I could not but observe his deep interest in our institution and look upon him as a valuable acquisition to our Encampment.

But he has gone,—the youngest, to meet the oldest from our ranks, before the throne of our heavenly Commander.

And how differently did they go! One, his time complete and his work ended, lingered here till "cut down by the devouring scythe of time, and gathered into the land where his fathers had gone before him"; the other did not "travel on the level of time, but was untimely, in the might of his manhood, called to " hat undiscovered country from whose bourne no traveller returns."

He fell near where http://masonicgenealogy.com/MediaWiki/index.php?title=GMJsWarren Warren] fell, not on the field of battle — it is true — but like him,— at the post of danger and in the discharge of his duty to the State. And manfully and bravely did he fall!

As I contemplate his death, [ am struck with admiration. Spell bound, I see him receive his mortal wound! He turns not! He quails not! He rushes upon his assassin, and by a last superhuman effort, he wrenches from the murderer's hand the deadly weapon that had already cut the brittle thread of bis own life, and is launching him into the sea of eternity. He gives a look of recognition to the Rev. Chaplain, whose life be thus saved, while his own was flowing fast — and dies!

While, therefore, we mourn so great a loss to us all, and while our hearts bleed in sympathy with our beloved Commander, and other Brother, also of our number, and while we sympathize with our late Companion's bereaved wife and the orphan children who refused willingly to leave their father to the embraces of the cold and silent tomb, let us also rejoice that he died a death so noble — a death so brave.

Let us also rejoice, in the language of our ritual, "in the triumph of immortality," and in the reflection, "that though death has its sting, its infliction is but for a moment; that this frail organization, though here subject to all the ills that flesh is heir to, possesses an etherial principle that shall soar to the realms of endless bliss, and there, beyond the power of change, — live forever."

Let us also be so mindful of our duty as to record upon our books, a memorial of our own loss, and an expression of our deep sympathy with the heavier bereavement of the parents, brothers, sister, wife, and children of our late excellent Companion.

The following resolutions were then unanimously adopted :—

• Whereas, on the 15th inst. our lamented Brother Sir Knight Galen C. Walker, while in the discharge of his duty as Deputy Warden of the State Prison, was, in the Chapel of the Prison, and at the close of the religious services there, suddenly assaulted by one of the convicts, with a knife, and brutally murdered; and
• Whereas, though our Encampment, with full ranks, on the 15th inst., followed our late Companion's remains to the silent tomb, and there performed those beautiful and appropriate rites so befitting the occasion; yet it is considered that our duty in this melancholy emergency is not yet ended, but that some suitable expression of our deep sympathy with his bereaved family and relatives should be placed upon our Records. Therefore
• Resolved, That the Members of the De Molay Encampment of Knights Templars, have received with emotions of deep grief, the intelligence of the sudden and awful death, which has parted us forever, from our friend and Brother, Sir Knight Galen C. Walker.
• Resolved, That by this afflicting dispensation, we have been deprived of the companionship of one, who, though the youngest among us, had already established himself firmly in our hearts by his sterling qualities, and whose interest in our Institution gave promise of a support we can ill afford to lose.
• Resolved, That with our Eminent Commander, and our Brother Sir Knight Charles W. Walker, we sympathize most deeply, in this sad event, which has so violently sundered natural ties of brotherhood, cemented by long years of kind and affectionate communion.
• Resolved, That with the family of our deceased Brother, we mourn his seemingly untimely end j and would unite with them in the consolatory reflection, that though he has gone before us to that undiscovered country, whence no traveller returns, yet we are bidden to look forward to a joyful reunion in that house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
• Resolved, That as a token of our sorrow, and as a testimony of our respect for the deceased, the usual insignia of mourning be borne on our Banners and Regalia for the space of three months.

From Officer Down:

Deputy Warden Walker was stabbed to death by an inmate at the Charleston State Prison.

The inmate, was was serving a 12-year sentence for attempting to murder his wife by cutting her throat with a razor, was walking in file with other prisoners from the prison chapel following morning services. The suspect then stopped and handed Deputy Warden Walker a note that read, "Mr. Walker, you have not used me well." As Deputy Warden Walker turned to read the note, the suspect seized him from behind and stabbed him in the chest. Several prisoners attempted to restrain the suspect, but the suspect was able to stab Deputy Warden Walker a second time, this time in the neck, killing him.

Two weeks later another inmate stabbed Warden Solon Tenney in the neck with a knife, killing him. That inmate told an investigating Coroner that he got the idea to stab Warden Tenney in the neck after hearing about this incident.

Deputy Warden Walker had served with the Massachusetts Department of Correction for 10 years and was survived by his wife.

• Ancestry.com Page

CALVIN WHITING 1794-1857

• MM 1840, St. John's (Boston)

From Moore's Freemason's Monthly, Vol. XVI, No. 9, July 1857, Page 288:

Death of Brother Whiting.— We are, just as this sheet is going to press, called upon to perform the melancholy duty of announcing the death of Brother Calvin Whiting, of this city. Brother Whiting some weeks since took a severe cold, which led to a solidification of one of his lungs, but his physician and friends indulged the hope that time and judicious treatment would ultimately restore him to health. But our Brother had for many years been laboring under an organic affection of the heart; and this was doubtless the immediate cause of his death.

Brother Whiting was Recorder of the Grand Encampment of Massachusetts and Rhode Island and of the Boston Encampment. He was also the Secretary of St. John's Lodge and of St. Paul's R A. Chapter, of this city, and his accuracy and elegance in these offices secured for him the confidence of his Brethren, and his purity of life and conduct. His love of the whole Fraternity. He was buried on Sunday the 28th June, and his remains were followed to the grave by a numerous assemblage of his Brethren and fellow-citizens.

From Moore's Freemason's Monthly, Vol. XVI, No. 10, July 1857, Page 318:

Remarks on the death, of Brother Calvin Whiting, Secretary of St. John's Lodge, by W. Solon Thornton, Master of said Lodge, at a Special Communication, held at Masonic Temple, Boston, June 29, 1857 :—

Brethren — It becomes my painful duty to inform you officially of the death of our Brother and Secretary, Calvin Whiting. Brother Whiting departed this life on the 26th of the present month, after an illness of but few days. For many years he has held the office of Secretary of our Lodge, faithfully discharging the duties of his office — and how faithfully, our records of years will abundantly testify. Since his decease I have examined the records and documents belonging to the Lodge, and find every thing connected with his duties, as Secretary, in a finished state. Nothing appears to have been left undone, even the envelopes covering the notices for our Stated Meeting in July, were directed by him, and this was probably the last labor he performed for the Lodge.

In his death we have lost a true and worthy Brother, a valuable officer, an upright and honest man. Brother Whiting was a Mason in the highest sense of that word. It is true that he did not appear to take that active and lively interest in the mere work of the Lodge that some of our Brethren do ; indeed, his was a higher order in Masonry. While we were learning its theory he was carrying the principles into active life. Our Brother was one whose benevolence never was suffered to linger in the lap of idleness. Feeling for others woes, he was ever ready to compassionate their miseries, relieve them in their distresses, and, if need be, by timely aid and judicious advice, restore peace to their troubled minds. No inconvenience to himself ever tempted him to turn the needy and suffering empty away ; if he had not the means of relief himself, he would find those who had. Suffering humanity ever found in him a friend, and it can be said of him with truth, that he went about doing good all the days of his life. He needs no marble monument to preserve his memory. He lives in the memories of the thousands he has assisted in the dark days of their adversity. His good deeds are engraved on their hearts and will be imperishable and immortal.

But he has gone ! the chair which he has so long and so honorable filled in this Lodge, is now vacant. The countenance which we have so long been accustomed to behold on the left hand of the Worshipful Master in the East, will no more be seen amongst us. He has made his last record, and gone to that bourne from which no traveller has ever returned.

My Brothers—May we imitate his many virtues, and like him, be ever found at our posts of duty, and when we shall be summoned to appear before the Great Architect of the Universe, to give an account of our stewardship, may we be as well prepared for that great change which shall open to us the realities of that other and better world, as was our Brother who has so suddenly gone before us.

Remarks and Resolutions offered by Worshipful Bro. John Flint, M. D. :—

Since last we assembled in this hall, we have been called upon to pay the last sad tribute of respect and affection to a highly esteemed and dearly beloved Brother of this Lodge. Our late excellent Secretary, Br. Calvin Whiting, whom we have been accustomed for so many years to see in his appropriate seat on your left, has, within a few days, been consigned by the hands of his sympathizing Brethren, to his last resting place—and the desk he has so long occupied, and the office he has so long and so faithfully filled in this Lodge, shall know him no more forever. His mortal has put on immortality. His labors on earth have ended. He has faithfully fulfilled his mission and has now gone to receive his reward. He needs no eulogy from us; his virtues are embalmed in every Brother's heart. May we all imitate his many excellencies and thereby receive the reward of "well done good and faithful servant."

Bro. Whiting, although able most of the time to attend to his daily avocations, has for several months been gradually failing in health and daily growing more feeble. His naturally frail physical organization received a severe and stunning blow, but a few months since, in the death of a dearly beloved daughter, the last of four children whom he has followed to their last resting place. Some weeks since he contracted a severe cold, which caused congestion of the lungs and subsequently terminated in dropsy of the chest, which was the immediate cause of his death. For some week or two previous to his death, he suffered most of the time from inability to breathe ; this difficulty was increased on Thursday, and continued through the night until near 5 o'clock on Friday morning, the 26th, when he sunk into a lethargic state, from which he did not arouse ; when about 11 A.M., June 26, 1857,

"Without a sigh, or glance to show
A parting pang, the spirit from him pass'd,
And they who watched him nearest could not know
The very instant, till the change that cast
His face in shadows, dull and slow,
Glazed o'er his eyes."

Thus passed from earth to heaven the spirit of one, who having well performed the duties of life on earth has entered upon that other life where trials and sufferings shall be wiped away.

May all of us imitate his virtues and so improve the remaining span of life that when like him we shall become cold and inanimate, our spirits disrobed of their earthly apparel, may assume the spiritual garb of the just made perfect.

• Resolved, That in the death of our late Secretary, Brother Calvin Whiting, St. John's Lodge has sustained an irreparable loss. He was appreciated not only as a model officer, but also as a dearly beloved friend and Brother.
• Resolved, That the sincere and heartfelt sympathies of the St. John's Lodge be tendered to the afflicted widow of the deceased.
• Resolved, That in view of the long, faithful and always acceptable services of Brother Whiting, as Secretary of the Lodge, and in view also of the pecuniary circumstances of the widow, we do now appropriate 100 dollars from the funds of the Lodge for the purpose of paying the funeral expenses of our lamented Brother.
• Resolved, That the altar, and the desk at which our Brother has so long and so faithfully presided, be draped in mourning in testimony of our high appreciation of his worth.
• Resolved, That a copy of the above preamble and resolutions be sent to the widow of the deceased, and that the above Remarks and Resolutions be printed in the "Freemasons' Magazine."

Extract from the Records of St. John's Lodge, June 9, 1857, Boston, Mass.
S. E. Weston, Sec'y, pro tem.

CHARLES WILLIAMS 1790-1854

• MM 1816, St. John's (Boston)
• Signed Declaration of 1831

From Moore's Freemason's Monthly, Vol. XIII, No. 9, July 1854, Page 287:

Died in this city, on the morning of the 13th ult., Brother Charles Williams, aged 64 years. The deceased was formerly of the firm of R. P. & C. Williams, long and well known in this city, as booksellers. He was an old and faithful Mason, and will be long remembered by his Brethren, as one whose ambition it was to do good, according to the talents wherewith God had blessed him. He was a member of the Episcopal church, and was buried on the afternoon of the 14th from the church of the Rev. Mr. Clinch, at South Boston,—many of his Masonic Brethren being in attendance.

EVENTS

RESTORATION OF RELICS, SEPTEMBER 1859

From Moore's Freemason's Monthly, Vol. XVIII, No. 11, September 1859, Page 296:

Masonic Relics.— Wyzeman Marshall, W. M. of St. John's Lodge, was the recipient last week of a gift, or rather of a restoration of former gifts, which will be highly prized. The late Dr. John Dixwell was formerly Master of St. John's Lodge, and within a few weeks, members of his family found in a private drawer in an old cabinet, which has been seldom used, four heavy silver ladles, three of which bear inscriptions showing by whom they were presented to the Lodge. Dr. Dixwell was probably entrusted with their care, and having put them away for safe keeping in a secret drawer, they escaped notice at the time of his death. —Ev. Gaz.

GRAND LODGE OFFICERS

Due to the high proportion of lodge members involved in the early years of St. John's Grand Lodge, the grand officers for the period before 1792 are in their own section.

OFFICERS 1733-1792

• James Gordon, Deputy Grand Master 1736, 1738
• Robert Tomlinson, Deputy Grand Master 1737, Grand Master 1737-1740
• Thomas Oxnard, Deputy Grand Master 1740-1743, Grand Master 1743-1754
• Benjamin Hallowell, Deputy Grand Master 1753-1756; Senior Grand Warden
• Hugh McDaniel, Deputy Grand Master 1737, 1743-1752
• James Forbes, Deputy Grand Master 1756, Senior Grand Warden, Junior Grand Warden, Grand Treasurer
• Nathaniel Bethune, Senior Grand Warden
• Robert Jenkins, Deputy Grand Master 1757-1763, Senior Grand Warden, Junior Grand Warden
• Thomas Kilby, Senior Grand Warden
• John Box, Senior Grand Warden
• John Rowe, Deputy Grand Master 1763-1768, Grand Master 1768-1787, Senior Grand Warden, Junior Grand Warden, Grand Treasurer
• William Coffin, Senior Grand Warden, Junior Grand Warden, Grand Treasurer
• Charles Brockwell, Senior Grand Warden
• Belthazar Bayard, Grand Secretary
• Jeremy Gridley, Grand Master 1755-1767
• Robert Williams, Senior Grand Warden, Junior Grand Warden
• Richard Gridley, Deputy Grand Master 1768-1792
• John Leverett, Grand Secretary
• Abraham Savage, Senior Grand Warden, Junior Grand Warden, Grand Secretary
• Joseph Gardner, Senior Grand Warden, Junior Grand Warden, Grand Treasurer
• John Joy, Junior Grand Warden
• Thomas Dennie, Grand Treasurer, Junior Grand Warden 1792; Memorial

OFFICERS AFTER THE UNION OF 1792

• Ludwig Alban, DDGM, District 1, 2011, 2012
• Shubael Bell, DDGM, District 1 (Boston), 1810, 1811, 1812
• Asa Bullard, DDGM, District 1, 1824, 1825; SN
• Starr A. Burdick, DDGM, District 1 (Boston), 1933, 1934; Memorial
• Eugene Capobianco, DDGM, District 3, 2011, 2012
• William I. Corthell, DDGM, District 1 (Boston), 1926; District 1 (Boston), 1927; Memorial
• Thomas Dennie, Grand Treasurer 1798
• James A. Dickson, Junior Grand Warden 1833
• John Dixwell, DDGM, District 1, 1811-1812; Deputy Grand Master 1817-1818; Grand Master 1821-1823
• Samuel Dunn, Senior Grand Warden, Deputy Grand Master 1800-1802, Grand Master 1800-1802
• David L. Esancy, DDGM, District 1 (Boston), 1983, 1984; N
• Joseph Eveleth, DDGM, District 1, 1830, 1831; SN
• Samuel Eveleth, DDGM, District 1, 1841-1842; Grand Marshal 1836-1840; SN
• John Flint, Junior Grand Warden 1852
• James A. Fox, DDGM, District 1, 1865-1866; District 1 (Boston), 1867, 1868; SN
• John B. Hammatt, Junior Grand Warden 1814, Senior Grand Warden 1815, Deputy Grand Master 1844
• Daniel Harwood, DDGM, District 1, 1839; Senior Grand Warden 1853
• John Hews, Junior Grand Warden 1845
• Wyzeman Marshall, Junior Grand Warden 1866
• Donald P. Malcolm, DDGM, District 1 (Boston), 1963, 1964; N
• William C. Martin, Senior Grand Warden 1863
• David T. Montague, DDGM, District 1 (Boston), 1914, 1915; Memorial
• Charles W. Nightingale, DDGM, District 1 (Boston), 1971, 1972
• Winthrop E. Nightingale, DDGM, District 1 (Boston), 1952; N
• Francis J. Oliver; Junior Grand Warden 1809; Senior Grand Warden 1810-1812; Deputy Grand Master 1813-1816; Grand Master 1817-1819
• C. Gayton Pickman, DDGM, District 1, 1849; Junior Grand Warden 1838-1840
• Charles Robbins, Junior Grand Warden 1859
• Albert B. Root, District 1 (Boston), 1906, 1907; Memorial
• Salvatore P. Russo, DDGM, District 1 (Boston), 1999, 2000
• Addison Searle, DDGM, District 1, 1846-1847; Grand Chaplain
• Harvey N. Shepard, DDGM, District 1 (Boston), 1883, 1884, 1885; Deputy Grand Master and Acting Grand Master, 1893
• Lawrence J. Smith, Jr., DDGM, District 1, 2005, 2006; Grand Treasurer
• Solon Thornton, DDGM, District 11, 1864, Junior Grand Warden 1865, Grand Secretary, 1867-1871
• Benjamin L. Tower, DDGM, District 1 (Boston), 1893; SN
• Basilios Tsingos, DDGM, District 1, 2007, 2008;
• Clement A. Walker, DDGM, District 12, 1858; SN
• E.M.P. Wells, DDGM, District 1, 1844; Deputy Grand Master 1845
• Ferdinand E. White, Grand Marshal 1824-1826, Deputy Grand Master 1848

DISTRICTS

1803: District 1 (Boston)

1821: District 1

1835: District 1

1849: District 1

1858: District 12

1865: District 1

1867: District 1 (Boston)

1883: District 1 (Boston)

1911: District 1 (Boston)

1927: District 1 (Boston)

2003: District 1

LINKS

Lodge web site

Massachusetts Lodges