iy Sys eat es, RBS IY (BRP Lat : eae Sotetts (iss ie) At i < 4 sits S¢ sya e A yeee See Sepa tet noun cs UNIVERSITY: OF ILLINOIS LIBRARY AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN STACKS y ised nee i= " aes 7 7 o a ae ee mi? ‘Fen moar are: a TL Whee: ere Dibay - We oro pe mg fy Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2021 with funding from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign https ://archive.org/details/beginningsotfreeOOjohn : Hey: Pec — aan 1238-8254-S5: 67-5, HENRY PRICE Founder of Duly Constituted Masonry in America. See Chapter V. THE BEGINNINGS OF FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Containing a reference to all that 1s known of FREEMASONRY in the Western Hemisphere prior to 1750, and short sketches of the lives of some of the Provincial Grand Masters by MELVIN M. JOHNSON GRAND MASTER OF MASONS IN MASSACHUSETTS, 1914, 1915, 1916 33°, ACTIVE 6.G.1.G., N.M.J., U.S.A. ILLUSTRATED Kingsport, Tennessee SOUTHERN PUBLISHERS, Inc. MASONIC PUBLICATIONS DIVISION COPYRIGHT, 1924, BY THE MASONIC SERVICE ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED STATES THE BEGINNINGS OF FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA ey Sys" one PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA PREFACE The substance of this work was prepared as an ad- dress by the then Grand Master to the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts on September 13, 1916. It was an at- tempt to collate and state all that is known of Free- masonry in the Western Hemisphere prior to A.D. 1750. After long study and investigation, the manuscript was first put in type in November, 1916. Bound proof- sheets were sent to every Grand Secretary in the English speaking world as well as to all those known to the writer to be Masonic students who might be interested— in all about two hundred. A request was made in each case for suggestions, criticisms or additions. Many help- ful suggestions were received, but during the four months which elapsed before the Proceedings of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts for the year 1916 were printed, not a single additional item or incident was called to the writer’s attention. A large part of the chronological record and the conclusions herein stated were printed as a part of the Proceedings of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts for the year 1916, and the ad- dress was reprinted in book form by the National Ma- sonic Research Society. Since publication, Bro. F. de P. Rodriguez, Chair- man of the Committee on Foreign Correspondence of the Grand Lodge of Colon (Cuba) has kindly called atten- tion to the organization of a lodge in San Domingo in 1748. This has been verified and inserted herein. More than seven years having passed without the dis- Vv V1 PREFACE covery by any one except myself of another omission or additional incident, the conclusion is justified that the record is as complete as it can be made in the light of the knowledge of the present day. This book is there- fore offered as a chronological compilation of all the real known facts concerning Freemasonry in America prior to the middle of the eighteenth century, with refer- ences so that the student may verify the original evi- dence, its sources, and reliability for himself. The writer has personally examined almost all of the original evidence to which reference is herein made. Some assertions concerning the early history of Free- masonry in the Western Hemisphere, utterly unwar- ranted and without a shred of justification, have been so publicly made heretofore and copied and recopied by serious Masonic scholars even as late as the current year, as to demand notice herein so that the future student shall not be misled as Gould, Hughan and others have been. Concerning some of them, I shall speak very plainly. Nothing can justify the deliberate concealment of a reliable document or the publication of that which is manifestly fraudulent for the purpose of bolstering up an argument in behalf of some pet theory which the Fraternity is asked to believe. For instance, if the “dilapidated document” of 1656 or 1658, or the “John Moore letter” or the ‘Henry Bell letter” had ever existed and had within recent years come to the hands of those to whom they were valuable as proof of claims which were being made, such impor- tant documents could be produced or accounted for. No impartial eye has seen any one of them, although the opportunity to view them or to interview any one who has seen them has often and publicly been requested. a4 PREFACE vil Again, as in 1916, I appeal to all, whether members of our Fraternity or not, for the preservation and proper publication of anything which may hereafter be brought to light which will add a real bit of evidence to what we know of these early Masonic days. Such things ought from time to time to be found among the files of his- torical societies and museums and sometimes in the store rooms of ancient families. When discovered, they ought at once to be submitted to competent students, photo- graphic copies should be taken for preservation apart . from the originals, and the widest publicity should be sought in order to bring them to the attention and scru- tiny of all interested. I am willing at any time to lend my assistance to this end. The conclusions of respected historians are freely quoted by those who have not the time, inclination or opportunity to make independent investigation. As a result, an opinion which would have been changed at once if the true facts had been known, nevertheless passes current and is accepted as a matter of course long after the premises upon which it is based prove to be wrong. Because of its importance an example of one conspicuous illustration is worth while. One Jacob Norton, an Orthodox Jew, once fathered a petition to the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts, which asked a revision of the ritual by the elimination of all reference to the Holy Saints John. The Grand Lodge denied his petition, whereupon he withdrew from his Massachusetts membership and subsequently made bitter attacks upon the history of that jurisdiction. 1851 Mass. 7, 33-34. 1899 Mass. 53. 1906 Mass. 84. Vill PREFACE M. W. Joseph Rollins, a Masonic student and Chair- man of the Committee on Correspondence of the Grand Lodge of Illinois accepted Norton’s conclusions and re- argued the case for him. Then certain partisans for their own purposes restated Norton’s animadversions and gave them wide circulation. Following this, Bro. Hughan and some other historians, not knowing Nor- ton’s bias but assuming the correctness of his statements of fact and following his arguments, based some of their statements and conclusions upon his. IV Gould, 330. Certain old newspaper articles, official lists, and manu- scripts, unknown in the days of Rollins, Hughan and Gould, have since been discovered which utterly and be- yond all cavil or argument prove the falsity of Norton’s premises and, therefore, of his and their reasoning and conclusions. Several good Masonic histories were writ- ten before these discoveries and before Norton’s argu- ments were unanswerably shown to be wrong. ‘Thus his errors are still perpetuated. Unfortunately and usually innocently, writers occasionally still adopt and repeat Norton’s views, quoting as authorities not Norton but those who followed his lead. Masonic students and historians, therefore, should be careful not to adopt without personal investigation the conclusions arrived at by our best and most revered his- torians, except they are based upon a knowledge of the whole facts, including the recently discovered evidence, all of which relating to the early history of Freemasonry in America are referred to in the text or citations which follow. Authorities will herein be cited for the author’s statements and upon which he has based his conclusions. In many instances photographic copies of documents PREFACE ix not heretofore reproduced for general circulation and some never heretofore published, have been inserted not only as matters of interest but also to preserve the evi- dence and subject it to the test and verification of pub- licity. Those who now or hereafter attempt to write Masonic history, whether as to a single fact or a broad field, must be willing to subject themselves to the same tests applied to all other historians. The original address has been amplified that it may be suitable for the general Masonic reader whether he reads critically or casually. Metvin M. Jounson. Boston, Mass. P.S. After this book was in type, Wor. Brother William B. Clarke, Past Master of Solomon’s Lodge, No. 1, of Savannah, Georgia, very kindly sent me full details of his researches including the recent discovery of an old original record book of his Lodge. The publishers have been good enough to permit a consequent rewriting of the Georgia material at the last minute. M. M. J. leileg sie my af - en a ovale eNO ABBREVIATIONS A.B. Account Book (of the Lodge to which refer- ence is being made). Anderson. Anderson’s Constitutions. A.Q.C. Ars Quatuor Coronatorum. B.MS. Beteilhe Manuscript. Entick. Entick’s Constitutions (1756). F.J. Franklin’s Journal. Gould. Gould’s (larger) History of Freemasonry. Edition of John C. Yorston & Co., 1889. Note: There are four editions of Gould’s larger “History of Freemasonry.” The first two were published in London and Edinburgh in editions of three and six volumes between the years 1882 and 1887. The first American edition appeared in Phila- delphia in 1889, complete in four volumes. This is the edition cited. The last edition was published in 1906 as the principal part of a five-volume set known as “A Library of Freemasonry.” References in the following pages to Volume IV of Gould will not be found in the three- or six-volume editions where the page numbers are given below 295; they will be found, however, in Volume IV of the “Library of Freemasonry.” L.B. pa brerie L.H.B. Lane’s Handy Book to the Lists of Lodges. L.M.R. Lane’s Masonic Records, 1717-1894, 2nd Ed. Mackey. Mackey’s Revised History of Freemasonry, by Robert I. Clegg. (Masonic History Com- pany, 1921.) 1 Mass. Printed Proceedings of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts, 1733-1792 (containing the Proceedings of the Provincial Grand Lodges at Boston). xii Mass. N.E.F. O.L. O.M.L.P. O.R. ba. Prichard. led ba Preston. Pro. G.M. P-t. O.C.A. S.& H. ABBREVIATIONS Printed Proceedings of Grand Lodge of Massachusetts for year given. The Freemason’s Monthly Magazine, by Charles W. Moore, commonly known as Moore’s Freemasons’ Magazine. Nickerson’s New England Freemason. Official Engraved Lists of the Lodges, pub- listed by authority of the Grand Lodge of England. Sachse’s Old Masonic Lodges of Pennsyl- vania. Original Record (of the body to which ref- erence is being made). The Pocket Companion and History of Free- masonry by J. Scott, 1754. Prichard’s Tubal-Kain (Dublin, 17607). The Charles “Pelham List’? of the Brethren made and accepted in the First Lodge in Boston, and of those raised and accepted in the Masters Lodge, written in 1751. (Orig- inal in archives of Grand Lodge of Massa- chusetts. ) William Preston’s Illustrations of Masonry. Provincial Grand Master. A photo-stat made under the direction of the author is on file in archives of Grand Lodge of Massachusetts. Quatuor Coronatorum Antigrapha. Stillson & Hughan’s History of Freema- sonry. The abbreviation for a state or country pre- ceded by a year and followed by a page, refers to the printed proceedings of the Grand Lodge for that jurisdiction. CHAPTER I II III IV VI VII VIII Ix XI XII XIII XIV XV XVI XVII XVIII xrx CONTENTS BEGINNINGS ° ° . . . . AUTHORITIES . . . : . . EARLIEST TRACES IN THE WESTERN HEMI- SPHERE e ° . . ° . s THES POUNDING OF) DULY CONSTITUTED FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA . . ° HENRY PRICE . . : . ° . BOSTON——-PHILADELPHIA—GEORGIA . ° THE FIRST PROVINCIAL GRAND MASTER OF NORTH AMERICA FRANKLIN S APPOINTMENT AS PROVINCIAL GRAND MASTER FOR THE PROVINCE OF PENNSYLVANIA : , : : ILS OI ee te 1 OT Geert: a2 ce Mal 6S tye hls SO i) Oe AC ee Ly, Ste8 1a coe te ee, Be ee eo ee Se PAO) Re De Oe) te Cle, ein Lh ge RE Ta ee os Screed see TH cel et) Ean a a a ee EIN | ean, PNT ed, | ee a |. hs 1 FEAST aS) Paoli eM RN eared PI Waa Saye SO ee Gee ae A EPA pit COAL WO Gr LE i Cited Ais Malar ae Xili PAGE 19 28 43 74 92 104 115 124 133 152 168 203 219 235 247 264 Lb 2 284 297 XIV CHAPTER xX D:O.8 XXII XXIII XXIV XXV CONTENTS 1746 1747 1748 1749 ARCANA OF THE PERIOD CONCLUSION INDEX . PAGE 303 316 g20, one 373 379 387 ILLUSTRATIONS HENRY PRICE, FOUNDER OF DULY CONSTI= TUTED MASONRY IN AMERICA . . _ Frontispiece PAGE PAGES 13 anp 14 oF BETEILHE MANUSCRIPT . 39-40 THE MASONIC(?) sroNEOF 1606. . . . 44 PAGE OF “LIBR B’” . : : hh al ate! FACSIMILE OF ENTRY IN FRANKLIN’S JOURNAL . 65 WILLIAM ALLEN. oe FACSIMILE OF PETITION FOR FIRST LODGE IN BOS- TON. ’ Lei 39. FACSIMILE OF PAGE 6 OF ENGLISH OFFICIAL EN- GRAVED 1761 List. , : . 84 FACSIMILE OF PAGES 4, 5 AND 6 OF BETEILHE MANUSCRIPT . 85-87 ORIGINAL STONE OVER GRAVE OF HENRY PRICE . 94 FACSIMILE OF RECORD OF 1733 BY-LAWS OF FIRST LODGE IN BOSTON : chy gE OR ITEM FROM Boston Gazette ror aprit 1, 1735 . III FACSIMILE OF TWO PAGES OF FRANKLIN’S JOUR- NAL: 9 i ; : . 120-121 BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. ; fol GS, FACSIMILE OF TWO COLUMNS OF American Weekly Mercury ror “Marcu 20-27, 1735” . 130 JAMES HAMILTON . ey an teks: FACSIMILE OF 1757 ROSTER OF SOLOMON’S LODGE, SAVANNAH, GEORGIA . ; . 142 XV xvi ILLUSTRATIONS FACSIMILE OF PETITION FOR FIRST LODGE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE . . ° ° : . FACSIMILE OF LIST ACCOMPANYING LETTER OF FIRST LODGE IN BOSTON, RECOMMENDING MR. BENJ. BARONS, JUNE 23, 1736 . ; : 3 THOMAS HOPKINSON : : : ; : WILLIAM PLUMSTEAD . - ; : : JOSEPH SHIPPEN . ; : : FACSIMILE OF PAGE OF RECORDS OF FIRST LODGE IN BOSTON FOR DECEMBER, 1738, AND JANUARY, 1738/9 PETER G PELHAM pcs. imes) aie hae FACSIMILE OF PAGE OF RECORDS OF THE LODGE AT PORTSMOUTH, NEW HAMPSHIRE, 1739/40 FACSIMILE OF RECORD OF FIRST LODGE IN BOSTON FOR APRIL 23, 1740 . SILHOUETTE OF BRO. PHILIP SYNG . : BENJAMIN SMITH . ; ; : OXNARD S DEPUTATION AS PROVINCIAL GRAND MASTER FOR NORTH AMERICA; SEPTEMBER 23, 14S a7. Me a a an a CHARLES PET H AMg es ag ae ee FACSIMILE OF LETTER RECALLING PRICE TO THE CHAIR IN 1767 PAGE OF RECORD BOOK OF TUN TAVERN LODGE FACSIMILE OF THE ““HUMBLE REMONSTRANCE” OF ocToBER 7, 1751 ; f FACSIMILE OF PART OF RECORD OF MEETING OF GRAND LODGE IN BOSTON, APRIL 13, 1750 : PAGE 149 158 160 180 206 212 230 232 240 RBS 270 276 292 344 he) 368 370 THE BEGINNINGS OF FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA ye : st A es r eh romani “4 Daw t k 1 ee eres htaea ‘ i ‘ a : iy i Wy ir id 4 va a . ay ae \ ne a i ss . ithe ey ih is ‘ MAN CURA ie Pin: an a dee a uy 1 mete Ff PAs Ny 1 oe % di there? aa si fea yee ‘ “im! Da ie LL ik : j Vay, | Ay Ps a + ' Ny 1 Hi i 1 y ’ ‘ | y i , a ’ i { ‘ 1 7 a ; b ? M t Ay ‘ 1! , A, . ; “ey ity fr » 5 ‘ ’ f : | Het ton i ne ( a) ‘ oP { a iy » 7 4 F oT. Ti » hI u +t i, ae >} 5 i " 9) 4 ae 1) j ' +e ay i + re u ™ Be! ; Pp - i y pu Vols a : 7 ; ! Aid Koy « ¥ J Ay i i ? ‘ pint ' bs hth eek THE BEGINNINGS OF FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA CHAPTER [| BEGINNINGS The male secret society is the oldest human institu- tion, older than any other form of religion, older than any other form of education, older indeed than any other form of civil government. And all down through the centuries, the secret society has maintained a powerful hold upon the hearts and minds of men. Whatever its origin, however its life may be meas- ured, Freemasonry is admittedly the oldest secret society of the civilized world, as well as the largest. Yet, strangely enough, its history is shrouded in mystery. The true facts of its ancient days are a secret, more un- known, more mysterious than its arcana. Its earliest manuscripts, the “Old Charges” or “Old Constitutions,” are Homeric. The scriveners recorded the traditions handed down to them verbally through the centuries and doubtless believed they were really writing history. What they gave us, we now know to be a curi- ous blending of fable and some demonstrable facts. But the facts have so utterly lost their true surroundings as to be as misleading historically as those things which are obviously fable. Euclid, who lived in Alexandria about three hundred years before Christ is, for instance, made a contemporary and pupil of Abraham. 19 20 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Too many so-called Masonic historians since the days when they should have known better have added fiction to fable and imagination to both, using the manifest errors of their predecessors as gospel, dreams as evidence, and guesses as proof. Moreover, we must confess that there are many speakers and writers on Masonic sub- jects to-day who do not seem to realize that such meth- ods do our cause more harm than good. Let one instance suffice to illustrate. A very celebrated and respected brother, whose name is a household word in this country, and who is known the world around, once made the statement in a public address that all but two of the signers of the Declaration of Independence were members of the Craft. That declaration from his lips was at once accepted at par and has been repeated thousands of times in addresses throughout the land. For some years the writer tried to verify that statement without success. Among other things, he applied to that brother who had turned the statement loose for his authority. The reply came quickly to the effect that undoubtedly he had in mind authority for what he said at the time he said it, but that he could not remember what it was. Now the fact may be exactly as stated, bu: many diligent seekers who would like to prove it have utterly failed in their efforts so to do. So many of the Lodges of those days failed to keep or preserve records and so many carefully recorded minutes have been burned or otherwise lost or destroyed that we shall never be able to prove the truth or the falsity of the claim. Gould was the Thucydides of Masonic history. He first introduced the critical method. He attempted to disentangle the fable from the fact. He fell into many errors. His conclusions are, many of them, wrong. His BEGINNINGS 21 work cannot be called authoritative for even he accepted at par many assertions of others which we now know to be in error. And, too, later study has disclosed demon- strable facts unknown to him. But he did point the way to the proper method of studying and of writing Ma- sonic history. Others had written the true facts of their day and generation as well as those learned from the lips of their contemporaries. Gould first, however, taught us that the Masonic historian should be subject to the same tests of accuracy as all other historians. Not that we must have a photograph of each event or the written word of an eye-witness. Legitimate in- ference and reasonable conclusion have their place here as well as in all other phases of human affairs. Tradition even has its just place. But dreamland and the “wish that is father to the thought” must not be permitted longer to influence the writing of what purports to be real history. This does not mean that it should be neces- sary to present written documents in proof of what we shall conclude to be Masonic fact. Since the days when the printing press has come into general use, less weight is given to tradition and other evidences of fact. Prior to the days of the printing press but since the evolution of modern writing the same tests which are applied to conclusions of the ordinary historian are to be applied to the conclusions of the Masonic historian, with this ex- ception—that Masonry being a secret society, much less of its affairs would be committed to writing than other- wise. Back of the days of the development of the writ- ing of documents, the Masonic historian must depend upon such evidence as is relied upon by any scientific anthropologist. How old is Freemasonry? From when does it date its 22 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA origin? ‘These and similar questions will never be an- swered by a date. Before an attempt can be made to find a point at which to start the discussion, a question of definition arises,;—When you ask the question, what do you mean by the word “Freemasonry”? If you mean the structural form of the present Grand Lodge system, with particular lodges together with the appendant de- grees of the so-called “York” and “Scottish” Rites, then the answer may be made that the stage of stability of this present structure did not come until at least the latter half of the nineteenth century. Indeed, now in the twentieth century that structure is not yet fixed and independent. In important respects such as the “Mark Degree,” the English system now differs radically from the American. Definite recognition of the ‘Scottish Rite’ did not become fixed in America until the last quarter of the nineteenth century, and Ireland to-day has not yet reached this stage. Nomenclature is not now and probably never will be made historically correct. The “Scottish Rite’? does not descend from Scotland and the “York Rite” was not founded at York. The ‘‘Moderns” were older than the “Ancients.” These are but examples. If by “Freemasonry” is meant the Symbolic system of “blue” degrees as now organized and practised, then the date of crystallization has not yet come. Between 1717 and 1725 (cérca) there was a radical recast of ritual. At the end of some nine years of considerable Masonic disturbance and debate, beginning in 1730 with the publications of Prichard’s ‘‘Masonry Dissected,” other radical changes were made by the English Grand Lodge. These were not followed in Scotland or Ireland and, in part, led to the organization of the “Grand BEGINNINGS 23 Lodge of the Antients” in 1751. Both the Ancients and the Moderns planted Lodges in America and elsewhere during the long years thereafter until the English recon- ciliation of 1813. Thus at least these two systems (for they radically differed from each other) were slipped and planted where they took firm root and were in turn slipped and transplanted with the result that even to-day there is much divergence of ritual. And this is true even as to essentials, as to many things which have by stu- dents and Grand Lodges been called “Landmarks.” If ‘Freemasonry’ means only what has descended from the Grand Lodge of England, then it dates from the organization of that Grand Lodge in 1717. But that Grand Lodge was organized by lodges theretofore existing and there is abundant evidence of speculative Freemasonry through earlier centuries. The caterpillar builds its cocoon and changes its shape into a chrysalis, but the life of the chrysalis is the per- petuation of the life of the caterpillar. Even the ma- terial elements of its body are those of the caterpillar’s body transformed. And so, also, we follow that same life essence and those identical material atoms into the emerging moth, but how different in outward appear- ance! Just such, the writer believes has been the life- history through countless centuries of what we now call Freemasonry. Defined as an organization of men, teaching monothe- ism, morality and immortality, in secret, by symbolism, and inculcating the worship of Deity and friendship for one another, it can have no fixed date of origin. In dif- ferent forms through the long years of human life upon the earth, its true essence and life may be believed to have been transmitted through the “‘Men’s House” of 24 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA pre-historic barbarism, the ancient mysteries, the Roman colleges, the cathedral builders, and many other connect- ing links transmuted and transformed, known by many names, into the Freemasonry which is the highest type of such an organization in this modern world. Recent studies furnish confirmatory evidence of this theory of the descent of Freemasonry which I have been insisting upon in Masonic addresses since 1913. BEGINNINGS IN AMERICA It has been argued that Freemasonry began with the Mayas and Quiches in the Western Hemisphere much more than one hundred centuries ago; and that the mys- teries migrated to the old world over a land bridge that was broken when Atlantis was destroyed. Sacred Mysteries among the Mayas and the Quiches, 11500 years ago, etc., by LePlon- geon. This theory is purely fanciful and pabulum only for the dreamer. X The Builder (Jan. 1924) 7 When the Western Hemisphere began to be colonized from Europe, our present system of Grand and particular lodges had not come into being. Masonry was then nomadic and lodges were ‘‘occasional.” It was more operative than speculative. But we still have the Old Charges of a Freemason reduced to manuscript be- fore Colon, the Jew (now generally called Columbus) set his foot upon an island in the West Indies. When first thereafter some of those Freemasons under the Old Constitutions, or Old Charges, came with other colonists to these shores, the fog of time effectually conceals from BEGINNINGS 25 our historic vision. It is unlikely that the early planting of European civilization in Central America and else- where in the Western world brought Freemasonry with it, although the operative Masons certainly came. And there are certain indications in their work to be found in Panama and northwestern South America which indicate that they were speculative as well as operative Masons. Nearly all of their work is marvellously like that of those operative Masons of the Middle Ages’from whom we descend. There is less likelihood that either the Pil- grims or the Puritans were of our Craft. As a reasonable inference or at least speculation from known facts, it may be said (though not asserted as definite) that Free- masonry first came to the Western Hemisphere through mariners, merchants and officers, civil and military. This was unmistakably the case in the early eighteenth century. “Duly constituted” Lodges of Freemasons, as we use the words, never existed prior to June 24, 1717. The unnumbered and mostly unknown Lodges theretofore were but voluntary and indefinite assemblages of those Freemasons who casually or for business reasons found themselves in a given neighbourhood. ‘To this rule there were exceptions becoming more numerous toward the close of the seventeenth century, but it may be said as a generality that there was no such thing as Lodge ‘“‘mem- bership.”’ All were Freemasons “at large.” With cer- tain definite exceptions, no Lodge was a continuing body or had officers with terms which overran each closing or kept records. They were usually occasional bodies hav- ing no persevering entity. They were, however, “‘regu- lar.” The reincarnation or transmutation commonly known 26 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA as the “Revival of 1717” changed all this. It provided not only Grand Lodge organization and administrative machinery but included definite provisions for Lodge con- tinuity. It established for all future time the funda- mental test of regularity and due constitution as exist- ence under explicit authority lawfully granted by a Grand Master. In a world which had not harnessed the energies of steam or electricity or gas for the transportation of per- sons or freight or intelligence, some years passed before these rules of regularity were thoroughly known, much less accepted, by all the Masons familiar with the old haphazard customs. But finally the whole Fraternity wheresoever dispersed recognized and conformed. ‘The Regulations governing regularity (formally adopted June 24, 1721) comparatively soon obtained full sway and have ever since been universally recognized by the Craft. No “duly constituted” Lodge of Symbolic Ma- sonry exists or has ever existed since then—except only the four which together organized the Grand Lodge of 1717 and Mother Kilwinning and her children—without warrant and/or constitution by act of a Grand Master or of his Deputy. See 1700, énfra. The early Lodges and Provincial Grand Lodges were careless about the keeping of records. Even the Mother Grand Lodge itself has no formal record book for more than six years after its organization. And the premier Provincial Grand Lodge of the Western Hemisphere, organized in Boston, Massachusetts, July 30, 1733, has no formal and continuous records written in a book at the time of the recorded events, until 1750. This has led some argumentative Brethren to assert BEGINNINGS 27 that there is naught but tradition of duly constituted Masonry in America prior to 1750. And it has led to this attempt to make a chronological compilation of all the real known facts of Masonry in America prior to the middle of the eighteenth century with references to the original evidence, nearly all of which has been per- sonally and critically examined. Now and then are also included, for convenience of the student, references to certain things which even some of our best historians and their readers have swallowed with much consequent ptomaine poisoning. No pretension is made that this is complete. It does contain, however, everything for which the investigations of the writer have disclosed credible and authentic evi- dence. It is hoped that others may be stimulated to publish all possible facts of the period for which they can and do cite authority worthy of and available for examination and test as to historical accuracy. CHAPTER II AUTHORITIES The principal sources of information are: 1. The official engraved lists published by authority of the Grand Lodge of England. 2. The various editions of the Constitutions. 3. Original record and account books. 4. Manuscripts of the period. 5. Newspapers of the period. 6. The various editions of The Free Mason’s Pocket Companion, containing a history of the Fraternity (and in some editions a list of the Lodges) written by J. Scott and first published in 1754. 7. Preston’s “Illustrations of Masonry,” the first edi- tion of which was issued in 1772. 8. Other manuscripts and publications by those who lived during the period in question, whether written then or shortly thereafter. 1. OFFICIAL LISTS OF LODGES Valuable sources of information concerning the early Lodges are the official engraved lists which since 1723 were published at least annually by authority of the Grand Lodge of England. Just before 1730 the Lodges were given numbers in these lists, usually in accordance with seniority. When a Provincial Lodge was not re- ported promptly, as often happened, it was given a posi- 28 AUTHORITIES 29 tion later than that to which it was entitled but corre- sponding with the date of the receipt of its report; and then when a vacancy occurred by the erasure of a Lodge somewhere near the position in which it belonged, the transfer would be made (e.g., the First Lodge at Sa- vannah, Georgia. See 1735, after October 30, énfra). The early official lists were engraved with artistic repre- sentations of the signs of the taverns, etc., in which the Lodges met. With all of their errors—and they had many—these lists are invaluable to the Masonic student, and in many cases are the sole source of information. Printed lists were now and then issued, but they were not official and have less probative value. Brothers Hughan and Lane have made exhaustive studies of these lists, the ultimate being reached in Lane’s Masonic Rec- ords, 1717-1894 (2d Edition, 1895) to which frequent reference is hereafter made. Of the printed lists the Grand Lodges of Iowa and Massachusetts own a large number, some of which were apparently unknown to Lane. 2. THE CONSTITUTIONS The first printed edition of the Constitutions and Regu- lations of the Grand Lodge of England was compiled by Anderson and published at London in 1723." An im- 1 As to its authority and accuracy see “Introduction” by Lionel Vibert to his 1923 facsimile reprint published by Quaritch, London. Bro. Vibert’s “Introduction” is a volume in itself. He says, in part, “An- derson’s Constitutions of the Freemasons was originally a private venture which gained Grand Lodge sanction by a kind of accident, and it came into general use by a slow evolution. In its own time it almost escaped notice, at least by the general Masonic public. Yet, after a time it came to be to the Craft in general what the Old Charges were to lodges in the Operative period, and continues so to be in spite of 30 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA proved edition was issued in 1738. Many editions have since appeared. The first American printing was by Benjamin Franklin, in Philadelphia, in 1734. All con- tain a history of the Craft. But little weight can be given to the history, as there recorded, prior to the eight- eenth century, it being largely an adaptation of the old manuscript Constitutions. A considerable number of these manuscripts still exist written during the years as far back as the fourteenth century, but they are a curious blending of fact and fiction such as usually results when facts are handed down through hundreds of years by tradition. Even the record of the events from and after 1717 in the printed Constitutions must be scrutinized though they were recorded by participants in the events them- selves or by their associates who had first-hand sources of information. 3. RECORDS AND ACCOUNT BOOKS Few of the Masonic bodies of the early eighteenth century began to keep records in a minute book contem- the fact that since R. F. Gould, Anderson’s work and Masonic record have been scrutinized with merciless severity, one of the results being that his attempt at writing a Masonic history has been discounted almost to the vanishing point. “Vet it would be difficult to estimate its influence on the history of the Craft. Notwithstanding the way in which Grand Lodge received the work after its publication, it took its place as the official manual, so that the fact that it was not official but essentially a private affair was entirely lost sight of. It was taken by the Grand Lodge of Ireland as the model for their Book of Constitutions in 1730. It was re- printed verbatim for use in America by Franklin in 1734. It was pirated in London and later in Dublin by Smith in 1735. And its author’s reputation was great enough to carry off the History he wrote for his second edition of 1738, and led the Craft for a century and a half to accept it and reprint it as a serious contribution to the sub- ject. To-day we value the Doctor’s labours less highly, but the Con- stitutions of 1723 is nevertheless one of the most important records of the Craft.” AUTHORITIES 31 poraneously with the events recorded until several years after organization. a. The Grand Lodge at London, for instance, was organized in 1717, but its first contemporaneous record book begins June 24, 1723. b. The Brethren who met in Philadelphia had an account book now known as “Libre B” beginning with June 24, 1731, g.v., which came to light in 1884, and is now in the library of the Historical Society of Pennsyl- vania. This book is in several handwritings. Much of it has been ascribed to Franklin, but in my opinion little, if any, of it is in his handwriting. In many respects the book is a mystery. On the out- side it is inscribed (in very black ink): “Philadelphia City.” Under this, in brown ink and a different penmanship: “St. Johns Lodge Libr B.” It is plainly evident that the cover was first marked “Libr A.” The “A” was heavily printed. The left side and the cross-line of the “A” remain. The right side of the “‘A” has been erased and the bulging bells of a cap- ital ““B” (as in script) substituted. The marks of erasure were clearly visible when examined by the assistant li- brarian and the writer on April 12, 1923, yet the over- written ink seems ancient rather than modern. Brother Sachse neither explains nor mentions this alteration. The first twenty-three pages are an index to the Ma- sonic accounts which appear in the last third of the book. This index was written in some time after November 5, 32 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1733, for it is evidently written by some one other than the person who made the entries dated on and before that day. Next are a number of pages which concern the print- ing in 1791, and later, of Prayer Books, Testaments, and Laws. These pages contain no Masonic references. From there, the book is blank about two-thirds of the way through. At this place the Masonic entries com- mence, the first being an account with “Messrs Shippen & Pratt, Wardens for the year 1736.” The next two pages have the account with “Pratt & Syng,’ Wardens for 1737. Following this, is the gen- eral account of Lodge expenses for 1736 and 1737; two blank pages; and then what is apparently a Lodge ac- count beginning June 24, 1731. (See facsimile, page 64 énfra.) The purchase of the book itself is charged under date of August 2, 1731. It is evident, from the accounts with the members which follow, that on the date with which the accounts begin (June 24, 1731) there were fourteen members of the Lodge. The entrance or admission fees of all the others were charged at later dates. Entrance was then £3-0-0. Admission was £2-0-0. In June, 1734, the entrance fee was raised to £5-0-0. The latest entry in the Masonic part of the book is dated June 24, 1738. This curious book is not a fraud. It is evidently gen- uine. Why, when and by whom the change from “A” to “B” was made is, to me, a mystery. Signs of the erasure are still plainly visible and yet the ink is appar- ently as old as some of the internal entries. Neither can I offer any satisfactory explanation for the other pe- culiarities of the volume. AUTHORITIES 33 The earliest published comment concerning this vol- ume, containing a hint of ‘‘Franklin’s Journal,” is to be found in the ‘Early History” published by the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania in 1877 (page 4, following page CXIx). 1 O.M.L.P., Chapter II. 1899 Mass. 51. c. The First Lodge in Boston constituted July 30, 1733, began its records at some unknown period. Its earliest record book now known begins with copies of Price’s Commission, of the By-Laws of the Lodge, and of Tomlinson’s Commission, followed by the record of De- cember 27, 1738, “being the VI meeting of the Quarter.” Ebenezer Swan was the Secretary. It closes with the record of July 24, 1754. Reversed, the volume contains the account book of the Lodge beginning December 27, 1738, the first entry being “To a Ball® brought from a former Book 34:8: 5.” Thomas Oxnard was then Treasurer. This account runs to February 26, 1755. 1 N.E.F. 57 and 279. 1900 Mass. 125. This volume is in the archives of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts. d. The existing records of the Masters Lodge in Boston begin with its constitution, December 22, 1738, Francis Beteilhe, Secretary. This book closes with the meeting of November 6, 1761. Reversed, the volume discloses the account book down to December 21, 1753. A loose sheet is inserted with a rough account from De- cember 1, 1758, to December, 1760. This volume is in the archives of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts. e. The known records of Saint John’s Lodge of Ports- 34 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA mouth, N. H., begin October 31, 1739, Jonathan Log- gin, Secretary. The volume beginning on this date is now in possession of the Lodge. f. The minute book of Tun Tavern Lodge of Phila- delphia is now in the archives of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. The entries commence June 28, 1749, and end July 2, 1755. g. There is in the archives of the American Philo- sophical Society at Philadelphia a volume entitled “Benj” Franklin® Journal, began July 4, 1730,” and its first entries begin with that day. It is a printer’s ac- count book. On the cover are some indistinct letters fol- lowed by the inscription “Leidgers A & B” Beginning in the summer of 1734, there are scattered entries relating to Franklin’s reprint of Anderson’s Con- stitutions, and other entries against the ‘““Lodge of Masons held at B. Hubard’s.” (Bro. John Hubbard kept the Sun Tavern.) The first entry of Masonic significance follows September 9, 1731. The next entry is after June 13 and before July 7, 1734, and reads: “Mr. Newinham D* for a Bind® of a Mason Book gilt -4~” The account against the Lodge begins with an undated item; the next item is dated Sept. 1734; then two items are inserted as August items omitted. Accounts to be continued beyond this book are marked “Transfer’d to Leidger [or Leger] E.” There is:no reterénceito Cas otma oe Many, but by no means all, of the entries in this book are in Franklin’s handwriting. See 1898 Penn. 85-102; 1899 Mass. 51. AUTHORITIES 35 h. The contemporaneous records of the Provincial Grand Lodge at Boston begin April 13, 1750, Peter Pelham, Grand Secretary, exactly seventeen years after the date of Price’s Deputation. ‘These records are in the first volume of the official records of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts and are reprinted in a volume to which I herein refer as | Mass. That printed volume covers the Proceedings down to the union of said Provincial Grand Lodge and “The Massachusetts Grand Lodge,” (organized December 27, 1769, in pursuance of a com- mission issued by the Grand Master Mason of Scotland to Most Worshipful Joseph Warren, Esq., to be Grand Master of Masons in Boston, New England, and within one hundred miles of the same, the commission being dated May 30, 1769). Pelham, following the custom of the period, opened his record book with such detail as was then in his possession of previous happenings during those seventeen years. See | Mass. 1-10. He had his own part in a few of these events but, what is more to the point, he had available information thereof from Henry Price and from the other Brethren who were participants therein and who were his intimate friends and constant associates, as well as from manu- scripts now lost. When Francis Beteilhe was elected Clerk of the Vestry of Christ Church, Boston, he had done exactly the same thing; viz., begun his record book with a brief statee ment of the preceding history of the Church. O.R. 36 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 4. MANUSCRIPTS OF THE PERIOD a. The original petition for the constitution of the First Lodge in Boston is still preserved in the archives of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts. See 1733, July 30, znfra. Facsimile, pg. 81, znfra. Investigations have failed to disclose any older similar document in the world. b. The original petition for the constitution of the First Lodge in New Hampshire is upon the same files: See 1735/6, February 5, znfra. Facsimile, pg. 149, znfra. c. The Beteilhe Manuscript. The Beteilhe Manuscript, so called, of twenty-six pages, is entitled almost to the dignity of a contem- poraneous official record. It is in the handwriting of Francis Beteilhe, bound with an original of the Constitu- tions printed by Franklin in 1734, was purchased some years ago for $375 (1899 Mass. 72, et seq., 1906 Mass. 93, et seq.) and is now in the archives of. the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts (1916 Mass. 76). The hand- writing is abundantly attested by comparison with known specimens of his handwriting in the possession of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts and referred to in later citations, and also with the record of the Vestry of Christ Church, Boston, of which he was elected Clerk on Janu- ary 15, 1732/3, serving to and including its meeting for July 30, 1739. There is no clue in the Church records as to why he ceased to serve in the middle of this year except as we may judge from the handwriting itself. His last two entries seem to be written in a larger and feebler hand, certainlv in a more straggling style than AUTHORITIES 37 was his custom. It looks almost as if his style of writing or his control of his muscles was affected by an illness of some sort which might account for his giving up the office. His successor, however, does not seem to have been elected until April 10, 1740. When Beteilhe be- came Secretary of the First Lodge in Boston and of the Grand Lodge we do not know. He was made in the First Lodge on July 24, 1734, ¢.v. infra. He signs as its Secretary as early as June 23, 1736, g.v. infra. He was appointed or reappointed Grand Secretary by Pro: vincial Grand Master Tomlinson on June 24, 1737 (1 Mass. 470). Although not a member of the First Lodge at its constitution he had abundant opportunity to learn the facts which he records not only by his intimate asso- ciation with the other Brethren in the town of Boston, but also especially because he was the partner of Pro- vincial Grand Master Henry Price from 1736 to 1741. The records of the Masters Lodge from January 2, 1738/9, to and including August 7, 1739, are in his hand- writing. That he gave up this Secretaryship in the same year that he ceased to be Clerk of the Vestry of Christ Church, and that the records of the Masters Lodge for some time after August 7, 1739, g.v., are not in the book give confirmatory evidence of his being afflicted by some indisposition during this year. The Manuscript starts with a copy of the petition of July 30, 1733, of the Brethren in Boston to be regularly constituted as a Lodge. This covers three pages. Pages four to six inclusive contain an account of the formation of the Grand Lodge by Henry Price, the presentation of the petition of the Boston Brethren, and the constitution of the First Lodge on July 30, 1733, q.v. infra. Pages seven to twelve inclusive contain the By-Laws or Regu- 38 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA lations of the First Lodge in Boston as adopted October 24, 1733. Pages thirteen and fourteen contain a list of the officers of the Grand Lodge and of the Lodge and also of the Brethren, this list having been written be- tween July 27 and August 23, 1737. Pages fifteen to seventeen inclusive contain votes relative to By-Laws, the first being passed by the Lodge on March 12, 1734/5, and the last on February 9, 1736/7. The eighteenth page is blank. Pages nineteen to twenty-one inclusive contain a copy of the Deputation issued by the Earl of Loudoun, Grand Master of England, to Robert Thom- linson as Provincial Grand Master. Pages twenty-two and twenty-three contain a copy of the letter of Glasgow Kilwinning Lodge, dated February 22, 1736/7, q.v. Pages twenty-four to twenty-six inclusive contain a copy of the letter from Edinburgh, dated January 28, 1736/7, g.U. There are twelve names on the Pelham List which do not appear in the Beteilhe Manuscript. These Brethren had probably ceased to be members of the Lodge by July 27, 1737. There is but one name, Captain Roger Willington, on the Beteilhe Manuscript which is not found on the Pelham List and that name is found in the Barons Letter of June 23, 1736, g.v. There are but two names on the Beteilhe list prior to the date of the Barons Letter list which are not found on the latter. These slight differences, to my mind, confirm the general ac- curacy of all of the lists and prove that no one of them is copied from any other but that all were drawn off from some original records which are now lost. See also 1747, May 27, énfra. A facsimile of pages 13 and 14 of the Beteilhe Manu- script is herewith presented. AUTHORITIES 39 O74. oe KS a Krone Cas lps Ge Ye x 6 9) S ie a " WER ae 2 YOO Holey beer bai Grrercia Socleils itp? / Mah Se JIN: eccle aa 2Gi hia ‘Eig 3 Mie. Motony WATE «Seyler F! Doo Ses Jiallomey 6THo FL hoot WlekLeor 6Wiltne. VeLorr’ 9 ko bart? Sion lnSofigr. Ons efi | nnthon ed BALL Coy PAGE 13 OF BETEILHE MANUSCRIPT 40 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Uns Fraps’ . I : Soin borer Uv bunioe Slob Bdye Gf \\ The Mknight of Benj Hallow lle Wibber Ge For—Caf> Soran Shor Reebert-Jinlte tlh BO eens | an 4G y Vion ey) ; Ok, Gp letiooll Es Caf Sp? Puget L! Soop tan- \\ Gules Varelelllare\ of, ho Me Co lus? larheoy ili Qeort Sdopie— ” DS chibel Gamay |\Olyg! French. VB, Sean’ Lore of} Vales, PAGE 14 OF BETEILHE MANUSCRIPT AUTHORITIES 41 For facsimile of pages 4, 5, and 6, see 1733, July 30, infra. d. The Barons Letter. See 1736, June 23, infra. e. The Pelham List. See abbreviations, supra. I have compared the Pelham List and the original records of the First Lodge in Boston for the period when they overlap. There are two hundred and twenty-four names on the Pelham List for that period. Eight are given on the List whose names do not appear on the original records as made or accepted on the dates stated. Three names are given on the original records which do not appear on the Pelham List. Of the eight, in at least three instances the List must be correct and the Secretary in these cases omitted from the records of the Lodge some things which actually transpired. See 1747, May 27, and 1739, July 25, infra. 5. NEWSPAPERS OF THE PERIOD Every newspaper published in Boston prior to March 25, 1750, so far as they are known to exist, has been read. See IX publications of the Colonial Society of Massachusetts, containing check list of Bos- ton Newspapers, 1740-1780. Appendix to 1915 Proceedings of American Antiquarian Society. Extensive but not exhaustive search has been made of the papers published during the period in Charleston, S. C., Philadelphia, New York, and elsewhere. No com- plete check lists of the existing copies of these papers have been found. 42 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 6. THE POCKET COMPANION 7. PRESTON’S ILLUSTRATIONS Both of these were written by men who copied or paraphrased Anderson. Both were supplemented in suc- ceeding editions. Both occasionally contain lists of the lodges. So far, at least, as they recite facts not recorded by Anderson their statements concerning the events of the eighteenth century have great evidential value. 8. OTHER MANUSCRIPTS AND PUBLICATIONS WILL BE REFERRED TO FROM TIME TO TIME CALENDAR Much confusion has arisen over dates from January I to March 24 inclusive prior to 1753, because to and in- cluding the year 1752 the first day of the new year was March 25 instead of January 1. Consequently old style March 24, 1750, for instance, was the day before March 25, 1751; and January 1, 1750, was the day after De- cember 31, 1750, and not the day after December 31, 1749. In many commentaries on early Masonic matters as well as upon matters of general history this distinction has been overlooked, with resultant confusion. Accuracy of dates has been attempted herein, and for clearness both old and new style have been indicated. For in- stance, March 24, 1750/1, means the day before March 25,1751. At the time, that day was officially known as March 24, 1750. CuaPprTer III EARLIEST TRACES IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE 1606, Nova Scotia. Dr. Charles T. Jackson, of Boston, while making 4 survey of Nova Scotia in 1827, discovered upon the shore of Goat Island in Annapolis Basin a flat slab of trap rock with the date 1606 and what some have thought to be the Square and Compass deeply cut though much worn by time and weather. It was at first thought that upon this stone the French had engraved the date of their first cultivation of the soil in memory of their formal possession of the country. Historical and Statistical Account of Nova Scotia by Judge Haliburton, published in 1829, Vol. II, p. 155. Dr. Jackson gave this stone to Judge T. C. Halibur- ton, and about 1887 his son passed it along to the Canadian Institute of Toronto to be inserted in the wall of its new building. It was duly received and instruc- tions were given to build it in with the inscription ex- posed but very stupidly the workmen covered it over with plaster and the stone cannot now be traced, although the plaster has been removed at several places to look for it and a reward of one thousand dollars offered for its dis- covery. Early History of Freemasonry in Nova Scotia and Published Lecture by M. W. Bro. Hon. Wm. Ross, delivered in Virgin Lodge June, 1910, pages 3-6. 48 44 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Brother R. V. Harris’s theory concerning this stone seems the most reasonable one presented, namely, that “the stone marked the grave of either a mason or stone- cutter or possibly a carpenter who died November 14, 1606, and not that of a speculative Freemason.” Transactions of Nova Scotia Lodge of Re- search for Jan. 31, 1916, pages 29 e¢ seq. In 1785, there was a tradition in Nova Scotia that Freemasonry had been known there while the country was in the hands of the French. See “Charges and Regulations,” etc., published by John Howe, Halifax, 1786. The only known copy is in the archives of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts. 1654, New England. Plymouth County Records, Volume X, page 137, con- tain a reference to a parcel sent from Cooper’s Hall, London, March, 1654, to the Apostle John Eliot ‘‘for the use of the Indian worke.”’ On the outside are some hieroglyphics which, in part at least, are unintelligible. The first may be intended for “‘N.E.” At its base are some lines which might possibly have been intended for the square and compasses. This, in my judgment, is purely fortuitous. It is a strain on the imagination to find any real Masonic significance in this incident. 1656 or 1658, Rhode Island. Brother J. L. Gould of Connecticut published in 1868 at New York a manual entitled “Guide to the Chapter,”’ in which this statement is contained: “The earliest account of the introduction of Masonry into the United States is the history of a Lodge organs THE MASONIC (?) STONE OF 1606 From photograph in possession of the New England Histcric Genealcgical Society. _o— EARLIEST TRACES 45 ized in Rhode Island, A.D. 1658, or fifty-nine years before the revival in England, and seventy-five years before the establishment of the first Lodge in Massachu- setts.” The author states that ““The Reverend Edward Peterson, in his ‘History of Rhode Island and Newport in the Past,’ gives the following account of this early Lodge,” etc. On page 101 of the 1853 edition of Peterson’s History the above statement is made in substance and immedi- ately following it in italics are the words: “Taken from documents now in possession of N. H. Gould, Esq.” In 1870 M. W. Bro. William S. Gardner, then Grand Master of Massachusetts, wrote to Bro. N. H. Gould requesting a detailed account of the documents referred to. On December 12, 1870, Bro. N. H. Gould replied by a letter quoted in full in 1870 Mass. 358, in which letter he says: “The document was dual in its nature and as follows: “<“Th® y® [day and month obliterated] 1656 or 8 [not certain which, as the place was stained and broken: the first three figures were plain] W mett att y House off Mordecai Campunnall and affter Synagog W® gave Ab™ Moses the degrees of Maconrie.’ ” He explains further that the document spoken of was in a very tender state and that after a time it became so broken that he could not have it even daguerreotyped and adds: ‘“‘But what there is of it was nicely enveloped and tucked away with some of my papers in my house securely but not where I can at present put my hand upon it.” 46 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Judge Gardner comments: “It is almost impossible to treat this story with the attention which the subject demands. It bears upon its face the utter refutation of the assertion made by the Rev. Edward Peterson, and of the claim made by Br. J. L. Gould, of Connecticut. It is unnecessary to argue that, admitting everything in the letter to be true, it affords no proof, not even the probability, of the exist- ence of Masonry in Rhode Island previous to its intro- duction there by the Provincial Grand Lodge of Massa- chusetts about 1749. Fragmentary pieces of paper, con- taining partly illegible writing in the handwriting of no person known, ‘nw/lius filius,’ are not sufficient to con- trovert well-established historical facts. If the Rev. Ed- ward Peterson carefully examined this weatherworn fragment of paper, and made his statement upon the faith and credit of this token, then we need not be sur- prised to learn that in Rhode Island his History is not recognized as an authority.” The letter of December 12, 1870, was sent to M. W. Bro. Thomas A. Doyle, then Grand Master of Masons in Rhode Island, who replied, among other things: “T can only say that, from the best information I can obtain in regard to that history, the statement is not to be taken as a fact, unless supported by other reliable testimony. What he has said about Masonry is, I under- stand, asserted upon the authority of documents in the possession of W. Bro. N. H. Gould. I have made many enquiries about these documents of brethren in Newport, members of the Grand Lodge and others, and do not find that any one has ever seen them; neither do the brethren believe that any proof exists of the truth of Peterson’s Statementiar ei “My own opinion is, that the first lawful Lodge of. EARLIEST TRACES 47 Masons ever convened in this jurisdiction, was the one which met in Newport, in 1749, under the authority of R. W. Thomas Oxnard, Provincial Grand Master of Massachusetts, which Lodge has existed since that time, and is now known as Saint John’s Lodge.” In 1891 M. W. Bro. Sereno D. Nickerson commented: “Tt must be confessed that both Grand Masters had good reason for dismissing with contempt the extrava- gant claim of the historian. The manufacture of docu- mentary evidence to supply missing links in Masonic his- tory is a department of belles lettres in which it seems especially dangerous to venture.” Notwithstanding repeated requests and demands, neither the document nor any fragment of it has ever been produced for examination and we are safe in con- cluding that unless and until the document is produced or accounted for, no credit can be given to it or to any conclusions based upon it. 1697. Henry Price, founder of duly constituted Masonry in America, was born this year in London. See page 93. 1700, American Colonies. It is generally believed, as a warranted deduction from known facts, that Freemasonry was brought into the colonies of North America at a very early period in the eighteenth century and that the immigrating Freemasons soon established Lodges at various places, which they worked without the sanction of warrants. Mackey 1517. 48 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA These occasional Lodges, meeting ‘‘according to the Old Customs,” were never “‘duly constituted” but they were, nevertheless, “regular” prior to 1721. They were neither “recular” nor ‘“‘duly constituted” after June 24, 1721, unless and until lawfully warranted or chartered. On Saint John the Baptist’s Day, in 1721, the Grand Lodge at London adopted and promulgated the following regu- lation: “VIII. No set or number of Brethren shall withdraw or separate themselves from the Lodge in which they were made Brethren, or were afterwards admitted mem- bers, unless the Lodge becomes too numerous; nor even then without a Dispensation from the Grand Master or his Deputy: and when they are thus separated, they must either immediately join themselves to such other Lodge as they shall like best, with the unanimous consent of that other Lodge to which they go (as above regulated ) or else they must obtain the Grand Master’s Warrant to join in forming a new Lodge. “If any set or number of Masons shall take upon themselves to form a Lodge without the Grand Master’s Warrant, the regular Lodges are not to countenance them, nor own them as fair Brethren and duly formed, nor approve of their acts and deeds; but must treat them as rebels, until they humble themselves, as the Grand Master shall in his prudence direct, and until he approve of them by his Warrant, which must be signified to the other Lodges, as the custom is when a new Lodge is to be registered in the list of Lodges.” As will be seen hereafter the Brethren in Boston were the first in America to be constituted in accordance with this regulation (July 30, 1733). They thus became the first “regular and duly constituted Lodge’’ in the Western Hemisphere. The Lodge at Montserrat was the second EARLIEST TRACES 42 in 1734; the Lodge in Pennsylvania came next in 1734/5; the Brethren in Savannah, Georgia, and Charleston, South Carolina, came next in 1735; and the Lodge in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, followed in 1736. 1705, Boston. Jonathan Belcher, who was born in Boston in 1681 and was graduated from Harvard in 1699, had all the advantages of education and travel which the opu- lence of a fond father could give. Among other things he had the opportunity of travel in Europe where he was made a Mason in 1704, according to a letter which he wrote to the first Lodge in Boston on September 25, 1741. His standing was so considerable that on this trip to Europe he was presented to the Princess Sophia and her son, afterwards George II. His education being finished, he returned to Boston and engaged in business as a merchant. Almost immedi- ately 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, Governor Burnet of the Colony of Massachusetts Bay died, and Mr. Belcher obtained the appointment of Governor of Massa- chusetts and New Hampshire, which he held from 1730 to 1741, under which latter date further reference will be made to him. The point to be noted here is that as in 1705, after being made a Mason in England, he returned to Boston, he may properly be called the Senior Freemason of America. 1914 Mass. 249. 1 N.E.F. 67. 50 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA stay. It has been related within recent years that one Horace W. Smith possessed a letter purporting to have been written in 1715 by one John Moore, Collector of the Port of Philadelphia, in which he spoke of having “spent a few evenings in festivity with my Masonic Brethren.” This letter was for a time exploited as evidence of meetings of the Fraternity in Philadelphia during this year. This letter, however, never existed. Careful in- quiry discloses repeated but unsuccessful attempts by the acquaintances of Mr. Smith to see the letter. If he ever had such a letter he could have produced it or accounted for its absence, but he never did so. No one among his contemporaries or among those having had the best op- portunity to talk with him and to see the document if it existed can be found who believes there ever was such a letter. No notice would be taken of it here were it not for the fact that such Brothers as Hughan, Stillson and Newton, learned in historical matters, accepted the false statements with regard to this letter at their face value but without making a personal investigation to check up the fact. Mackey, 1518. 1718/9, January 5, Boston. The Boston News Letter for this date, page 2, under its news for the Port of Boston chronicles: “Outward Bound, Jacob William Ship Charles and Free Mafon for Jamaica.” We shall hear of this ship again. Pt. EARLIEST TRACES 51 1720, Boston. Reverend Brother Montague, formerly settled at Ded- ham, Mass., in the early part of the nineteenth century, was on a committee to investigate the title of King’s Chapel in Boston to certain property rights then in ec- clesiastical and civil legal controversy. Brother Montague was a member of some Army Lodge, the identity of which however is unknown. While abroad on the duties of this committee, Brother Montague discovered evidence that a Lodge of Free Ma- sons had met in King’s Chapel in Boston in 1720, al- though the meetings were shortly discontinued. In 1826 Brother Montague exhibited the evidence to R. W. Charles W. Moore, then editor of the Masonic Mirror (Grand Pursuivant 1833; Recording Grand Sec- retary from 1834 to 1867; Deputy Grand Master, 1868; Corresponding Grand Secretary, 1869 to 1873; Hon- orary Past Grand Master, December 10, 1873, Grand Lodge of Massachusetts; Active 33° N.M.J. and Grand Secretary General; Editor of Masonic Magazines, 1825 to 1873). Brother Moore published a statement of the fact on January 27, 1827, in the Masonic Mirror and Mechanics Intelligencer. Unfortunately, critical study of Masonic history was not then in vogue and though Brother Moore subsequently referred to the matter in the third volume of Moore’s Freemasons’ Magazine (1844), page 163, he did not state the nature of the evidence upon which he and Brother Montague relied nor where the original evi- dence is to be found. In the concealed pages of some forgotten tome or in some hidden and ancient manuscript, this evidence will probably again be discovered by some delver into the 52 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA secrets of the past. Until then we shall have to rest con- tent with the knowledge that Brothers Montague and Moore were highly respected by their compeers and were men of unquestioned veracity. ‘The evidence, therefore, of these meetings in King’s Chapel as now known neither rises to the grade of unquestioned proof nor falls to the level of tradition. We have the definite knowl- edge that men of the highest standing in the community actually knew of evidence which satisfied them. Certain known facts lend argumentative support. Governor Belcher of Massachusetts, to whom we have referred, was a Mason. His son, Andrew, was at some time prior to July 30, 1733, made a Mason upon this side of the Atlantic, as were others referred to hereafter under date of 1733, July 30. Extensive study demon- strates that at least ten of those who on July 30, 1733, applied to Henry Price for the Constitution of the First Lodge were “‘made here.” In their petition they stated in so many words that some of them were “made here,” though they omitted to tell who or how many. See Facsimile, page 81. Other confirmatory facts will later appear sufficient to warrant the conclusion that the first “‘regular’ Lodge ° in the Western Hemisphere met probably in King’s Chapel, Boston, in 1720. 1914 Mass. 249, et cét. 1888 Mass. 164. 1891 Mass. 35. S. and H. 447. 1720, August 29, Boston. In these days it was customary for members of the Fraternity to speak of Masonic matters by indirection. EARLIEST TRACES 53 For instance, if a cowan or eavesdropper approached while Brethren were talking Masonry one would say, “It rains.” ‘This was the cue to turn the conversation. Bear- ing in mind this habit, it is interesting to read in the Boston Gazette for August 29, 1720, the following ac- count: Charleftown, Aug. 27. On Wednefday laft Four Men belonging to this Town went down in a Boat to the Iilands to kill wild Fowl. On their return home toward Sun-fet, they efpied an Heron at fome {mall diftance, which they attempted to fhoot. And as one of the Com- pany was difcharging his Piece, Another of the Company, (Seil. Mr. Benjamin Dowfe,) unexpectedly ftarted up before the mouth of the Gun and received the Shot into his own Body, under his right Shoulder, upon which He expired in a minute or two with thofe words in Acts VII. 59. Lord Jefus receive my Spirit. When the Body was brought on fhore, it would have melted the moft Ada- mantine heart into relentines, to have heard the Weeping and feen the Tears, which the whole Town fhed at the Affecting fight. He was very much beloved and is uni- verfally lamented, being a Perfon of Exemplary Piety, and Induftry, and Good Temper, and a Widows Only Son. He was alfo the Town-Clerk and Treafurer, and One that was very ufeful in teaching the Youth, Writing, Arithmetick, and Singing of Pfalm Tunes. He was de- cently Buried yefter day (there being a vaft concourfe of People at his Funeral) tatis Sua XXV. hate Whoever wrote the above article probably was a Mason and intended thereby to inform all Brethren who should read the Gazette that Benjamin Dowse was a member of the Craft. The facts are as he gives them but his choice of italics 54 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA does not accord with the custom of the day. Benj. Dowse’s father and brother predeceased him. He left a mother and three sisters. Our learned Brother M. Huxtall thinks that this looks like “the writing of a man who ‘took his Masonry seri- ously,’ and (perhaps half unconsciously) introduced the language of the Craft more or less habitually.” 1721, June 24. On this day the Mother Grand Lodge of the Masonic world, that at London, adopted a regulation quoted on page 48, supra. This has ever since been the law for- bidding the formation of a Lodge without a Grand Mas- ter’s Warrant. This Mother Grand Lodge acquired jurisdiction over the new world and every Regular and Duly Constituted Lodge which existed in America during the period with which we are dealing derived its authority directly ‘or mediately therefrom. At least from and after the public promulgation of this rule (1723) every Lodge which met in England or her Colonies without the required author- ity (and there were doubtless a number of them) was irregular. All such came under the second paragraph of said General Regulation VIII. Clandestine and irregu- larly made Masons were no more entitled to Masonic recognition in the eighteenth century than they are now in the twentieth century. The so-called Lodges in the Colonies, therefore, meeting without Warrant after 1723 are no part of legitimate Masonic history until they “humbled themselves” as did the Masons of Pennsyl- vania when they applied for and received recognition from Provincial Grand Master Henry Price, in 1734/5. Until then, under the law quoted they were “rebels.” EARLIEST TRACES 55 And never in any phase of the life of the world have rebels obtained the rights of legitimacy unless the re- bellion was successful. In dealing with questions of precedence, primacy is to be accorded to regularity, and obedience to law is to be preferred to violation thereof. The channels of regularity since 1721 are recorded and certain, susceptible of definite historic proof. The story of the irregular Craft is vague, uncertain, and almost wholly traditional. No real historian to-day claims the exercise of warranted Masonic authority in America until the formation of the Provincial Grand Lodge in Boston, July 30, 1733, ¢.v. infra. Peat auly, 3S), Boston. The Boston Gazette under “‘Entred Inwards,” gives “John Peddie Ship Free-Mafon from New-Caitle.” Lt. Pal wept. 15, Boston. Under this date we find in the official records of the Port of Boston and in the Boston Weekly News Letter “Outward Bound. ... John Peddie, Charles & Free- mafon for West Indies.” P-t. 1722/3, January 17, London. The Constitutions and Regulations of the Grand Lodge of England were approved for publication, con- taining General Regulation VIII above quoted, page 48. Anderson, (1723). 1723, Boston. Henry Price removed to Boston. See Chapter V. 56 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA N27, Philadelphia. At one time it was attempted to claim for this year proof of Masonry in Philadelphia because of the finding in 1756 of a manuscript copy of the “Old Charges” dated 1727. ‘The contention is unworthy of serious dis- cussion. The Grand Lodge of Massachusetts owns a similar manuscript dated 1677 but makes no claim by virtue thereof. 1909 Mass. 105-109. L727 Mayas: Boston. The Boston Weekly News Letter contains an account of a meeting of the Grand Lodge in London on Monday, February 27, 1726/7. This is the earliest known account in any American newspaper of a Masonic meeting. Would the publisher of a Boston newspaper have in- serted an account of the Masonic meeting in London if there were not known by him to be a sufficient number of members of the Craft in Boston to whom the item would be interesting reading? Does this not lend force to the argument that there were Lodge meetings in Boston and perhaps elsewhere in the Colonies and that the public generally knew of them? Else why would the readers of the News Letter be expected to care for such an item of news as this? The Governor-General was a Mason (page 49). And his son and others were ‘“‘made here”’ before 1733 (page 81). 1730, June 5, London. The Duke of Norfolk, Grand Master of England, ap- pointed Daniel Coxe, Provincial Grand Master of New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania for a period of two years. ‘There has appeared no evidence, however, that EARLIEST TRACES 57 he exercised this deputation. He was on this side of the ocean about four months of the year 1730,* but the bal- ance of his two-year term he was in England endeavoring to perfect his title to nearly half of the Continent of North America, which he claimed to own by virtue of a erant to his father, who was physician to Charles I and IJ. On January 29, 1731, he was present at a meeting of the Grand Lodge of England (X Q.C.A. 139). Dur- ing that year he registered as a member of Lodge No. 8, meeting at the Devil Tavern within Temple Bar. He does appear in America in 1734 but then his commission had long since expired by limitation. The issuance of the deputation, however, establishes three facts, viz. : 1. That the Grand Lodge of England in 1730 claimed jurisdiction over these Colonies. 2. That the Mother Grand Lodge and its Grand Master held to the doctrine that Regular and Duly Con- stituted Lodges could exist in British possessions, or at least in the Colonies, only through the authority of the Grand Master of England. 3. That the Mother Grand Ledge and its Grand Master in 1730 having assumed jurisdiction over New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, which were then dependents of the British Crown, no one else had author- ity to establish Lodges in Pennsylvania, New York or New Jersey until at least after June 24, 1732, the end of the term of the deputation, unless it was revoked or superseded. The establishment of Lodges in Pennsylvania during the term of Coxe’s deputation and without his sanction * See article by David McGregor in The Builder for November, 1924, and the author’s reply in the December issue. 58 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA was, theretore, irregular and in direct contravention of his authority. IV Gould 362. 1730, July 9, Philadelphia. There is an account in the Pennsylvania Gazette of the meeting of the Grand Lodge in London, April 21, 1730. From later instances which will be referred to it is suspected that this was clipped from some Boston newspaper now lost. 1730, July 27, Boston. The New England Weekly Journal gives an account of a Lodge held at the Horn Tavern in London on May L2e FOU P-t. 1730, August 13, Philadelphia. Benjamin Franklin was born in Boston, January 17, 1706. He left Boston in October, 1723, although he was again in Boston the following year. On October 11, 1726, he arrived in Philadelphia after a trip to London. In 1730 Franklin was not a Mason. He was then twenty-four years old and was publishing the Pennsyl- vania Gazette. In the issue of the Gazette August 13, 1730, he reprinted from the New England Weekly Journal of July 27, 1730, the account of the Lodge meeting in London, last above referred to. Is it not an irresistible conclusion that there were Masonic Lodge meetings attended by sufficient numbers to make them known to the community at least in Philadelphia and Boston? If in Philadelphia and Boston, why not else- where in the Colonies? EARLIEST TRACES 59 The regulations of the Grand Lodge of England, June 24, 1721, adopted in the first instance to apply only within the City of London but almost immediately ex- tended to the British Empire, were not thoroughly known and enforced throughout the Empire. It was as late as 1738 before it can be said that they were firmly estab- lished everywhere, though prior to 1738, as we shall see later, they had become known to and enforced in those centres of population upon this side of the ocean where Masonry was practised and which were in touch through merchants and mariners with the Mother Country. 1730, August 20, Philadelphia. Account in Philadelphia Gazette of a Lodge meeting in London in June at which “the celebrated Mr. Orator —Henley—was admitted,” etc. 1730, Fall of Year. Philadelphia. The claim once emanated from Philadelphia that a letter was written in 1754 by one Henry Bell to Dr. Thomas Cadwallader in which the writer is alleged to state that at a meeting in Philadelphia in the fall of 1730 application was made to Daniel Coxe for a Charter which was granted by him. It is now admitted by every Masonic student, both within and without Pennsylvania, that there never was such a letter. The story is like that about the Rhode Island document of 1656 or 1658 and the John Moore letter of 1715. No one of them de- serves more dignified reference than to call it a “fake” pure and simple. 1888 Mass. 131-137. 1899 Mass. 56. 1909 Mass. 108. 1 O.M.L.P. 10. 60 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1730, December 8. Philadelphia. Franklin (not then a Mason) republished in his Phzla- delphia Gazette an alleged exposé of Freemasonry which had been circulated for some time in England. It begins as follows: “As there are several Lodges of Free Masons erected in this Province, and People have lately been much amus’d with Conjectures concerning them; we think the following Account of Free-Masonry from London, will not be unacceptable to our Readers.” The statement that there were “several”? Lodges must be taken cum grano salts. While there is evidence herein referred to that Brethren did about this time assemble as a Lodge, there is little reason to believe that there was more than one such Lodge. X O.C.A. 140, 152. IV Gould 361. 1883 Mass. 184. 1903 Mass. 52. 1730/1, January 29, London. Daniel Coxe was still in England and in attendance upon the Grand Lodge in London. During the year he was registered as a member of Lodge No. 8, at the Devil Tavern within Temple Bar. X Q.C.A. 140, 152. 1730/1, February, Philadelphia. Benjamin Franklin was made a Mason during this month in an assemblage of Brethren in Philadelphia which met ‘‘according to the Old Customs” although that method had for ten years been forbidden. Although EARLIEST TRACES 61 irregular, they undoubtedly met and worked in Philadel- phia as well as in Boston and perhaps elsewhere. IV Gould, 362. They became regular in Pennsylvania after February 21, 1734/5, g.v., through the granting by Henry Price of Franklin’s petition of November 28, 1734, g.v. 1914 Mass. 252, ef cit. 1730, London. Lord Baltimore was made a Mason in England during this year. He was Proprietor of Maryland from 1715 to 1751, and Royal Governor in 1732 and 1733. There is no evidence that he practised or promoted Masonry on these shores, but it is not impossible. IV Gould 262. Mackey 1517. It is recorded in the records of the Grand Lodge of England that Henry Price had returned to London. This year he was a member of Lodge No. 75, meeting at the Rainbow Coffee House in York Buildings (now The Brittanic No. 33). X O.C.A. xviii and 183. 1 Mass. 432. 1730, Georgia. The third edition (1805) of Webb’s Monitor (page 299) stated that Masonry in Georgia dated from 1730. This was an error which Webb corrected in subsequent editions. The statement, however, has been copied with- out correction in several works and has given rise to a curious situation as to which see “1735 after October 30,” infra. It is too early to look for Freemasons here. The first 62 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA emigrants to Georgia landed on the bluff now occupied by the City of Savannah, on January 31, 1732/3. On this spot there was at the time an Indian village called Yamacraw. M. W. Brother W. S. Rockwell who wrote the history of the Grand Lodge of Georgia, first published as a part of its Ahiman Rezon in 1859, repeated a statement made in 1856, 15 M.F.M. 354 that “‘it is not altogether certain that the date A.D. 1730 is erroneous as to the time when the power was conferred upon Roger Lacy; although no formal government ex- isted in the colony of Georgia until 1733, yet the terri- tory now occupied by the State was then under the gov- ernment of Carolina.” But he either forgot or did not know that in 1730 there was not a white settlement any- where in the province—the whole territory was a wilder- ness, the hunting ground of savages. It cannot seriously be contended that the Grand Mas- ter of England actually granted the necessary powers for a Provincial Grand Lodge to be erected among the sub- jects of Chief Tomochichi. Until the landing of Ogle- thorpe with his emigrants in January, 1732/3, the only white man known to be in what is now Georgia, was a trader by the name of Musgrove, who was married to a half breed named Mary. 2 History of Ga. (Stevens) 89. As further authority, Brother Rockwell quotes Clavel’s “Histoire Pittoresque de la France Maconnerie”’ (1884) and Ragon’s “‘Orthodoxie Macconnique” (1853). How- ever, it 1s well known that as a historian no reliance can be placed upon Clavel. Ragon undoubtedly copied the EARLIEST TRACES 63 error which Webb made in his first edition and Clavel evidently copied from Ragon. For Brother Rockwell’s views and the conclusive reply of R. W. Charles W. Moore, see 15 M.F.M. 353-362. The date 1730 published in Webb’s Monitor was per- haps a typographical error, but in any event Webb recog- nized the mistake and corrected it at his first possible opportunity. It does seem rather far fetched to try to justify Webb’s error without a single fact or authority upon which to base such justification. See page 138, infra. WaleMay 13, Philadelphia. “Some Information concerning the Society called Free- masons,” quoted from Chambers Universal Dictionary, is published in the Pennsylvania Gazette, and in the same issue is a notice of a Masonic meeting in Dublin. 1731, June 24, Philadelphia. In January, 1884, the discovery was reported of a book known as “Libr B” containing a statement of the finan- cial affairs of the assemblages of the Brethren in Phila- delphia for about seven years. It begins with this date and is the oldest American Lodge account book known. See page 31. From it we are warranted in concluding that on this day and previously the Brethren of Phila- delphia assembled as heretofore pointed out. Like all meetings in Philadelphia, Boston, and elsewhere in the Colonies at this period the Lodge was neither “Regular” nor “Duly Constituted.”” From the entries in “Libr B,” we learn that there were fourteen members of the Lodge 64 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA at this time. Under this date ‘Libr B” charges the en- trance fees of John Hobart (Hubert), Mark Joyce, and Thomas Rodman (Redman), and the remainder of the fees of Benjamin Franklin and Henry Pratt. “Libr B” and accounts in the Pennsylvania Gazette for the next two years refer to a “Grand Master,”’ etc. Brother Gould correctly states, however, that no linger- ing doubt now remains as to the ““Lodge”’ and the “Grand Lodge’ being one and the same body. IV Gould 234, 361, 363. Concerning “Libr B” and Brother Sachse’s contention concerning early American Freemasonry, see his work called “Old Masonic Lodges in Philadelphia.” A page of “Libr B” is here reproduced. H7Sleduly 3: Philadelphia. L.B. charges Thomas Whitemarsh’s entrance fee. 1731, July 22, Philadelphia. The Pennsylvania Gazette publishes an account of a Masonic meeting in London. 1731, August 2, Philadelphia. Entries in L.B. indicate a meeting. 1731, September 6, Philadelphia. Entries in L.B. indicate a meeting. 1731, September 9, Philadelphia. In Franklin’s Journal under some date after Septem- ber 9, 1731, but probably before October 16, is the entry, “Blanks for Mason’s 100 —5..——” FJ. ve 4a * a Mak co 7 es To. Rite @ TROT J A OA oe emma a = fo dict as fos Be ore £ ee - : 2 iy vias EARLIEST TRACES 65 1731, September 27, —_ Boston. The Weekly Rehearsal publishes an account of the installation at Dublin of the Right Honourable Lord Kingston as Grand Master of Ireland on July 7, 1731. P—t. 1731, October 4, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. Bie 79. 7N eee ly Servusts ier’ (Cteecore, ? CASI Be Aut ? gee ves Qbnknerd 2} — fo gee \| Bihaths forGllarone , op sad? ? a sae Ge CLEC ans, Qt 16) Cov ee oy ey (2. | a. o FACSIMILE OF ENTRY IN FRANKLIN'S JOURNAL 1731, November 1, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 1731, December 6, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 1731/2, January 3, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 66 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1731/2, February 7, Philadelphia. L. B. charges entrance fees of John Hall, Samuel Mc- Clanan, and Lawrence Reynold. 1731/2, February 17, Boston. The Weekly News Letter relates that “the Society of Real Masons held their Lodge of St. Michael” at Lon- don on September 30, 1731. books 1731/2, March 6, Philadelphia. L.B. charges entrance fee of David Parry. 1732; April 3, Philadel phia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 1732, May I, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 1732, May 11, Philadelphia. The Pennsylvania Gazette has a Masonic notice from Dublin. oer ines: Philadelphia. It is reported that in 1885 there was in the possession of George T. Ingham, Esq., of Atlantic City, N. J., a document in Benjamin Franklin’s handwriting (except the signatures) reading as follows: “Gentlemen of the Lodge The Committee you have been pleased to appoint to consider of the present State of the Lodge, and of the properest Methods to improve it, in obedience to your commands have met, and, after much and mature De- liberation, have come to the following Resolutions :-— EARLIEST TRACES 67 1. That since the excellent Science of Geometry and Architecture is so much recommended in our ancient Con- stitutions, Masonry being first instituted with this De- sign, among others, to distinguish the true and skilful Architect from unskilful Pretenders; total Ignorance of this Art is very unbecoming a Man who bears the Worthy Name and Character of Mason; We therefore conclude, that it is the Duty of every Member to make himself, in some Measure, acquainted therewith, as he would honour the Society he belongs to, and conform to the Constitutions. 2. That every Member may have an Opportunity of so doing, the present Cash be laid out in the best Books of Architecture, suitable Mathematical Instru- ments, etc. 3. That since the present whole Stock is not too large for that purpose, every Member indebted to the Lodge pay what is from him respectively due on Monday night, the nineteenth Instant, that so the whole being ready by the 24th of June, may be sent away by the first Oppor- tunity. And that every one not paying that Night, be suspended till he do pay: For without Care be taken that Rules are punctually observed, no Society can be long upheld in good Order and Regularity. 5. That the use of Balls be established in its full Force and Vigour; and that no new Member be admitted against the will of any present Member; because certainly more Regard ought to be had in this way to a Brother who is already a Mason, than to any Person who is not one, and we should never in such cases disoblige a Brother, to oblige a Stranger. 6. That any Member of this Lodge having a com- plaint against any other Member, shall first apply him- self to the Wardens, who shall bring the Cause before the Lodge, where it shall be consider’d and made up, if pos- sible, before the Complainant be allow’d to make that Complaint publick to the World: the Offender against this Rule to be expell’d. 68 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA June 5, 1732. The Members whose Names are underwritten, being a Majority, agree unanimously to the within Proposals of the Committee (except the fourth, which is cross’d out) and accordingly have hereunto set their hands. Will. Pringle Thomas Boude B. Franklin Xtopher Thompson Thos. Hartt David Parry John Emerson Law Reynolds John Hobart Henry Pratt Sam’] Nicholas. “Benjamin Franklin as a Freemason,” page 21. 1732, June 24, Philadelphia. The Pennsylvania Gazette for June 26, 1732, recites that a Grand Lodge was held this day at the Sun Tavern in Philadelphia at which W. Allen, Esq. was chosen Grand Master for the Province of Pennsylvania; that | Mr. William Pringle was appointed Deputy Grand Mas- ter; and that Thomas Boude and Benjamin Franklin were chosen Grand Wardens. See 1731, June 24, supra. 1914 Mass. 252, et cét. 1883 Mass. 184. William Allen William Allen was born in Philadelphia, August 5, 1704, and baptized, August 17, in the First Presbyterian Church. In 1725, he was studying law at the Temple in WILLIAM ALLEN 69 London, and returned to Philadelphia prior to Septem- ber 21, 1726, but appears again to have gone abroad, and did not return until the spring of 1728. During his absence, he was elected a Common Councilman; in 1731 he became a member of the Assembly, serving until 1739; October, 1735, he was chosen Mayor of the City. Allen repeatedly served as Judge of the Orphans’ Court and the Court of Common Pleas; in 1741, he was Recorder, succeeding his father-in-law, Andrew Hamilton, and con- tinued in that office until October 2, 1750, when he was appointed Chief Justice of the Province, an office he held until 1774, when he went to Engiand, where he pub- lished ‘“The American Crisis,” setting forth a plan for restoring the dependence of the American Colonies. A portrait of Grand Master Allen was painted by Benjamin West before he left Philadelphia, and 1s de- scribed by Brown, in the Forum, Vol. 1, pp. 248-249. In this portrait, he has a curled wig and ruffled sleeves, but is otherwise dressed as plainly as possible. The cos- tume is a shade of brown, the face round, with rather straight features, and is distinguished by bonhomie and good sense, rather than by intensity of intellectual action. Judge Allen was elected a member of the American Philosophical Society, January 19, 1768. In “Libr B” at the head of his account, commencing June 24, 1731, he is styled “Grandm’r.”” Brother Allen was afterwards appointed Provincial Grand Master by Lord Byron, the Grand Master of England, in 1750, which office he is supposed to have held for some years. After the Revolution Bro. William Allen returned to Philadelphia, and lived in retirement on his estate at Mount Airy, now the Seminary of the Evangelical Lu- theran Church, where he ended his days in comparative 70 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA obscurity, dying on September 6, 1780. He was buried quietly on the following day. ‘The lane leading from his house to the Wissahickon still bears the name of ‘““Allen’s Lane,” and has also given the name to a station on the Pennsylvania Railroad branch to Chestnut Hill. 1O.M.L.P. 29-31. 1/32, July 3, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 1732, July 24, Boston. The Boston Weekly News Letter contains the follow- ing curious statement under its news from London: “Laft Monday [April 17] were admitted of the Hon- ourable and Ancient Society of Free and Accepted Mafons, George Skinner of Enfield, Efq., a blind Gen- tleman; and the fame Day the Right Hon. the Earl of Strathmore.” Those who regard the “perfect youth” or “physical perfection” doctrine as a landmark, will have difficulty in reconciling this fact. 1732, August 7, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 1732, September 4, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 1732, October 19, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. WILLIAM ALLEN From portrait painted by Benjamin West. a EARLIEST TRACES 71 1732, October 30, Boston. The Weekly Rehearsal chronicles a Grand Lodge meet- ing in Dublin on August Ist. P-t. 1732, November 6, Philadelphia. L. B. charges the entrance fees of James Brigham and Humphrey Morrey. 1732, December 4, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 1732/3, January 1, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 1732/3, February 5, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 1732/3, February 9, Annapolis, Maryland. The Maryland Gazette contains the following item of interest under its London news, dated September 30, 1732. On Sunday about Two in the Afternoon, was a Lodge of Free and Accepted Mafons, at the Rofe Tavern in Cheapfide, where in the Prefence of feveral Brethren of Diftinction, as well Jews as Chriftians, Mr. Edward Rofe, was admitted of the Fraternity, by Mr. Daniel Delvalle, an eminent Jew, the Mafter Capt. Wilmot, &Xc. who were entertained very handfomely; and the Evening was {pent in a Manner not infringing on the Morality of the Chriftian Faith. oe 72 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Masonic newspaper items had been often published before this in Boston and Philadelphia. Evidently there were by this time enough Masons in Maryland to attract attention. We know that the Royal Governor, Lord Baltimore, was a Mason. 1732/3, February 19, Boston. The Weekly Rehearsal contains an article relative to the Papal Nuncio under its Parisian news, vz: “On the 5th, the Nuncio having made his Publick Entry in the accustomed Manner, is now bufily employed in the Ceremonious Part of his Functions; that is, in making Vifits to the Princes and Princeffes of the Blood, in paying and receiving Compliments to and fro among the Cardinals, Minifters, and prime Nobility. On Mon- day, his Excellency, being a FrEE Masov, is to lay the firft Stone towards the building of the great Altar in the Church of S. Sulpice.” eu 1732/3, March 5, Philadelphia. L. B. charges the entrance fee of John Crapp. 1732/3, March 22, Philadelphia. The Pennsylvania Gazette has an account of the initia- tion of a Jew in London. 1733, April 2, Philadelphia. L. B. charges the entrance fee of William Paschal. 1733, April 5, Boston. The Boston Weekly News Letter has an account of a Grand Lodge meeting in London on January 15, 1732/3. | rea EARLIEST TRACES 73 1733, April 6, Annapolis, Maryland. The Maryland Gazette contains the following item: London, Dec. 16. Yefterday Seven-night, there was a Grand Committee of Free and Accepted Mafons, from feveral Lodges, at the Horn Tavern in Palace-yard, Weftmin{ter, to confider of raifing a Sum of Money, by Subfcription, for the Reléef of their poor Brethren, throughout Britain and Ireland. If in this, they meet with good Succefs, it will convince the Werld that there is fome real Merit in the Mafon Word. Pest Why these Masonic newspaper items in Annapolis unless the Brethren were meeting there also ‘according to the Old Customs” ? CHAPTER IV THE FOUNDING OF DULY CONSTITUTED FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1733, April 13. London-New England. On this day, in the Grand Mastership of Lord Vis- count Montague, a Deputation issued to Henry Price as “Provincial Grand Master of New England and Do- minions and Territories thereunto belonging.” ‘This was the second Deputation issued for the western world. That issued to Coxe, however, never having been exer- cised, the Deputation to Price becomes the first to be transmitted across the seas and being immediately put into operation is the first regular Masonic authority for American Masonry. The date of Price’s Deputation has often been given as April 30th and it is possible the latter date is correct. It was so written by Pelham when he recorded the Com- mission in the first book of the Provincial Grand Lodge records. It is also so recorded in the earliest volume now extant of the Proceedings of the First Lodge in Boston, in the handwriting of Ebenezer Swan. An inspection, however, of the original record discloses that Swan started to write the word “thirteenth” and after writing the first “e’”’ changed the word to “thirtieth.” This indi- cates that he had something which led him to think the date was the thirteenth but concluded to accept Pelham’s authority and therefore changed it to the thirtieth. Probably Pelham was wrong and Swan’s first inclination was correct. The fourth page of the Beteilhe Manu- 74 FOUNDING OF FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 175 script, written between July 27 and August 23, 1737, expressly gives the date as the thirteenth. (Facsimile, page 85.) The original petition for the First Lodge in Boston, written July 30, 1733, also clearly gives the date as the thirteenth. (Facsimile, page 81.) In the Deputation of the Duke of Beaufort to John Rowe (1768) is found the recitation, “Our Right Worshipful and well beloved Brother Henry Price Esq’ of North America, Constituted Provincial Grand Master for North America by Viscount Montague Grand Master April both, 1733.” 1 Mass. 150. It is likely that when Charles Pelham wrote his copy, he misunderstood whoever was dictating it to him or mis- read the original and that his blunder was followed by Ebenezer Swan, though in Swan’s mind he had remem- bered it was the thirteenth. April 13 is confirmed by an entry made by Grand Secretary French in a volume of manuscript records of the Grand Lodge of England which reads as follows: “N.B. The Deputation of Bro’ H. Price has never come to my hand, but among other loose papers I have found the following memorandum. (Signed) Tho* French. “Viscount Montague, G.M. Henry Price, Esq" P.G.M. for all North America and the Territories thereunto belonging, Date April 13", 1733, desire the favour to resign his Provincialship in favour of John Rowe, Esq* to be Provincial G.M. over North America where no other Provincial is appointed. (Signed) Beaufort, G.M. He resigning recommends John Rowe, Esq’. We therefore do hereby con-. . .”” 76 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Henry Price received this Deputation in person (1 Mass. 402) paying the fee of three guineas therefor to Thomas Batson, Esq., then Deputy Grand Master, who with the Grand Wardens signed the Deputation. 1 Mass. 134. In Civil War days, when paper stock was scarce, the late Right Worshipful Brother Thomas W. Davis, (Mass. Junior Grand Warden, 1883; Grand Secretary, 1908-1914) then a boy, was employed in buying for a dealer all the old papers that could be found in Townsend, Massachusetts, and vicinity. He has told the author that he then bought nearly all the old papers there were in the residences of that town. He distinctly remembered buying of the Wallace (or Wallis) family. What he collected he piled into his wagon and carted to Fitchburg, where it was sold to paper makers. He felt firmly convinced that he had gathered, among others, all the papers of the Wallaces and other heirs of Henry Price and thus had ignorantly and innocently been the instrument of destruction of this very Deputation. Price’s Deputation as copied by Pelham is as follows: Montague (seal) G:M. To all and every Our R' Worsh' Worshipful and Lov- ing Brethren now Residing or who may hereafter Re- side in New England, The R‘ Hon? and R‘ Worsh' Anthony Lord Viscount Montague Grand Master of the Free and Accepted Ma- sons of England, Sendeth Greeting Whereas Application has been made unto us by our R‘' Worsh and well Beloved Bro” M" Henry Price in behalf of himself and several other Brethren now Re- siding in New England aforesaid Free and Accepted Masons, that We would be pleas’d to Nominate and Ap- FOUNDING OF FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA "7 point a Provincial Grand Master of Free and Accepted Masons in N: England aforesaid. Now Know Ye That we have Nominated, Ordain’d, Constituted and appointed and do by these Presents Nominate, Ordain, Constitute and appoint Our said Worsh' and well Beloved Bro" M" Henry Price, Pro- vincial Grand Master of New England aforesaid and Dominions and Territories thereunto belonging with full power and Authority to Nominate and appoint his Dep- uty Grand Master and Grand Wardens, and We do also hereby Impower the said M* Henry Price, for us and in Our place and Stead, to Constitute the Brethren (Free and Accepted Masons) now Residing or who shall here- after reside in those parts, into One or more Regular Lodge or Lodges, as he shall think fit, and as often as Occasion shall require, He the said M* Henry Price, taking special care that all and every Member of any Lodge or Lodges so to be Constituted have been or shall be made Regular Masons, and that they do cause all and every the Regulations Contain’d in the Printed Book of Constitutions (except so far as they have been alter’d by the Grand Lodge at their Quarterly meetings) to be kept and Observ’d and also all such other Rules and Instructions as shall from time to time be Transmitted to him by us or by Thomas Batson Esq" Our Deputy Grand Master, or the Grand Master or his Deputy for the time being, and that He the said M* Henry Price or his Deputy do send to us or Our Deputy Grand Mas- ter and to the Grand Master of England or his Deputy for the time being annually, an acco‘ in Writing of the number of Lodges so Constituted with the Names of the several Members of each Particular Lodge, together with such other Matters & things as he or they shall think fit to Communicate for the Prosperity of the Craft. And Lastly we Will and Require that our said Pro- vincial Grand Master of New England do Annually cause the Brethren to keep the Feast of S* John the Evangelist, and Dine together on that Day, or (in case 78 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA any Accident should happen to prevent their Dinning to- gether on that Day) on any other Day near that time as he shall Judge most fit as is done here and that at all Quarterly Communications, he do recommend a General Charity to be Establish’d for the Relief of Poor Brethren in those parts. Given under Our Hand and Seal of office at London the Thirtieth Day of April 1733 & of Masonry 5733. By the Grand Master’s Command Tho* Batson D.G.M. G. Rooke 8.G.W. J. Smythe J.G.W. It has been urged that there is no account of Price’s Deputation in the records of the Grand Lodge of Eng- land for 1733, and that, therefore, it was not voted by the Grand Lodge. It certainly was not voted by the Grand Lodge, for according to the regulations it was the Warrant of the Grand Master that was a deputation in those days, not a Charter or other instrument from a Grand Lodge. Price’s Deputation is by no means the only unrecorded authority to a Provincial Grand Master. It is true that a copy of the Warrant to Coxe appears in the Proceedings of the Grand Lodge of England, but it is also true that there was a recognized Provincial Grand Lodge in Chester before May 10, 1727, yet no record was made of its Warrant, Charter or other au- thority (X Q.C.A. 73). The same is true of the Pro- vincial Grand Lodge of South Wales, which existed earlier than June 24, 1727 (X Q.C.A. 75); also of the Provincial Grand Lodge of East India, which dates from prior to December 13, 1733 (X Q.C.A. 237). There is no record of the appointment of a Provincial Grand Master for Ireland, yet a Brother appeared and was recorded as such at the meeting of the Grand Lodge FOUNDING OF FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA ‘179 of England on November 21, 1732 (X Q.C.A. 232). There are many later instances. As the late Brother Sadler, Librarian and Curator of the Grand Lodge of England, wrote in 1910: “The appointment of Provincial Grand Masters, then as now, was a prerogative of the Grand Master (and) consequently never appeared in the Grand Lodge Muin- utes except in some few instances in the early days of the Grand Lodge.” (Brother Henry Sadler, Librarian and Curator of the United Grand Lodge of A. F. & A. Masons of England to Bro. Julius F. Sachse, Dec. 31, 1910, quoted in 1 O.M.L.P. 11, note 16.) 1733, April 26, Philadelphia. *« The Pennsylvania Gazette copies from the Boston Weekly News Letter the notice referred to under April 5, _ 1733, supra. 1733, April 30, London. The date of Henry Price’s Deputation as recorded by Pelham and Swan. 1 Mass. 1. But see, 1733, April 13, supra. 1733, May 7, Philadelphia. L. B. charges the entrance fees of Peter Cuff and Richard Parkhouse. 1733, June 4. Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 1733, June 14, Philadelphia. Account in the Pennsylvania Gazette of a Masonic meeting in London. 80 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1733, June 25, Philadelphia. The Pennsylvania Gazette for June 28, 1733, recites that a Grand Lodge was held at the Tun Tavern in Philadelphia this day at which Humphrey Murray (Morrey), Esq., was elected Grand Master, and an en- tertainment was provided attended by distinguished guests. Humphrey Morrey (Murray). Humphrey Morrey was a grandson of the first Mayor of Philadelphia. The Morrey family were wealthy Quakers who moved to Philadelphia from New York in 1685. Humphrey, however, renounced Quakerism and was baptized (when an adult) in the First Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia. He was a merchant and diss tiller. He died between the 6th and 13th day of Au- gust, 1735, unmarried and without issue. From his will dated November 7, 1732, it appears that he, William Allen, John Crapp (who served as Franklin’s Deputy Grand Master) and Joseph Shippen were cousins. 1 O.M.L.P. 38. LYSGy aul yes Philadelphia. L. B. charges the entrance fee of Owen Owens. L7B33 July 30: Boston. Henry Price formed a Grand Lodge in Boston, ap- pointing Andrew Belcher, Esq., (son of the Governor) his Deputy Grand Master, and Brothers Thomas Ken- nelly and John Quane, Grand Wardens, pro tempore. 1 Mass. 3. B.MS. 5. When Charles Pelham (in 1750) wrote the record of this evening in the first existing volume of the Grand Sd She Hum oe Humlte 2b tion Vhs boty pe Batatfg Hernestey an Weg fife Eade otto GE pi PPD ra Ba Bigs gy rive G) tell s# Leas Whe ve dicdalvt is bad helen eal a ee ieee Coun A oe wel Se Tew Ay ver hele LOTULI'T are y bE BEE ite ond fore. , YOUTH eufation & epee] Te are 2% Nim ber o Erothery $e ; K te A12 age feta. vot TT of Great eee edie % poe ore Lavitinalion kare tot Kd poug oe cack others ar aos Wee (grade fore Siig ae s-— frevert : ! Waa EN s&E ANAS. jal. Leerervyy) ab fancasht:t ‘yl por 172 is vs 7 LY asa Hourlridye ) Y : i} . i > 4 ae. Vlopostenvte. RS ie ey lhureh JES f ; OLGA TL a oI i) 4// @ lew Cin taiyt) / ‘ . ‘ iy wewelen MCA A la a ba 4 ’ Srenel Slr vtets Ar MY GICD (ID whe CANE We Mer Lhap € CA yHermilonp EO Sy ie re Noth OTT ais ive UW Sere Moduesed BENS eledion etre FACSIMILE OF PAGE 6 OF ENGLISH OFFICIAL ENGRAVED 1761 LIST FOUNDING OF FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 85 Cra Stele Chiyeloy- > Siew, ke oD zed, SVCAS ORS Sasi men? A city pa amt hed th2. a, chat Vo, Seppo oY Pha founch oF G wr Keng’ y Syea? OO LOTT. N- GR Cn Mune July the 30% £0. VSS. Kot Maforirg ua: 57 eee Be: releenas Sovchhevesr eens regen Het en be NE oolgs at (Turufa. avoreg * Yrarimeies 4 ered loffteltion kK Ld lbeen decordis 4 dele len Ours ‘Waar rd. Gn? Henry. CBI i cuenecel. ipreen na kal ror Wat. free beeen lea ih af res Ncw Cong leaned, Co grote Us ina rea chiar — we Viti. Yew K Audhare a fem. Eek BGs rom Gun H, ous, ald Ui Suellen cond VE; gy fhe be Veo “Wienke ages Ypraind I lato terge Lan. Betea ey eg (5 cleoy Ye CL: {0 (73 Gna GE EEE ve eae boc roll wilh Seak ey Jpe Gromsq ody? Jegned b: Guy Al Wey ros iy eae i arg “CG Woy Chak FACSIMILE OF PAGE 4 OF BETEILHE MANUSCIPT einer | 86 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Se Lhe, fawereg og ee g7(s Wii pina | more Don i Aes labors fo bes 2. a mates “a is cal. eS fb fat tad rt hs fre font iy Sas Spree: Rannay UG CVT, SPE tones Pissel ie eel (by OME Lo Hiesse aN Ee Unaden Mage Oy tlw fr ie Voalges Wee ae Oke Cppoentod. our Wey al. le Preven? WW fone. Gov OE Whedorte ames — Fe Voyaor? FACSIMILE OF PAGE 5 OF BETEILHE MANUSCIPT FOUNDING OF FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 87 Virtite ki ail he. wre tlo" "CF 2- LEP UTD EFPLOU ILL! Cnreurree freye Lg fhe. (tsuad reuse lt.’ Ater*e "eh Pan pep pare ALLY chon Y)laaley & Waractsrs. Arle preiesthis 0 OS oes ve Wiyeek Gt Laster: whe Checzed Mev Fo G29 bucky Be itelod bX Bees ee weed pecs ¢ Cjgroee g Cr Nyse) Wet ‘in thee Several POMS : Ory © Snbeshig fhe tor the tie Ip: BS es ps bY hb ry 4 ot (eee! OU om cach. Pt’ bay a = cus (flange Yee Lebworisting Pbareh ay oe ors fe alarlga> tes cline? Lb aclecsrce ke. Jub mi apeae actor dung Lo Ou printed SS oy Breall LalSpe (Fareed 0 AD Leg hae J LOCA) FACSIMILE OF PAGE 6 OF BETEILHE MANUSCRIPT 88 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA tion of a Lodge in America are herewith presented, read- ing as follows: At a Special Chapter of Free & Accepted Masons Regularly met & Congregated at the houfe of Edw® Lutwych at the Sign of the Bunch of grapes in King Street Boston, N. Encx® On Munday July the 30th A.D: 1733 & of Mafonry A: 5733. The following Brethren being regularly met in the Lodge at y® houfe afores* unanimously agreed to peti- tion, & did then accordingly petition Our Rt. Worfpl: Bro. M* Henry Price Provincial Grand Master of the Free & Accepted Mafons of New England, to Constitute Us in a regular Lodge by virtue of y® power & author- ity to him given by a Deputation from Our Rt. Worfp- full & Worfpfull Brother and Rt. Hon”® Anthony Lord Visco’ Montague Grand Master of England Dated in London the 13th day of Aprill A.D. 1733 and of Ma- fonry A.5733 and sealed with y® Seal of the Grand Lodge Signed by Our Rt. Worfpfull Brothers George Rook Esq* James Moor Smith Esq* jew. of England Our said Worfpfull G.M. having formed a Grand ~ Lodge, appointing our Rt. Worfpfull Bro. Andrew Belcher Esq’ his Deputy G. M?* and our Wor{pfull Brethren Mef{™ Tho*® Kennelly & Grand Wardens pro Tempore John Quane Ordered his commifsion (or Deputation afores*) to be read, as also our Petition. And granting the prayer thereof, Did then & there in the most Solemn manner, according to Ancient Right & Custom, and the form pre- scribed in our printed book of Constitutions FOUNDING OF FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 89 CoNSsTITUTE us into a Regular Lodge in Manner & form, upon which we imediately proceeded (by our S® Rt. Worfpfull G. Master’s Order) to choose a Master and unanimously chofe our Wffull Bro. Henry Hope Esq’ Master of this our new Constituted Lodge, Who then nominated & appointed our Worfpfull Brethren M’ Frederick Hamilton }nis sy igeanpess M* James Gordon which all the Brethren unanimously concurred paying the usuall respects to our S° Worshypful new chosen Master & Wardens. And presenting them to our R‘ W:full G. Master, who caused them to be duely examined & being found well qualifye’, approved & confirmed them in their severall stations by Investing them with the Implements of their Offices, giving each his particular Charge and admonishing the Brethren of the Lodge to due Obedience & Submifsion according to our printed book of Constitu- tions Charges and Regulations &c. Nore. It is evident that preparations had been made in advance for this meeting. Jewels for the officers had been made ready. The occasion was elaborate and formal and followed the English ceremonial which Price had doubtless witnessed while in England. The installa- tion was then, as now, made a part of the ceremony of constitution. I regard it as demonstrated beyond question or cavil that Henry Price was, as he said himself, the Founder of Duly Constituted Masonry in America and that this First Lodge in Boston was the first regular and duly- constituted Lodge. But this Lodge had theretofore been meeting without any formal authority. No one knows, probably no one ever will know when a Lodge first met in America “‘according to the Old Customs” but without warrant, charter or lawful constitution. Neither Price 90 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA nor any one else has left us any information. What Price did say was that the First Lodge in Boston was “the oldest (or first Constituted) Regular Lodge in America.” See page 332. From personal association with the Brethren both in England and America, Price knew whereof he spoke. And our modern researches confirm his statements. When Beteilhe says that, even before the petition, the Brethren were “regularly met in the Lodge,” he gives a clear indication that they had been in the habit of meet- ing as a Lodge though without any “authority from home.” 1733, August 3, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. John Smith made. P.L. 1733, August 6, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 1733, August 23, Philadelphia. Account in American Weekly Mercury that at the Red - Lyon in Canterbury, England, “the celebrated Mr. Tay- lor” was made a Mason. 1733, August 31, Boston. This is the date of the constitution of the First Lodge in Boston as given in the Robertson letter of September 1, 1736, and the Barons letter of June 23, 1736, q.v. infra. But see, 1733, July 30, supra. FOUNDING OF FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 91 1733, September 3, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 1733, September 12, _—_— Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Moses Slaughter and Thomas Phillips made. als. 1733, September 29, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 1733, Autumn. Benjamin Franklin visited Boston and made the ac- quaintance of Henry Price. IV Gould, 235, et cét. It may have been that this conference between Price and Franklin had something to do with that extension of Price’s power over all North America which was granted to him from London in August of the next year. (See Chapter VII.) 1914 Mass. 256, e¢ cét. 1883 Mass. 189. Is it not probable that Franklin then obtained from Price not only much Masonic instruction but also a copy of the Constitutions which Franklin reprinted in May, 1734% CuaPTER V HENRY PRICE It is proper here to place on permanent record a brief biography of the life of Henry Price, the ““Founder of Duly Constituted Masonry in America.”’ He was born in London about the year 1697. The only information concerning his life prior to 1733 is obtained from his sravestone, except that it is recorded in the minutes of the Grand Lodge of England that in 1730 he was a mem- ber of Lodge No. 75, meeting at the Rainbow Coffee House in York Buildings. X O.C.A. xviii and 183. This gravestone until 1888 stood in the old cemetery in Townsend, Massachusetts, a small town situate forty- six miles from Boston upon the border of Massachusetts and New Hampshire. The old burying place is about a mile from the centre of the town, on high land, sur- rounded by a forest of evergreens and on the northerly side of the County Road. | L7 MEE NGI: The stone having become badly cracked and in danger of total destruction, the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts, deeming that the spot where his remains rest should be commemorated by a more suitable monument, obtained in 1888 through the liberality of one of the citizens of Townsend a deed to a plot of land in the new cemetery in the same town, to which the remains of Henry Price were removed. The old gravestone was moved to the 92 HENRY PRICE 93 Temple in Boston where it is now preserved. A repro- duction of this stone taken where it stood in December, 1871, is herewith presented. In clearly defined letters thereon is the following epitaph: (Human Face with Wings) In Memory of Henry Price, Efq’. Was Born in London about the Year of our Lord 1697 he Remov’d to Bofton about the Year 1723 Rec*. a Deputation Appointing him Grand Mafter of Mafons in New England & in the Year 1733 was Appointed a Cornet in the Governors Troop of Guards With the Rank of Major by his Diligence & induftry in Bufinefs he Acquired the means of a Comfor- table Living with which he remov’d to Townfen® in the latter Part of his Life. He quitted Mortality the 20" of May A D 1780 Leaving a Widow & two Young Daughters With a Numerous Company of Friends and Acquaintance to Mourn his Departure Who have that Ground of hope Concerning his Prefent Lot Which Refults from his undifsembled Regard to his Maker & extenfive Benevolence to his Fellow Creatures Manifefted in Life by a behaviour Confiftent With his Character as a Mafon and his Nature as a Man An hone{ft Man the Noble{t Work of God. On June 21, 1888, Henry Endicott, as Grand Master of Masons in Massachusetts, dedicated the monument which now stands over his remains where they lie buried in the new cemetery. In 1723 he was about twenty-six years of age. How long he remained in Boston after his first residence there is unknown. On April 13, 1733, he was in London for he that day received his deputation as Provincial Grand 94 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Master of New England in person from Thomas Batson, Esquire, then Deputy Grand Master. On January 27, 1768, in a letter written by him to the Grand Lodge of England he says, “I myself paid three guineas therefor to Thomas Batson, Esquire, then Deputy Grand Master who with the Grand Wardens then in being signed my said deputation.”’ Sometime between April 13 and July 30, 1733, he returned to Boston and remained in this country the rest of his life, although August 6, 1755, he wrote a letter to the Grand Master of England in which he said, “IT have some remote thoughts of once more seeing Lon- don, with all my Brethren in the Grand Lodge after twenty-two years’ absence.” His Masonic career during the period covered by this book will be referred to frequently hereafter and in this chapter we shall for this period deal mainly with other facts of his life. The first we can learn of him in Boston from any civil official record is to be found on the files of the Court of Common Pleas in Boston at its January term in the year 1733/4 when he brought suit against a debtor and is described in the writ as “Henry Price of Boston,” etc., “taylor.” At this time it was essential that a litigant’s, trade or profession should be accurately set forth in the writ; failure in this respect would abate the writ. During the year 1733 Governor Jonathan Belcher ap- pointed him Cornet in his Troup of Guards with the rank of Major and from that time he was known as Major Price. As late as 1792 his executors refer to him as Major Price and in the inventory of his effects, filed in the Probate Court within a month after his decease, appear a red jacket, red breeches, housing and holsters, ORIGINAL STONE OVER GRAVE OF HENRY PRICE From a Photograph taken December 1871. HENRY PRICE 95 a pair of horse pistols, spurs, sword, belt and silver- hilted sword. ‘These undoubtedly were his military uni- form. The office was that of standard-bearer in the Governor’s troop of cavalry. Special privileges were ac- corded by law to the gentlemen of the Governor’s troop and additional favors to its officers. In those days any military commission gave prominence and high respecta- bility to the individual honoured with it; but to hold an official position in the select body-guard of His Majesty’s Captain General and Governor of New England was considered an especial favour, and of itself conferred honourable social distinction. Price carried on his business at the sign of the Brazen Head on Cornhill at a point which is now on Washing- ton Street about half-way between Water Street and State Street and opposite William Court. The great fire of 1760 began in this building, then occupied by Mrs. Mary Jackson and William, her son, as a dwelling house and store. In 1736 Price formed a partnership with Francis Beteilhe, to whom reference has already been made, and who was closely associated with Price in Masonry as well as in business. Beteilhe was the shopkeeper, while Price carried on the tailoring establishment. About 1739 they apparently gave up tailoring, for after this time he and his partner are described as shop- keepers until the firm was dissolved in 1741 when Price assumed sole control of the business, after the failure of the health of Beteilhe, and carried it on for some time at the corner of Pond and Newbury Streets, now the corner of Bedford and Washington Streets. Price owned a large lot of land on the southerly side of what is now Bedford Street upon which were a brick store and 96 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA dwelling house while part of the premises was used as a garden. In 1740 Price purchased for £1000 a lot of land with buildings thereon situated on the northerly side of King Street, now State Street. When Price purchased this estate there was a wooden building upon it but before November, 1744, he completed the erection upon the lot of a brick dwelling which was begun in the spring; and upon his application the Selectmen gave him permission to erect a sign post in King Street opposite his store. It was the usual custom in those days for a storekeeper to occupy the upper part of the building as a dwelling house with his family. This Price did. He dealt in clothing and dry goods and apparently was very success- ful, for in 1750 he retired. After this he did not engage in any occupation so far as can be learned but we do know that he possessed a great amount of real estate. In 1737 Major Price became engaged to Miss Mary Townsend, then seventeen years of age, a daughter of Samuel Townsend of Boston, who died in 1720. She was possessed of some property. In May, 1737, her uncle, James Townsend of Boston, was appointed her cuardian. He was bitterly opposed to the marriage, al- though we do not know the reason. It may have been due to religious differences, for Price was an Episcopalian and Townsend a rigid Puritan. The Puritans of those days were bitter in their opposition to those who fol- lowed the religion of the prayer-book. When on July 25, 1737, Henry Price and Mary Townsend were duly published according to the then custom, her Uncle James forbade the banns. His opposition did not prevent the marriage, however, which took place in the fall of 1737, and in October, 1738, a daughter Mary was born to HENRY PRICE 97 them. Uncle James died in 1738, leaving an estate ap- praised at £21,000—large for those days. By his will he left public and private bequests but his niece, Mary Price, was not remembered. In 1739 Price and his partner brought suit against one William Wesson, describing the defendant as a “‘house- wright.” Wesson came into court by his attorney and pleaded in abatement that he was a “‘joyner” and not a “housewright,” and the writ was ordered abated. A new action was thereafter brought describing Wesson as “joyner’ and the plaintiffs prevailed. In 1740 Price and his wife Mary sold her interest in a lot of land on Savage’s Court in Boston. In 1742, as a result of an execution levied upon the property of one Thomas Phillips of Boston, in a suit brought by Price, the Major became possessed of the Hartshorn Farm, so-called, and certain other real estate in Townsend, where some years iater he made his home. In 1746 Price purchased a piece of land “with the edifices and buildings thereon situated, at a place called Menotomy Fields, in Cambridge.” This is now the town of Arlington and Price made his summer residence on this estate, situated on the great highway from Lexington to Concord, over which years afterward the British troops marched to burn the provincial stores in those towns. It appears by the records of the Grand Lodge that on April 12, 1751, Brother Price made an offer of the use of his house at Menotomy for the celebration of the Feast of St. John the Baptist, and it was voted that the cele- bration be held at his house and that the Brethren pro- ceed there in regular procession. When the day came, however, the Brethren went in procession to the house of Mr. Richardson in Cambridge, “Brother Price’s house at 98 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Menotomy being encumbered by sickness.” The sick: ness must have been somewhat serious for it is not re- corded that Brother Price attended the Feast. Probably it was the illness of his wife Mary; for we have reason to believe that she died about that time. April 29, 1752, the banns of Henry Price and Mary Tilden, both of Boston, were published and they were married by the rector of Trinity Church on the 25th of May following. Major Price owned half a pew in this church which he held at the time of his decease. In 1750 Price became a member of the Boston Episcopal Charita- ble Society, instituted in 1724, the second oldest charita- ble foundation in New England. During Price’s Grand Lodge activity the Episcopal clergymen of Boston and Newburyport frequently of- ficiated and preached sermons before the Grand Lodge upon the Feast Days of St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist, at Trinity and Christ churches in Boston. This was undoubtedly due to the influence of Price, because the general feeling in Boston was hostile to those who adhered to the “religion of the prayer- book.” After Price retired from business in 1750 we find him several times described in writs, deeds and instruments’ as “gentleman,” thus indicating that he no longer fol- lowed what was then technically known as the “mystery or degree” of any calling. Until 1755 he continued to be a resident of Boston, passing the summer season at his country seat in Cam- bridge. | After his second marriage he either greatly enlarged or entirely rebuilt his house at Menotomy and increased its extent so that his lands stretched out down to the HENRY PRICE 99 pond, and extended them on both sides of the highway with barns, stables, and everything necessary to the com- fortable home of a gentleman and his family. The house was so large that it was generally called the “great house.” In 1755 he took up his permanent residence at Cam- bridge with his wife and daughter Mary, then about sev- enteen years of age. He was rich for the times and evi- dently looked forward to many years of comfort upon this pleasant estate. In 1759 or 1760 his wife died, followed by the death of his only daughter on October 8, 1760. From then on he lost all interest in his Cambridge home and immedi- ately moved again to Boston. Just thirty-two days after his daughter’s death he sold the estate at Menotomy. After a year or two of residence in Boston he moved to Townsend where he continued to reside until his death. Shortly after moving to Townsend he was chosen to represent that town in the Provincial Legislature in 1764 and 1765. Townsend had not had a representative in the Legislature prior to 1764 for nineteen years. He served upon many committees and evidently became Townsend’s leading citizen. On September 17, 1771, he married again, his third wife being Lydia Randall, a resident of Townsend, who was a widow with a minor son by the name of John Abbott. Their marriage articles—what we now call an ante-nuptial settlement—were made on September 6, 1771. Two children were the offspring of this marriage, Mary and Rebecca, both of whom survived their father. His estate at Townsend was a large one, embracing several farms, with buildings, mills, mill privileges, me- chanical shops, wood lots and hundreds of acres. 100 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA He was too old to be a participant in the Revolution- ary War but on May 14, 1779,:shows his loyalty by adding after the day and year of a conveyance, the words “and third year of the independence of the United States of America.” On May 14, 1780, while splitting rails, his axe glanced and struck him in the abdomen, inflicting a se- vere and fatal wound. He evidently realized he could not live for his last will and testament was executed on the next day. On the 20th of the same month he died at the age of eighty-three years. He left what was for those days a large estate. Un- fortunately it was afterward greatly impaired by law suits and defective titles and by the devastations conse- quent upon the War of the Revolution. His will, still on the files of the Registry of the Probate Court for the County of Middlesex in Massachusetts, exhibits clear- ness of intellect and comprehension as well as his re- ligious character. Indeed at the time of his death he possessed three pews in meeting houses not of his re- ligious faith. His daughter Mary in 1787 married William Wallis (Wallace) of Pepperell and descendants of the family remained residents of the vicinity until about 1860. His daughter Rebecca was married April 21, 1788, to George Farrar of Townsend. No descendants are known. His widow, Mrs. Lydia Price, married for her third husband Lieutenant Levi Whitney, of Shrewsbury, on November 13, 1780. They lived for many years thereafter upon the Price Homestead. During his life Major Price had a black servant, proba- bly a slave, called Scipio. He, although lame and in- HENRY PRICE 101 firm from old age, was supported by the estate in suitable comfort for many years. The records show that during his life Major Price was possessed of real estate in Boston, Hull, Cambridge, Wo- burn, Concord, Sherburne and Townsend in Massachu- setts, as well as in towns in New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Connecticut, fully justifying the inscription on the gravestone that ‘“‘by his diligence and industry in business, he acquired the means of a comfortable living.” For further details of his life, reference is made to the exhaustive address by the Grand Master of Massachu- setts published in the Printed Proceedings of that Grand Lodge for December 27, 1871, from which quotations have been freely made. Also 1883 Mass. 150; 1888 Mass. 90, 107; 1891 Mass. 19; 1899 Mass. 50; 1903 Mass. 44; 1906 Mass. 74; 1909 Mass. 105; 1914 Mass. 253; 1916 Mass. 310. Price served as Provincial Grand Master not only from his appointment until 1737 but also from July, 1740, to March 6, 1743/4; from July 12, 1754, to Oc- tober 1, 1755; from October 20, 1767, to November 23, 1768. During intervening periods he was charter Master of the Masters Lodge and of the Second Lodge in Boston, and Master of the First Lodge. He presided over the Grand Lodge as late as April 30, 1773, in the absence of Grand Master John Rowe, although he then lived over forty miles distant and was seventy-six years of age. His last recorded attendance at Grand Lodge was Jan- uary 28, 1774. ' The portrait of Henry Price, used as the frontispiece 102 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA of this book, may be regarded as a real portrait. On September 29, 1857, M. W. John T. Heard, then Grand Master of Masons in Massachusetts, visited ‘Townsend, accompanied by the Grand Wardens and Grand Secre- tary. They found there William Wallace (Wallis) the fourth son of Mary who was the daughter of Henry Price by his third wife. Wallace was then a bachelor sixty-six years of age, living alone in a small 10’ x 12’ single room cottage. M. W. Brother Heard had been in correspondence with William Wallace in 1856, and had obtained from him a portrait painted of Henry Price in 1737, when he was forty years old. This portrait was in such a shattered state that its restoration was despaired of. It was, however, placed in the hands of an eminent artist, Bro. George Howarth, and M. W. Winslow Lewis informs us that, by the skill of Brother Howarth, the picture was made as good as new. It, was presented to the Grand Lodge December 30, 1856, and by order of M. W. Bro. Lewis, was placed in the west of the Grand Lodgeroom, there remaining until the fire of April 6, 1864, at which time it was utterly destroyed. 1888 Mass. 96. 1857 Mass. 53. 17 M.F.M. 11. Previously, however, a lithographic copy had been made for use as the frontispiece to the Book of Consti- tutions in 1857. Fortunately, also, a copy had been painted for Henry Price Lodge, 1897 Mass. 103 and this copy still hangs in the ante-room to its lodge- room in Charlestown, Massachusetts. From this copy, a steel engraving was made which was used by M. W. HENRY PRICE 103 ro. Gardner with his elaborate historical address to which reference has hereinbefore been made. 1871 Mass. 284-393. Because of the availability of two copies made from the original painting (one of them being in colors) a teal portrait of Price was painted in 1914 and now hangs in the West of the Massachusetts Grand Lodge- room. The hand-carved frame bears the pomegranate, lotus and seven-eared wheat which have immemorially been indicia of the Grand Master’s office. 1914 Mass. 171. CHAPTER VI BOSTON—PHILADELPHIA—GEORGIA 1733, October 24, Boston. The First Lodge adopted its “By-Laws or Regula- tions.” O.R. B.MS. 7-12. 1883 Mass. 159. These are so quaint and interesting as to be worth quoting. They read as follows: [st BES Die No Person shall be made a Mason unlefs all the Brethren members Prefent are Unanimous and if but one Member be against him he shall be rejected. No Brother shall be admitted as Member of » this Lodge unlefs all the Members Prefent are unanimous as aforesaid and upon his or their admifsion shall pay twenty shillings, as also their Quarteridge, agreable 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 Sub- scribing their names to the same. No Brother or Brothers shall shall (sc) eat any victuals in the Lodge Room while the Lodge is open, without the leave of the Mafter or Wardens nor call for any Liquor or Tobacco without Leave as aforesaid. BOSTON 105 .\ oe, i (pe i t Ay Che Mont oF by Ly A ead pee . vICIA My i, lee ke re] oe by Ue os Sorel YA ft, fois iy Abs pe ee Veuve oy ech tes pire Cee ag Bee Ae (2e, - - all ae Pee evil Bad JO ‘ Seah rade a Me Ves, altMeyellbeco fo is e ‘gene bone Jremb or CU Same ley loget (tfent « vee t Yow 226 9090 Lea, jay tyr g Lp ME IY evs Ara t. Be ed ae ees) | ae oan Wr’ r sty Died fadt ba drite awTiso bor Blow por ny unbifowl oe Se DTN a ah eh yee s 2p “per Kes or lhe Lr oe ingfon Aa pay the erly K an aw aloe Hear Sear ri a, agrec aie Lt affirm er ith, (ila ~ 2 a5? Oo” ee Ad wes pact a Rabe Cia be foief dccpery ano a ca n2J02AC lo Kee by Vihie SA Sore adeitind of Kiadles “ge by teting > Ramer eine _ eee pig Aa Tyolher eee Brolliat Miehate oa Pee oy elo doe ta oo AG VA rand ( BROM, LE PS of Pahisfe Wes QT Law gor call ea Lo pe ore es se he 08 ‘CL2/ e/) Aah: —_— omen -- oe Ve Ye, Dope a RE ss rpegh JMB in Ray le maduan a@ wine 246 Gv ¢ dispedalion’, Sronvten « Naviirh Sato Joe. re pr = vy ‘ Torrie Doo Les G fee LCS of thal. va, Of ey Ns rect of He a rena hal tv joa idfer Sache prarfinp, ( bul ewvery: ‘7 ne af yuecd i pre ale! PP hore Ait pay bel ¢ a de t tite ofihat ds egg o V Ao Brother psy eee es Her. AS a lout Mee team (Fer ‘i's cs MLE J, ah - ates ) WIEN bo idonler (ese ale seler bifre hot fsa Agr Lat aan Vel TE. 2 of Cory ali. ple 2 «ti? d paysng hed ys, ~ ‘cat Fertig yee rate nak Puppia lal rahe tel «tember ofa hk oA es 9’; Untifp Gy « Saray Me Lerater Mbagiomy W (¢ wctylinilarchet py wee LG V4 Ts AS sie ata fe Do 4 DL Af. ° ° — : aya ¥ io W ify ) “holler errs LA f Daprle tng. Were wn Me we 6@— footy eehaul fart otheng rane SA Mer Haflr ee ang tte / D) A, FACSIMILE OF RECORD OF BY-LAWS OF FIRST LODGE IN BOSTON 106 AGRE vy Al Vil Vili Tx X thy FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Any Person or Persons being balloted in may be made on a private night by dispensa- tion from the Master & 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. No Brother that Lives within or about this Town (that is not a member of this Lodge) shall be admitted as a Visitor, before he has Signified his desire of being a Member and paying his Quarteridge, or else make it appear that he is actualy a Member of a Regular Lodge; Unlefs by a Dispenfation of the Mas- ter & Wardens. Every Visitor shall pay three shillings to- wards the Reckoning Each night. No Brother shall propose any Person in the Lodge to be made without first asking leave of the Mafter and Wardens. Every Member of this Lodge shall pay eighteen shillings pr Quarter for the Expense of the Lodge, and every member that does not pay his Quarteridge on the first Lodge night of the Quarter, or on the second at farthest (if Prefent) shall be Excluded from being a Mem- ber, and all Privilidge of the Lodge. Every Member shall pay at Least two shil- lings more pr Ord. to be applied as Charity Towards the Relief of poor Brethren. Any Member that proposes a Candidate, if Voted or Balloted in; the member that pro- posed his friend, shall immediately deposite fourty shillings in the hands of the Cashire, 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, Xe SULLY > G08 bane BOSTON 107 the said Fourty shillings shall be forfeited and spent and not allowed as part of that making. The Treasurer or Cashier of this Lodge, upon his quitting his office or when another is chosen in his room, shall render a just and true Accot to the Master & Wardens of the Lodge for the time being of all the money Rec‘, Expended & Remaining in his hands with the Lodge book & Accompts which he is to deliver up to the Master and Wardens in order & fairly stated. The Master & Wardens of this Lodge shall take care that the Expence of a Lodge night (when there is no making) shall not Exceed three shillings pr Member prefent for the Reconing which sum of three shillings p" mem- ber or Bro" present, the Cashire has Liberty to ay & no more. The Master of this Lodge, or in absence, the Grand Master Deputy Grand Master or War- _ dens, when there is a private Lodge ordered XIves to be held for a Making shall be obliged to give all the Members timely notice of the time and place in writing where such Lodge is held that they may give their attend® and every member being duly warned as aforesaid and neglecting to attend on such Private making shall not be clothed. (The above article Voted Nov: 14th: 1733: 5733). 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. “Being cloathed” refers to the very ancient custom, now forgotten, of requiring the candidate to furnish each member gloves. present with an apron and a pair of white 108 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1733, November 5, Philadelphia. L. B. charges the entrance fees of Lambert Emerson, Thomas Hopkinson, and John Newingham. 1733, November 9, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Peter Prescott and Ben- jamin Brenton made. PFE: 1733, November 14, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. See 1733, October 24, XIII™Y, supra. 1733, November 19, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Robert McLean made. leh bes Philadelphia. L. B. charges the entrance fee of Christopher Routh. 1733, December 3, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 1733, December 13, London—~Georgia. The minutes of the Communication of the Grand Lodge of England record: “Then the Deputy Grand Master opened to the Lodge the affairs of planting the new Colony of Georgia in America, and having sent an account in print of the nature of such plantation to all the Lodges, informed the Grand Lodge that the Trustees had to Nathaniel Blackerby, Esq., and to himself commissions under their Common Seal to collect the charity of this Society towards enabling the Trustees to send distressed GEORGIA 109 brethren to Georgia where they may be comfortably provided for. Proposed that it be strenuously recommended by the Masters and Wardens of regular Lodges to make a gen- erous collection amounst all their members for that purpose. White being seconded by Bro. Rogers Holland, Esq. (one of the said Trustees) who opened the nature of the settlement, and by Sir William Keith, Bart, who was many years governor of Pennsylvania, by Dr. Desagulier, Lord Southwell, Bro. Blackerby and many other very worthy Brethren, it was recommended ac: cordingly.” It is known that poor families were sent to Georgia and that the Fraternity contributed toward their relief. The terms of the vote are to send poor brethren to Georgia, not to help any one already there. X Q.C.A. 235. Mackey 1518. See 1730, supra, and 1735, after October 30, énfra. 1733, December 22, Norfolk, Virginia. The learned R.W. Brother John Dove, of Virginia, contended that the Royal Exchange Lodge at Norfolk, Va., was established on this date. On several official lists it so appears, being first found upon the list for 1754, near its close, as No. 236. In all lists, however, it is with the 1753 Lodges, following No. 235 accredited to December 20, 1753, and preceding No. 237 ac- credited to February 9, 1754. It was carried on the lists until the 1813 revision becoming numbers 173, Bevel is bt and 102. OL: L.M.R. 101. L.H.B. 48. 110 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA It is evident that 1753 is correct, and that 1733 is an error. IV Gould, 378. The information which Brother Dove had led him to suspect at one time that Blandford Lodge at Peters- burg, Va., was founded about this time by the Grand Lodge of Scotland. He was misinformed. Blandford Lodge is given in the Scottish list as No. 82, whereas Saint Andrew’s Lodge at Boston (1756) is No. 81. P.C. (1st Edinburgh Ed. 1761) Appendix 112. Const. G. L. of Scotland (1852 Ed.) 63. The correct date for Blandford Lodge is probably March 9, 1756. In later editions of his history Brether Dove assigned it to 1757. 1733, December 28, Boston. The Feast of Saint John the Evangelist was cele- brated in Boston and James Gordon was chosen Master of the First Lodge. 1 Mass. 4. 1733/4, January 7, Philadelphia. L. B. charges the entrance fee of Richard Howell. 1733/4, January 19, Philadelphia. L. B. charges the entrance fee of John Waugh. 1733/4, February 4, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 1733/4, February 10, Georgia. A Lodge met in Georgia, probably, for the first time this day. See 1735, after October 30, znfra. 1734 111 1733/4, February 27, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. William Walker made. 1541 8 1733/4, March 4, Philadelphia. Entries in L. B. indicate a meeting. 1733/4, March 18, London—Georgia. The following was this day adopted by the Grand Lodge of England: “Resolved that all the Masters of all regular Lodges who shall not bring in their contribution of charity, do at the next quarterly communication give the reasons why their respective Lodges do not contribute to the settlement of Georgia.”’ OM i It is now reasonably certain that, beginning shortly before this date, a Lodge was doing Masonic work in Georgia. See 1735, after October 30, znfra. 1734, March 29, Boston. The Boston Gazette for April 1, 1734, contains the following item: Anntpoits RW, Embark'd from hence tos that Place with Capr. Peter Blin. , On Friday Evening laf at Mr. Lutepytcbe’s long Room in King -Street, wis beld & Grand-Lodge of the Ancient and Hon= o.wable Society of Free and Accepted Mafons where His Excel- lency Governor Betcngr, anda conflderable Numb ine 2 TEL 1S . ~ ty CMa ee Ebe On madeuiile Us oy eel Gr ‘ef ie bewtts LO ie oie Noo Hhee LIinerica ff er ¢ ples ) hh dees ic iy — frome Prooricnl§ Ae arte. Dy Ay ve ae, “ C PIV Hi WA oe ‘0 f ows Sd: By ae ‘Stolen PSP yy rect Cugue’ Mectad Lda Pye rovwercial Br aul ee ae e- oN Pues Fle) oak we o) fol Vie se lord: ht Mord: Yip hes a ope Gorratritel? and/e- Appointed. nee by Vf 7H feo ies 7, Vorrmate: Cenretitutd) and itp yprows? Fos PMlhloved eB; Ie ur Sine Oia de Ou thik Cite Freemiiab Gpantbe. Moaster of Wer he loom vee! with fall/pon ao Tlenurate and lyipount he Lily Y Grand 'Di ag fer and Grand: Ms dew andeorrour Plameantatrad le Cone eee Lo ae ae blor he Ee cal Ves A OTe Poh honsad OQeis dts bauer ’ “hig wpeeal cavothal alland eer: y, Wiley ov Diemle he te Ylany Lo Vise dye) or tony “oes Sa te VO: hae rer A ae! or tha d aise po Be be Le e-7 ASOFIS Sn ere ie CAUIE ae fa ne By eA Vor DaintelrT LB hif ‘ Spot oe except fo j» Yad they Ai cen/altere yoy ee Grand fe LO frit & eapraty yy, Lp lo Lys bs viruchons ae ee rane to tine? "i Sy OTT HHATE res ne Gy | : Kept and! Obyerved tandialee alleweld elton Fh fe ark “ne or Sv Traber! Fawley arroncl, a aD e277 welurcr Ure? Ti eae OF hid CL Eputy hin VOTE DIRE OGG Uiimb& Vhonrad Oninardibarguirs dp j bindian Mesure Mating | fous oF, Sur Dept be Mhefrasrs eH, Lyater-for VERO CE et7 grey Mand ever thu Ss dgor Lo ‘hee feshall Constitute witte hI GQDate ff evr Gon : Oe VOLE 7. Pe hire fbi Wm ber pe ie pawrdfe Vode Tove Gurveae for the? | General Ohariy andhal Guinea for-olher Gap : of fron wer Y, tomy df oheehal Gin andaldo to holes hee ore of } Yon fo be upon fo c Feaut 4 [ifohe et ae Four Dar tr ls We TE re, year Mhal hme aabenvanaly a, py lp eee IY oud hand andeteal tal at fire! lho Tae oi IT Z OTE oi 0S lle ber CuePhousand Seven nrhonn Tey Merwe andl? ie Mewwonry Fiod heawviand nr geu ise ey y ec . 7 Ce) i: ae be J SY hie erie ‘ : jn Lgl Be pst 4 atte ahve eS 4p hiours (G. Oe Aes ae eS, Oe hoon Be a= / yoy Cxamnun wt “ag Ds ce OXNARD’S DEPUTATION AS PROVINCIAL GRAND MASTER FOR NORTH AMERICA; SEPTEMBER 23, 1743 1743 277 1743, December 27, Boston. Celebration of the Festival by the Grand Lodge. O.R. of First Lodge. 1883 Mass. 165. 1 N.E.F. 282. 1743, December 28, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Election. OH id, Glee 1743/4, January 6, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. OURS Ab: 1743/4, January 9, Boston. The Boston Evening Post contains an account of the recent formation in Avignon of the Knights and Knight- esses of the Order of Felicity soon after the Freemasons were suppressed there, and the mandate of the Arche bishop against the new society. P—t. 1743/4, January 11, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Joseph Holbrook made. Brother Abraham Reller admitted. Under this date the Treasurer paid for binding a book for the laws and list of the members of the Lodge. (This book has been lost.) One: BEA B: 1743/4, January 26, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 278 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1743/4, February 3, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Election. O.R.; A.B. 1743/4, February 8, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Vote concerning the en- tertainment of Governor Belcher. OURe Ay: 1 N.E.F. 282. 1743/4, February 9, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Entertainment of Gov- ernor Belcher who attended with about forty of the Brethren. O.R.; A.B. 1 Mass. 391. 1883 Mass. 162. LENE 22: He soon thereafter sailed for England. See 1744, September 26, énfra. 1743/4, February 22, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Jonathan Pue made. COS TEE) bags fed 8p 1743/4, March 2, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Brothers Thomas As- ton, John Boutin, and Philip Audibert raised. OUR Tsp Eele eA. u, 1743/4, March 6, Boston. Thomas Oxnard received his Deputation as Provincial Grand Master of North America. ‘The original records 1743 279 of the First Lodge contain a copy of this Deputation, together with an account of his holding a Grand Lodge and appointing his officers. The Deputation reads as follows: J: Ward (sEaL) G: M. To all and every, Our R‘ Worsh!' and Loving Brethren We John Lord Ward Baron of Birmingham in the County of Warwick Grand Master of the Honourable Society of Free and Accepted Masons SENDETH GREETING, Whereas Application hath been made unto us by sev- eral of Our Brethren Residing in North America praying that We would appoint a Provincial Grand Master for North America in the Room of our Bro Rob‘ Tomlinson Esq’ Deceas’d late Provincial Grand Master, Now Know Ye That We John Lord Ward have Nominated Constituted and Appointed, and by these Presents do Nominate Constitute and Appoint Our Well beloved Bro" Thomas Oxnard Esq’ To Be Provincial Grand Master of North America with full power to Nom- inate and Appoint his Deputy Grand Master and Grand Wardens, and in Our Name and stead to Constitute Lodges in North America he the said Tho*® Oxnard Esq’ taking special care that all and every Member, or Mem- bers of any Lodge or Lodges so to be Constituted have been or shall be made Regular Masons, and that he cause all and every the Regulations contain’d in the Printed Book of Constitutions (except so far as they have been alter’'d by the Grand Lodge at their Quarterly Com- munications) to be kept and Observ’d, and also all such other Rules and Instructions as shall from time to time be Transmitted to him by us or S™ Rob' Lawley Bart: our Deputy Grand Master, or the Grand Master or his Deputy for the time being, and that he the said Tho*® Oxnard Esq" do send an Acco‘ in Writing to us or our Deputy, or the Grand Master for the time being of all and every the Lodge or Lodges, he shall Constitute with 280 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA the Date of their Constitution and Days of Meeting and Names of their Members, and their place of abode, also Two Guineas for the General Charity and half a Guinea for other Expences from every Lodge he shall Constitute, and also to hold four Quarterly Communications in a Year, one of them upon the Feast of S* John the Evan- gelist or as near that time as Conveniently may be. Given unto Our Hand and Seal at London This Twenty Third Day of September, One Thousand Seven Hundred and Forty Three, and of Masonry Five Thousand Seven Hundred and Forty Three. By the Grand Masters Command sign’d JOHN Revis, G:S. O.R. of First Lodge. See 1743, September 23, supra. 1 Mass. 7, 8, 387. 1871 Mass. 313, 350. 1 N.E.F, 283: Thomas Oxnard. Provincial Grand Master for North America, March 6, 1743/4 to June 25, 1754. Thomas Oxnard was born about 1703 in the Bishopric of Durham in England. The date of his emigration to this country has not been ascertained. On January 21, 1735/6, he was made a Mason in the First Lodge in Boston of which he was chosen Master at the Feast of Saint John the Evangelist, 1736. He was one of the founders of the Masters Lodge on January 2, 1738/9, and frequently attended its meetings. At the Feast of Saint John the Evangelist in 1739 he was appointed Deputy Grand Master. He succeeded Tomlinson as Grand Master, his Commission being dated September 23, 1743, and being received in Boston on March 6, 1743 281 1743/4. He was specifically appointed by his original warrant to be Provincial Grand Master of North Amer- ica, with full power to constitute lodges in North Amer- ica. In the exercise of that power he constituted Lodges not only in and about Boston, but also in Newfoundland, Rhode Island, Maryland, Connecticut, and elsewhere. We know that he was in England in 1752 (1 Mass. 19) and he was probably absent for some time because he did not attend the Communications of the Grand Lodge from October 11, 1751, until October 13, 1752. During his absence, however, he was evidently in communication with the Grand Lodge for in January, 1752, Brother McDaniel was Deputy Grand Master, while in June of the same year we find that Alexander Lord Colvill had been deputized as Deputy Grand Master. A contemporaneous estimate of him as an experienced merchant, an upright dealer, an affectionate husband, a tender parent, a sincere friend, and a kind master, is re- corded on the records of the Grand Lodge under date of July 1, 1754, together with an account of the Masonic ceremonies at his funeral (1 Mass. 33). Oxnard and his wife’s father, John Osborn, were part- ners in business. Mr. Osborn had many public offices, and doubtless Oxnard was a chief factor in the manage- ment of the affairs at the store and on the wharf. His mansion was at the northerly corner of Tremont and Winter streets, having been bought in 1742 of Adam Winthrop, Esq. This property is diagonally across Tre- mont street from Park Street Church. Full statements concerning his family may be found in the references given. His widow, Madam Sarah Oxnard, married, second, April 10, 1756, the Honourable Samuel Watts, Esq. 282 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA She was evidently a shrewd business woman, for it would appear from the settlement of the Oxnard Estate that she charged her second husband, Judge Watts, for four years’ use of her house in Boston from 1756 to 1760, about which time the family removed to Chelsea where Judge Watts died in 1770. Her portrait was painted by John Singleton Copley and is still in existence. Un- fortunately no portrait of Thomas Oxnard is known. The Boston Post Boy for Monday, July 1, 1754, con- tains an account of his death and funeral identical with that recorded in the records of the Grand Lodge above referred to. The Boston Gazette of Tuesday, July 2, 1754, has the following intelligence: “Last Tuesday died here Thomas Oxnard, Esq., a noted merchant of this town, in the fifty-first year of his age, and was decently interred on Friday last.” There is also a note in the Gentlemen’s Magazine of London for 1754, page 388, reading: “At Boston in New England, Thomas Oxnard, Esq., an eminent merchant, Grand Master of the Society of Freemasons in North America.” 1871 Mass. 642. 6 N. E. Historical and Gen. Reg. 375. 26 N. E. Historical and Gen. Reg. 3. Willis’ History of Portland. 1743/4, March 14, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Louis Demoulin made. A vote is passed to procure a new book for the By-Laws. (This book lost. ) OUR Pei ALB: 1743 283 1743, South Carolina. Prince George Lodge Constituted at George Town (Winyaw) South Carolina. L.M.R. 89. IV Gould 395. CHAPTER XVIII 1744 1744, March 28, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Brother Benjamin Hal- lowell admitted. O.R.; A.B. 1744, April 4, Antigua. Francis Byam, D.D., Master and in behalf of Court- House Lodge, Antigua, petitioned the Grand Lodge in London that as they had built a new Lodge-room sixty feet long and thirty feet wide, with a small room ad- joining, the said new built Lodge might be entered on the Register as ‘“The Great Lodge of St. John’s.” The petition was granted with the alteration that the name should be “The Great Lodge at St. John’s in Antigua.” Entick 242. Preston (Portsmouth 1804) 192. Pi) (2nds bnp de) ele a: 1738, November 22, supra. 1744, April 6, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1744, April 11, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. OTe ALG: 284 1744 285 1744, April 25, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. ORS A:B: 1744, May 4, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1744, May 9, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Richard White made. TDA Si) eed Basia tal ob 1744, May 23, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1744, May 29, Boston. Grand Secretary Peter Pelham certified a copy of Thomas Oxnard’s commission as Provincial Grand Mas- ter of North America. See page 279. 1744, June 1, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Brothers Jonathan Pue, Henry Johnson, and Timothy McDaniel raised. OU) alia: A-B. 1744, June 13, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Election. Brother W. Starkey admitted. Daniel Plaister and Samuel Winslow made. Ones Pie ALB, 286 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1744, June 26, Boston. Celebration of the Festival by the Grand Lodge. O.R. and A.B. of First Lodge. 1744, June 27, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1744, July 6, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Election. OM ies 8} 1744, July 11, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1744, July 25, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1744, August 2, Boston. The Boston Weekly News Letter publishes an account of the burlesque procession by the mock Masons which we reproduce as follows: From the St. James’s Evening-Poft. LROUNE DORN aViayvicn ESTERDAY the Cavalcade of Scald Miferable- Mafons, went in Proceffion from the Place of Meeting thro’ the Strand to Temple-Bar, and on returning back to meet the Free and Accepted Mafons, they were put into Diforder near Somerfet- Houfe, by the High Conftable of Wef{tminfter, attended by a large Body of inferior Officers, who prefs’d Dag A—e 1744 287 Jack, Poney and feveral others, to the Number of 20, whom they fecur’d in St. Clement’s Church and Round Houfe, for his Majefty’s Service. A Key to the Proceffion of the Scald-Miferable Mafons. eee eaD by our Manifefto of laft Year, dated from our Lodge in Brick-Street, we did, in the mof{t explicit Manner, vindicate the ancient Right and Privileges of this Society, and by inconteftable Argu- ments evince our fuperior Dignity and Seniority to all other In{titutions, whether Grand-Volgi, Gregorians, Hurlothrumbians, Ubiquarians, MHiccubites, Lumber- Troopers, Hungarians, or Free-Mafons; yet neverthelefs, a few Perfons under the laft Denomination, {till arro- gate to them the ufurped Titles of Moft Antient and Honourable, in open Violation of Truth and Juftice, {till endeavour to impofe their falfe Myfteries (for a Premium) on the Credulous and Unwary, under Pre- tence of being Part of our Brotherhood, and ftill are determin’d with Drums, Trumpets, gilt Chariots and other unconftitutional Finery to caft a Reflection on the primitive Simplicity and decent Oeconomy of our An- cient and Annual Peregrination: We think therefore proper, in Ju({tification of Ourfelves, publickly to Dif- claim all Relation or Alliance whatfoever, with the faid Society of Free Mafons, as the fame muft manifeftly tend to the Sacrifice of our folemn My{teries: And fur- ther, to convince the Publick of the Candour and Open- nefs of our Proceedings, We here prefent them with a Key to our Proceffion ; and that the rather, as it con- fifts of many Things Emblematical, Myftical, Hiero- glyphical, Comical, Satirical, Political, &c. And whereas many perfuaded by the Purity of our Con{titution, the nice Morality of our Brethren, and peculiar Decency of our Rites and Ceremonies, have lately forfook the grofs Errors and Follies of the Free- Mafonry, are now become true Scald-Miferables, it can- not but afford a moft pleafing Satisfaction to all who have any Regard for Truth and Decency, to fee our Pro- 288 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA ceffion encreafed with fuch Number of Profelytes, and behold thofe, whofe Vanity, but the laft Year, exalted them into a borrow’d Equipage, now condefcended to become the humble Cargo of a Sand-cart: But, Magna eft Veritas, © prevalebit. Two Tylers, or Guarders In yellow Cockades and Liveries, being the Colour ordain’d by the Sword-Bearer of State. They, as young- e{t enter’d Apprentices, are to guard the Lodge, with a drawn Sword, from a!l Cowens and Eves-droppers, that is Liftners, left they fhould difcover the incomprehenfi- ble My{teries of Mafonry. A Grand Chorus of Inftruments, viz. Four Sackbutts, or Cow’s Horns; fix Hottentot Haut- boys; four Tinkling Cymbals, or Tea Canifters, with broken Glafs in them; four Shovels and Brufhes; two Double Bafs Drippingpans; a Tenor Frying pan; a Salt- Box in De-la-fol; and a Pair of Gut Tubs. Two Pillars, Jachin and Boaz. After the Proportion and Workmanfhip of the famous ones in the Porch of Solomon’s Temple. Their Height, their Thicknefs, and their Capital. Adorn’d with Lilly- work, Net-work, and Pomgranet-work. Three pair of Stewards. With their Attendants, in Red Ribands, being their Colour, in three Gut-Carts drawn by three Affes each, their Aprons being lined with Red Silk, their Jewels pendant to Red Ribands, and their Heads properly adorned with emblematical Caps. The true Original Mafon’s Lodge, Upon which poor old Hyram made all his enter’d Pren- TICES. The entered ’Prentices Token, That is to fay, the Manner in which the Novices, or thofe lately admitted, fhake each other by the Hand; and it is by putting the Ball of the Thumb of the Right Hand (for we never do any Act of Mafonry with the Left) upon the Knuckle of the third Joint of the firft 1744: 289 Finger of the Brother’s Right Hand, fqueezing it gently. Ragged entered ’Prentices. Properly cloathed, giving the above Token, and the Word, which is Jachin. Three great Lights. Myftically refembling the Sun and Moon, and the Maf- ter Mafon. The Sun ; To Rule the Day. Hlieroglyphial. The Moon ; To Rule the Night. Emblematical. A Maifter Mafon, To Rule his Lodge. Political. The Letter G. The Fellow Craft’s Token. The Fellow-Craft, or Letter G. Men, A Matfter’s Lodge. The Funeral of Hyram. Grand Band of Mufick as before. Two Trophies. The Equipage of the Grand Miftrefs. Attendants of Honour. The Grand Secretary with his Infignia, &c. Probationif{ts and Candidates clofe the whole Proceffion. N.B. After the Proceffion was over, 51. was {pent at one of the Lodges 4 1. 19 s. 4 d. in Geneva, and 3 d. in bread and Cheefe; fo the Night was concluded with Drinking, Swearing, Fighting, and all other Demonftra- tions of Difturbance. P-t. 1744, August 3, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1744, August 8, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. William Coffin made. Charles Pelham proposed by Henry Price as a candidate for the purpose of making him Secretary of the Lodge; Peter Pelham desiring to withdraw from the office. OiRes: PA: B: 290 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Peter and Charles Pelham. Peter Pelham came to America, from London, proba- bly between 1724 and 1726. He was the first portrait painter and engraver known in New England. The earliest work in that line yet traced to him is his en- graved portrait of Rev. Cotton Mather, dated 1727. It is inscribed: “P. Pelham ad vivum pinxit, ab origine fecit et excud.”” A print of this very rare mezzotint hangs in the Masonic Temple in Boston. We learn from his advertisements in the newspapers of the day that from 1734 to 1748, and perhaps later, he kept a school where ‘““Young Gentlemen and Ladies may be Taught Dancing, Writing, Reading, painting upon Glass, and all sorts of needle work,” the last- named department probably being in charge of his wife. On the 22d of May, 1747, he married, for his second wife, Mrs. Mary Singleton, widow of Richard Copley and mother of John Singleton Copley, the celebrated artist and father of Lord Lyndhurst who was three times Lord Chancellor of England. Peter Pelham was made a Mason in the First Lodge in Boston on the 8th of November, 1738, five years after the Lodge was instituted. On the 26th of December, 1739, he was elected Secretary, and the record of that meeting is entered in a new and beautiful handwriting, the same style being continued for many years. He served in that office until September 26, 1744, when he was succeeded by his son Charles. On the 13th of April, 1750, the Third Lodge in Boston was represented in Grand Lodge by father and son, as Master and Junior Warden respectively. The records of Trinity Church, in Boston, where he had long worshipped, show that 1744 291 Peter Pelham was buried December 14, 1751. For his portrait, see page 232. Charles, the son of Peter and Martha Pelham, was baptized at St. Paul’s, Covent Garden, London, on the Oth of December, 1722. He came to America with his parents, when three or four years old, and is said to have been educated as a merchant, but in the “Boston News Letter” of April 23, 1762, he advertises his inten- tion “again to open a Dancing School” at Concert Hall. In April, 1765, he bought the homestead of Rev. J. Cotton, in Newton, with 103 acres of land, for £735. We are told that “he was represented by his neighbours to have been a very polite and intelligent man. He opened an academy at his own house and fitted scholars for College.” “He was a stanch friend of the Colony, as will appear by the resolutions he prepared for the Town.” In 1766 we find him teaching school in Medford, where, on the 6th of December of that year, he married Mary, daughter of Andrew Tyler by his wife Miriam, a sister of the famous Sir William Pepperell. A daugh- ter Helen married Thomas Curtis and was the mother of Charles Pelham Curtis, the senior member of the firm of C. P. & B. R. Curtis, for many years leading mem- bers of the Boston bar, the junior member of the firm serving during the later portion of his life as a Justice of the United States Supreme Court. The stepmother of Charles died on the 29th of April, 1789, and her will named as her executor her ‘‘good friend, Charles Pelham, of Newton.” Late in life he removed to Wilmington, N. C., where he died December 13, 1809. A portrait painted by his stepbrother, John Singleton Copley, is in the possession of the Curtis fam- 292 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA ily. Representatives of two generations of that family now living bear the name of Charles Pelham, and it is by their kindness that we are able to present portraits of both Peter and Charles. On the 8th of August, 1744, “Brother (Henry) Price proposed Mr. Charles Pelham as a Candidate” in the First Lodge in Boston. He was accepted on the 22d of the same month, and on the 12th of September “was made a Mason in due Form.” On the 26th it was ‘Voted That our late Sec’. Bro. P. Pelham be paid Ten Pounds, with the Thanks of the Society for his past Services’; also ‘‘Voted, That Bro. Charles Pelham be Secretary, in the Room of Our Late Secr’, who has laid it down.” He served the Lodge in that capacity until July 24, 1754, when the volume ends, and perhaps longer. This is the only volume of early records of the First Lodge now known to exist. It is the earliest book of Masonic Lodge Records now known to be in exist- ence on this continent, commencing December 27, 1738, and ending July 24, 1754. 1744, August 22, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1744, September 7, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1744, September 12, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Charles Pelham made. O.RosPiGe AiB: Re Charles Pelham, see page 291. CHARLES PELHAM Grand Secretary 1744-1754, 1744 293 1744, September 26, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Charles Pelham elected Secretary. O.R.; A.B. 1900 Mass. 124. On this same day Governor Belcher visits the Grand Lodge at London with a letter from the First Lodge in Boston. O.R. of the Grand Lodge of England. 1871 Mass. 316. 1888 Mass. 156. 1744, October 5, Boston. The record book of the Masters Lodge under this date says: ‘No meeting this night, our R' W: M. and several of the members being out of Town on Extraordinary Business.” O.R. 1744, October 10, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Capt. Lewis Delabraz (Dolobaratz) a prisoner of war elected and, by dis- pensation, made, gratis, “‘as he might be serviceable (when at Home) to any Brother whom Providence might cast in his way.” Gi iie wis. ses A: 1744, October 24, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Brother Pearson ad- mitted. O.R.; A.B. 294 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1744, November 2, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1744, November 14, _ Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Ballard Beckford, Pro. G. M. of Jamaica, visited the Lodge. Peter Pelham, Jr., made. OCR tPA LD: 1744, November 28, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1744, December 7, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Brother William Coffin raised. OM Up etd Dien oF} 1744, December 12, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1744, December 17, Boston. The Boston Post Boy contains the following paragraph under date of London, August 14, 1744. “We learn by Letters from Lisbon, that there has been lately Auto de Fe; after which feveral Jews were burnt, and some French Men, who were Free Mafons, and have been two Years in the Prisons of the Inquifition, ap- peared in the S. Benito on that Occafion.” 1744 295 1744, December 26, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Election. Mr. Belviel made. Cihoebi ser AL By 1 Mass. 8. 1744, December 27, Boston. Celebration of the Festival by the Grand Lodge. O.R. of First Lodge. 1 Mass. 9. 1744/5, January 4, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Election. Brothers Edward Ellis and Lewis Demouline raised. COR Sb Ac bs: 1744/5, January 9, ___ Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1744/5, January 23, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Brother Robert Glover admitted. James Gough made. One 2)523: A.B: 1744/5, February 1, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R. 1744/5, February 13, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Danse AG, 296 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1744/5, February 27, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1744/5, March 1, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. ORI 1744/5, March 13, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Richard Hood made. Orne.) Pe nets 1744/5, March 22, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Brother Robert Glover raised. Oi ntare d ea 6 CuapTer XIX 1745 1745, March 27, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1745, April 10, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Onnvr Aso: 1745, April 24, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Daniel Marquand made. OORS Ps eA: 1745, May 2, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R. 1745, May 8, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1745, May 22, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. John Colson made. GA ahaa bd & 1745, June 7, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R. 297 298 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1745, June 12, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1745, June 18, Boston. “Stephen Greenleaf, Mathematical Instrument Maker, in Queen Street, Boston, opposite to the Prison,” adver- tises to make ‘‘Free Masons Jewels.” Boston Gazette. 1745, June 24, Boston. Celebration of the Festival by the Grand Lodge. Thirty-three Brethren in attendance. O.R. and A.B. of First Lodge. 1745, June 26, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Election. O.R.; A.B. 1745, July 1, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Daniel Byles and Capt. John (James) Heweton made. OH edna le Ul ee 1745, July 10, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Richard Smith made. Ol te Paes AT Be 1745, July 24, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. William Coffin, Jr., made. O) Ra: Pie vALb: 1745 299 1745, August 2, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. After this meeting the following is written in the record book: ‘Adjourned ’till Octo" ye 4th; for substantial reasons from time to time.” O.R. 1745, August 14, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Antho. D’Laboladree (D’Laboulerdree), and Peter Phill Chas. St. Paul made. Ol Ul ea beg The Pelham List furnishes the information that Thomas Cross was admitted. In this respect the list must be in error for he is recorded as a Visitor as late as No- vember 13, 1745, on the Original Record. 1745, August 28, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1745, September 11, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1745, September 25, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1745, October 4, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R. 1745, October 9, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.;R: | A.B: 300 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1745, October 23, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1745, November 1, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Brothers Thomas Cross and Charles Pelham raised. At the same meeting Charles Pelham is elected Secretary and the handwriting changes from Henry Johnson’s to his. O.R. 1744, November 13, _ Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Brother Price reported that the Masters Lodge had voted a set of Candles to this Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1745, November 27, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1745, December 6, Boston. Mecting of the Masters Lodge. Election. O.R. 1745, December 11, — Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1745, December 24, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Election. William Mer- chant made. OyReesP: 2A: 1 Mass. 9. 1745 301 1745/6, January 8, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Brothers Thomas James Gruchy and James Gough raised. OURO BS The same evening the First Lodge met and immedi- ately adjourned. Oy rests Ts: 1745/6, January 22, Boston. - Meeting of the First Lodge. The records state that the Lodge being opened, ‘“‘Bro. Jones being but an En- ter’'d Apprentice (by his earnest desire) made a Fellow Craft in due Form & Voted Mem".” Brothers John Phillips and Richard Gridley admitted. Cee elie css 1745/6, February 7, —_ Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O:Res AD: 1745/6, February 12, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1745/6, February 26, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1745/6, March 7, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 302 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1745/6, March 12, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Barnard Townsend and Benjamin Brimston (Brimsdon) made. OLR Pele eALb, 1745/6, March 26, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. OH Rid vo ays CHAPTER XX 1746 1746, April 4, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Brother Richard Gridley raised. 1916 Mass. 30. O.R.; A.B. Richard Gridley. Richard Gridley was born in Boston on January 3, 1710, the youngest of six children of Richard and Re- becca Gridley. As his elder brother had entered the law, it was the desire of his parents that Richard should enter a business career, and he was apprenticed to Mr. Atkinson, a wholesale merchant of Boston. Brother Huntoon says, “Apt and learned in the arts and sciences, he was one of the greatest mathematicians of his day; of romantic honour, chivalrous ambition, and adventurous bravery; nature made him a soldier, and art could not make him a merchant.”” He became a surveyor and civil engineer. He was the first, and for a long time the only gauger in America. He was the projector of Long Wharf, which was constructed according to his plan. He became proficient in military science in part through as- sociation with John Henry Bastide who became Director of His Majesty’s Engineers and Chief Engineer of Nova Scotia. 303 304 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA In the southeastern part of Cape Breton was the city of Louisburgh. It was perhaps the best fortified city in America. To this city in 1745, the New England Colo- nists laid siege under the command of Colonel William Pepperrell. Gridley was commissioned “Lieutenant Colonel” and ‘Captain of Train and Company,” and was given the command of the Grand or Royal Battery, which stood directly opposite the Harbour of Louis- burgh and which was captured by His Majesty’s forces on May 2, 1745. On August Ist Governor Shirley com- missioned him First Bombardier, and he continued in the double capacity of First Captain of Artillery and First Bombardier until the end of the siege. Such was his skill that he succeeded on the third fire in dropping a shell directly into the citadel, which was the immediate cause of the surrender of the city. All of the Pepperrell batteries were erected by Gridley. In this command he won his first military laurels. Returning home, he drew the designs for a battery and other fortifications on Gov- ernor’s Island in Boston Harbor, and then left the mili- tary service in 1749. Again taking up fortification work, in 1752 he erected Fort Halifax on the Kennebec River. In 1755 he was Chief Engineer of the Army and later in the year was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Provincial Artillery and Colonel of Infantry, drawing pay in both positions. He joined the expedition against Crown Point and under his supervision all the fortifica- tions around Lake George were constructed. On August 4, 1756, he was selected by General Winslow to attend him in a visit to His Excellency the Earl of Loudoun, Past Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of England, then Commander-in-Chief of His Majesty’s forces in America. This year Paul Revere, who had just become 1746 305 of age, was commissioned Second Lieutenant in Grid- ley’s Regiment. Cape Breton having been restored to France, Louis- burgh, in 1758, again became the seat of war. Gridley participated in the siege and was present at the second taking of the city. In 1759, he was appointed by Gen- eral Amherst to command the Provincial Artillery, which was about to besiege Quebec. It was Gridley’s corps that dragged up to the Plains of Abraham the only two field pieces which were raised to the Heights. Grid- ley stood by the side of General Wolfe when that gallant officer fell victorious. Gridley then went to England to adjust his accounts with the government. For his dis- tinguished services he was given the Magdalen Isles, and one-half pay as a British officer. For several years there- after he maintained his home upon these islands, but in 1762 purchased a house in Prince Street in Boston. In 1770, in connection with Edmund Quincy, he entered the business of smelting ore in Sharon, leaving there in 1773. In 1774 he signed a secret agreement with his intimate friend, General Joseph Warren, pledging each other that in the event of hostilities with the Mother Country they would join the Patriot Army. When his British agent in England requested to be informed upon which side he would take up arms, he replied: “I shall fight for justice and my country,’ and cast his lot with the Patriots. April 21, 1775, he was summoned to attend the Com- mittee of Safety, and was appointed to the command of the First Regiment of Artillery, the only artillery regi- ment in the Provinces at the opening of the war. On April 23rd he was appointed Chief Engineer of the Pa- triot forces and voted a pension for life. On April 26th 306 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA he entered the service and planned the fortification of Bunker’s Hill. On the 16th of June, 1775, the Patriot troops assembled on Cambridge Common and marched silently to Charlestown. Upon arrival acrimonious dis- cussion arose as to whether Breed’s Hill or Bunker’s Hill was the proper one for fortifications. Gridley with all his force argued that Bunker’s Hill was the only one whereon to erect breastworks. One of the Generals coin- cided with him, but the other was stubborn and deter- mined not to yield. At length Gridley said to the latter, “Sir, the moments are precious, we must decide at once. Since you will not give up your individual opinion to ours, we will give it up to you. Action, and that in- stantly, only can save us.”’ Gridley at once in person marked the place for the fortifications, gave orders, and even worked himself, spade in hand. Though this battle is generally known as the Battle of Bunker Hill, the fact is that the fortifications were erected and the fight staged on Breed’s Hill. Military authorities tell us that Grid- ley’s choice would have been much better. The next morning, the 17th of June, Gridley, owing to his age and the exhausting labour of the previous night, was sick and obliged to leave the hill, although he resolved so as to return later in the day and take command of his own battery, which consisted of ten companies and four hundred and seventeen men. It had only two brass pieces and six iron six-pounders. He was near to Warren when he fell. Almost at the same moment Gridley was struck by a musket ball and was unable to continue longer in the fight. Only two days after, however, as- sisted by one of his sons, he took charge of a battery at the Highlands. To the skill and ingenuity of Richard Gridley America 1746 307 is indebted for the first cannon and mortars ever cast in this country. On September 20, 1775, he received from the Provin- cial Congress the rank of Major General. Washington said of him that there was no one better qualified to serve as Chief Engineer of the army. But the infirmities of age were creeping upon him. MHe was obliged to resign his commission, and the council of officers agreed that it was better to place the command of the artillery in younger hands. Nevertheless in March, 1776, he di- rected the fortifying of Dorchester Heights, and they were made so formidable that the British dared not attack them and deemed it best to evacuate Boston. After the evacuation, he was entrusted by Washington with the duty of demolishing the British intrenchments on the Neck, and after these were destroyed he laid out and strengthened various fortifications in and about the city. On the 8th of April, 1776, the body of Major General Joseph Warren was reinterred, Bunker’s Hill having again come into the possession of the Americans, and Richard Gridley was one of the pallbearers. Twelve days after, he was ordered by Washington to attend to the fortifications on Cape Ann and protect the harbour of Gloucester. His last military work which 1s his- torically demonstrable was upon the fortifications at Cas- tle William and Governor’s Island from March, 1778, to the first of January, 1781. The strength of his patriot- ism was certainly tested at this time for we find that in 1780 he wrote to Major General Heath that he had had no pay for thirteen months, and begged that something should be sent to him. His last appearance in public was in 1795, when he assisted in laying the corner-stone of the State House with Masonic ceremonies. 308 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Our first knowledge of him Masonically is that on January 22, 1745/6 he was made or admitted a member of the First Lodge in Boston, receiving the Degree of Master Mason in the Masters Lodge on April 4, 1746. He was Junior Warden of the Masters Lodge in 1753 and 1754, Senior Warden of the Second Lodge in 1755, Master of the Masters Lodge in 1756, and Master of the First Lodge in 1757. In Grand Lodge he was Junior Grand Warden in 1758 and 1759 and Senior Grand Warden in 1760 and the early part of 1761. Again he appears as Master of the Masters Lodge in 1763 and 1764, serving during the same years as Senior Grand Warden of the Grand Lodge. When R. W. John Rowe was chosen Provincial Grand Master after the death of Jeremy Gridley he appointed on January 22, 1768, R. W. Richard Gridley, Past Grand Warden, to be Dep- uty Grand Master, and in this position Richard Gridley continued until after the death of John Rowe, and as late as August 4, 1787. On numerous occasions other than those already stated we find him constituting Lodges under special commissions. Much has been said and written of his manly character, his urbanity, his uniform politeness, and graceful de- meanor, as well as of his charitable and philanthropic disposition. His personal appearance was that of a handsome, remarkably tall, commanding presence, with a frame firm and vigorous, and a constitution like iron. His death, which occurred on June 21, 1796, was caused by blood poisoning, and on Thursday, the 23rd, he was buried in a small enclosure near his home. On October 28, 1876, his body was disinterred and conveyed to the cemetery in Canton, where the remains were reinterred and a monument was erected over his grave. 1746 309 See oration (ef czt.) by Daniel T. V. Huntoon at the Memorial Services of Commemoration Day, held in Can- ton, May 30, 1877, under the auspices of Revere En- campment, Post 94, Grand Army of the Republic; also 1 Mass. passém. 1746, April 9, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. OR: ALB: 1746, April 23, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1746, April 29, Jamaica. Lodge Constituted at St. Jago de la Vega (now Span- ish Town), Jamaica. O.L: Entick 337. L.M.R. 89. Prichard 29 1746, May 2, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. OiRi-7A.B: 1746, May 14, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1746, May 29, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Robert Williams made. ©7R:: P.L.; A.B: 310 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1746, June 6, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1746, June 11, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1746, June 24, Boston. Celebration of the Festival by the Grand Lodge, twenty-five Brethren in attendance. O.R. of First Lodge. 1746, June 25, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1746, July 4, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Election. Brother Joseph Holbrook raised. OURS Peli vAcb. 1746, July 9, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Election. O.R.; A.B. 1746, July 23, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1746, August I, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1746 311 1746, August 13, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. OE A.B: 1746, August 27, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1746, September 5, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1746, September 10, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. ORS sAtb: 1746, September 24, Boston. The records of the First Lodge state that by reason of an “Alarm of French Fleet” the Lodge was not opened. O.R.; A.B. 1883 Mass. 165. 1746, October 3, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. ORT tAB: 1746, October 8, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Rev. John Woods made. OTR Pi bs:2Alb: 1746, October 13, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Robert McKennen (Mackinen) made. OR eR BAB: 312 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1746, October 22, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R. A.B. records this meeting as the 24th. 1746, November 7, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Brother Rev. John Woods raised. OORe3 Ee AaD: 1746, November 12, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Capt. John Bradford and Joseph Sherburne made. James Buck ‘made for a Lylar © O.R.: Poe ASB: 1746, November 26, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1746, December 5, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Election. O.R.; A.B. 1746, December 10, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Fee for making raised from 15 Pounds to 20 Pounds. O.R.; A.B. 1746, December 24, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Election. Voted: ‘“That all Visiting Bro™ who are Town inhabi- 1746 313 tants shall pay 15/ each night, and Transient persons lu O.R.; A.B. Boston—Newfoundland. Pro. G. M. Oxnard grants a Constitution for a Lodge to be held in Newfoundland. 1 Mass. 9. L.M.R. 472. 1746/7, January 2, _ Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1746/7, January 14, __ Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. James Day, Jonathan Prescott, Newcoming Herbert, Andrew Irwin, Andrew Dure, Joseph Aberry, and Estes Hatch made. Brother Jonathan Rush ‘“‘made F. C.”’ Brother Robert Cummins admitted. CURES. Ae 1746/7, January 16, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Meeting of the Lodge. Election. Capt. Nathaniel Pierce made. O.R. 1746/7, January 28, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Capt. William Day, Peter Hammond, William Martin, and Simeon Patter made and admitted. Rev. Brother Charles Brockwell, King’s Chaplain, admitted. Gon aE te A.B; 314 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1746/7, February 5, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1746/7, February 11, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Brother Benjamin Stans- bury admitted. O.R.; P.L.; A.B. 1746/7, February 25, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1746/7, March 7, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Brothers Samuel Waterhouse, James Day, John Colson (Collson), and Robert Williams raised. OG a eget ig a Ee Pei \d ob 1746/7, March 11, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1746, Nova Scotia. Lord Cranstoun, Grand Master of England, appointed Robert Commins, Provincial Grand Master for Cape Breton and Louisburgh. Preston (Portsmouth, 1804) 192. Entick 334. PIG \2ndsbne wid) a6: Respecting Capt. Robert Commins little or nothing is known. His name is not to be found in any naval history nor is it in any account of the war operations 1746 315 which preceded the capture of either Louisburgh or Quebec. Commins may have been an army officer al- though searches have not found his name in the army list of 1749. Along about this time there were many traders between New England ports and Louisburgh and Commins may have been one of these. With so little known about Commins and the practical certainty that he did not exercise his commission, we may with pro- priety dismiss him from further consideration. 1 Nova Scotia Lodge of Research 3, page 44. Cf. Closing items of Chapters XI and XII; also 1746/7, January 14. CuHapTer XXI 1747 1747, March 25, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Quis ACB: 1747, April 3, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1747, April 8, - Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1747, April 22, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O-Re ALB: 1747, May 1, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1747, May 13, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1747, May 27, Boston Meeting of the First Lodge. Brother Andrew Mc- Kenzie admitted. O.R.; A.B. 316 1747 317 The Pelham List says “pass’d F.C.”’ But it is wrong. McKenzie was pass’d July 22, 1747. O.R. The few errors which from time to time we find in the Pelham List, in the Beteilhe Manuscript, in the Barons Letter, and in the records prove their general correctness. In them there are no more errors than the average secretary or copyist makes in his work. The fact also that names are often differently spelled, although tdem sonans, is a further indication that much of Pel- ham’s information was obtained from other sources than the books now in our possession. The agreement, how- ever, between the original Proceedings which we have and the Pelham List from January 10, 1738/9, to Au- gust 28, 1751, is the best possible evidence of the cor- rectness of the List for the period from July 30, 1733, to November 8, 1738, a period for which we have no original records except now and then a document such as the petition of July 30, 1733, the Beteilhe Manuscript, and others cited supra. In this connection the surpris- ingly accurate agreement between the Pelham List, the Beteilhe Manuscript, and the Barons Letter for the periods when they overlap is worthy of special notice. All of these facts and others noted now and then szpra give remarkable proof that we may rely upon the Pelham List except for such an occasional error as might be made by a reasonably accurate scrivener. (Notre. As a modern instance of just such errors creeping in, note instances in the article on The Estab- lishment and Early Days of Masonry in America, found in 1914 Mass. 243 to 288, and in The Budlder for the months of May, August and October, 1915, g.v. The date of Henry Price’s commission is given as April~2, 318 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1733, which should of course have been April 13, 1733. The Provincial Grand Lodge of New South Wales in June, 1727, was referred to. It should of course have been South Wales. The date of the Deputation to Philipps as Provincial Grand Master for Nova Scotia was stated as 1740 when it should have been 1738. The date of the Portsmouth petition was quoted as February 9, 1735/6, instead of February 5; and the establishment of the Second Lodge in Boston February 17 instead of February 15, 1750. The author has gone over this book dozens of times, yet some such errors may escape him and a number of other Brethren who have kindly assisted him by verifying citations, etc. ) Henry Price himself made a similar error on one oc- casion by stating that his extension of authority over all North America was in 1735 instead of 1734. 1914 Mass. 270. 1871 Mass. 330. See Chapter II, 4, c, and e; also 1739, July 25, supra. 1747, June 5, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1747, June 6, West Indies. Lodge Constituted by the Grand Master of England at St. Eustatius. O.L. Entick 337. L.M.R. 90. Prichard says January 6, 1747, but he is wrong. 1747 319 1747, June 10, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Election. O.R.; A.B. 1747, June 24, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Cr. e4Ac DB. i747, July 3, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Election. QR .2vAlB. 1747, July 8, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1747, July 22, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Capt. Archibald Gray- ham made. else R: Brother Andrew McKenzie “‘Rais’d F.C. in due Form.” O.R.; A.B. 1747, August 7, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Oe vA: Bb: 1747, August 12, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. ORes A.B! 1747, August 26, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Committee appointed to 320 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA send congratulations to Governor Belcher upon his ap- pointment as Governor of the Jerseys (New Jersey). O.R.; A.B. 1 Mass. 391. 1883 Mass. 162. 1747, September 3, Boston. Letter of congratulation sent from the Provincial Grand Master and from the First Lodge to Governor Belcher upon his safe arrival to assume his new office as Governor of the Jerseys (New Jersey). 1 Mass. 391. 1871 Mass. 376. O.R. of First Lodge for September 9, 1747. 1747, September 4, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1747, September 9, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. John Ray (Rae) made. The report of the committee appointed to send con- eratulations to Governor Belcher together with their letter is spread in full upon the records. O.R.; A.B. 1883 Mass. 163. 1747, September 18, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Meeting of the Lodge. Samuel Solly, Charles Gor- wood, John Salmon, and Alexander Malcum made. O.R. 1747 321 1747, September 23, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. The Pelham List gives Robert Bowers as made, John Salmon as passed on this evening. ‘The record is silent as to both. See 1747, October 28, znfra. 1747, September 24 Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Meeting of the Lodge at which a vote was passed that application be made to Pro. G. M. Oxnard that there be a Provincial Grand Master for New Hampshire. O.R. 1747, October 2, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1747, October 6, Governor Jonathan Belcher from Kingswood House in the City of Burlington wrote to R. W. Thomas Oxnard, Esq., Provincial Grand Master of North America, and the Master, Wardens and Fellows of the First Lodge in Boston, a letter in acknowledgment of and thanks for the letter of September 3, 1747. 1 Mass. 392. O.R. of First Lodge for November 11, 1747. 1747, October 14, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Brothers John Salmon and Robert Bowers admitted. a ine: AJB: 322 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1747, October 28, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Brother Charles Gor- wood passed. OFAViPE: Brother John Salmon passed and Brother John Rowe admitted. O.R.; A.B. 1747, November 3, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. John Conally (Conolly, Connally), Hugh Hardgrove, and Sampson Hodge made. ODP Pils Are 1747, November 11, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Letter of October 6, 1747, from Governor Belcher read and recorded. O.R.; A.B. 1 Mass. 392. 1883 Mass. 163. 1747, November 25, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Brother Alexander Mal- colm passed and admitted. @ Pan vated CA) ates Wl 8 1747, December 9, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1 Mass. 9. 1747, December 23, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Election. John Husk (Huske) made. Ome PL eeArD. 1747 323 1747/8, January 13, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Rev. Alexander Malcom, Capt. Aeneas Mackay (McKay), Samuel Levins, ‘Thomas Newton, and Samuel Stone (‘‘Master of the House’) made. OAee bls? AL Bt 1747/8, January 15, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Meeting of the Lodge. O.R. 1747/8, January 21, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Meeting of the Lodge. O.R. 1747/8, January 25, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Meeting of the Lodge. O.R. 1747/8, January 27, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Capts. William Norris, Thomas Bogle, and Pat. Montgomery (Montgomerie ) made. ORs bytes Asp, 1747/8, February 5, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Election. O.R.; A.B. 324 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1747/8, February 10, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Jonathan Dwight and James Abercrombie made. OF) BS iy Wak ad Bp 1747/8, February 24, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Capt. Paul Binney made. OLR ag Ac 1747/8, March 4, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Brother John Husk (Huske) raised. OR bls sat, 1747/8, March 9, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1747/8, March 23, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Benjamin Smithers made. OS lets, CHAPTER XXII 1748 1748, April 1, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Brother Andrew Mc- Kenzie raised. OR Ral ACB: 1748, April 13, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1748, April 21, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Meeting of the Lodge. O.R. 1748, April 27, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1748, May 6, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1748, May 11, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Jeremiah (Jeremy) Gridley and Belshr (Belthar) Bayard made. O00 4 S52 1H LER NG sy, 325 326 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Jeremy Gridley. Jeremiah Gridley was born in Boston, March 10, 1701/2. We refer to him as Jeremy Gridley because during the larger part of his adult career he wrote his name that way, and by that name received his appoint- ment as Provincial Grand Master of Masons in North America. He graduated from Harvard in 1725 and became a school teacher, but while engaged in teaching and for some time afterwards he studied theology and general literature and occasionally preached. From Harvard he received the degree of A.M. on June 28, 1728. On Oc- tober 26, 1727, he was elected usher or assistant to Dr. Nathaniel Williams in the public grammar school in Bos- ton at a salary of thirty pounds per year, which was raised from time to time until he received a maximum of one hundred pounds per year from May 5, 1731. While still teaching he married Abigail Lewis, the daughter of Hon. Ezekiel Lewis, a prominent Bostonian who was during his life a school teacher, selectman, repre- sentative, counsellor, and merchant. I am unable to find the date of the marriage, but its issue were Abigail, born August 8, 1731; Sarah, born April 4, 1736, and Rebecca, born April 25, 1741. While still teaching he, in 1731, founded The Weekly Rehearsal, one of the earliest of the Boston newspapers. Past Grand Master Isaiah Thomas in his Héstory of Printing (1810 edition, Volume 1, page 327) states that The Weekly Rehearsal “was carried on at the expense of some gentlemen who formed themselves into a political or literary club and wrote for it. At the head of this club was the late celebrated Jeremy Gridley who was the 1748 327 real editor of the paper.” He ceased connection with this paper on April 2, 1733, when Thomas Fleet became its sole proprietor and publisher, who continued it until Au- gust 11, 1735, after which it was replaced by The Boston Evening-Post. Copies of all but four issues of The Weekly Rehearsal are known, most of them being in the library of the American Antiquarian Society at Worces- ter, Mass. This was the first newspaper or magazine published in America having any substantial claim to literary merit. High encomiums are paid by reviewers and critics to the elegant and classical style of Gridley’s contributions. Meanwhile he was studying law and was admitted to the Bar probably about the time of his resignation as usher in Mr. Nathaniel Williams’s School where, on Feb- ruary 4, 1733/4, he was succeeded by Nathaniel Oliver, Jr. Little is known about his early days at the Bar, except that he speedily rose to a commanding position. On March 17, 1741/2, the Selectmen of Boston voted to en- gage John Overing and Jeremy Gridley as Town Counsel in impending litigation which, by the way, the town lost. June 10, 1742, he was, for the first time, chosen Attorney General by both Houses of Assembly. On April 13, 1748, he was proposed to the First Lodge by Past Grand Master Henry Price, was elected April 27 and made a Mason May 11. Almost immediately there- after he went to England carrying a letter of recom- mendation from the Brethren in Boston. On September 21, 1748, he presented in London to the Right Honourable the Lords Commissioners of the Treas- ury an important Memorial from the men of affairs in New England, with regard to the depreciation of the cur- 328 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA rency and the establishment of a stable basis of exchange. It may be found in The Boston News Letter for Novem- ber 25, 1748. Gridley did not attend Lodge in Boston again until December 7, 1750, when he was raised in the Masters Lodge. Our customs differ much from those of the period of Gridley’s life. Then very few progressed beyond the grade of Entered Apprentice. Occasionally a Brother was “raised Fellow Craft” and admitted a member of the Lodge. But the membership was small and hm- ited. Many were made who never became members. Gridley, indeed, did not become a member of the First Lodge until January 25, 1753. Meantime he was active. Almost immediately after his raising he became a legal adviser to the Fraternity. Thomas Fleet published in The Boston Evening-Post for January 7, 1751, some doggerel verse and a picture, both reflecting upon the Fraternity and too filthy and disgusting to be reproduced. It greatly disturbed the Brethren. A meeting of the First Lodge was held on January 9, 1750/1, at which many Brethren not members were in attendance, among them Brother Gridley. After full dis- cussion the following votes were passed: ‘Voted, That no Bro. Present, shall for the future take any News Paper Printed by Thos. Fleet, or that said Fleet may be Concerned in. Voted, That no Bro. Present shall give any encourage- ment to sd. Fleets Paper; or to him in his Business by Advertisements or Otherways. Voted, That Brors. Oxnard, L. Colvil, Gridley, Mc- Daniel, Brockwell, Rowe & Price, be a Committee, to 1748 329 wait upon the Lieut. Governour, & Council, to Complain against a Scandelous piece of Ribaldry in sd. Fleets Paper, and pray their Order for Prosecuting the Printer their of. Voted, That the Treasr. of this Lodge do pay unto sd. Committe our proportion of whatever Expense may Acrue upon a Procecution of the aforesaid Fleet, or others, should such Prosecution Ensue.” The Grand Lodge on January 11, 1750/1, also invited Gridley’s attendance and Voted: “That Letters be sent to the Several Lodges abroad under Our Rt W: G. M. acquainting them of the scandilous piece of Ribaldry in T. Fleets paper, and In- structing them by all means to discourage sd paper &c., and it was desir’d of Bro. Gridley to form sd Letters which he propos’d to do.” Evidently the matter was again discussed in Grand Lodge on April 12, 1751, for Brother Gridley attended, though no formal action is recorded. After his raising, Brother Gridley was attentive to his duties in the Masters Lodge, becoming Junior Warden December 1, 1752, and Senior Warden July 6, 1753. He was the active member of a Committee which revised its By-Laws according to a report presented and adopted December 7, 1753. Brother Gridley retired from office in the Masters Lodge December 7, 1753, evidently in anticipation of his unanimous election as Master of the First Lodge, De- cember 26, 1753. In passing, it is interesting to note his presence at the Masters Lodge on January 4, 1754, when his pupil, associate at the Bar, and opponent in the great case regarding the Writs of Assistance, James Otis, was raised. 330 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA October 11, 1754, at a Grand Lodge held by Henry Price after the death of Thomas Oxnard and attended by our Brother Benjamin Franklin of Philadelphia, a petition was adopted for Gridley’s appointment as Grand Master. This petition is an historic document, and sets forth many facts of great interest well known to the Brethren at that time. It reads as follows: “To the Right Honourable and Right Worshipfull James Brydges Marquis of Carnarvan Grand Master of the Free and Accepted Masons of England. The Petition of the Grand Committee of the Grand Lodge whose names are hereunto Subscribed 3 in behalf of said “Lodge HuMBLyY SHEWETH That last June it pleased Allmighty God to vacate Solomons Chair by the death of Our late Right Wor- shipfull Grand Master Thomas Oxnard Esq" upon which Our Right Worshipfull Brother M" Henry Price for- merly Grand Master Reasumed the Chair Pro tempore, and at the Grand Lodge or Quarterly Communication held at the Concert Hall in Boston October 11 5754 it was voted that a Petition should be drawn up and Pre- sented to your Lordship praying that all Future Grand Masters should be deputed for three years only, but With this Reservation that notwithstanding if the Lodge should see cause to Continue the same Grand Master longer in the Chair the said Deputation should continue and remain in full force the said Continued Term, and that he should remain Grand Master from the Expiration of the time of his First appointment or Continuance to the Instalment of another. We therefore humbly sollicit your Lordships concur- rence with the said Vote, and Request your deputation 1748 331 in favour of Our Right Worshipfull Bro™ Jeremy Grid- ley Esq" Councellour at Law our Grand Master Elect. And Whereas Masonry Originated Here anno 5733, and in the year following Our then G. M. Price received orders from G. M. Craufurd to Establish Masonry in all North America in Pursuance of which the Several Lodges hereafter mentioned have rec* Constitutions from us. We therefore Crave due Precedency, & that in order thereunto Our G. M. Elect, may in his deputation be stiled G M of all North America, and your Petitioners as in duty Bound shall ever Pray. Hucu McDanier BENJAMIN HAaLLowELL CHARLES BROCKWELL JAMES FoRBES RoBertT JENKINS WILLIAM COFFIN Henry LEeppELv’”’ See Chapter VII, supra. There was considerable delay in receiving a reply to this petition from the Grand Master in London, and on August 6, 1755, Henry Price wrote a letter supplement- ing this petition, as follows: “Worthy and Dear Bro*:—It was with the utmost pleasure I saw a Letter from you to the Hcn”® Peter Leigh Esq" with his Deputation appointing him Grand Master of South Carolina the last year and whom I have had the pleasure of Seeing in our Lodges in Boston. I would Inform you that as I Rec* my Deputation from the Right Hon’'® Lord Montague in April 1733 Signed by Tho* Batson Esq" D.G.M. George Rook and James Moor Smith Esq™ G. W., made out by Bro” Reed late Grand Secretary for North America, which I held four Years and Constituted several Lodges, and was suc- 332 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA ceeded in the office by Br: Tomlinson, and after him Bro: Oxnard who Dying it Reverted back to me again according to the Constitutions. Now with my consent all the Brethren in North America have made Choice of our Bro’ Jeremy Gridley Esq" Councellor at Law to be Grand Master for Three Years, and then the Brethren to have power to Continue him or apply for a new Grand Master, and as our numbers of Gentlemn increase here and we are the oldest (or first Constituted) Regular Lodge in America We have made application to the Grand Master of England for our said Bro* Gridley, which application and Three Guineas we sent per Cap‘ John Phillips last Dec to our Rev® Bro. Entick Minister at Stepney desiring him to forward the affair, but we are Surpriz’d that we have not yet Rec’d the Deputation, nor a Line from Bro Entick, whose Receipt we have for The Three Guineas p® to him by the said Cap‘ John Phillips who using the London Trade may be now found at the new England Coffee House at Change Time. I Therefore beg the favour of you to make enquiry after the Money, and application Transmitted as afore- said to Bro’ Entick and as much as in you lies forw® the affair, which I shall acknowledge as a great favour and will be a Service to Masonry in These parts. Masonry has had as great Success in America since my Settling here as in any part of the World (except Eng- land). Here is not less than Forty Lodges sprung from my First Lodge in Boston. Therefore we desire that our Deputation may be made out for all North America or over all North America. I shall be glad of a few Lines from you even though you should have made out and forwarded our Deputation before this Reaches you; as I shall have sundry things to Communicate to you from Time to Time and cannot do it but by Letter to you, most of my old acquaintance of Masons being either Dead or Remov’d from London. I have some remote thoughts of once more seeing London with all my Brethren in the Grand Lodge after Twenty Two years absence, In the 1748 333 mean Time I am Sir! Your most affect® and faithful Bro’ and Hum?” Serv‘ Boston New England August 6, 1755 (Endorsed ) Copy of a Letter Desiring J. Gridley’s Dep. Nv ayay The Deputation, however, was already on its way and arrived in Boston August 21, 1755, and was ordered to be recorded upon the minutes of the Grand Lodge where it may be found in full (1 Mass. 40). On Au- gust 25, 1755, a Special Committee of the Grand Lodge met to make plans for the “Installment” and on Septem- ber 22nd a Special Communication of the Grand Lodge was held to ‘“‘chuse Stewards to Provide for the Feast at the Instalment of the Grand Master.”’ These elaborate preparations for the Instalment came to fruition October 1, 1755. This was made an occasion of considerable ceremony. The official account in the Proceedings of the Grand Lodge reads as follows: At a Grand Lodge Held at Concert Hall this day The Right Worshipful Jeremy Gridley Esqr, appointed Grand Master of Masons in North America, by the Right Worshipful the Marquis of Carnarvon Grand Master of Masons, was installed in that office (at Concert Hall). The three Lodges in this Town and the Master & War- dens of the Portsmouth Lodge in New Hampshire with a great number of Brothers were present Cloathed with White Aprons and Gloves, and after the Instalment, ac- companied their Grand Master in Procession to Trinity Church in this order, First Walked the Sword Bearer, carrying a drawn Sword, in one hand and the Book of Constitutions in the other, Next came the Several Lodges 334 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA according to their Juniority, closed with the Wardens and Master, cloathed with their Jewells, Four Stewards with white wands went before the Grand Treasurer and Secretary cloathed with their Jewels, who were followed by the Past Grand Officers, after these walked the Grand Wardens with their Jewels, and the Present and the late Grand Master cloathed with their Jewels and Badges, closed the Procession. At Church the Revd Mr. Hooper read Prayers, and the Revd. Mr. Brown Preached an ex- cellent Sermon on the occasion to a Numerous and Polite Audience, after Service the Sword Bearer and Stewards walked before the Grand Master, and the Procession was made in a reversed order back to Concert Hall, where an Elegant Dinner was prepared, and the afternoon was Spent in Harmony and Mirth. The whole Ceremony and attendance was with the greatest Decency, and made a Genteel appearance. This record is supplemented by a list of names of Brethren, sixty-seven in number, including the foremost men of Boston and vicinity in all trades and professions. The original records of the Lodge at Portsmouth, N. H., for the meeting of October 16, 1755, set forth that Last Lodge night being first night of the Quarter there was no Lodge held the Master & Wardens were at Boston being Summoned thither by the Right Worshipful Brother the Deputy Grand Master of North America to attend a Grand Procefsion of Masons there and to In- stall our Right Worshipful Brother Jeremy Gridley Esq’ in the office of Grand Master of Masons in all North America, who Rec? a Commifsion for that office from our Right Worshipful Brother Henry Bridges Marquis of Carnarvon Grand Master of Masons and the said Jeremy Gridley was accordingly installed in his said office at Boston on Wednesday the first day of October Currant. 1748 335 Gridley appears to have appreciated the courteous loyalty of the Brethren of the Lodge in Portsmouth in thus suspending a meeting in order that their Master and Wardens might assist at his installation. The records of the Lodge under date of June 14, 1756, show that “Right Worshipful Bro. Jeremy Gridley, Grand Master of Masons in North America” was a visitor in the Lodge. The Boston Marine Society is among the oldest ex- isting Boston institutions. At first it was known as the Fellowship Club and on December 5, 1752, adopted a proposal to incorporate and a Bill for a Charter drawn by Gridley. As a result, the Marine Society was char- tered February 21, 1754, and in grateful acknowledg- ment voted the Freedom of the Society for hfe to Grid- ley and (February 26, 1754) adopted its By-Laws as drafted by him. Sometime prior to May 19, 1755, Gridley had moved from Boston to Brookline, for he was then chosen to represent Brookline in the General Court, succeeding himself in 1756 and 1757, and again in later years. In Boston, he was a communicant at Trinity Church. In Brookline, in 1756, he bought a “space or spot” in the meeting-house ‘fon the Middle Side Next the Middle Alley’ for five pounds six shillings and eight pence. The Grand Lodge had a gala day on the Feast of Saint John the Evangelist which was celebrated on an unknown date between January 31, 1757, and April 8th of the same year. On January 3lst a Special Communication of the Grand Lodge had been called at which Gridley as Grand Master proceeded to make Masons “at sight” of Captain Harry Charters, Captain Gilbert McAdams, Aid- de-Camp, Doctor Richard Huch, Mr. John Appy, Secre- 336 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA tary to the Earl of Loudoun, and Mr. John Melvill (who came to town from Marblehead with Brother Lowell on purpose to be made a Mason). The Grand Master’s elder brother, the celebrated Richard Gridley, (of whom see page 303), conducted the ceremonies of the Entered Apprentice and Fellow Craft Degrees. These Brethren, with the largest number ever recorded in the early history of the Grand Lodge, attended the celebra- tion of the Feast of Saint John the Evangelist of which I have spoken, at which were present His Excellency John, Earl of Loudoun, late Grand Master of Masons of England, and His Excellency Charles Lawrence, Esq., Governor of Halifax. The length of the list of Brethren attending and the notable names occurring in the list make it evident that this was one of the greatest festivals of the early days of the Fraternity in America (1 Mass. 49). March 5, 1759, he was for the third time chosen Mod- erator of the Town Meeting of Brookline, and continu- ously thereafter acted in that capacity, as for instance on June 13, 1759, October 17, 1759, December 19, 1759, December 24, 1759, and March (?), 1760, when he was chosen Selectman and Assessor. On January 14, 1760, he appointed Robert Jenkins Deputy Grand Master of Masons in Rhode Island with the full authority of a Provincial. And now, at the height of his career, we come to the most celebrated case in which he was counsel, that con- cerning the Writs of Assistance, first argued in February, 1761. (1 shall not deal with this case in detail. The student may find a good discussion in Quincy’s Massa- chusetts Reports, particularly in the Appendix.) For present purposes it is sufficient to state that these writs 1748 337 were practically what is now known as search-warrants except that the place to be searched was not stated in the writ, but was left to that Customs Officer of the Royal Service to whom the writ was committed that he might seek anywhere for smuggled goods. They were undoubtedly lawful, and had been issued in the Mother Country itself in similar form and for identical pur- poses. Moreover, they were no more oppressive, per Se, than certain provisions of the tax and revenue laws of to-day. But the Colonies had a much deeper underlying grievance against the Crown which took this occasion to burst forth. It is undoubted, also, that Otis knew of no precedent and believed them unlawful. But that was due to the paucity of law-books and the lack of sources of information. Indeed, after the first argument, the Court itself adjourned the case until the judges could communicate with England and get necessary informa- tion. Gridley appeared for the Crown and in favour of issuing the writs; Thatcher and Otis for the merchants and against such action. It has been said that the cause for which Gridley ap- peared aroused distrust of him by his associates. Noth- ing could be farther from the truth. While the great mass of the people were violently opposed to the writs, yet they recognized his position as counsel, presenting to the best of his ability that position which he was retained to maintain. Throughout his life thereafter, as will be seen, he continued to appear on one side or the other of almost every case of moment reported from then until his death. He was revered by the Bar, by the Fraternity, and by the community at large. Bitterly as Otis op- posed him in this celebrated cause, he nevertheless wrote a magnificent tribute to Gridley which will later appear. 338 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA May 18, 1761, he was again chosen Moderator of the Brookline Town Meeting; also July 3. November 19, 1761, was the day of the great hearing —the second argument concerning the Writs of Assist- ance. An eye-witness (John Adams, later President of the United States) has given us a graphic word picture of this notable occasion from which has been painted the magnificent mural decoration in the State House in Boston. “In this chamber near the fire,” he says, ‘“were seated five judges with Lieut. Governor Hutchinson at their head, as Chief Justice, all in their new fresh robes of scarlet cloth, in their broad bands and immense judicial wigs. In this chamber were seated at a long table all the Barristers of Boston, and its neighbouring County of Middlesex, in their gowns, bands and tye-wigs. They were not seated on ivory chairs, but their dress was more solemn and more pompous than that of the Roman Sen- ate when the Gauls broke in upon them. In a corner of the room must be placed, wit, sense, imagination, genius, pathos, reason, prudence, eloquence, learning, science, and immense reading hung. by the shoulders on two crutches covered with a rei great coat, in the person of Mr. Pratt, who had been solicited on both sides, but would engage on neither being about to leave Boston forever, as chief justice of New York.” The Court who sat on this august occasion were Chief Justice Hutchinson, Benjamin Lynde, John Cushing, Peter Oliver, and Chambers Russell. The counsel en- gaged were again Gridley in favour, and Thatcher and Otis against the application, and in the words of Presi- dent Adams, “‘Then and there was the first scene of the first act of opposition to the arbitrary claims of Great 1748 339 Britain. Then and there the child Independence, was born.”’ The whole day and evening, we are told, was taken up by the hearing, although Gridley found time to preside as Moderator of the Brookline Town meeting some time that day. At the conclusion of the trial judgment was immediately given in favour of that for which Gridley contended, and a careful study of the case at this impar- tial distance satisfies the student that it was given cor- rectly and as the court should have decided. ‘The real quarrel of the people was with the policy of the home government and with the rules of law which it imposed, not with the interpretation of the law. The Court had no business to change the law. ‘That was for the law makers. It was the business of the Court merely to en- force the law as it was made for them. That they did and did correctly. Gridley but pointed out the proper interpretation of the law as it stood. Otis’s appeal was rather an eloquent voicing of the restive spirit of a people convinced that the law was being used as an instrument of oppression. It was at this term of Court that judges and barristers were first appareled as in the Courts of England. Grid- ley was present with his associates in gown and band and tie-wig. Instead of finding him thereafter estranged from his fellows, we find constant records of his presiding over the Grand Lodge and over the town meetings of Brookline, and on numerous occasions a public officer and upon 1m- portant committees. Otis continued to be his warm friend. On April 1, 1767, he dined at the home of James Otis with a company of ladies and eminent gentlemen, but it 340 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA was his last social appearance and his health was break- ing. On May 25, 1767, he was appointed King’s At- torney General, in lieu of Edmund Trowbridge who had been appointed to the Bench. Jonathan Sewall, Esq., wanted to be Attorney General—indeed he was appointed Special Attorney General, but this being disagreeable to Gridley a new office was created for him which was called Solicitor General. The same day Gridley was again chosen Town Moderator of a meeting which was ad- journed to June 12th. He, however, was in very poor health. He had not attended the Grand Lodge of April 27th, and on June 12th the town meeting was obliged to adjourn because of his indisposition until June 29th. He was too ill to appear at Grand Lodge on June 24th and John Rowe, his Deputy, presided. The Town Meeting on the 29th, indeed, was again adjourned because of his indisposition until July 13th. Struggling against the inevitable, he presided at the Town Meeting on July 13th and at one later meeting the date of which is not given, but he was unable to attend the Grand Lodge on July 24th and ordered that no meeting be held until October in consequence. A Special Communication had to be called, however, on September Ist which he was unable to attend, being then near dissolution, his death occurring on September 10, 1767. At the time of his death he was Grand Master of Masons in North America, Attorney General for the Province of Massachusetts Bay, a member of the Great and General Court of said Province and a Justice throughout the same, Colonel of the First Regiment of Militia, President of the Marine Society, Selectman and Assessor of Brookline, and the leader of the Boston Bar. 1748 341 Surely these honours belie the statement of those who would have us believe that he had lost caste because of his arguments on the Writs of Assistance. A Special Grand Lodge on September 11, 1767, made plans for Masonic participation in a most elaborate funeral (1 Mass. 118-120) held in the Representatives’ Chamber on September 12. John Rowe writes interest- ingly of it in his diary (1 Mass. 420). 12th Sept Saturday 1767. Cool & Fair Wind, in the Afternoon I attended the Funeral of our Right Worship- ful Jerry Gridly Esqr. Grand Master, as Deputy Grand Master, the Officers of his Regiment Marched in Order First, then the Brethren of St Andrews Lodge, then the Stewards of the Grand Lodge, then the Brethren Pro- miscuously two & two, then the Wardens of the Second Lodge, then the Wardens of the first Lodge, then the Wardens of the Masters Lodge, then the three Masters of the three Several Lodges—then the past Grand Of- ficers & the Treasurer, then the Grand Wardens then myself as Deputy Grand Master, then the Tyler with the Grand Masters Jewell on a Black Velvet Cushion—the Corpse—the Bearers were the Lieut Governour, Judge Trowbridge, Justice Hubbard, John Erving Senr Esqr, James Otis Esqr & Mr. Samuel Fitch. Then followed the Relations—after them the Lawyers in their Robes— then the Gentlemen of the Town & then a great many Coaches, Chariots, & chaises. Such a multitude of Spec- tators, I never Saw at any time before since I have been in New England.—after his Body was Interr’d wee Re- turn’d in Form to the Town house (from whence his corps was taken from at the Beginning of the Proces- sion, ) in the Same Order as wee first walked.—I do not much approve of Such parade & Show—but as it was his & his Relations desire, I could not well Avoid giving my Consent. I think the Number of the Brethren that At- 342 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA tended was 161.—upon the Whole it was as weli Con- ducted & in As Good Order as the Nature of it would admit. A full account of the services, order of procession, and names of the Brethren who attended is recorded in the original records of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts (and printed in 1 Mass. 118 to 124 inclusive). It demonstrates his conspicuous position in public life and the affection as well as the veneration of his contem- poraries; lawyers and laymen, men in official and private life alike, joining to do him honour. The bearers were the Lieutenant Governor and Chief Justice Hutchinson, Judge Trowbridge, Councillors Hubbard and Erving, and Barristers James Otis and Samuel Fitch. The unique obituary printed in the Boston papers at the time of his death, on good evidence is believed to have been written by his friend and former pupil, some- times his associate, at others his bitterest antagonist, James Otis. As printed in the Boston Gazette for Mon- day, September 14, 1767, it reads as follows: On Thursday last died here, Jeremy Gridley Esqr. At- torney-General of the Province, and a Member of the General Court; His funeral was attended on Saturday with the Respect due to his Memory by the Members of the Council and the Judges of the Superior Court in Town, the Gentlemen of the Bar, the Brethren of the Society of Free Masons, of which he was Grand Master, the officers of the First Regiment, of which he was Colo- nel, the Members of the Marine Society, of which he was President and a great Number of the Gentlemen of the Town :— “Strength of Understanding, Clearness of Apprehen- sion, and Solidity of Judgment were cultivated in him by a liberal Education and close thinking: 1748 343 “His extensive Acquaintance with Classical and al- most every other part of Literature, gave him the first Rank among Men of Learning: “His thorough knowledge of the Civil and Common Law, which he had studied as a Science, founded in the Principles of Government, and the Nature of Man, justly placed him at the Head of his Proffession: “His tender Feelings relative to his natural and civil Ties; his exquisite Sensibility and generous Effusion of Soule for his Friends, were Proof that his Heart was as Good as his Head was sound, and well qualified him to preside over that antient Society, whose Benevolent Con- stitutions do Honour to Mankind: “He sustained the painful Attacks of Death with a Philosophical Calmness and Fortitude, that resulted from the steady Principles of his Religion. He died in the 62nd year of his age.” (It should read 66th year of his age. ) (A reproduction of the official letter of October 2, 1767, to Henry Price, recalling him to the chair upon Gridley’s death is herewith inserted. See 1 Mass. 125.) When Jeremy Gridley came to the Bar of the Province it was unworthy to be called a learned profession. In- deed next to none of the practitioners at the Bar were educated men. And even the Bench had held few law- yers. The first judge who had even been a lawyer was Judge Lynde, elevated in 1712. The clergy had held and continued to exercise for many years a control over all civil government and especially over the judicial de- partment. The Court which had condemned to death those poor unfortunates accused of witchcraft, for in- stance, consisted of seven Judges. ‘The Chief Justice was the clergyman Stoughton. With him sat Sewall, a business man, but educated for the church; Winthrop 344 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA and Gedney, physicians; and Richards, Curwin, and Seargeant, merchants. No lawyer had anything to do with this notorious Court. Even Checkley, the Attorney General, was a merchant and a military man. In these modern days when considerations are urged for subject- ing the Courts to popular will, would it not be wise to remember the sad results of this popular tribunal which allowed itself to be swayed by the loud outcries of the populace ? In such an incipient state of the development of the legal profession, Gridley with an all around education stood forth conspicuous as an able and learned man. His reading and study were extensive and his mind logical and accurate. He was an easy and graceful writer, being imbued with the spirit of classical literature. As a speaker he was “rough and ungraceful, hesitating in his utterance but energetic in his manner, and impressive by his peculiarly emphatic use of language. Even to the court his manner is said to have been magisterial when expressing any opinion in their presence.”’ A good illustration is reported in the case of Banister v. Henderson (Quincy’s Mass. Reports, 141). It had been held that there might be cross-remainders between two devisees. Gridley was contending that there might be among three. Messrs. Otis and Auchmuty were opposing him. A part of the reported dialogue follows: Mr. Gridley. It is the bufinefs of the Law to explain the Pregnancy of Expreffion, and when this Pregnancy is drawn out, this is the mighty Confufion, this is the terrible Bugbear. The Lawyers who talk of the Abhor- rence of the Law, the Confufion, the Awkwardnefs, and I don’t know what all, of Crofs Remainders were afleep, I believe, and had their Heads muffled up in Napkins. LOL{ NI YIVHO FHL OL dOMdd ONITTVOdUaA AALLAT AO ATINISOVS | (a aS a Ge mS lege bora lnapeortvey ee + a a — 7 RANTES GR Ne ny A NN eI S| ger ‘ = “aie nn ane ela ee al ‘ ¢ " 53 ——, Ne a x F : m Pt Bice Fe 2 ate a * ¢ Hot as oe peepee ic ah eo ei SS See yee Er etnrmeneemmereeererss wel: ~ ee Waters: es nae: : f ee o'9 * : Ge AL lobe G , . . ene ce ; ee » pa SS ay eee oe oes i ea ele bee, oe ih sata r Sia Fratiatioy a ali fete 2 leltorr, Il real Ornament Gf Lect - Ye Bs oe of Mating Y Cur Shy Mook bohapefe rofher is fi oy Ger wh bag Grad Maatir fh acne pone : jes Jolie MM bur ay 47 General, and of Maaerny, note — ed, a cad Aatomry fo fom x LWte Oth: Blot hrnewt i Mit pio fa EE ee ULL oy a overnmant rand Maclor ones a G Di lon, ae, 1g bonita €, Mh font tte gflg iigtom snd ee Uy rand lo O72 Vier of Ue awtove Yer cavemen ue 2 i fee Leen Leusf divorcing B blecl ix New ee és Hea Koen fle, ] [One aLiome conven tard Sime fete ! ut pcan pe He : a Sg for titatine point nt this Hat te Vian ey Keflted bh pall DG rand Matter, tegowm Maco ae till a rues ores blectedt hore hey Cow tlie for bn for Mi Grand Lede 4 Pd bee writ you fin Mhes Fe on ee J few EE) : Zi ore a Gouwtwonkd Ce e fleaced78 jb attend at fee texl Grand Lily i arlirly bommunizalion Ale hold at He ee: spent Zon phan he mirth Paiday ty Cetater, buitent, in Order fers 2 Gee er ag ey) aa bie Spaclice in he Z beCrados jh fed 7 me : Som a Sapht Modepe fit Sorter th great Fak fi ee Ny Le gal ae o2 em holt ny alg aad pret Ge eo ie 2 =p = . : i ata, 2 é _ ey + i Wa Ta a NII IA ll CI A Att FACSIMILE OF LETTER RECALLING PRICE TO THE CHAIR IN 1767 j . * ¥ ‘ g ae ¢ “ A * a ee i Eta Aaa te ann SES AAAS aE Sata A amt ESET is TEEN A Nn hap oe: Sys Hs ceyyevcmseogasiry RR RN I a i Acar ence ON meal aaa SE So 1748 B45 Mr. Auchmuty. I don’t underftand fuch Reflections. Mr. Gridley. I meant no Reflection on you, sir. Mr. Otis. Mr. Auchmuty, I did not take Mr. Grid- ley intended to reflect upon us, but on all the Judges of England. c Mr. Gridley. What mighty Difficulty to former Peo- ple I can’t tell: ’tis very plain now. Crofs Remainders may be among 2; why not 3? Gridley’s commanding ability, far and away superior to his predecessors in his chosen profession, led to his being rightly called the “Father of the Boston Bar.” His office was the principal school for students of the law. The most distinguished lawyers who became his contemporaries and successors, such as James Otis, Oxen- bridge Thatcher, John Adams, William Cushing, and Chief Justice Pratt, received their professional education in his office and under his instruction. Of Otis and Adams he remarked that he had reared two young eagles who were one day to peck out his eyes. Of Gridley more than any other it may be said that he elevated the Bos- ton Bar from comparative chaos and ignorance to the dignity of a learned profession. Remuneration in these days was not excessive. For an important argument and trial eight dollars was the fee. Five dollars was the limit for a jury argument and two dollars for a continuance. No wonder there were only ten lawyers in Boston at the time, and no wonder that Gridley himself died insolvent. Practically the whole of his estate was his library, a complete inven- tory of which is among the probate records (Suffolk County, Mass.) and which was, for those days, extensive and magnificent. (In the inventory of his estate filed in the Probate Court in Boston on March 18, 1768, it 346 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA was appraised at £209 3s 4d. This was probably what the library had brought at auction, for it was thus sold on February 2, 1768.) He was succeeded as Attorney General by Jonathan Sewall, who was appointed to the office November 18, 1767. Jeremy Gridley was buried in Tomb No. 9 of the Granary Burying Ground in Boston, erected by his father-in-law, Hon. Ezekiel Lewis. Until May 11, 1916, it remained unmarked, though his name and fame have remained as one of the foremost men of the day. Though they never will find a place in classic litera- ture, yet typical of the times and of the man, the lines printed with his obituary as written ex fempore (proba- bly also by Brother James Otis) must be quoted. Jeremiah Gridley Barrister-At-Law. “Of Parts and Learning, Wit and Worth possess’d, Gridley shone forth conspicuous o’er the rest: In native Powers robust, and smit with Fame, The Genius brighten’d and the Spark took Flame; Nature and Science wove the laurel Crown, Ambitious, each alike, conferr’>d Renown. High in the Dignity and Strength of Thought, The Maze of Knowledge sedulous he sought, With Mind Superior Studied and retain‘d. And Life and Property by Law sustain‘d. Generous and free, his lib’ral Hand he spread, Th’ Oppress’d relieved, and for the Needy Plead; Awake to Friendship, with the ties of Blood His Heart expanded and his Soul o’erflow’d. Social in Converse, in the Senate brave. Gay e’en in Dignity, with Wisdom grave; Long to his country and to Courts endear’d, The Judges honour’d and the Bar rever’d. 1748 347 Rest! Peaceful Shade! innoxious as they Walk May slander babble and may censure talk, Ne’er on thy Mem’ry cast a Blot— But human Frailties in thy Worth forgot.” 1916 Mass. 84-124 ef cit. 1748, May 25, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1748, June 3, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. OTR SA: B. 1748, June 8, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. (OM ey, Hay, 1748, June 22, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Sidney George and Capt. John James made. Oakes Piss AyB: 1748, July 1, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Election. O.R.; A.B. 1748, July 13, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Brothers Nicholas Fer- ritor and Thomas Vavasour admitted. @ Heeb ls ALB; 348 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1748, July 27, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Capt. Michael Buttler made. OM at IER AV) by 1748, August 5, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1748, August 10, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1748, August 24, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1748, August 31, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Meeting of the Lodge. “Admitted Masons to the Fellow Craft, Viz: Cap. Brother Henry Barnsley Brother Smith Brother Michael Henry Pascal Brother Gardner Brother Wallis Brother Jenness”’ O.R. 1748, September 2, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. ON re Bs 1748 349 1748, September 14, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. OLURS32A;B. 1748, September 28, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1748, September 29, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Meeting of the Lodge. Messrs. Campble and Richard Ion (I’on) made. O.R. 1748, October 7, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1748, October 12, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Brother William Dalton admitted. Cites bn: AL. 1748, October 20, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Meeting of the Lodge. Election. O.R. 1748, October 25, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Jonathan Fuller made, Brothers William Ellery admitted, Andrew Ramsey (Ramsay) admitted and passed. one ALD 350 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1748, November 3, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Meeting of the Lodge. Nathaniel Wheelwright made and passed. O.R. 1748, November 4, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1748, November 9, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1748, November 17, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Bar’w (Bartho.) Svere, Fran’s Baulos, and William Ross made. Ree Asb 1748, November 23, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Brother David Littlejohn admitted. OH yi eH bata ay 1748, December 2, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1748, December 14, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Election. O.R.; A.B. 1 Mass. 9. 1748 351 1748, December 15, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Meeting of the Lodge. Election. O.R. 1748, December 27, Boston. Celebration of the Festival by the Grand Lodge. O.R. of First Lodge. 1748, December 28, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1748/9, January 6, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Election. Brothers Andrew Ramsey (Ramsay), Belthar Bayard, Aenneas McKay, William Day, and Jona. Dwight raised. Od ag Bol Pea Nd bs 1748/9, January 11, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Co 4cA. Db. 1748/9, January 19, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Meeting of the Lodge. O.R. 1748/9, January 25, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 352 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1748/9, February 3, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1748/9, February 8, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Capt. Benjamin Stod- dard, Peter McTaggart, and Elias D’Larue made. OR hele ALb 1748/9, February 16, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Meeting of the Lodge. O.R. 1748/9, February 22, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1883 Mass. 164. 1748/9, March 3, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1748/9, March 8, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1748/9, March 22, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge O.R.; A.B. 1748, circa. San Domingo. Lodge organized at Cap, which worked for 35 years thereafter. 1920 Mass. 112. CHAPTER XXIII 1749 1749, April 5, Boston. Meeting of Auditing Committee of the Masters Lodge. A.B. 1749, April 7, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Brother Thomas Pearson raised. O.R.; P.L.; A.B. 1749, April 12, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Brother Hugh McKay admitted. OPRes Bs 2AtB: 1749, April 26, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1749, May 5, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1749, May 10, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Capt. James H. Ewing (Euing) made. Brother Robert Gardner admitted. O.R.; P.L.; A.B. 353 354 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1749, May 24, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1749, June 2, Boston. “Being Masters Lodge night; Adjourned on Account of the House being taken up by the General Court.” OLR: 1749, June 14, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Election. O.R.; A.B. 1749, June 24, Boston. Celebration of the Festival. There is no record of this celebration, but the First Lodge appointed Stewards therefor at its meeting on June 14, and there is in the archives of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts an original letter in the handwriting of Charles Pelham, Secretary, signed by him and by the Master and Wardens of the First Lodge recommending Brother Robert Jenkins to the Master, Wardens and Brethren of any Lodge in Lon- don, and which is dated ‘‘From the Lodge in Boston N. Engld. held June 24th A.D. 1749.” 1 Mass. 395. 1749, June 28, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. With this meeting the known records of this Lodge begin. It is evident, 1749 355 AP Joige hits ore Moray Yhu ag: Aug” 1749 ob bhes Sun. Sonerr on Water Moree? Phi le Prevent Bre Sire Mr wa ab A Sy? Marrs SD was Sig? Members prea nrP Wake DR rolbhurg Prot Muclbor Ak Goffe DAT ne Wrigh P WeSdales PaeQa lo Buamepé acctrdingly Hise fright made in Ques Far Bre Mullen me) Kat oPelbor..bu verb he MT: Beng Se randlin, Previeragal Fron Master of Den ailoaws4s & grank ue a: Deyrutatior ander hes Sametan, The Mather appoint) Art Videl,, Corfe, Mullames fs Yeas uy? the SOM, O40 Lo preeemt cf Jim Clarks Lidge Clad) Aba he helaen. Rerpiiay He CB Sep” 1749 PeanL Rre® Sriffin Me ¥5 LP Whighh te Ww? ee S Uihing Broo Cumming - rinleath Ad Qone} Sem oClack Lge C65) PAGE OF RECORD BOOK OF TUN TAVERN LODGE 356 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA however, that it was not its first meeting. The record book is now owned by the Historical Society of Penn- sylvania. O.R. Freemasonry in Pennsylvania seems now to be reviv- ing, though official authority for this Lodge 1s unknown. See 1749, Aug. 29, infra. In a volume written by Brother Sachse, the Librarian of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania, and compiled at the request of the Grand Master (1906), the claim is made that this record book of Tun Tavern Lodge is “the oldest American Masonic minute book known.” Benjamin Franklin as a Free Mason, 85. It has, however, been common knowledge for many years that the original minute books of the Masters Lodge in Boston, beginning December 22, 1738; of the First Lodge in Boston, beginning December 27, 1738, and of the First Lodge in Portsmouth, N. H., beginning October 31, 1739, all of which have been personally ex- amined by the author during the preparation of this book, are in their proper custody and available for in- spection. Quotations and facsimiles from some of these were published in the proceedings of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts as early as 1871. Copies of these pro- ceedings were in Brother Sachse’s possession during his entire service as librarian and the writer has personal knowledge that he had seen them before 1906. From this and other similar instances, at least one of which has been referred to above, it is evident that statements made by Brother Sachse must be verified before being acs cepted as correct. See 1914 Mass. 277. 1749 357 1749, July 3, Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. O.R. 1749, July 5, Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. John Ord and John Slydorn (Schleydhorn) made, Brother Hugh Wright passed, and Brother John Eve raised and admitted. O.R. 1749, July 7, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Election. Brother Jonathan Fuller raised. O.R.; A.B. 1749, July 10, Boston—Pennsylvania. Provincial Grand Master Oxnard of North America appointed Benjamin Franklin Provincial Grand Master for Pennsylvania. The Picture of Philadelphia, (1811) 289. 1888 Mass. 155. 1906 Mass. 90. See also 1734/5, February 21; 1738, June 24; 1741, June 24, supra. 1749, July 12, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Oy ea.b: Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Brothers Phillips and Stephen Vidal admitted. O.R. 358 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1749, July 26, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Samuel Massey, Paul Douxsaint, and Lewis Peach made. OuRes PsA B: 1749, August 2, Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. John Fisher made, Brothers Foster and Thomas Blake passed, and Hugh Wright raised. O.R. 1749, August 4, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Brothers John Rae and Samuel Levens raised. OURS Poa, 1749,. August 5, Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Three Brethren dis- charged from membership. O.R. 1749, August 9, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Election. Brothers John Ord and Thomas Blake admitted. O.R. 1749, August 16, Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Edward Hemlin and Flanegan made. Brother Walter Murray passed. O.R. 1749 359 1749, August 23, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Brother Robert Anderson passed. etl os Aue Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. O.R. 1749, August 29, — Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge at which it was voted that a petition be sent to Benjamin Franklin, Pro. G. M. of Pennsylvania by appointment of Pro. G. M. Oxnard of North America, to grant the Lodge a Deputation under his sanction. Dr. William Parker made. O.R. 1749, September 1, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1749, September 5, Philadelphia. First meeting of the Provincial Grand Lodge under the Deputation granted Franklin by Oxnard, and a re- vival of the earlier St. John’s Lodge under that Deputa- tion. The Picture of Philadelphia, (1811) 289. IV Gould 239. On the records of the Grand Lodge at Boston for April 10, 1752, we find: “For the Lodge att Philadelphia Bro™ McDaniel ap- peared and paid for their Constitution SLi lone OY I Mass. 20, 360 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1749, September 11, Philadelphia. Brothers Murray, Phillips, Edward Hemlin, Dr. Wil- liam Parker, William Mason, and John Ord passed. Brothers John Slydorn and Flanegan passed and ad- mitted. O.R. 1749, September 13, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1883 Mass. 163. 1749, September 27, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. John Simes made. Brother Capt. Richard Savage passed. OH ie 1749, October 4, Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Capt. James Whyte made. Brother John Simes Passed and Brothers Thomas Blake and Wasdale raised. O.R. 1749, October 6, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1749, October 11, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Henry Leddell, Sami. 1749 361 Calef, Benj. Badger, and Capts. John Bennett and Benj. Clifford made. Brothers John Leverett and Wil- liam Epps passed, Edmund Quincy and Henry Bowers admitted. O.R.; P.L.: A:B. In the original records of the Lodge this is the first time that the word ‘“‘Passed”’ has been used in connection with the Fellow Craft Degree. In all previous incidents, al- though the Pelham List (written later) has used the word “Passed,” the original record has used the phrases “Raised Fellow Craft,” or ‘made Fellow Craft.” 1749, October 12, — Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Brother Capt. Vina Leacroft passed. Brother Capt. James Whyte passed and raised. O.R. 1749, October 25, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Oohe:7A-B. 1749, October 26, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Meeting of the Lodge on board the British Frigate America of fifty-four guns, then building at Portsmouth. Mr. Farr made and passed. Mr. Kipling made. O.R. 1749, November 1, Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Enas Batter, John Boude, and John Bruliet made. Brothers John Ord and William Mason raised. OR. 362 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1749, November 3, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Oo: VAGB: 1749, November 8, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. James Thompson and Capt. James Bruce made. Brothers Peter Oliver and John Indigot admitted. O.R.; P.L. Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Brother Enas Batter passed. Brother Foster, Flanegan, and Capt. Michael James passed and raised. Brother Capt. James Whyte admitted. O.R. 1749, November 22, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Brother John Huston admitted. OCR Piva: Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Brother John Bruliet passed. One member was fined two shillings for “‘swear- ing two Oaths.” Another, one shilling sixpence for im- properly addressing the Master. O.R. 1749, November 29, Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Mr. Flanegan made and passed. Brother John Boude passed. Brother Michael James admitted. o OHW 1749 363 1749, December 1, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Brothers Alexander Ross, William Epps, and John Bennett raised. Ole 3A. BD: 1749, December 4, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Another meeting of the Lodge on the Frigate America. Brothers Smith, Pascal, Wallace, Jenness, and Campble raised. O.R. 1749, December 6, Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Brothers Walter Murray, Enas Batter, and John Bruliet raised. O.R. 1749, December 11, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Another meeting of the Lodge on board the Frigate America. O.R. 1749, December 13, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Election. O.R.; A.B. Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. William Shute, Franklin Manny, and Capt. Thomas Glentworth made. Capt. Richard Harris made and passed. Brother Falk- ner (Falckner) admitted. O.R. 364 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1749, December 22, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Jacob Tuthill, Martin Beker, Roscow Sweeny, and Capt. Gilbert Faulkner made. Samuel Wells “raised F.C.” O.R.; P.L.; A.B. 1749, December 23, Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Capts. Jenkins and Tege made. O.R. 1749, December 24, Boston—Newport. Pro. G.M. Oxnard granted a Constitution for a Lodge to be held at Newport, R.I. L.M.R. 482. 1749, December 27, znfra. 1749, December 27, Boston. The Grand Lodge celebrated the Festival by attend- ing Christ Church where a sermon was preached by Rev. Brother Charles Brockwell, after which they repaired in procession to the Royal Exchange Tavern “Where was an elegant Dinner provided, at which were several Gen- tlemen of Note, besides the Fraternity.” 1 Mass. 9. Boston Evening Post for January 1, 1749/50, P-t. Boston Post Boy for January 1, 1749/50, P-t. O.R. of First Lodge. 1883 Mass. 165. Rev. Brother Brockwell’s sermon entitled “Brotherly Love Recommended” was printed and published in Bos- 1749 365 ton immediately by John Draper in Newbury Street. An original copy thereof is in the archives of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts containing the vote of thanks to the preacher passed by the Grand Lodge. A bur- lesque in doggerel of the procession of the Grand Lodge on this day was printed and circulated in 1750 and re- printed in 1795. One of each edition is in the archives of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts. It is reprinted in 1 Mass. 473. In the evening there was also a meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 19 M.F.M. 51. The Boston Weekly News Letter for January 1, 1749/50 contains Draper’s advertisement of Brockwell’s sermon. P-t. On January 9, 1749/50, the First Lodge paid 50 Pounds for the printing of the sermon. A.B. Newport, Rhode Island. The First Lodge at Newport held its first meeting as is shown by the following paragraph which appeared in the Boston Weekly News Letter for January l, 1749/50: “On the 27th ult. being the Feftival of St. John the Evangelist the firft regular Lodge of free and accepted Mafons was congregated and held at Newport on Rhode Ifland; by Virtue of a Warrant given them by the Grand Mafter of North-America.”’ P-t. 366 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA And the Boston Post Boy for January 15, 1749/50, contained the same item. P-t. Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Election. O.R. 1749/50, January 3, Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Brother Tege passed and Brother Richard Harris raised. O.R. 1749/50, January 5, —_ Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Election. O.R.; A.B. 1749/50, January 9, Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Brother Jenkins passed and raised. O.R. Boston. Meeting of Auditing Committee of the First Lodge. A.B. 1749/50, January 10, Boston. Meeting of First Lodge. Joseph Gorham and John Brown made. OUR TARA Ayo: 1749/50, January 24, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1749 367 Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Capt. John Austin made and passed. Brothers William Shute and Thomas Glentworth passed. Brother Tege raised. O.R. 1749/50, January 26, Boston. Meeting of Auditing Committee of the Masters Lodge. A.B. 1749/50, February 2, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Brothers Edmd. Quincy, Benja. Clifford, Henry Bowers, John Leverett, Robt. Jenkins, John Brown, and Benj. Stoddard raised. OURS Re ALB: 1749/50, February 8, Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Brothers John Sly- dorn and John Boude raised. Gala 1749/50, February 12, Boston. The Boston Evening Post contains an advertisement of the Constitutions of the Freemasons to be sold by the publishers of the paper. P-t. 1749/50, February 14, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. James Steward (Stew- art), William Tyler, and Nathaniel Gilman made. Om eb A:B. | 368 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 1749/50, February 15, Boston. Meeting of the Grand Lodge for the Constitution of the Second Lodge in Boston, to be held at the Royal Ex- change Tavern on the third Thursday in every month. I Mass. 9. On the O. L. this Lodge was first numbered 141. L.M.R. 91. Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. O.R. 1749/50, February 28, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. O.R.; A.B. 1749/50, March 1, Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. O.R. 1749/50, March 2, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. OURG AASB: 1749/50, March 5, Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Anthony Duchee made. Brothers Franklin Manny passed and Thomas Glentworth and William Shute raised. Brother John Boude admitted. O.R. 1749/50, March 7, Boston. Meeting of the Grand Lodge for the Constitution of eS es So theta Ht She Yo Worahipfat Ten, Toe egy eames bindnoaiedien Atte Tn A Pr caeienatnentiond OO EEA we ees: NEELAM Mp eT 3 fc a a he For. ‘Noon “5 G6; Wert YE Wy ho Vp Y? | Uo Meaaterof On Le “apni, She Younble C Himenctranigfy ' Sho Sp: Worahi fal H Sed eer) SIS dg) Soup W97 OT hth Ceefrle Mavorg, and LEE ou, Farr tu ni ben . 56 ‘ ‘ ey 7 the eco} Lis WClons fold trchoalion Ya Ma forty tn Ip Cmiealspi Lo lhepresent Wea Ne, acs had) fonl Lael Uy Shree pp ane e ha lors Hy pfrillt le Soyo) Fhe a prop ahs af fe A. ay favs! cack in lhery reo puclive! Ces Wtond tar Diatenguith le under tbe) Me 4 hh ST cuuncial “gl, Gre ane? : € NM, ‘afters ff! orth Qonervea / AL Dieninetion Fcmpleee | Opie igi that piss: ””? a Si am | Wlatlia's tH a ferent SOulntts whe are! Vil dh crMimale lo Sim Nts Ohif. wt "hy oer a fore pss Lodi ions a: Y, : ee heute felicity Scud Z / ar LDynitialions shih wn yee have rot Olserofl,y Or vecceariay if Wi by Srovincal y Yrande Moarster ts inpladbatower vested rv lhe Grant Master over Uh at Provinte ey, when billie ved ~“ on fo which he vs appointed feet oun 4 and Mastns have baeeedsdinlf ranting Dyputations lo DittantPoiners “7 Shi adel hia: Carolendt, Untiqualinl Mn ped hho el which) hitd ; ypoomed vo bernsidaably y'Sn alareat of Vase worth Umiricaand whi ch>nonen Slanted, to that Testy antl must havo grav Bb detrimental lo the whole | resent flourish oy. skurtier a MbefeJoi Ske who have tieniv de her Ore il Ora has nist ay Y par from - pondl, form Mh Af ge pss Tod, l. | Ue Zh, here bo Von HE: ‘to a Spe Met Ston ee) Worwh: Gi ane eta, Yin that he Seay as ohh ys Uf OUT Yrand: Whats s ai fhe miodh f ura CUions snd enrol f eH fe ncuie fda 7d. 90! Vl, OMI S Cur Tray 1d id A, ge, WT ritisttlineriva fat wholle we —e- a et ened, te ome fe pees oo -4 : Hil COMMAS lo RIAA SUCK 112 UIE, ‘ ec beth fe — : ed Vat the Fe’ ben PE Wervhy YY fads Viks IM ase. T would ylease lo ABE Crayer @ Gonnduateriand) jrant lo g Cur Pes Wershyoful Wrother ¢ Sho mins C | bard OY aur yn rout Yr yrange Kafer or iy “ect Gord for teu COME Full andP nary Commn “wore lo ach as Yr ran Wiheter wand ow db the Lodges wWlhoTroinces Us “", pee oA vj , reve Honmputire} CED Mhode filer d and rovlerrce) War y, br Keg Wore Io free TURTLE rola tity Glove. foe fort ta Yarolinity ¢ Uf Cis Slaw, ber blat Lande Hewtgfeolia) Mehr 8, BU1COd 10 rey tn tr Ch Mane (fas inertia? ¢. 25 Pr Ad lhal all fare LD, Yala lions 7 Cr Comat tans be’ from firm ler he S Cfetl lef 077 andyaalt Loatre we the: District a ad, afertsad. de Commumncaldand Correapond nith BGpand-Zo Sodgenrd$tor th Qnerteal this Vissiy Lab grove th tente an: Qttouiel site tur feverabdTrocerd ae CT as be Tianomitted Domygals Y C3 Ch te f and: Tou a tp & raga eG atts Hotv OES “rd, endo | t to whith’ we ifr 7 we’, i ast oe tp hPevete cage Le 7 wvaled ore i, and bad $ eds ; 4 4 1 f ¥ vw “Ys aged 72 ae © Stompin Ligé} Dp nr rr FACSIMILE OF THE ‘‘HUMBLE REMONSTRANCE”’ OF OCTOBER 7, 1751 « 1749 369 the Third Lodge in Boston, to be held at the White Horse Tavern on the first and third Wednesday in every month. 1 Mass 9. Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Brothers William Shute and Thomas Glentworth admitted. O.R. 1749/50, March 13, Philadelphia. William Allen exhibited a patent signed by Lord Byron, the Grand Master of England, appointing him Provincial Grand Master for Pennsylvania. The Picture of Philadelphia, (1811) 290. See page 68. This being from the fountain head and from an au- thority superior even to Oxnard’s, was at once recognized by Franklin and his associates of the then existing Pro- vincial Grand Lodge. Franklin became Deputy Grand Master. Those who were his officers under Oxnard’s Deputation all remained in line but like himself demoted one station. Word of this and some similar matters having come to Boston the Brethren there, after long and careful consideration, prepared a remonstrance on October 7, 1751 to the Grand Master of England. I Mass. 396. Facsimile presented herewith. See page 235. The four Lodges in Boston very properly pointed out that Oxnard’s Commission granted by Lord Ward, Grand Master of England, September 23, 1743, ¢.v., made him “Provincial Grand Master of North America.” (1 Mass. 8.) and that, therefore, Deputations for the Provinces 370 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA here should issue from him in the future as they had in the past. When Franklin visited the Grand Lodge at London on November 17, 1760, he was recognized as “Provincial Grand Master of Philadelphia” which is at least a recognition of Oxnard’s Commission to him. O.R. of English Grand Lodge. Perhaps even more to the point is the recognition of the loyalty of Pennsylvania to Oxnard when on April 10, 1752, Bro. McDaniel appeared for the Lodge at Philadelphia and paid for its constitution thirty-one pounds and ten shillings. I Mass. 20. 1749/50, March 14, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Capt. Hugh Purdie made. Rev. Brother Samuel Quincy passed. One Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Brother John Reily admitted. O.R. 1749, Nova Scotia. During this year a Lodge was Constituted at Halifax, Nova Scotia, by the Grand Lodge of England. L.M.R. 92. Note. This completes the chronological record of every Masonic event which concerns the Western Hemisphere prior to the close of the legal year 1749 of which the author has been able to learn. | Pees yo: (Legg hi Ses the fie i Vern! pe ‘ee Higebeet ae Sys ee ee al ay Hes Lyk “Sbyo: Sh: COREE . Abra. 1: Cyl Be ~ .. YBr0 Foal Ort LY = Sates amore ch Bor’ os Diff “ Sbra fone) G* Ge | Pore Vel Gorda | cae ; ie ge MES Gd Sore eeu EDyah tell e. hh Tice der leat t for yh ‘Wl Vgaaa Lody {Ae nd Wi fener LU Geel hes = / \ Brock Willrase MS Dhanty ~~ Fores ioe MW: Ba Ve Vig ye wt heb Ve Loe. : 2 or o; hd e/ (Za. Pel E : é 7 ; are. Seber Olle SH. A : ae : . ae (Gee Sree) ree Sy . “ foe vi 2 Taye) Sor 06S “ Who? 4D popes Zz fi B da Care iy. % ds 1 S370 Wb: Seddel BA, ya . 3 a Sire Galen Uilhand &. Mo. nea ee Sitye? SreJthed Orllserd eS St. Bas CF i | Hr0 Cha’ Cilhard FH. { ee is . , Popyrntle tre Vleet Loam pubire) be Go himapeles ve Tov! j totia) : a iol mee mae ya! ‘or MerLed e? af Malis face! gee 7 Aiewporh Wand : Dia oo ail leasan) to ConmecTieuts : Ps PE Sineawainatti be tee) Committed Ebaih, peded ll S hat She Uyrased/ OPTI: “4 hanity { berstabrnd i “eappagipdin Shelview Stites Ph Sieght, trons fla ay Tp dap Gom ba . A Lg i Fesert oe ar Ihemierrolta. baad wherer) hdbe Ligh everase & ec ag feb ste em ¢ 1G: oS. thaw fot hee SLA WY Held iy seca A (ha rank Gantt y Gor» mranccabicn) FACSIMILE OF PART OF RECORD OF MEETING OF GRAND LODGE IN BOSTON, APRIL 13, 1750 1750 371 That the record may be brought down to the begin- ning of the first bound volume of contemporaneous (i.e., written at the time of the events recorded) records of the earliest American Grand Lodge records extant, viz: those of the Grand Lodge at Boston, the following five days are added. 1750, March 28, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. Brother Walter Logan admitted. O05 Sd Pal oy Wo Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. One member was ex- cluded from the Lodge ‘‘for aiding and assisting in mak- ing two Brothers Irregular.” Brother Hampton ad- mitted. O.R. 1750, April 4, Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Brother William Gamble passed and raised. Brother Franklin Manny raised and admitted. O.R. 1750, April 7, Boston. Meeting of the Masters Lodge. Brothers Gilbert Faulkner and Rev. Samuel Quincy raised. O.R.; P.L.; A.B. 1750, April 11, Boston. Meeting of the First Lodge. OR A.B, 1883 Mass. 164. 372 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Philadelphia. Meeting of Tun Tavern Lodge. Peter Hudson made. Brother Archdall admitted. O.R. 1750, April 13, Boston. With the meeting of the Provincial Grand Lodge this day, its continuous contemporaneous record commences in the handwriting of Charles Pelham who was Secretary of the First Lodge as well as Grand Secretary. O.R. I Mass. 10. 1900 Mass. 127. Massachusetts has now in the Masonic Temple in Bos- ton official Grand Lodge records, made contemporane- ously with the events recorded, from April 13, 1750, to the present day, except for a short hiatus during the Revolutionary War while its Grand Secretary, a Tory, was in Nova Scotia. CHAPTER XXIV ARCANA OF THE PERIOD There are radical differences between the degree system of this period and the present time. Because of the secrecy surrounding the ritual it is impossible to know the whole story or to write it even if we did know it. Let us first collate what little there is to guide us and draw our conclusions afterwards. As early as June 24, 1731, we have the record of an “entrance’’ fee. On July 30, 1733, certain Brethren signed a petition in which it was recited that some of them were ‘“‘made here.” The words “entered” and “made” have a tech- nical reference to the first degree, which is now familiar by constant use. The word “admitted” appears first on October 24, 1733, meaning then as now “admitted to membership in a Lodge,” but having no reference to any degree. The earliest American By-Laws or Regulations of a Lodge were adopted October 24, 1733, but there is no reference therein to any degrees. We find that Masons were “made” and a certain limited number of them were “admitted.” Nothing more until February 9, 1736/7, when the degree of Fellow-Craft is mentioned for the first time. ‘The language of the vote quoted under that date, above, shows that the second degree had thereto- fore been worked. It is more than three years and a half later, however, before we have any written record of the working of this degree. ‘Then, in Portsmouth, 373 374 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA New Hampshire, “Capt. Andrew Tombes was made a Mason and razsed to a Fellow-Craft.” (The italics are mine.) From then on there is confusion in terminology. Sometimes Brethren are recorded as ‘made Fellow Craft,” more often “raised Fellow Craft.” On July 22, 1747, Brother McKenzie was “Rais’d Fellow Craft in due Form” and yet when Brother Pelham made up his list (1751) he says that Brother McKenzie was “‘pass’d Fellow Craft.» From and after October 11, 1749, the record of the First Lodge in Boston usually uses the word “passed” when referring to the second degree, although as late as December 22, 1749, we still find ‘“‘raised Fel- low Craft.” The records which we have of Tun Tavern Lodge, Philadelphia, beginning June 28, 1749, use the words “entered,” “passed”’ and ‘“‘raised’”’ as we use them now. Those who are familiar with the history of the ritual and its development in England, Ireland and Scotland, will at once, I think, conclude rightly that the first de- gree, in these early days in America, contained what has now been expanded into the first and second; also that the second degree corresponds to what is now the third. But few Brethren advanced beyond Entered Apprentices, upon which degree all general business was transacted. But what shall we say when we find a Masters Lodge constituted December 22, 1738% Before then the only references to Masters were to the Masters of Lodges. The Masters, who were then in Boston, gathered together to form “The Masters Lodge.” It is practically certain that the founders of this Lodge had not all been actual presiding Masters of Lodges. All then in Boston who are known to have been such are recorded as present at ARCANA OF THE PERIOD 375 the first regular meeting, January 2, 1738/9, but there were others. At the next monthly meeting, with ten present and Henry Price in the Chair, George Monerieff was “raised a Master.” Under the By-Laws of the Lodge, the candidate had to pass an examination in open Lodge on the two previous degrees before he could be advanced. He must, accordingly, prove that he had pre- viously been “raised a Fellow Craft.’”’ What then was the Masters’ degree? Again we must appeal to the ritualistic history of Freemasonry in the British Isles. I believe the answer to be that the degree worked by the Masters Lodge was what is sometimes known as the “Chair Degree” or installation of a Master, absorbed nowadays in the United States by the Royal Arch Chap- ter and transformed into the degree of “Past Master.” Until nearly the end of the eighteenth century the Masters’ degree was conferred in Boston by this Masters Lodge, which was the child of the ‘Moderns’ and by another Masters Lodge which met under the charter of the Lodge of St. Andrew, which was the child of the Grand Lodge of Scotland which in the second half of the eighteenth century had affiliations with the “Antients’ and used a similar ritual. Even to-day the degree of ‘Past Master” is conferred by authority of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania upon Brethren who never have been elected to preside over a Lodge. Here I begin to tread upon dangerous ground, for if I write anything plainly enough for the initiated to understand, it must not be said in a way whereby it may become legible or intelligible to the profane. Let me attempt it by saying that there were many clauses in the Fellow-craft degree of the middle of the eighteenth century which are only to be found in the present third 376 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA degree. If the Master Mason of to-day could transport himself back to that period and see the second degree worked, he would, for instance, hear distinct allusions to five points of fellowship. And why, indeed, should not these things which appertain to fellowship be imparted to a Fellow of the Craft? Likewise, he would have found in the making, not in the crafting, the inculcation of charity toward a worthy brother. Many other clauses of our present second would have been found in the then first, many of the third in the then second. ‘These things we learn from across the sea. The actual ritual of the early days in America is an unfathomable mystery, ex- cept what we learn by applying our present knowledge gained through generations of instructive tongues, atten- tive ears and not too accurate memories to the few known American facts hereinbefore mentioned, and to the re- sults of studies of the situation in London at the time of the emigration from there of the founders of Masonry here. Those who brought Freemasonry from England to New England, to Pennsylvania, to South Carolina, to Georgia, to New York, and to its other earliest homes in what is now the United States, came here before the drastic changes in ritual made by the English Grand Lodge about the end of the fourth decade of the eight- eenth century. Due largely to some alleged exposés and to the un- willingness of certain Lodges located within its juris- diction to yield allegiance and submission, the Grand Lodge of England, between 1730 and 1740, but prin- cipally in 1739, (1) Abolished the installation ceremony of the Wor- shipful Master; ARCANA OF THE PERIOD 377 (2) Handed some of the secrets of the office of In- stalled Master over to the third degree; (3) Remodelled the third degree; (4) Exchanged certain vital secrets between the first and second degrees; (5) Essentially changed the symbolism of prepara-~ tion; (6) Materially condensed the lectures; (7) Omitted and cut down parts of the ceremonies; and (8) Made some minor additions. These ritualistic changes and some structural altera- tions in Grand Lodge gave occasion for a Masonic war. A rival Grand Lodge sprang up in 1751, called them- selves the ‘‘Antients,’’ dubbed the older body the ““Mod- erns,’ and grew in number and power. They propa- gated the art both in England and America, and even gained international alliances alienating other grand bodies from the ‘“‘Moderns.” The changes made by the “Moderns” and the strength of the “Antients’” both had their influence in America. The effect was felt more especially later than the period with which this book deals. The changes of 1739 doubt- less found their way across the sea more or less during the following decade. Visits were constantly being ex- changed, new deputations were being issued covering various parts of the new world, and new Lodges were being constituted. Doubtless the Masters Lodge was one of the results of this period of transition. But what happened here has never been put in writing, full records were not kept, and what few books of record were made are mostly lost. There is little more which probably can ever be 378 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA said on the subject, for the radical changes were aban- doned when, on April 12, 1809, the Grand Lodge (Moderns) voted: “‘That this Grand Lodge do agree in opinion with the Committee of Charity that it is not necessary any longer to continue in force those measures which were resorted to in or about the year 1739 respect- ing irregular Masons, and do therefore enjoin the sev- eral lodges to revert to the Antient Landmarks of the Society.” Reconciliation, amalgamation, unity and har- mony did not come, in England, until 1813, although in the United States it soon followed the close of the Revo- lutionary War. The facts stated in this chapter are demonstrable. The conclusions are my own inferences from the few, the very few, known facts, and are offered merely for what they are worth. NoTE: See discussion by Ball in 5 Q.C.A. 136; “The difference be- tween English and Irish Rituals treated Historically,’ by J. H. Lepper, published by Irish Lodge of Research, 200, in 1920; “The Causes of Divergence in Ritual,” by Roscoe Pound, 1915 Mass. 143, reprinted in The Builder for November, 1917. CHAPTER XXV CONCLUSION For the statements of fact hereinbefore contained the original sources of information have been examined. References by way of citation have been included which will lead the reader to those original sources of informa- tion if he desires to pursue his inquiries further and verify the facts for himself. Little probative value has been given to the text of any author later than Preston (1772), except only where he has actually quoted the language of the authority upon which the statement has been made. I have assumed the correctness of the actual quotations in Mackey’s “History of Freemasonry in South Carolina” ; and in McClenachan’s and Lang’s Histories of Freema- sonry in New York; in Sachse’s “Benjamin Franklin as a Freemason” and ‘Old Masonic Lodges of Pennsyl- vania’”’; and in some other works cited. A brief summary of some of the principal events in the introduction of Freemasonry into the western hemi- sphere may be made as follows: 1. Freemasonry was introduced into the Colonies of North America at an unascertained period in the early part of the 18th century. 2. These earliest Lodges were “occasional,” meeting “according to the Old Customs.” They had no charters or warrants, but met as other Lodges had met prior to the organization of the Grand Lodge system. 379 380 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA 3. The first Freemason definitely known to be in the western hemisphere was Governor Jonathan Belcher of Massachusetts Bay Colony, in 1705. 4. The earliest use in America in writing or in print of the word ‘‘Freemason” (so far as now known) was in the Boston News Letter for January 5, 1718/9. 5. The first Lodge meeting in the western hemisphere, the knowledge of which is supported by something more than pure tradition, was probably held in King’s Chapel, Boston, in 1720. 6. The first known American newspaper account re- lating to Freemasonry was published in Boston, May Wiad Seg 7. The first deputation for a Provincial Grand Master in the western hemisphere was that issued June 5, 1730, by the Duke of Norfolk to Daniel Coxe, appointing him Provincial Grand Master for New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania for two years. There is no evidence that this deputation was ever exercised. 8. The first American newspaper item concerning a Lodge meeting in the western hemisphere (so far as now known) was published in the Philadelphia Gazette for December 8, 1730. 9. The oldest American Lodge account-book known is “Libr B,” beginning with June 24, 1731, belonging to a Lodge meeting “according to the Old Customs’”—that is to say, without charter or warrant, in Philadelphia. 10. The first known Warrant, Deputation, Commis- sion, or other authority, issuing from the Grand Lodge of England or its Grand Master (or from any other Masonic organization or officer, for that matter) to be exercised in America was that (April 13, 1733) by vir- CONCLUSION 381 tue of which Henry Price founded a Provincial Grand Lodge in Boston, July 30, 1733. 11. The first regular and duly constituted Lodge in America was the First Lodge in Boston, July 30, 1733. 12. The first Lodge in America to be registered by the Grand Lodge of England in the official list of Lodges was the First Lodge at Boston. 13. The first Masonic officer in the Western World to have jurisdiction over the whole of North America was Henry Price, whose authority was extended thus broadly in August, 1734. 14. The first Masonic book published in America was Franklin’s Reprint (Philadelphia, 1734) of Anderson’s Constitutions. 15. The first exercise by any Masonic authority in America of the right to grant provincial Masonic powers was the appointment of Benjamin Franklin as “Pro- vincial Grand Master of the Province of Pennsylvania,” February 21, 1734/5, by Henry Price, “Grand Master of His Majesty’s Dominions in North America.” 16. Regular authority was granted for the establish- ment of duly constituted Freemasonry in New England in 1733; in all North America in 1734; in Pennsyl- vania in 1734; in South America in 1735; in South Carolina, Georgia and New Hampshire in 1735 or 1736; in the West Indies and New York in 1737; in Antigua and Nova Scotia in 1737/8; in Jamaica and St. Chris- topher in 1739; in the Barbados in 1739/40; in Ber- muda, 1742; in Newfoundland, 1746; in San Domingo, 1748; and in Rhode Island, 1749. 17. By the close of the first half of the century not less than forty Lodges had sprung from the Provincial 382 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Grand Lodge in Boston. Others had been warranted direct from London. 18. The first anti-Masonic movement known upon this side of the Atlantic was successfully directed against the Fraternity in Pennsylvania, beginning in 1737. 19. The earliest record book still preserved of any Lodge in the Western Hemisphere is that of the Masters Lodge in Boston, beginning December 22, 1738. 20. The existing records of the First Lodge in Boston begin on December 27, 1738. 21. The known records of St. John’s Lodge of Ports- mouth, N.H., begin October 31, 1739. 22. The known records of Tun Tavern Lodge at Phil- adelphia begin June 28, 1748. 23. The contemporaneous records of the Provincial Grand Lodge at Boston begin April 15, 1750, and Massa- chusetts has Grand Lodge records continuously from that date to this, being the oldest Grand Lodge records known in the western hemisphere. 24. The first procession of a Masonic Lodge in public in America, now known, was that of the Lodge at Charleston, South Carolina, on May 26, 1737. 25. The first public procession in America definitely known to be in regalia was that in Boston, June 24, 1737. 26. The first time that a Lodge in America is known to have attended church in due form was at the Bar- bados, June 24, 1740. 27. The first record of the construction of a Masonic hall in the western hemisphere is dated April 4, 1744, and concerns the Lodge room of “The Great Lodge at St. John’s in Antigua.” 28. The earliest copy now extant of a sermon deliv- CONCLUSION 383 ered to the Fraternity is that of the Rev. Bro. Brockwell at Christ Church, Boston, preached at the festival of St. John the Evangelist in 1749. 29. The Freemasonry in America of the period dealt with is that emanating from the Grand Lodge of Eng- land, organized in 1717, known as ‘‘Moderns.”’ Just as this period closes, the Grand Lodge known as the “Antients” began: to exercise its influence in America. 30. The leading men of the Colonies in mercantile, military and civil life were in these early days members of the Fraternity. Illustrations of this have appeared in the various sketches of some of the principal officers which will be found in this volume. 31. The ritual was in a more or less fluid condition during all of this period. See Chapter 24. 32. Henry Price was, as he said himself, the ‘Founder of Duly Constituted Freemasonry in America.” 33. The Grand Lodge founded by Henry Price, July 30, 1733, has maintained a continuous existence from that day to this. The same is true of the First Lodge in Boston, now St. John’s Lodge. These two bodies, over one hundred and ninety years old at the present writing, have successfully weathered all storms of war and persecution. The Grand Lodge of Massa- chusetts and its eldest child are, therefore, entitled to precedence as the two oldest existing organizations of Freemasons in the western hemisphere. J am not aware of any Masonic body in America existing at any time during the first half of the eighteenth century which is able, by unassailable evidence, conclusively to demon- strate unbroken continuity from its establishment until to-day except the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts. In 384 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA all other cases there are still broken links in the chain of proof. It is my fervent hope that future research will weld many broken links. As an encouragement to other workers in similar fields, let me say that at one time it was believed that the Grand Lodge founded by Henry Price suspended opera- tions from 1775 until 1787. 16 M.F.M. 195. By constant delving into the secrets of the past, the error of that belief was shown by 1914. 1914 Mass. 273. And in the ten years since then I have found more facts as yet unpublished. ‘They are what lawyers call cumu- jative evidence,—interesting but not essential to the proof. We have now learned how the seeds were sown in America for the birth and growth of Freemasonry. Its influence upon the establishment and development of the institutions of the United States does not so powerfully appear during the period treated by this book as it will when the Masonic history of the last half of the 18th century is adequately presented. A study of the tre- mendous influence which Freemasonry had in the pre- Revolutionary days, in the years of that war, and throughout the formative period of American institu- tions, will demonstrate that Freemasonry has exercised a greater influence upon the establishment and develop- ment of American civilization and the fundamentals of this Government than any other single institution. Neither general historians nor the members of the Fraternity since the days of the first Constitutional Con- ventions have ever realized how much the United States CONCLUSION 385 of America owes to Freemasonry, and how great a part it played in the birth of the nation and the establishment of the Landmarks of that civilization which has given to the citizens of this great land the liberty which they enjoy, and by indirection has guided the development of all civilization of the world in those countries where the accomplishments of war are not the w/tima thule of human endeavour. We cannot fail profoundly to be interested to learn more of this institution during the eighteenth century, in order that the real facts may be presented to the world. When they are, Freemasonry in the United States will not only be prouder of its past than it is to-day, but— what is more vital—will be thoroughly impressed with its duty energetically to protect and preserve the free institutions of America which it was the privilege of our Masonic forebears to establish. he te oO 7 vn me INDEX A. Q. C., see Abbreviations, p. xi Abbott, John, 99 Abercrombie, James, 324 Aberdour, Lord, 139 Aberry, Joseph, 313 Abraham, 19 Abraham, Plains of, 305 Acadia, 198 Account books, 30 Adams, John, 338, 345 Africa, 202 Aix-la-Chapelle, Treaty of, 198 Akins, John, 227 Aleppo, 206 Allen, W., 68, 69-70, 80, 274, 369 portrait of, 70 American Philosophical Society, 160 Amherst, General, 305 Amil, John, 274 Amsterdam, 153 “Ancients,” 200, 377, 383 Grand Lodge of the, 23 Anderson, Hugh, 244, 261, 269 Anderson, Rev. James, 29, 42, 555230 Anderson, R., 359 *“‘Anderson’s Constitutions,” 29, 34 Annapolis, Maryland, 71, 197 date of constitution of lodge in, 117 Annapolis, Nova Scotia, 43, 218 date of constitution of lodge in, 117 Annapolis Royal, 198, 200, 218 *“Antients,” see “Ancients” Anti-masonry, a constitution by the Pope against Freemasonry in 1738, 206 article in the Boston Evening- Post, 1751, 328 attitude of French court, 180 campaign by Philadelphians against, 191] catechism against masonry in Paris and Rome, 1739, 221 exposé of, in Philadelphia, by Franklin, 60 first, in America, directed against Fraternity in Penn- sylvania, 382 in Avignon, causes formation of a new society, 277 in Lisbon, 274, 294 in Paris, 192 in Philadelphia, 191 in Poland, 226 in Vienna, 273 mob action against Masons in Holland, 153 procession by mock masons, 286 Antigua, 169, 187, 381 Antigua Lodge, 232 Baker’s Lodge, 218 Bassatee (Basseterre) Lodge, 232 Courthouse Lodge, 232 date of constitution of lodge in, 117 387 388 Antigua, Cont. first record of construction of Masonic hall in, 382 Grand Master ‘Tomlinson visits, and makes some Ma- sons, 20] letter to First Lodge in Bos- ton, 228 petition to Grand Lodge for a new lodge-room, 284 St. Mary’s Street Lodge, 232 Antigua Lodge, 232 Appy, John, 335 Arcana, 373 Archdall, 372 Arlington, 97 Assistance, Writs of, case of, 336 Ashton, Thomas, 274, 278 Atkins, John, 221 Atkinson, Mr., 303 Auchmuty, 344 Audibert, Phillip, see “O’de- bart” Austin, Capt. John, 367 Authorities, on Freemasonry, 28 Avignon, 277 Badger, Benj., 361 Baker, John, 158 Baker’s Lodge, 170, 218 Balcarras, Lord, 136 Ball, William, 265, 272 Baltimore, Lord, 61, 72 Banister v. Henderson, case of, 344 Barbados, 234, 381 Lodge in America attends church in due form for first time in, 382 St. Michael’s Lodge, 234, 238 Barnsley, Capt. Henry, 348 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Barons, see “Barrons, Benja- min” Barrons, Benjamin, 147, 155, ten Hy) Barons Letter, 38, 82, 90, 317 Bassatee Lodge, see “Basse- terre Lodge” Basseterre, 221 Basseterre Lodge, 232 Bastide, John Henry, 303 Batson, Thomas, 76, 78, 94, Sis) | Batter, Enas, 361, 363 Baulos, Fran’s, 350 Baxter, Thomas, 239 Bayard, Belthazer, see “Byard” Beaufort, Duke of, 75 Beckford, Ballinger, 294 Beginnings of Freemasonry, 19 Beker, Martin, 364 Belcher, Andrew, 52, 80, 88, 150) 157 Belcher, Jonathan, 49, 52, 94, Ll), 157, 200, 274382 21d 4212) acknowledgment of past fa- vors, from First Lodge, 255 appointment as Governor of the Jerseys, 320 first freemason known in western hemisphere, 380 letter from, to First Lodge in Boston, 321 Senior Freemason of Amer- ica, 49 visits Grand Lodge at Lon- don, 293 Bell, Henry, 59 letter of, vi Belviel, 295 INDEX Benjamin Franklin as a Free- mason, 379 Bennett, Capt. John, 361, 363 Bennett, Capt. Joseph, 195, 196 Bermuda, 381 Beteilhe & Price, 209 Beteilhe, Francis, 33, 35, 81, mE OS eis ib 5) 15720161, 209, 214, 228 Beteilhe Manuscript, 36, 75, 81, S250, 112, 156) 317 facsimile of pages 4, 5 and 6 of, 85-87 facsimile of pages 13 and 14 of, 39, 40 Bethune, Nathaniel, 165 Bickford, Capt. Eliakim, 264 Bingham, James, 123 Binney, Capt. Paul, 324 Bishop, William, 262, 263 Bladwell, Charles, 150, 157 Blake, Thomas, 358 Blackerby, Nathaniel, 108 Blandford Lodge, 110 Blessington, Earl of, 200 Blyth, Robert, 269 Bogle, Capt. Thomas, 323 Bond, Thomas, 113 Boston, 37, 58, 66, 82, 101 account from Vienna of anti- masonic disturbance, 273 account of a festival celebra- tion done in verse, 223 a Grand Lodge formed by Henry Price, 80, 330 amendment of by-laws of First Lodge, 132 an account of a celebration of Festival of John the Bap- erat 222 389 Boston, Cont. brethren in, first to be consti- tuted by regulation of 1721, 48 Bunch of Grapes Tavern, 130, 136 “By-laws” of Lodge, 104 celebration at First Lodge, and election of a Master, 113 celebration of festival by Grand Lodge, 364 Christ Church, 36 Constitution of First Lodge, date of, 90 contemporaneous records of Provincial Grand Lodge began April 13, 1750, 372 earliest traces of Freemasonry in, 48, 50 Exchange Tavern, 148 facsimile of list of members in 1736 of First Lodge, 159 fee for making raised, in First Lodge, 312 First Lodge in, see “First Lodge in Boston” first newspaper account of Freemasonry published in, 380 “Free Masons Jewels” adver- tised, 298 Grand Master of Masons in, 1769, 35 Henry Price removed to, 55 item in Gazette for April 1, 1734, 111 letter to Boston Gazette, on secret societies, 215 Lodge of Glasgow Kilwin- ning, 165 the First 390 Boston, Cont. Masters Lodge, see “Masters Lodge”’ Mother Lodge of America, 257 news of the formation in Avignon of a new society after ban of freemasonry, 277 newspapers in, 41, 128 notice of a procession, 222 Oxnard receives deputation, 278 “physical perfection” over- ruled in 1732, 70 portrait of Henry Price painted, 201 Provincial Grand Lodge of the Western Hemisphere, 26 Provincial Grand Lodge, 35, 123 reference in 1732 to the Papal Nuncio, 72 resolution passed by First Lodge on membership, etc., 133 Royal Exchange Tavern, see “First Lodge” and “Royal Exchange Tavern” Saint Andrew’s Lodge, 110, 249 Second Lodge in, 116, 368, “Sign of the Bunch of Grapes” in, 88 the “Brazen Head,” 126 Third Lodge in, 369 White Horse Tavern, 369 Boston Harbor, 304 Boston Marine Society, 335 Bostonian Society, 128 Boude, John, 361, 367, 368 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Boude, Thomas, 68 Boutin, Capt. John, 276, 278 Bowers, Henry, 361, 367 Bowers, Robert, 321 Bowman, Alexander, 136, 208 Bowman, Samuel, 261 Box, John, 237, 241 Boyd, Capt. Robert, 148, 157 Bradford, Capt. John, 312 “Brazen Head,” the, 126 Breed’s Hill, 306 Breintnall, Joseph, 114 Brenton, Benjamin, 108 Bridgeton, 234, 240 Brimsdon, Benj., see “Brim- ston” Brimston, Benjamin, 302 Bristol Lodge, 134 Brockwell, Rev. Charles, 117, 118, 313,:328) 3313364 copy of sermon of, now earli- est sermon extant deliv- ered to the Fraternity, 382 Brown, John, 366, 367 Browne, Isaac, 112, 121 Bruce, Capt. James, 362 Bruliet, John, 361, 362, 363 Brunette, James, 266 Brydges, James, Marquis of Carnarvan, 330 Bucceleugh, Duke of, 136 Buck, James, 312 Bunch of Grapes Tavern, 88, 130; 156 Buckley, Peter, 185 Bunker’s Hill, 306 Bushhill, Pa., 137 Burlington, 321 Burnett, Governor, 49 Buttler, Capt. Michael, 347 Byam, Francis, 284 Byard, Belthazer, 119, 325, 351 INDEX By-laws, 209, 211, 231, 233, 373 facsimile of by-laws of First Lodge in Boston, 105 Byles, Daniel, 298 Byron, Lord, 69, 369 Cade, Peter, 245 Cadwallader, Thomas, 59, 175 Cahill, Edward, 259, 266 Calef, Saml., 361 Calendar, 42 Cahor, Capt. Edward, 230 Cambridge, 97, 99, 101, 169 Campble, 349 Campling, Thomas, 267 Campunnall, Mordecai, 45 Cape Ann, 307 Cape Breton, 202, 218, 304, 315 Cario, Michael, 175 Carnarvon, Marquis, 215 Carolina, 62 Caruthers, John, 181 Castle William, 307 Catherwood, John, 120 Central America, 25 Cerke, Capt. James, 145, 157 Charles, Robert, 241 Charles Town, see “Charleston” Charlestown, Mass., 49, 257 Charleston, S. C., 41, 121, 134, 139, 179, 243 a play given by Masons in, 174 Harp and Crown Lodge, 189 account of the celebration of a festival, 260 celebration of a festival, 268 first public masonic proces- sion held in, 382 notice of a festival held in 1737, 211 391 Charleston, S. C., Cont. notice of lodge meeting of Solomon’s Lodge, 162 Solomon’s Lodge, 135, 162 Charlestown, see ‘“Charles- ton” Charters, Capt. Harry, 335 Checkley, | Attorney-General, 344 Chester, 78 Chignecto, 197 Christ Church, Boston, 36 Clare, Martin, 215 Clarke, Capt. Edward, ““Clerke”’ Clarke, William B., ix, 142 Clavel’s Histozre Pittoresque de la France Maconnerie, 62 Clerke, Capt. Edward, 175 “Cloathed,” being, 107 Clifford, Capt. Benjamin, 361, 367 Coffin, William, 117, 118, 289, 294, 298, 331 Collson, John, see “Colson” Colon, 24 Colson, John, 297, 314 Columbus, 24 Colvill, Alexander Lord, 281, 328 Comins, Capt. Robert, 202, 218, 313, 314 Commins, see “Comins” Conally, John, 322 Concord, 97, 101 Conolly, John, see “Conally” Connally, John, see “Conally” Connecticut, 101, 281 Copley, John Singleton, 282, 290 Copley, Richard, 290 Constantinople, 206 see 392 Constitutions, the, 29, 36, 112, 1207125 Cornwallis, Governor, 198 Cornwallis, Hon. Edward, 200 Cossett, Peter, 264 Cotton, Rev. J., 291 Court of Oyer and Terminer, 199 Court-House Lodge, 284 Coxe, Daniel, 56, 59, 74, 78, 380 Cranstoun, Lord, 314 Crapp, John, 72, 80 Crawfurd, Earl of, 115, 122, 136 Crawford, Charles, 238 Crawford, James, 155 Crokatt, James, 188, 212 Crookshanks, John, 187 Cross, Thomas, 299, 300 Crown Point, 304 Cuff, Peter, 79 Cumins, see “Comins” Cunningham, John, 206 Curwen, Samuel, 123, 158 Curwin, 344 Curwin, Sam, see ““Curwen” Cushing, John, 338, 345 Cutyer, Timothy, 168 Dabney, John, 230 Dalton, William, 349 Darling, Capt. Henry, 261 Darnley, Earl of, 173, 183, 185, 245 Dates, confusion of, 42, Davis, Antony, 158 Davis, Nicholas, 162 Davis, Thomas W., 76 Day, James, 313, 314 Day, Capt. William, 313, 351 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Deblois, Stephen, 187, 223, 225, 236 Declaration of Independence, signers of and masonry, 20 Deering, William, 175 Delebraz, Lewis, 293 Delavoux, Alexander, 219 Demoulin, Louis, 282, 295 Denne, Thomas, 162 Dennie, Albert, 175, 227 De Ramezay, 197 Derby, Nathaniel, 184 Dermott, Lawrence, 200 Desaguliers, Dr. John The- ophilus,’ 109, 1963021): 231 Devil Tavern Lodge, 57, 60, 186)31 70,3215. Diamond, George, 263 Dillon, Peter, 231 “Dispenceation,” 275 D’Laboladree, Anthony, 299 D’Laboulerdree Anthony, see “D’ Laboladree”’ D’Larue, Elias, 352 Dolobaratz, Lewis, see “Dele- braz”’ Dorchester Heights, 307 Douglas, Sholto Charles, see ““Aberdour, Lord” Douglas, Capt. William, 173, 202, 218 Douxsaint, Paul, 358 Dove, John, 110, 249 Dowse, Benjamin, 53 Doyle, Thomas A., 46 Draper, John, 365 Dublin, 63, 65, 66 Duchee, Anthony, 368 “Duly constituted,” 25, 26, 48, 54 INDEX “Duly constituted” lodges, 57, 63 Dunster, Capt. Thomas, 245 Durand, see “Durant” Durant, Rev. Thomas, 261, 269 Dure, Andrew, 313 Durfee, Mr., 235, 236 Durfey, Thomas, see “Durfee” Durham, 280 Dwight, Jonathan, 324, 351 Dyson, Alice, 197 Dyson, Ann, 197 Dyson, John, 197 BLS; Earle, Dr., 231 East India, 78 Ebenezer, Ga., 144 Edinburgh, Scotland, 38 laying of cornerstone by fra- ternity, 208 Elbert, Major General Samuel, 141 Ellery, William, 349 Elliott, Gray, 141, 143 Eliot, John, 47 Ellis, Edmund, see “Lewis” Ellis, Dr. Edward, 276, 295 Emerson, John, 68 Emerson, Lambert, 108 Endicott, Henry, 92 England, 22, 374 Devil Tavern lodge, 170 Grand Lodge forbids printing of lodge news in news- papers, 259 records of the Grand Lodge of, 31 Grand Lodge of, see “Grand Lodge of England” regulations of the Lodge of, 59 Grand 393 England, Cont. Red Lyon Tavern, 90 English Official List of 1761, a facsimile of page 6, 84 Entick, Rev., 332 Epps, William, 361, 363 Erving, John, 119, 342 Esdaile, Thomas, 175 Euclid, 19 Euing, James H., see “Ewing” Evans, Edward, 123 Eve, John, 357 Ewing, Capt. James H., 353 Exchange Tavern, 148 Falckner, see “Falkner” Falkner, Capt. Gilbert, 363, 371 Farr, 361 Farrar, George, 100 Farrell, I., 236 Farrell, John (James), 154, 158 Felicity, Order of, 277 Fellows, N., 233 Fenwick, Robert, 197 Ferritor, Nicholas, 347 First Lodge, in Boston, 37, 75, 81, 82, 83, 112, 169, 301 account of postponement of meeting, 254 alarm of French fleet causes Lodge to be unopened, 311 amendment of the by-laws, 132 by-laws of, and facsimile, 104-105 Captain McLean chosen Mas- ter, 146 celebration of a festival, 354 charge of making a brother, 147 394 First Lodge, Cont. Charles Pelham proposed as secretary, 289 continuous existence from founding to present day, 383 earliest original records of, 210 E. J. Philipps made member of, 199 entertains Governor Belcher, 278 fee for making raised, 312 first regular and duly consti- tuted Lodge in America, 381 letter from Antigua in an- swer to congratulations on founding lodge there, 228 list of names of members of, in 1736, 157-159 Masters Lodge gives set of candles to, 300 meeting of Auditing Com- mittee, 366 moves from “Bunch of Grapes Tavern” to Royal Exchange Tavern, 136 original minute books, 356 petition sent to England for appointment of a Grand Master, 262 provisions made for visiting brothers, 312 records, 41 “Remonstrance” presented at meeting, 236 resolution on “enter’d ap- prentices,”’ 166 resolution on brothers, 155 new made FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA First Lodge, Cont. resolution on one month’s no- tice to Lodge before admit- tance, 164 rules concerning letters of recommendation for for- eign travel, 268 thanks to Mr. Belcher for past favours on his part to, 255 uses word “passed” when re- ferring to the second de- gree, 374 First Lodge in New Hampshire, facsimile of petition for, 149 First Lodge in Portsmouth, 33, 115 facsimile of page of records OLeoe, original minute books, 356 Fishbourne, Capt., 244 Fisher, John, 358 Fitch, Samuel, 342 Flanegan, 358, 360, 362 Fleet, Thomas, 327, 328 Florence, Italy, 206 Fluds, William, 188 Forbes, Capt. James, 117, 118, 145, 157, 255, 331 Fort, James, 232 Fort Halifax, 304 Foster, 358, 362 Foy, William, 265 France, 305 Franklin, Benjamin, 30, 31, 36, 58, 64, 68, 121, 130, 163, 182, 272, 330, 381 an exposé of Freemasonry, 59 appointed Grand Master of Pennsylvania by Price, 124, 131, 357 INDEX Franklin, Benjamin, Cont. becomes Deputy Grand Mas- ter of Pennsylvania, 369 communications with Price, 124-126 elected Grand Master, 113 first advertisement of his re- print of the Constitutions, AZ lays cornerstone of Inde- pendence Hall, 150 letter to, from Provincial Grand Lodge at Boston, 123 letter to the “gentlemen of the Lodge,” 66 made a Freemason, 60 meets Price, 91 portrait of, 126 writes letter to family about Freemasonry, 203 Franklin, James, 112, 122 Franklin, Peter, 112, 121, 122 Franklin’s Constitutions, 119 “Franklin’s Journal,’ 33, 34, 64, 120, 121 “Franklin’s Reprint of Ander- son’s Constitutions,’ 381] Frazier, Capt. John, 154, 158 French, Alexander, 174, 226 French, Thomas, 75 “Freemason,” first use of word, 380 Freemasonry, a summing up of the volume, age of, 19, 21 authorities on, 28 arcana of period covered by this volume, 373 beginnings of, 19 definition ef, 23 395 Freemasonry, Cont. earliest traces of, in western hemisphere, 43 founding of duly constituted, in, 74 Freemasonry and Anctent Gods, 24 Frost, Capt. William, 148, 157 Furney, Capt. John, 241 Fuller, Jonathan, 349, 357 Gallagher, Charles T., 47 Gamble, William, 371 Gardner,’ 103) 21541309157; 348, 353 Gardner, William S., 45 Gates, Horatio, 197 Gautier, Charles, 264 Gedney, 344 George, Sidney, 347 Georgetown, S. C., 283 Georgia, 29, 49, 61, 83, 214, 3/6008! charity by English masons to help colonise, 111 Grand Lodge of, 139 planting the new colony, 108 statement of “regularity” of Grand Lodge of, 138 settlement of colony by Ogle- thorpe, 141 Germantown, 205 Gerot, Elizabeth, 168 Gerret, Elizabeth, see “‘Gerot” Gilman, Nathaniel, 367 Glasgow, Kilwinning Lodge, 38, 165 Glentworth, Capt. 363, 367, 368 Gloucester, 307 Glover, Robert, 295, 296 Gofton, Webber, 148, 157 Thomas, “396 Gordon, Alexander, 145, 157 Gordon, Charles, 157 Gordon, James, 89, 110, 130, Lo Sel ee Ole LO2 ne Ss. 212 Gordon, John, 158 Gorham, Joseph, 366 Gorwood, Charles, 320, 322 Gough, James, 295, 301 Gould, J. L., 44, 45 Gould, N. H., 44, 46 Gould, R. F., 20, 30, 91, 165 Governor’s Island, 307 Graeme, James, 165, 181, 183, 187, 212, 233, 244, 269 Granary Burying Ground, 346 Grand Lodge of England, 23, Lbyroyey lee fy, AY appointment of Provincial Grand Master for South America, 133 Daniel Coxe a member of, 60 deeds performed by, during 1730-1740, 376 minutes of a Communication of, 108 regulations of, 59 Grand Lodge of Georgia, 140 Grand Lodge of Ireland, 138 Grand Lodge of Massachusetts, 155 fire of 1864 destroys records of, 82 founded by Henry Price, 382 Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania, why? Grand Lodge of Scotland, 249 Grand Pré, 197 Graham, John, Grayham, Capt. Archibald, 319 Green, Joseph, 223 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Greenleaf, Stephen, 298 Grice, William, 130 Gridley, Jeremy (Jeremiah), 119, 326-347 Gridley, Rebecca, 303 Gridley, Richard, 301, 303 Gruchy, Thomas James, 266, 301 Guadaloupe, 239 Givin, John, 244, 261, 269 Gwinne, John, see “Givin” Gwinn, John, see “Givin” Habersham, James, 144 Hague, the, 153 Haliburton, T. C., 43 Halifax, 198, 199, 200 date of constitution of lodge TB IF Lodge constituted at, by Grand Lodge of England, 370 Hall, John, 66 Hall, P., 242, 274 Hallowell, Benjamin, 117, 118, 1485157; 170, elves 209, 236, 255, 284, 331 Hallyburton, Andrew, 157 Hamilton, Andrew, 69, 137 Hamilton, Frederick, 89, 113, 1S a1ss Hamilton, James, 112, 136 portrait of, 138 Hamilton, John, 227 Hamilton, Otho, 197 Hammerton, John, 134, 152, 162, -181}..203, e215 e26)- 269 Hammond, Peter, 313 Hampton, N. H., 197, 371 Harbin, Thomas, 162 INDEX Hardgrove, Hugh, 322 Harp and Crown Lodge, 188 Harramond, Henry, 269 Harris, Capt. R. V., 44, 363, 366 Hart, Robert, 233 Hartt, Thos., 68 Hatch, Estes, 313 Hayden, Sidney, Washington and his Masonic Compeers, 14] Heard, John T., 102 Heath, Major General, 307 Hemlin, Edward, 358, 360 Herbert, Newcoming, 313 Heweton, Capt. John (James), 298 Hill, Andrew, 184 Hill, Richard, 261 Hinton, William, 147, 157 Historical Society of Pennsyl- vania, 356 History of Freemasonry in South Carolina, 181 Histoire Paittoresque de la France Maconnerie, 62 History of Printing, 326 Hoar, Jonathan, 199 Hobart, John, 64, 68 Hodge, Sampson, 322 Holbrook, J oseph, 277, 310 Holbrook, Samuel, 119 Holland, 173 anti-masonic movement in, 153 Holland, Rogers, 109 Hoad, Richard, 296 Hoop Lodge, 150 Hooper, Daniel, 254 Hope, Henry, 81, 89, 157 Hopkinson, Francis, 135, 160 Hopkinson, Joseph, 160 397 Hopkinson, Thomas, 108, 159, 160, 176 portrait of, 160 Horn Tavern Lodge, 58, 73 Houghton, John, 212, 244 Houstoun, Sir George, 143 Houston, Sir Patrick, 123, 143 How, Edward, 197, 198 Howarth, George, 102 Howe, John, 44 Howell, Richard, 110 Hubards, John, see “Hubbard” Hubbard, John, 34, 121, 150, 163, 182, 342 Hubert, John, see “Hobart” Huch, Dr. Richard, 335 Hudson, Peter, 372 Hugget, Capt. John, 158 Huggott, John, see “Hugget”’ Hughan, William J., 29 Hull, 101 “Humble Remonstrance”’ of Oc- tober 7, 1751, 368 Humphrey, David, 175 Hunes, Moses, 143 Huntoon, Daniel T. V., 303, 309 Husk, John, 322, 324 Huske, John, see “Husk” Huston, John, 362 Hutchinson, James Carrel, 188, 236 Hutchinson, Lt. Governor, 338 Huxley, Rev., 240 Huxtall, M., 54 154, Independence Hall, 150 Indian King Lodge, 204, 252 Indian King Tavern, 136, 178, 180, 204 Indigot, John, 362 398 Ingham, George T., 66 Ion, Richard, 349 Iowa, 29 Ireland, 22, 30, 78, 374 Grand Lodge of, see ‘““Grand Lodge of Ireland” Irish, Bagwell, 262 Irwin, Andrew, 313 Ives, Benjamin, 275 Jackson, Dr. Charles T., dis- covery while in Nova Sco- tia in 1827, 43 Jackson, Mrs. Mary, 95 Jackson, William, 95 Jamaica, 381 appointment of Provincial Grand Masters in, 264 lodge at St. Jago de la Vega, 309 lodge constituted at Kingston, 219 Port Royal lodge, 267 James, Capt. John, 347 James, Capt. Michael, 362 Jenkins, Capt. Robert, 117, 118, 22T GS oOP B45 00, 366, 367 Jenness, 348 Johnson, Henry, 276, 285, 300 Johonnot, Francis, 148, 158, 236, 264 Jones, Evan, 199 Jones, John, 175 Jones, Noble, 143, 301 Joyce, Mark, 64 Keith, Sir William, 109 Kelby, Thomas, 262 Keller, Edward, see ‘“‘Calior” Kennebec River, 304 Kennelly, Thomas, 80, 88 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Kenton, Robert, 122, 157 Kilby, Thomas, see “Kelby” Kilwinning Lodge, Glasgow, 38 Kilwinning Lodge, Mother, 26 Kintore, Earl of, 239 King Solomon’s Lodge, see “Solomon’s Lodge” King’s Chapel, 51, 52, 380 Kingston, Jamaica, 219 Kingston, Lord, 65 Kipling, 361 Lacey, Roger, 62, 138-139, 145 Ladam, Capt. George, 243 Lacy, Roger, see “Lacey” Lake George, 304 Lamport, John, 231 Lancaster, Pa., 137 “Landmarks,” 23 “perfect youth” and “physi- cal perfection,” 70 Lane, 29 Lawley, Sir Robert, 279 Lawrence, Governor Charles, 336 Lawrence, Henry, 266 Le Plougeon’s Sacred Mysteries Among the Mayas and Quiches, etc., 24 Leacroft, Capt. Vina, 361 Lee, John, 263 Leeward Islands, 186 Leddam, George, see “Ladain” Leddell, Henry, 117, 118, 331, 360 “Leger,” see “Leidger,” 34 Leghorn, Italy, 206 “Leidger E,” 34 “Leidgers A & B,” 34 Leigh, Hon. Peter, 331 Lepper, J. H., 378 INDEX Leverett, John, 116, 118, 361, 367 Levins, Samuel, 323, 358 Lewis, Abigail, 326 Lewis, Edmund, 272 Lewis, Ezekiel, Hon., 326, 346 Lewis, Henry, 175 Lewis, Maurice, 181, 187, 212 appointed to build up curtain line before Charleston Bay, 182 Lewis, Winslow, 102 Lexington, 97 “Liber A,” 3] “Liber B,” 31, 63, 64, 69 facsimile of page of, 64 “Libre A,” see ‘Liber A” “Libre B,” see ‘‘Liber B” Lining, John, 212 Lisbon, anti-masonic measures in, 274 masonic victims of an Auto de Fe, 294 Lists, official, of lodges, 28 Littlejohn, David, 350 Lockman, Leonard, 215 Lodges, see under names Logan, Walter, 371 Loggin, Jonathan, 34, 233 London, 55, 56, 60, 61, 173 account of procession and mock procession, 248 anti-masonic article, 190 charity by masons for settle- ment of Georgia, 111 date of Henry Price’s Depu- tation, 79 deputation issued to Price, 74 Devil Tavern Lodge, 57, 60, 136 specific 399 London, Cont. Earl of Darnley entertains upon election as Grand Master, 180 feast in honour of Duke of Lorrain, 161 Grand Lodge in, see “Grand Lodge of England” Horn Tavern Lodge, 58, 73 initiation of a Jew in, 71 manifesto of the mock ma- sons, 250 masonic procession L755 1350 notice of opening of a new colony in America, 108 Rainbow Coffee House Lodge, 61 Rose Tavern Lodge, 71 St. Michael’s Lodge, 66 Lorrain, Duke of, 161, 184 Loudoun, Earl of, 38, 152, 164, 169, 183, 211, 304, 336 Louisberg, 202, 218, 304, 315 Lowndes, William, 261 Luchy, Thomas James, “Gruchy”’ Lutwych, Edward, 88, 111, 136 Lyle, John, 122 Lynde, Benjamin, 338, 343 Lyndhurst, Lord, 290 evga bbe! see Mackay, Capt. Atneas, 323, 351 Mackeleen, Robert, 157 Mackey, /Eneas, see kay”’ Mackey’s, History of Freema- sonry in South Carolina, 134, 181, 188 Mackinen, Robert, see “McKen- > nen “Mac- 400 Mackintosh, Shaw, 161 Magdalen Isles, 305 Malcum, Rev. Alexander, 320, 322 Mancell, Sir Edward, 136 Manny, Franklin, 363, 368, 371 Manuscripts, 36 “Mark Degree,” 22 Marlow, Benjamin, 262, 263 Maryland, 61, 71, 281 tradition of a lodge in, in 173750201 Marquand, Daniel, 297 Martin, William, 313 Mascarene, 199 Massachusetts, 29, 49, 112 fire of 1864 destroyed early records of grand lodge, 82 Grand Lodge of, oldest in America, 45, 155, 383 records of Grand Lodge of, 35 Massachusetts Bay, 197 Massachusetts Historical So- ciety, 128 Mason, William, 360, 361 Masonic Records (2nd Edi- tion), 30 Masonic (%) stone of 1606, A4 Masonic War, 377 “Masonry Dissected,” 22 Massey, Samuel, 358 Masters Lodge in Boston, 33, 37, 2545276) 277; 377 accounts of, 209 adjourned for “substantial” reasons for two months, 299 first regular meeting of, 214 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Masters Lodge in Boston, Cont. founded by Thomas Oxnard, 280 founding of, 374 gives set of candles to First Lodge, 300 meeting of Auditing Commit- tee, 353 original minute books, 356 Mather, Cotton, 290 Mathew, Isaac, 232 Mathew, William, 229 Maul, William, 254 Maxwell, John, 174 Mayas, 24 Mazyck, William G., 162 McAdams, Capt. Gilbert, 335 McClanan, Samuel, 66 McClellan, David, 212 McDaniel, Hugh, 117, 118, 148, 157/158)0 LO) Gs ae: 236, 237,°25.5,725 og 370 McDaniel, Timothy, 232, 285 McKay, Capt. Atneas, see “Mackay” McKay, Hugh, 353 McKennen, Robert, 311 McKenzie, Andrew, 316, 319, 325, 374 McKenzie, John, 269 McKnight, Robert, 157 McKnight, Capt. Thomas, 148 McLean, Capt. Robert, 108, 146 McNeal, John, 157 McTaggart, Peter, 352 Melvill, John, 336 Menotomy Fields, 97, 99 Mercer, William, 229 Merchant, William, 300 Michie, James, see “Mitchie” Michie, Kenneth, see ‘““Mitchie” INDEX Middletown, Conn., date of constitution of lodge in, 117 Middlesex, County of, 100 Mitchell, George, 233 Mitchell, W. H., 144 Mitchie, James, 188, 212, 261, 269 Mitchie, Kenneth, 269 Mock-masons, article by, 250 procession by, 286 “Moderns,” the, 22, 377, 383 Moffat, Dr. Thomas, 145, 157, 236 Molony, Thomas, 158 Moncrief, George, see ‘““Mone- rieff” Monerieff, George, 217, 375 Monk, James, 231 Montacute, Viscount, 189 Montier, James, 227 Montserrat, 48, 122, 130 Montague, Rev. Brother, 51 Montague, Viscount, 74, 75, 76, 88, 331 Montgomerie Arms Tavern, 215 Montgomerie, Capt. Pat., see “Montgomery” Montgomery, Capt. Pat., 223 Mooi, James, 331 Moore, Charles W., 52, 63, 140 Moore, John, 50, 59 letter of, vi Morel, John, 144 Morrey, Humphrey, 80 Morris, Col. John, 15, 158 Morris, William, 220 Moses, Abraham, 45 Murray. Alexander, 212, 244, 261, 269, 360 401 Murray, Humphrey, see “Mor- rey” Murray, Joseph, see “Murry” Murray, Walter, 358 Murry, Joseph, 272 Murrys, John, 229 Musgrove, 62 Nailor, John, 246 Napper, Peter, see “Nappier” Nappier, John, 227 Nappier, Peter, 227 New England, 35, 74, 82, 83, 197, 376, 381 New Haven, Conn., date of constitution of lodge in, 117 Newfoundland, 281, 313, 381 date of constitution of lodge in, 117 New London, Conn., date of constitution of lodge in, LLY Newingham, John, 34, 123 New Hampshire, 49, 101, 381 date of constitution of lodge in, 117 petition for lodge at Ports- mouth, 148 see also “Portsmouth” New Jersey, 56, 57 Governor Belcher assumes duties, 320 Newburyport, 99 Newmarch, Thomas, 240 Newport, R. I., 44, 46 first meeting of lodge at, 365 Lodge at, 364 New York, 41, 56, 57, 376, 381 newspaper published song for masons, 205 108, 402 New York, Cont. Montgomerie Arms Tavern, 215 Newspapers, 41 Newton, Thomas, 323 Nicholas, Sam’, 68 Nickerson, Sereno D., 47, 81, 115 Noble, Col. Arthur, 197 Norfolk, Duke of, 56, 380 Norfolk, Va., 248 date of establishment of Royal Exchange Lodge in, 109 | Norris, Capt. William, 222, 223 Norton, Jacob, vii Nova Scotia, 43, 44, 143, 195, 197, 200, 370, 381 Nunes, Daniel, 143 O’debart, Phillip, 263, 278 Official lists, 28 Oglethorpe, General, 62, 141, 143 Oglethorpe, Newman, 188 “Old charges,” 19, 24, 56 “Old Constitutions,” 19, 24 “Old customs,” 48, 60, 81 Oliver, Capt. Edward, 243 Oliver, Nathaniel, Jr., 327 Oliver, Peter, 338, 362 Oliver, Robert, 148 Ord, John, 357, 358, 360, 361 Orpin, Abraham, 265 Orthodoxie, Macconnique, 62 Osborne, John, 147, 157, 158, 161, 165, 281 Otis, James, 329, 339, 342, 344 Overing, John, 147, 157, 210, 327 Owens, Owen, 80 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Oxnard, Sarah, 281 Oxnard, Thomas, 33, 46, 116, 148, 157, 1609 70m EG: 235, 236, 245, 252;n278; 285, 321, 328 application made to for Grand Master for New Hampshire, 321 appointed to wait upon Gov- ernor Belcher to thank him for past favours, 255 brief account of life of, 280- 282 deputation as Prov. G. M., delivered to, 275 facsimile of, 276 grants constitution for Lodge in Newfoundland, 313 petition to fill chair of Grand Master upon death of, 330 petition to Grand Lodge to appoint, as Prov. G. M., 262 Oyston, John, 244, 261, 269 Paisly, Robert, 166 Panama, 25 Parham, Antigua, 189 Parham Lodge, 170 Paris, 173 anti-masonic measures in, 184, 192 notice against masons by king, 180 Parker, Dr. William, 359, 360 Parkhouse, Richard, 79 Parks, Capt. Richard, 163 Parry, David, 66, 68 Pascal, Michael Henry, 348 Paschal, William, 72 “Passed,” use of word, 361 Pateshall, Richard, 123, 158 INDEX Patter, Simeon, 313 Payne, John, 215 Peach, Lewis, 358 Pearson, Thomas, 293, 353 Peaseley, Robert, 158 Peddie, John, 55 Pelham, Charles, 75, 80, 82, 146, 233, 354, 372 brief account of life of, 290- 293 made secretary of Masters Lodge, 300 portrait of, 292 Pelham, Helen, 291 Pelham, Peter, 35, 74, 79, 119, Be MATa 2o3.02o6" 245, 255, 258, 275, 374 brief account of life of, 290- 293 certifies copy of Oxnard’s commission, 285 portrait of, 230 Pelham, Peter, Jr., 294 Pelham List, 38, 82, 227, 228, 299, 317,321 Pemberton, Benjamin, 112, 157 Pemberton, Samuel, 157 Pennsylvania, 56, 57, 59, 112, 205, 375, 381 Allen appointed Grand Mas- ter of, by Grand Master of England, over Franklin, 369 First lodge in, 49 Franklin’s appointment as Grand Master for, 124 Grand Lodge of, 33 no Grand Lodge records prior to July, 1779, 127 proot that Massachusetts and not, was first “regularly constituted,” 383 403 Penn, Thomas, 123 Pepperell, Col. William, 291, 304 Perchard, Daniel, 275 “Perfect youth” doctrine, 70 Petersburg, Va., 110 Peterson, Rev. Edward, 44, 45 Philadelphia, 31, 50, 58, 59, 90, 203 article in Pennsylvania Ga- zette, 63 attempts to claim masonry in, in 1727, 56 cornerstone of state house laid, 150 dates of constitution of lodge, 117 discovery of “Libr B,” 63 First Lodge, 34, 49 first Lodge meeting notice published in newspaper in, 380 first meeting of Provincial Grand Lodge, 359 Hoop Lodge, 150 Indian King Lodge, 204, 252 Indian King Tavern, 136, 178 newspapers in, 41 petition sent Price from, 113 some entries in 1731, 64 some entries for 1732, 70-71 Sun Tavern Lodge, 68 trial of person, who in im- personating masons caused a death, 199 Tun Tavern Lodge, 34, 80, 354 William Allen, career of, 69- 70 Phillips, Caleb, 230 Phillips, E. J., see “Philipps” 404 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Phillips, Capt. John, 301, 332 Phillips, 157 Philipps, Ann, 197 Philipps, Dorothy, 197 Philipps, Elizabeth, 197 Philipps, Erasmus James, 185, 1520 21S. eo pee ia 357, 360 Philipps, John Erasmus, 197 Philipps, Richard, 195 Phoenix, Capt., 167 “Physical perfection” doctrine, Pierce, Capt. Nathaniel, 313 Plaister, Daniel, 285 Plumstead, Clement, 178 Plumsted, William, 114, 177, 178, 181 portrait of, 180 Poland, 226 Port Royal Lodge, 267 Portsmouth Lodge, see “First Lodge in Portsmouth” Portsmouth, 49, 115, 233, 267, 373, 382 application for Provincial Grand Master, 321 by-laws of the First Lodge, 231 First Lodge, 36 Lodge meeting held on board frigate, 361 petition for lodge at, 148 Pound, Roscoe, 378 Pratt, Henry, 32, 64, 68, 177, 181, 345 Prescott, Jonathan, 313 Prescott, Peter, 108, 158, 226 Preston’s Illustrations, 28, 42 Thomas, 91, 97, Price, Charles, 262 Price, Ezekiel, 119 Price, Henry, 33, 35, 52, 74, 79, 88, 155,157,161) 165169: 189, 209, 214)°236j;e2558 2/2, 289, S00 fSZ5 705k brief biography of, 92-103 communications with Frank- lin, 124-126 confers with Franklin about masonic matters, 113 facsimile of letter recalling Price to the chair, 344 deputation of, 75, 76, 210 first exercise of Masonic au- thority in America used by, 381 first Provincial Grand Mas- ter of North America, 115 forms Grand Lodge in Bos- ton, 37, 80 founder of Freemasonry in America, 92 Grand Master pro tem. upon death of Thomas Oxnard, 330 grants 61 investment of, 89 meets Benjamin Franklin, 91 nominated officers for the coming year, 130 one of founders of Masters Lodge, 374 original stone over grave of. 94 partner of Francis Beteilhe, 37 partnership with Beteilhe dis- solved, 228 petition to appoint successor to Oxnard, 119 Franklin’s petition, INDEX Price, Henry, Cont. petitioned for lodge at Ports- mouth, N. H., 148 portrait painted, 201 proposes Charles Pelham in First Lodge in Boston, 292 proposes Jeremy Gridley, 327 Provincial Grand Master, 1734-1735, 54 receives deputation in person, 76 removed to Boston, 55 returns to London, 61 succeeded by Tomlinson as Prov. G. M., 160 Price, Mary, 96 Price, Mary (the second) 99, 100, 102 Price. Rebecca, 99, 100 Prichard’s Masonry Dissected, ee Prince George Lodge, 283 Pringle, John, 221, 227 Pringle, Will., 68 Prioleau, Samuel, 244 Providence, 197 Provincial Grand Lodge at Bos- ton, 123 Pue, Jonathan, 278, 285 Purdie, Capt. Hugh, 370 Pryce, Charles, 143 Pyewell, William, 113 QO. C. A., see Abbreviations, p. “el Quane, John, 80, 88 Quatnor Coronati Lodge, 135 Quebec, Battle of, 305 Quiches, 24 Quincy, Edmund, 305, 361, 367 Quincy, Rev. Samuel, 370, 371 405 Rae, John, see “Ray” Ragan’s Orthodoxie Maccon- nique, 62 Rainbow Coffee House Lodge, 61, 92 Ramsay, Andrew, see “Ramsey” Ramsay, Dr. Archibald, 164 Ramsay, Chevalier, 221 Ramsey, Andrew, 349, 351 Rand, Capt. Robert, 245 Randall, Lydia, 99 Records, 30 earliest book of, in Boston, 382 England, 31 First Lodge in Boston, 32, 41 Grand Lodge of Massachu- setts, 35 Master’s Lodge, 33 Portsmouth, 33 Redman, Thomas, see “Rod- man” Reed, 331 “Regular,” 25, 48, 54 “Regular” lodges, 57, 63 Reilly, John, 370 Reller, Abraham, 277 Renolds, Capt. Thomas, see “Reynolds” Revere, Paul, 304 Revis, John, 280 “Revival of 1717,” 26 Reynold, Lawrence, 66, 68 Reynolds, Capt. Thomas, 163 Rhode Island, 44, 45, 59, 101, 197, 281, 381 date of constitution of lodge in, 117 Lodge at Newport, 364 Rhodes, Samuel, 262, 263 Richards, 344 Richardson, Mr., 97 406 Richmond, Duke of, 136 Rickman, John, 242 Riggs, Capt. Richard, 185, 204 Right, John, see “Wright” Rind, Thomas, 274 Robertson, Patrick, 154, 161, 163, 166 Robinson, John, 113 Robinson, Septimus, 114 Rockwell, W. S., 62 Rodman, Thomas, 64 Rodriquez, F. de P., v Rolfe, Josiah, 123 Rollins, Joseph, viii Rome, 206 anti-masonic measures in, 221] Rook, George, 78, 88, 331 Rooke, George, see “Rook” Rose, Rev., 240 Rose Tavern Lodge, 71 Ross, Alexander, 363 Ross, Samuel, 261 Ross, Hon. William, 43, 350 Routh, Christopher, 108 Row, John, see “Rowe” Rowe, John, 75, 82, 118, 241, 308, 322, 328, 340 Roy, John, 320, 358 Royal Exchange Lodge, see “First Lodge in Boston” Royal Exchange Lodge, at Nor- folk, 109 Royal Exchange Tavern, 178, 223, 364, 368 Ruggles, George, 259 Rush, Jonathan, 313 Russell, Chambers, 338 Sachse, Julius F., 31, 64, 79, 127s 1615 356 Sachse’s Benjamin Franklin as a Freemason, 379 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Sacred Mysteries Among the Mayas and the Quiches, etc., 24 Sadler, Henry, 79 Saint Andrew’s Lodge, 110, 249 St. Clair, 227 St. Christopher, 221, 381 Basseterre (Bassatee) Lodge, 232 St. Christopher Lodge, 265 St. Eustatius Lodge, 318 St. Jago de la Vega, 309 St. John, Antiqua, 170, 209, 226, 229 Saint John’s Lodge of Boston see also “First Lodge in Bos- ton” St. John’s Lodge of Portsmouth see “First Lodge of Ports- mouth” St. John’s Lodge, Norfolk, Va., 249 St. Mary’s Bay, Digby County, 199 St. Michael’s Lodge, 66, 234. 238, 240 St. Paul, Peter Phillip Chas., 299 Saint John, 185 Salmon, John, 320, 321, 322 Salzburger Colony, 144 San Domingo, 381 Lodge at Cap, 352 Savage, Capt. Richard, 360 Savannah, 29, 49, 62, 83, 13%, 204, 214, 222 early meetings of Solormon. Lodge, 144 Solomon’s Lodge, 141 “Savannah in ye Province o% Georgia,” 139 Savannah River, 141 INDEX Schleydhorn, see “Slydorn” Scott, Andrew, 113 Scott, Hugh, 114, 158 Scott, J., 28 Scotland, 35, 110, 374 Grand Lodge of, 249 Scotch Arms Lodge, 221 “Scottish Rite,” 22 Seaman, George, 212, 244, 261 Seargeant, 344 Second Lodge in Boston, 116, 368 Senior Freemason of America, 49 Sewall, Jonathan, 340, 346 Sexton, Morgan, 120 Shannon, Capt. John, 274 Sharon, 305 Sheftall, Benjamin, 142 Sheftall, Mordecai, 142 Sheftall, Sheftall, 142 Shepheard, Charles, 162, 174, 187, 212, 261, 269 Sherburn, Henry, 233 Sherburne, Joseph, 101, 312 Sheriff, J., 185, 199 Shippen, Joseph, 32, 80, 112, 177, 181, 204-205 portrait of, 206 Shirley, William, 257, 304 Shirley, Governor, 304 Shrewsbury, 100 Shute, Wm., 363, 367, 368 Simes, John, 360 Singleton, Mary, 290 Skene, W., 197 Skinner, George, 70 Slaittewey, Moses, 157 Slaughter, Moses, 91 Slydorn, John, 357, 360, 367 Smith, Benjamin, 233, 243, 244, 261, 269, 348 407 Smith, Benjamin, Cont. brief outline of life of, 270 portrait of, 270 Smith, Horace W., 50 Smith, James Moor, 88 Smith, John, 82, 90, 158 Smith, Joseph, 185 Smith, Richard, 298 Smith, Capt. Robert, 148, 157 Smith, Thomas, 230, 269 Smithers, Benjamin, 324 Smithson, Henry, 263 Smithhurst, Joseph, see “Smyt- hurst” Smyrna, 206 Smythe, J., 78 Smythurst, Joseph, 268 Solly, Samuel, 320 Solomon’s Lodge, Charleston, Sa C0135, 46291839,4487, 212, 233, 260, 269 facsimile of page of record of, 142 Songhurst, W. J., 135 South America, 25, 133, 381 South Carolina, 49, 146, 213, 376, 381 date of constitution of Lodge in, 117 deputation issued for Grand Master for, 152 lapse of account of meetings from 1742 to 1751, 270 lodge in, 134 Solomon’s Lodge, 233 South Wales, 78 Southwell, Lord, 109 Spanish Town, 309 Spencer, Archibald, 272 Sprowel, James, 268 Stansbury, Benjamin, 314 Starkey, William, 265, 285 408 Stephens, William, 222 Stevens, William, 141 Stevenson, James, 161 Steward, James, 367 Stewart, James, see “Steward” Stoddard, Capt. Benjamin, 352, 367 Stome, Samuel (“Master of the House’’), 168, 323 Stoughton, Chief Justice, 343 Stowe, William, 119 Strahan, Arthur, 212 Strathmore, Earl of, 70 Suffolk, 169 Sun Tavern Lodge, 34, 68 Surrey, Hugh, 231, 236 Swan, Ebenezer, 211 Sweeney, Roscow, 364 Synge, Philip se2122, 1233181 brief outline of life of, 252- 254 silhouette of, 253 Svere, Bar’w (Bartho.), 350 Tabbs, Carrel, 188 Tailfer, Dr., 222 Tanner, John, 208 “Taylor, the celebrated Mr.,” 90 Tege, Capt., 364, 366 Thatcher, Oxenbridge, 345 The Free Mason’s Pocket Com- panion, 28, 42 “The Great Lodge,” St. Johns, Antiqua, 209 “The Massachusetts Lodge,” 35 Third Lodge in Boston, 369 Thomas, Isaiah, Hustory of Printing, 326 Thomlinson, see “Tomlinson” Thompson, Xtopher, 68 Grand FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Thompson, James, 362 Thynne, Thomas, see “Wey: mouth, Lord” Tilden, Mary, 98 Tombes, Capt. Andrew, 257, 374 Tomochichi, Chief, 62 Timothee, Louis, 121 Tomkins, Capt. Peter, 163 Tomlinson, 33, 37, 38, 116, 147, 157, 161, 164, 165, 186, 208,\)211, 9219, 22524 234, 236, 241, 245, 279 attends meeting of Grand Lodge of England, 215 brief account of the life of, of, 168-173 commission of, Boston, 168 makes some Masons in Anti-< gua, 201 succeeded as Grand Mas: ter by Thomas Oxnard, 280 succeeds Price as Prov. G. M., 160 Tonkin, Capt. Peter, see “Tom- kins” Took, Randolph, 133 Tothill, Edward, 245 Townsend, 92, 97, 101 Townsend, Barnard, 302 Townsend, James, 96 Townsend, Mary, 96 Townsend, Samuel, 96 Tracy, Patrick, 242 Tran, Alexander, 147, 157 Trann, Alexander, see “Tran” Trinity Church, 335 Trowbridge, Edmund, 340 Tucker, John, 185 Tufton, John, 246 arrived in INDEX Tun Tavern Lodge, 34, 80, 374, 382 desires a deputation from Franklin, 359 fining of members of, for swearing and impertinence, 362 member excluded, 371 pages of record book of, 355 records of this Lodge begin June 28, 1749, 354 three members discharged, 358 Turks, as Masons, 206, 208 Turner, Lewis, 272 Tuthill, Edward, see “Tothill” Tuthill, Jacob, 364 Tylar, Stevenson, 236 Tyler, Andrew, 291 Tyle1, Mary, 291 Tyler, Miriam, 291 Tyler, Noe, 114 Tyler, William, 117, 367 Underdown, Capt. James, 230 Vandelure, Capt. Giles, 154, 158 Vanhartburger, John, 274 Vardy, Luke, 136, 148, 158, a2). 225, 256 Vassal, Lewis, 266 Vavasour, Thomas, 347 Vaughn, Capt. Narias, 230 Vibert, Lionel, 29 Vidal, Stephen, 357 Vienna, account of a disturb- ance in, because of classes and faiths in freemasonry, 273 Villiers, Coulon de, 198 Vincent, Clement, 220 409 Virgin Lodge, 43 Virginia, 109 St. John’s Lodge No. 117 249 Waghorn, John, 184, 223, 225, 236 Wales, Prince of, asked to Ac: cept Grand Mastership, 203 Walker, Thomas, 188, 210, 236 Walker, William, 111, 112 Wallace family, 76 Wallace, William, see ‘“Wal- lis” Wallace, William (Wallis), grandson of William Wal- liste 02 Wallis family, see “Wallace” Wallis, Lincy, 227 Wallis, William, 100, 348 Ward, Lord John, 136, 264, 275, 279, 369 Warner, Elizabeth, 242 Warren, General Joseph, 35, 305, 307 Wasdale, 360 Washington and his Masonic Compeers, 141 Washington, George, 307 Waterhouse, Capt. Samuel, 242, 314 Watson, James, 174 Watts, Hon. Samuel, 281 Webb, Thomas S., 61 Webb’s Monitor, 138 Webster, I., 236 Webster, John, 235 Wells, Samuel, 364 Wentworth, William, 236 Wesley, John, 144 Wesson, William, 97, 112, 157 410 West, Benjamin, 69 West India Islands, 186 West Indies, 202, 218, 239, 387 Lodge at St. Eustatius, 318 St. Christopher’s Lodge, 265 Western hemisphere, earliest traces of freemasonry in, 43 Wethered, H., 242 Wethered, Samuel, 156, 158 Weymouth, Viscount, 134, 136, 138, 139 Wheelwright, Nathaniel, 350 White Horse Tavern, 369 Whitefield, George, 204 Whitney, St. Levi, 100 Whitemarsh, Thomas, 64, 121 White, Richard, 285 White, Capt. Thomas, 212 Williams, Dr. Nathaniel, 326 Williams, Robert, 119, 309, 314 Willington, Capt. Roger, 38, 156, 157 Wilmington, N. C., 291 Wilson, George, 272 FREEMASONRY IN AMERICA Windward Islands, 239 Winslow, General, 304 Winslow, Samuel, 285 Winthrop, Adam, 281, 343 Winyaw, S. C., 283 Woburn, 101 Wolfe, General, 305 Wolfe, Richard, 173, 183 Woodrop, Alexander, 208 Woods, Rev. John, 311 Wray, Sir Cecil, 136 Wren, Sir Christopher, 213 Wren, Matthew, 213 Wright, Hugh, 357, 358 Wright, James, 181, 182, 183, 187, 212, 213-215, 244, 261, 269 Wright, John, 242 Wright, Sir Robert, 213 Writs of Assistance, celebrated case of, 336 Whyte, Capt. James, 360, 361, 362 “York Rite,” 22 Young, John, 114 ' We a? 41 ve eT atts, abbr 7 ; eA uy a f i Ww ta fay j vf oy ’ i A 1 A ‘ ' ‘ i! ! i . . i i : eer. ‘ io ay or. at) ee Lan a CAS gy AD ; ce ' a a ee * uf “i iy f aan i ia Le MS Y + Anny vw) I v A We v7 el UNIVERSITY OF | iti arate 2 LNA AG NOs ei) tik ery Need bray ALIS of; 3