For decades, there had been an uneasy peace between what was called the "North" and the "South." Slavery has been termed the issue dividing the two sections. But it was not; the underlying causes were economic, transportation, and State's rights.

John Brown was, perhaps, the catalyst that brought about an unnecessary civil war. He had been made a Master Mason in Hudson Lodge No. 68 in 1824. He was among the first to renounce Freemasonry when the anti-Masonic furor started in 1826.

Brown was born in Connecticut in 1800. In 1805, he moved to Ohio. He was a religious fanatic; unsuccessful in business he turned to violence. Part of this violence that made the history books occurred on Sunday morning, October 6, 1859. He and a small group of men attacked and captured the United States arsenal at Harpers Ferry. Colonel Robert E. Lee, commanding a group of United States Marines, captured Brown, subdued and killed many of his followers.

Brown was confined in jail in Charles Town, Virginia. Almost immediately he became a hero in the North. During the trial on November 2, 1859, a lawyer from the North defended him. The presiding Judge, Richard Parker, was a member of Winchester-Hiram Lodge No. 21 of Virginia, and would later become Grand Master of Masons in Virginia.

John Brown was found guilty of murder and treason and was sentenced to be hanged on December 2, 1859. Governor Henry A. Wise, a Virginia Mason, offered Brown his life if he would admit he was insane. Brown refused. The trap was sprung and Brown became a martyr. The fire brands of the North and South went into action.

Several of the politicians who had fought for years for compromise between the interests of the North and South were no longer on the scene. This is noted in a quote by Harold U. Faulkner as recorded by Allen E. Roberts in House Undivided: The Story of Freemasonry in the Civil War:

One cause of the failure of compromise was undoubtedly the passing from the scene of the older statesmen, those able political leaders who had risen to power in the nationalistic era following the War of 1812. Van Buren had retired from national politics, and Benton had lost his seat in the Senate in 1851. Clay died in June of 1852 and Webster in October of the same year. Compromisers anxious to preserve the Union were still to be found in national politics, such men as Douglas of Illinois, Cass of Michigan (formerly of Ohio), Marcy of New York, Bell of Tennessee, and Crittenden of Kentucky, but in the end it was the radicals of the North and South who were to prevail. Among the younger and ardent anti-slavery politicians of the North were Charles summer of Massachusetts, William H. Seward, formerly Whig governor of New York, and Salmon P. Chase of Ohio. Opposed to them were Southern secessionists of the type of Barnwell Rhett of South Carolina and J. A. Quitman and Albert G. Brown of Mississippi, who were joined in the late fifties by such former unionists as Jefferson Davis of Mississippi and Robert Toombs of Georgia.

Roberts notes something further about each of the men Faulkner wrote about:

Nine of the men named were Masons: Thomas H. Benton, Henry Clay, Stephen A. Douglas, Lewis Cass, John Bell, John J. Crittenden, John A. Quitman, Brown and Toombs. Two of them had been Grand Masters: Clay of Kentucky, and Cass both of Ohio and Michigan. At least one, Seward, was a violent anti-Mason and had served in the New York State Senate as a member of
the Anti-Masonic Party from 1830-34. Another, Jefferson, was known to be friendly to Freemasonry and his father, Samuel, and his brother, Joseph, were Masons.

The role played by many, especially Freemasons, is explained in detail in "House Undivided." It is gratifying to note at many, many Freemasons endeavored to prevent the catastrophe.

The few politicians who favored compromise that would lead to peace rather than war were unable to stem the radicals. From every section of the country pleas for peace from Grand Lodges and individual Freemasons. It became apparent, however, that the Presidential election of 1860 would determine the issue.

For some reason, the South distrusted the Republican candidate, Abraham Lincoln. Threats of secession if he was elected were prevalent. Peace or war depended on what happened.

Lincoln won the election. He defeated three Freemasons: Stephen A. Douglas, John C. Breckenridge, and John Bell. In Ohio, the Republican candidate won a clear majority of the votes cast. With his election, the nation was torn asunder. South Carolina became the first state
to secede on December 20, 1860.

President James Buchanan, a Past Master of Lodge No. 43, Pennsylvania, had endeavored to ease the tensions of the nation. An example occurred on February 22, 1860, when he joined The Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia in the dedication ceremonies of the Equestrian Statue of George Washington. Throughout his speech he called for unity. The applause throughout his talk proved the people agreed there should be no split in the country. He didn't want "our Grand political experiment to fail." he didn't want the world to believe "man is incapable of self-government." He prayed "such a direful disaster to the human race" would be averted; "and in the language of Solomon, at the dedication of the Jewish Temple, 'May the Lord our God be with us as He was with our Fathers. Let Him not leave us or forsake us'." This plea was greeted with "great applause." Ruchanan ended his address by saying: "Maythis be the prayer of all present, and may each one return to his home in heart more determined to do his whole duty to God and his country, than when we assembled here today."

Those who fought for peace lost - so did the citizens of the United States.

What was the official position of the Grand Lodge of Ohio to the war? On September 12, 1861, Grand Master Horace M. Stokes died. He was buried with Masonic rites on the 14th. George Rex became Acting Grand Master. During the Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge on October 15, 1861, Rex stated:

In addition to the fealty, the loyalty and attachment which every citizen owes to his country, it is en-joined upon every Mason, as his first and highest duty, to be true to his country and just to his government. We may not, as Masons, enter into any political controversy as to the cause of the present lamentable condition of affairs; but we 'nay, nay, it is our duty, not only as Masons, but as citizens, to remember that our country and its constitutions are in eminent danger, and that we are bound by every tie of honor, love and duty to defend them, and to maintain their safety and the honor of our flag.

Our duty to our Brethren, which is second only to our duty and devotion to God and our country, is the duty of love, which bids us in the hour of trial to remember mercy, and amid the strife, tumult and the roar of battle to be ever ready to extend the helping, the protecting hand to a fallen foe.

"George Rex" would retell this part of his a address 117 years later in the Grand Lodge's documentary film "Precious Heritage." It was important. This advice would be followed by the Masons on both sides throughout the war. Often the fighting would be stilled while the Masons of the North or South buried a Brother, once a foe, with Masonic rites. Uncountable numbers of wounded men would be saved by Brothers of opposing forces.

That the War was having its effects on Freemasonry in Ohio was as evident. Many who had long attended the sessions were absent because of military duty. The Senior Grand Warden, George Webster, sent a letter from Cheat Mountain Summit, dated September 23, 1861. In it he said his duties as Major of the Twenty-fifth Regiment Ohio Volunteers prevented him from attending the Communication.

Dispensations were issued for Pioneer Military Lodge of the Fourth Regiment of Ohio Volunteer Infantry and the Thirty-eighth Regiment of Ohio Volunteers. Eight regulations for the issuing of Dispensations for military Lodges and their government were adopted:

1. Dispensations for Military Lodges may be granted by the Grand Master upon the same petitions, certificates and prerequisites as are required for the establishment of civil Lodges, except the consent of other Lodges shall not be required, nor a demit from the Lodge to which the petitioner belongs.

2. Dispensations shall not be issued to nay but the members of Ohio regiments, nor for the holding of more than one Lodge in each regiment.

3. No Military Lodge shall, on any pretense, initiate into Masonry any inhabitant or sojourner in any town or place at which its members may be stationed, or through which they may be marching, nor any person who does not, at the time, belong to the military profession, nor the members of any other regiment holding a dispensation or charter for a Lodge.

4. When any Military Lodge, established under the authority of the Constitution of The Grand Lodge of Ohio, shall be out of the State, it shall so conduct itself as not to give offense to the Masonic authorities of the country or place in which it may sojourn; never losing sight of the duties it owes to the Constitution of The Grand Lodge of Ohio, to which communication is ever to be made, and all dues and fees regularly transmitted.

5. In case of the death or removal of the Officers of a Military Lodge, the members thereof are authorized to supply the vacancy by election, and are required forthwith to report the same to the Grand Master for his approval.

6. Military Lodges are required to make the same returns as civil Lodges.

7. Upon disbandment of a regiment in which any Lodge shall have been established, it shall be the duty of the Officer having the Dispensation or Charter (if any), records, Jewels, papers and property of said Lodge in charge, forthwith to return the same to the Grand Secretary of The Grand Lodge of Ohio.

8. Any Brother joining a Military Lodge, shall not thereby forfeit his membership in the Lodge to which he formerly belonged, but such joining shall operate to suspend his payment of dues to the Lodge to which he formerly belonged, and of the payment of Grand Lodge dues by said Lodge for him.

A motion to grant Military Lodges Charters instead of Dispensations was defeated.

The Committee on the State of the Union submitted a Patriotic report which contained several resolutions. It deplored the War, and called upon Masons to remember the "ancient charges." Within these ancient charges is this important phrase: "A Mason is a peaceful subject to the civil powers and never to be concerned in plots or conspiracies against the peace and welfare if the Nation." It called upon all Masons to be loyal to the Government. Its last resolution stated:

Resolved, That it is the duty of every worthy Mason . . . to stand by the General Government, even at the expense of fortune and life, that the blessings of constitutional liberty and union . . . may be enjoyed by us in our day and generation, and be transmitted . . . forever.

From almost the beginning of the war, Milford Lodge No. 54 was in a position to help many Federal soldiers. Close by was Fort Dennison which housed some 30,000 troops, The Lodge recorded visitors from New York, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Indiana, and other places. Throughout the war it would actively confer degrees. It even got itself in trouble with The Grand Lodge of Ohio by conferring degrees on men from Northern Ohio, "over whom they had no Masonic jurisdiction. The penalty wasn't too severe; it just had to turn the illegal fees collected over to the Grand Lodge.

The Lodge minutes for August 16, 1862, read: "No meeting of Milford Lodge No. 54 on account of the threatened attack of the Rebels on Cincinnati. Everything seemed to be excitement and confusion; the preservation of the Queen City seemed to be the only topic of conversation in the streets and byways."

From Columbus Lodge No.30, it is learned that "William Thrall was as busy as any Master of a Lodge could possibly be. As a Captain in the Ohio Militia, he help to convert Goodale Park into a military camp where he organized and trained two regiments of volunteers."

Evidently Past Grand Master Thrall was once again serving as a Worshipful Master. The historian of Columbus Lodge records:

The War Department quickly leased a large tract of land north of Sullivant Avenue about four miles west of High Street. The camp was called Camp Chase in honor of Governor Salmon P. Chase. Captain Thrall was active in the development of Camp Chase which expanded rapidly until it reached as far north as West Broad Street. In July, a group of 4,200 rebel soldiers was cap turned in Virginia and sent to Columbus under guard. Camp Chase was then converted to a Prison Camp and continued as such for the duration of the war.

In spite of his strenuous military activity, William Thrall managed to conduct eighteen stated meetings of Columbus Lodge during 1861. With public interest centered on the war effort, the task of maintaining regular lodge activities was difficult. The men of Columbus were quick to join the army and slow in seeking lodge membership.

In 1862, the Grand Lodge met in Columbus on October 21with Grand Master George Rex, a member of Ebenezer No. 33 and a soldier himself, presiding. In his address he stated: "Desolating relentless Civil War exists in a large portion of this once happy land. The blood of many of our best and bravest citizens crimsons the battle fields of our Republic . . . and we are called upon to mourn the loss of our brave Cantwell, our heroic Kyle, and our gallant Webster, who have each held high and distinguished positions in this Grand Lodge, were beloved by their Brethren and respected and honored wherever known. Like true Masons they died at their posts of duty in a just and holy cause (they met "violent and premature deaths" at the of hand of "the paricidal foe" in the war), and their memories will be cherished by a grateful people so long as loyalty shall have a name or patriotism an abiding place in the heart of man."

Dispensations were issued for five more Military Lodges:

Benedict Lodge, January 15, 1862, 55th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry.

Candee Lodge, January 18, 1862, 66th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry.

Washington Military Lodge, January 27, 1862, 68th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry.

Union Military Lodge, February 22, 1862, 82nd Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry.

Ward Military Lodge, April 10, 1862, 17th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry.

Howard Matthews, the Deputy Grand Master, could not be present because he was serving in the Union Army. He did send a letter in which he requested the establishment of a "Widow's and Orphan's Fund." This resulted in this resolution being adopted: "Resolved, That each subordinate Lodge be requested to provide a suitable fund for the relief of the widows and orphans within its jurisdiction, who have become such by the sacrifice of the lives of their husbands and fathers, Brethren of our Order, in the defense of their Country, and also in favor of such of them as have been made cripples, or helpless by the casualties of war." Some Lodges still have funds for this purpose.

Shiloh Lodge received a Dispensation to work on August 15, 1863. It was attached to the 77th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Three others were not issued because of irregularities in the requests. Brethren in the Third Brigade were refused, because the Grand Master did not have "the authority to establish a Lodge in a division of the army larger than a regiment."

The Committee on Foreign Correspondence report it had received no Proceedings from eleven of the Southern States. This was attributed to "the suspension of mail facilities." For reasons not known, Proceedings were not received from ten of the Northern States. The Committee was par
ticularly disturbed by "one enterprising individual claiming to be in possession of the exact literal work and lectures of 'Webb-Preston Masonry'." He had formed an "Order of Conservators of Symbolic Masonry," appointing himself "Chief Conservator."

The Committee was pleased to note "the stringent enactments of our Grand Lodge and their enforcement by our Grand Masters" had kept Ohio from being invaded by "these ritual peddlars."

Bellefontaine Lodge No. 209 reported two of its members had attained high military rank in the Federal forces. Robert P. Kennedy became a Brigadier General; Judge William H. Lawrence became a Colonel of the 84th Ohio Volunteers. Another member, J. Barnett of the 121st Regiment, "O. V. I.," died at Shelbyville.

James M. Stevens lost his left arm in the Battle of Chancellorsville, Virginia. For his "valuable services in battle he was promoted to the rank of Major." On May 8, 1863, he became a Lieutenant Colonel. Stevens would late become the first Worshipful Master of Attica Lodge No.
367, and one of its most valued members.

The big news in 1863 concerned a Mason named John Hunt Morgan, a Confederate cavalry officer who helped keep Ohio in a turmoil. From the pages of "House Undivided"comes the story of Morgan's capture, as related in the Cleveland Herald:

About two o'clock in the afternoon (of July 26, 1863) various detachments closed in around Morgan in the vicinity of West-Point, about mid-way between New-Lisbon and Wellsville. The rebels were driven to a bluff, from which there was no escape except by fighting their way through or leaping from a lofty and almost perpendicular precipice. Finding themselves thus cooped, Morgan concluded that "discretion was the better part of valor," and "came down" as gracefully as the coon did to Davy Crockett. He, with the remainder of his gang, surrendered
to Colonel Shackleford, who was well acquainted with the redoubtable "John," and is said to be a distant relative.

. . . Morgan retained his side-arms, and moved about freely, although always accompanied by Colonel Shackleford . . .

Morgan himself appeared in good spirits, and quite unconcerned at his ill-luck. He is a well-built man, of fresh complexion, and sandy hair and beard. He last night enjoyed for the first time in a long while the comforts of a sound sleep in a good bed, which was sine compensation for his otherwise bad luck.

Morgan and 69 of his officers were imprisoned in the state penitentiary at Columbus. They didn't plan on remaining there. They began digging a tunnel. Through that tunnel Morgan and five others escaped on the night of November 27, 1863.

From the same book, an example of Freemasonry in action during the Civil War is recorded:

Major James Wilson, one of Morgan's officers, was more fortunate. He was sent to Johnson's Island, situated at the mouth of Sandusky Bay, overlooking Lake Erie. The first prisoners were taken there in April, 1862, and the last were to leave in September, 1865.

Shortly after Wilson's arrival in the (Ohio) prison camp, "they formed what was known as the Masonic mess. Every two weeks a lodge meeting was held. All in the mess were Masons and many officers in other portions of the prison were members of the fraternity."

The commander of the prison permitted the Masons to attend a lodge, and they were never molested by any of the guards, even if they remained longer than the hour set for their return. Wilson also said that the Masonic mess never knew what it was to be hungry, and gives as a reason, "it may be possible that was because the officer in command of the prison was a Mason also."

Acts of charity became more prevalent in the Lodges of Ohio as the war progressed. Many of them exempted from the payment of dues all men serving with the Federal forces. Several, such as Buckeye Lodge No. 150, saw that the widows and orphans of those who had fallen in battle
were cared for. Others, as did Columbia No. 44, made financial arrangements to have the bodies of soldiers returned home.

The Death of Ezra Griswold on May 16, 1863, was noted by Hiram Lodge No. 18. He was one of the founders of New England Lodge No. 4. While in Worthington, he published a newspaper and carried it with him when he moved to Columbus. It became The Ohio State Journal. Then he moved to Delaware where he became, and would remain, "the main support of Masonry . . . and apparently the only person active in Delaware Masonry during the dormancy of the Morgan episode." For a number of years, Griswold printed the minutes of The Grand Lodge of Ohio.

The war was affecting the attendance in many of the Lodges. When the Grand Lodge met in Cleveland on October 18, 1864, it permitted Mercer Lodge No. 121, to resume the work it had stopped in 1860. Its officers and a large number of its active members had joined the Federal forces.

Grand Master Thomas Sparrow of Magnolia Lodge No. 20 wasn't happy with the way Military Lodges were neglecting to comply with the regulations established by the Grand Lodge. Pioneer had made one return, and through the regiment had been disbanded, the Dispensation had not
been returned. Benedict had paid its dues and returned its Dispensation in October, 1863. Candee returned its Jewels and aprons, but not its Dispensation. The others had made no report of any description. The Grand Master wanted more "efficient measures" to he taken "to secure compliance with the regulations for Military Lodges."

Sparrow said he had received a communication in June from a Committee appointed by a Convention of "the Masonic Brotherhood assembled in Fairmont, West Virginia." This Convention had met on February 22, 1864, and asked the Grand Master's opinion of "the propriety of forming a Grand Lodge for that state." He had replied favorably. In June, the Convention reassembled and elected officers "and the Grand Lodge was organized." What the
Grand Master did not know, however, was that the Grand Lodge officers elected claimed the election was not legal because of an informality in the proceedings of the Convention. They refused to be installed.

On February 21, 1865, Fairmont Lodge sent out another circular calling for another Convention. It was held on April 12. At this Convention eight Lodges, all holding Charters from the Grand Lodge of Virginia, were represented. After a lengthy discussion, a resolution was adopted which read: "Resolved, That it is expedient at this time to proceed to the election of officers necessary to constitute a Grand Lodge for the State of West Virginia." The representatives wisely elected William J. Bates, a Past Master of Wheeling Lodge No.128. The date of May 10, 1865, was set for the installation of the officers.

Past Grand Master William B. Thrall of Ohio was invited to install the officers and constitute The Grand Lodge of West Virginia. During the ceremonies, Thrall left no doubt as to how he felt about the Civil War just concluded:

It is no every day occurrence, my brethren, nor even of transient interest, that has caused our assembling here today. . . . But a nation like ours however blessed of Heaven, and endowed with all the elements of human happiness does not cast aside these advantages and see land deluged in blood; does not behold its beauty turned to ashes, and its oil of joy to mourning, without leaving some enduring mementos, as waymarks of the progress of such fearful career.

And such has been the experience of the people of West Virginia. At the very commencement of the civil contest, the alternative was forced upon them, either to take up arms for the subversion of the government of their common country - embrue their hands in fraternal blood - and fight for the overthrow of that which makes us one people, with one constitution, and one destiny, or else, by severing the ties which has long connected them with their trans-montagne fellow-citizens, maintain their fealty to the government, and assume to themselves that separate and equal stations in the community of States to which, as they believe, the laws of nature, and of nature's God, entitle them.

Ready at the prompting of truth, justice and patriotism, they did not hesitate in the path of duty; but when the "Old Dominion" parted the cable that secured her safe and quiet mornings in the haven of the Federal Union, and drifted on the shoals of Secession and the breakers of Treason, beyond their power to rescue her, the lost no time in casting about for their own security, and the permanent welfare of those to come after them. To this end they organized the government of West Virginia, and resumed their nationality. The existence and functions of the civil government of West Virginia, having been distinctly recognized by the several departments of the Federal government, as well as those of the other States of the Union, a distinct Masonic jurisdiction succeeds, as an appropriate sequence. The necessary preliminaries Lanes having been observed, the business of the present hour is to give form and consistence to such jurisdiction. And I gladly avail myself of the occasion in behalf of the brethren "on the other side of the river," and indeed of the whole Fraternity, wheresoever dispersed, to tender to The Grand Lodge of West Virginia, and the Lodges and Masons constituting the same, most cordial and fraternal salutations.

After Thrall had informed all present and the Masonic world that what had transpired, and what was to come, was legal, he installed the officers of The Grand Lodge of West Virginia "in solemn and ample form."

Grand Master Sparrow, during the same Annual Communication of 1864, said he had refused "numerous applications to confer degrees at irregular times." He emphatically stated: "It should be distinctly understood by the Officers of Subordinates, once and for all, that Lodges are created for the benefit of Masons, and not for the accommodation of candidates; that there are no cases of emergency in this jurisdiction, and no Lodge has the power to make them; that every petition must take its regular course."

This resulted in this recommendation by the Jurisprudence Committee, which was approved:

1. Military Lodges. That the Rules and Regulation adopted at the 1861 communication authorizing the Grand Master to establish Military Lodges in Ohio Regiments during the pending war be repealed, and that the Dispensations of such Lodges as shall not, within three months, make the required returns to the Grand Secretary, be revoked, and that the M. W. Grand Master give immediate notice to said Lodges of the action of the Grand Lodge in the premises, and see that its action in this behalf is strictly enforced.

2. The time necessary to constitute a residence under Rule 15, Subordinate Lodges. That no Lodge within this jurisdiction shall receive the petition of any applicant for the degrees, unless such applicant shall have resided one year within the jurisdiction of such Lodge.

The "Conservators" had attempted to ‘introduce their order and work in some of the subordinate Lodges" in Ohio. The Grand Lodge prohibited any Mason joining the Conservators. It warned "the Masters of every Lodge to conform to the work adopted and prescribed by the Grand Lodge."

Grand Master Sparrow reported on October 17, 1865, he had been successful in securing the Dispensation of two Military Lodges: Washington in the 68th Regiment; and Ward in the 17th. He asked the Grand Lodge to determine the status of "those Brethren who received a part of the
degrees in" Military Lodges. The Committee on Jurisprudence recommended, and the Grand Lodge concurred:

Those Brothers who have received all the degrees in Military Lodges may become members of any civil Lodge by producing satisfactory evidence to such Lodge that the Military Lodge has ceased to exist, that they are Master Masons and have paid all dues to such defunct Lodge, and passing the required ballot, and those who have received part of the degrees may in like manner
apply for the remainder in any Civil Lodge.

The Grand Master said he was deeply saddened by the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, on April 15, 1865. He had granted a Dispensation to the Masons in Cleveland to appear in a public procession when Lincoln's body arrived there. He had opened a Special Communication of the Grand Lodge at Columbus upon the arrival of the body. A large number of Brethren from all parts of the State participated in the ceremonies held by the Grand Lodge.

Although Abraham Lincoln wasn't a Freemason, not only the Grand Lodge but many subordinate Lodges took note of his untimely death. Rising Sun Lodge 22, for in stance, had this placed in the Ashtabula Telegraph:

Whereas it has pleased the Supreme Architect of the Universe to remove Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States from among us by a horrid assassination in at a time when like Moses of old we had come in sight of the promised land. When the light of peace dawned before the eyes of an expectant nation and his presence had drawn discordance to a faith in his well doing – when all looked to him as a preserver of our country he was stricken down and as a token of our high appreciation of him as a magistrate we offer this last tribute of respect to the departed – therefore Resolved – that we deeply sympathize with the family and friends of the deceased in the bereavement and sincerely mourn the loss of the Chief Executive of a Free and Independent people.

The Grand Lodge of Missouri had called for a Convention to be held in September, 1866, to consider: 1) the condition of the Fraternity in the United States; 2) to compare and correct whatever ills may have crept into our rituals during the past twenty years; 3) to suggest a uniform remedy for the evils arising from hasty work. The Grand Lodge voted to pay the expenses of the Grand Master for attending this Convention.

It was noted that a Masonic Library Association had been formed in Cincinnati and that it had collected about 500 volumes, "many of which are rare and valuable."

The Grand Lodge of West Virginia was officially recongnized by the Grand Lodge of Ohio, and heartily welcomed "as sister Grand Jurisdiction."

When the Grand Lodge met in Toledo on October 16, 1866, Grand Master Sparrow called attention to the death of Past Grand Master Lewis Cass. He recalled that Cass had served as Grand Master of Masons in Ohio from January 4, 1830, to January 5, 1813. He was later to serve in the same capacity in Michigan. He noted that Cass was a member of the Convention which assembled in Chillicothe on January 4, 1808, for the purpose of forming this Grand Lodge. He died on June 17, 1866.

During the war the many acts of brotherhood by the soldiers on both sides called "Freemasons" had left their impression on those who witnessed them. One of these men was William McKinley. At the close of the war, he was stationed in Winchester, Virginia, a town that had changed hands over 70 times during the conflict. He asked about Freemasonry and was told of its beliefs. He then asked for and received a petition from Winchester Hiram Lodge No. 21. With Masons from the North and the South participating, he received the three degrees of Masonry on May 1, 2, and 3, 1865.

Interest in Freemasonry had reached an all-time high. It is highly probable this interest was caused by the high standards of brotherhood shown by Masons during the war. And these high standards continued after the war had ended. Throughout the country, Freemasons and Free
masonry advocated "forgiveness." On the political scene the opposite was too often true. Retaliation became the cry of most of the politicians in Washington.

The big exception was a Freemason named Andrew Johnson Who had succeeded Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States. On Washington's birthday in 1866, he told a large audience in Washington:

You denied in the beginning of the struggle that any State had the right to go out. You said that they had neither the right nor the power. The issue has been made, and it has been settled that a State has neither the right nor the power to go out of the Union. And, when you have settled that by the executive and military power of the Government, and by the public judgment, you turn around and assume that they are out and shall not come in.

He ended his talk by stating: "I will be found standing by the Constitution as the chief rock of our safety, as the palladium of our civil and religious liberty." By standing by the Constitution, he would be politically crucified and come within one vote of being the only President impeached.

The Mason in charge of the Federal forces that captured Richmond, the Confederate Capital, ordered a starving populace fed and clothed. His marshal ordered guards placed around the Masonic Temple to save it from looting and destruction. The Southerners would long remember
these acts of generosity.

Savannah, Georgia, fell after a siege of eleven days. Major General John W. Geary, upon entering the city, learned the Masonic Temple was in danger of being destroyed. He placed a strong guard at the disposal of the Worshipful Master. The Temple was saved on that day, December 21, 1864. On March 15, 1866, the Lodge adopted a resolution of heartfelt appreciation to Geary. He received it as Governor of Pennsylvania. In his reply of July 15, 1866, he wrote: My action under these circumstances is well known, and those who best understand it, have in almost every possible manner conveyed to me their thanks and gratitude for the manner in which the government of the city was conducted, and for the treatment which was meted to your citizens.

In the performance of those duties, I was actuated by no motives, but which were in every respect compatible with those of a soldier, dictated by the true principles of charity and humanity. For the spirit and action thus manifested, I am entitled to no extraordinary credit
or praise; for they should pervade the human heart in every circumstance of life and should be particularly prominent in every action of those connected with Freemasonry. Since then the rude scenes of war have passed away and fratricidal strife has ceased, and peace again spreads the genial influences over common country. God grant we may ever rejoice under one Flag, and one destiny.

He then added a paragraph that every Mason should remember:

We have reason to be thankful that our lives and health have been spared amid the chances and changes of the stormy period it has been our lot to witness, and for the generally increasing harmony and prosperity which seems to prevail throughout the nation. And here I feel again justified in referring to our beloved institution, by saying that to Freemasonry the people of the country are indebted for many mitigations of the sufferings caused by the direful passions of war.

In 1867, Grand Master Sparrow was pleased to inform the Brethren that a Bible and jewels belonging to Lodges in Georgia and Tennessee were returned by Ohio Masons. In public ceremonies, the Grand Lodge had laid the cornerstone of a monument at Wauseon to be erected in memory of the men who had fallen during the war.

Thousands of people, the largest gathering ever to assemble in Steubenville, were present on May 29, 1869. They had come from eastern Ohio, West Virginia, western Pennsylvania, and many other areas. They witnessed the impressive ceremonies of the laying of the cornerstone
of Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument of Jefferson County by Grand Master Howard Matthews of Cincinnati Lodge No. 133.

Another cornerstone was laid on May 30, 1870, for a Soldiers Monument at Pomeroy. A year later, May 30, 1871, many Lodges were granted permission to assist in ceremonies honoring those who had died during the war. These ceremonies included the decorating of their graves.

These public appearances of the Freemasons of Ohio had enhanced their image. They were proving their love of country by honoring the men who had given their lives to preserve it. They were putting Brotherhood into action.

But, within the Craft itself all wasn't peaceful. Although the "Conservators" were no longer a threat having gone out of existence at the close of the war, other organizations had moved upon the horizon.

The first of these was noted by Grand Master Matthews in 1869. A body calling itself "The Supreme Council of the A.A.S. Rite of the sovereign state of Louisiana" claimed the right to establish Symbolic Lodges in that state. Matthews said this was an infringement upon "the
territorial jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Louisiana." "We owe it to ourselves," said Matthews, "to "to speak in terms that can not be misunderstood on this important subject for the reason that the experience of the Grand Lodge of Louisiana today may be that of the Grand Lodge of Ohio tomorrow. The great principle on which every Grand Lodge is founded is that it must be supreme, admitting of no rivalry, and any Lodge existing by any other authority is clandestine and irregular. This is the generally recognized law of Masonry throughout this country."

The Grand Lodge agreed with the Grand Master. So did every other Grand Lodge in the country. It would appear this settled the "doctrine of exclusive jurisdiction" in the United States. But it didn't.

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