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November - December 2008
Chalk Mountain Masonic Lodge #894 AF & AM
 Chalk Mountain Lodge #894 - Before It Was Remodeled |
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Chalk Mountain Lodge Number 894 began work under dispensation from the Grand Lodge of Texas on July 30th 1904. The lodge was set to work by R. W. John J. Ray D.D.G.M of the 36th district of the Grand Lodge of Texas, with Joe Dotson as the first Worshipful Master. There were nine members present and 31 visitors. The lodge was chartered to work on December 8th 1904. The stated meetings were set for the first Saturday night on or after the full moon. The meetings were set to coincide with the full moon as the members either walked or rode to the meetings on horseback. The light of the full moon made it easier for them to see their way home after dark. From 1904 to 1946, only 21 Masters served the lodge with many serving more than one term. At the May 30th 1953 meeting, a bill of 14 dollars was paid for the last set of oil lamps purchased, prior to the use of electricity, in the lodge. At the stated meeting of April 9th 1955, the lodge voted to send one of these oil lamps to Waco to be placed in the Grand Lodge Museum. The original building was designed and built, by J.H. Underwood, a member of the lodge. The first floor was used as a grocery store and the second floor housed Chalk Mountain Lodge. In 1908, Brother Underwood gave the ownership of to the property to C.C. Hammock, with Chalk Mountain Lodge retaining ownership of the second floor lodge. In 1916 Mr. Hammock turned the deed of the property over to D.W. Lacky. In 1935 D.W. Lacky died and the store closed down. The lodge members continued meeting in the building at the original location until 1989. A dispute with the Underwood family descendents who had claimed ownership of the land led to the decision to move the second floor lodge. The lodge owned the second floor but not the first floor or land that it was built upon. Negotiations to buy the property the lodge was built upon were unsuccessful.
The lodge has become known as the lodge that wouldn’t die, and continues to meet on the Saturday on or after a full moon. The lodge members stay involved in the surrounding community. The lodge provides Thanksgiving Dinners and Christmas Dinners to local families as well as supporting activities at the Three Way School.
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Carl Claudy
I don't believe in a Christmas celebration by the lodge. I don't think we ought to have one, or be asked to contribute to one or in any way engage in Christmas festivities." "The Junior Mason spoke emphatically and with marked disapproval of the little ante-room group nearby, making happy plans for Yule-tide. "That's very interesting," commented the Old Past Master. I like to hear points of view unfamiliar to me. Would you mind telling me why?" "Of course not. It's very simple. Masonry is not Christian. King Solomon, of course, wasn't a Christian, nor were either of the Hiram's. Masonry admits to her ranks any good man of faith; Christian, Jewish, Mohammedan, Buddhist... it makes no difference, so he has a Faith. Then, as a lodge, we celebrate a holiday belonging to one faith. Now I personally am a Christian, and of course I celebrate Christmas. But my brother across the way is a Jew, who does not recognize Christianity. To ask him to spend his proportion of lodge funds in celebrating the birth of a Leader in Whom he does not believe would be exactly like asking me to celebrate, with my proportion of lodge money, the birth of Confucius. Of course, I have only one vote and the majority rules, but when it comes to personal contributions to a Masonic Christmas celebration, my hands will never come out of my pockets." He shoved them deeper in as he spoke to emphasize his intention not to spend. "Hum!" answered the Old Past Master. "So you think your Jewish brother across the way doesn't recognize Christianity? Don't you mean he doesn't recognize Christ as the Son of God? Wait a minute... Oh, Brother Samuels." The Old Past Master called across the ante-room. "Here a minute, will you?" The Jewish brother rose and came forward. "I just wanted to ask you if you are in favor or against the lodge Christmas celebration?" asked the Old Past Master.
"Thank you," nodded the Old Past Master. Then as the Jewish brother went back to his seat, he turned to the Junior Mason. "You see, my son, our Jewish friend is not narrow. He does not believe in Christ as the Redeemer, but he recognizes that he lives in a country largely Christian, and belongs to a lodge largely Christian. To him the Christmas celebration is not one of His birthday, but of the spirit of joyousness and love which we mean when we sing, at Christmas time 'Peace on earth, good will towards men!' If you argue that 'peace' is only a Christian word, he might even quote to you the words of One who said 'I bring you not Peace, but a Sword.' "Now let me explain something to you. The Jew has just as much right to refuse to recognize Christ as the Son of God, as you have to refuse to consider Mohammed the Prophet the followers of Allah say he is. But as an educated man, you must know that Mohammed was a good man, a devout leader, a wise teacher. As an educated man, you admit that the religion founded by Buddha has much in it that is good, and you admit that Confucius was a wise and just leader. Were you in the land where the birthdays of any of these were celebrated, would you refuse your part in the people's joy in their Leader, simply because you followed another? I trust not. Well, neither do our Jewish brethren or our Mohammedan brethren, desire to be left out of our celebration. They may not believe in the Divinity of Him we, as Christians, follow, but if they are good men and good Masons... they are perfectly willing to admit that the religion we follow is as good for us as theirs is for them, and to join with us in celebrating the day which is to us the glad day of all the year. "Believe me, boy, Christmas doesn't mean Christ's birthday to many a man who calls himself Christian. It is not because of joy the He was born that many a good man celebrates Christmas. It is because his neighbor celebrates it, because it is a time of joy for little ones, because it is a day when he can express his thanks to his God that he is allowed to have a wife and family and children and friends and a lodge, because of that very 'peace on earth' spirit which is no more the property of the Gentile than the Jew, the Chinese or the Mohammedan.
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Continued From Page 5
"It is such a spirit that Masons join, all, in celebrating Christmas. It is on the Masonic side of the tree we dance, not the Christian side. When this lodge erects its Christmas tree in the basement and throws it open to the little ones of the poor of this town, you will find children of all kinds there; black, white, yellow, and brown, Jew and Gentile, Christian and Mohammedan. And you will find a Jew at the door, and among the biggest subscriptions will be those from some Jewish brethren, and there is a Jew who rents cars for a living who will supply us a dozen free to take baskets to those who cannot come. And when the Jewish Orphan Asylum has its fair, in the Spring, you will find many a Christian Mason attending to spend his money and help along the cause dear to his Jewish brethren, never remembering that they are of a different faith. That, my son, is Masonry."
"It is with this thought that we, as Masons, celebrate Christmas, to bring joy to our brethren and their little ones, and truly observe the brotherhood of man and the Fatherhood of God, whether we be Jew or Gentile, Mohammedan or Buddhist." The Old Past Master ceased and stood musing, his old eyes looking back along a long line of lodge Christmas trees about which eager little faces danced. Then he turned to the Junior Mason. "Well," he said smiling, "Do you understand?"
"I thank you for my Christmas present," came the answer. "Please tell me to which brother I should make my Christmas contribution?"
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by Brother Jeff Godwin
In speculative masonry we as Master Masons may freely move from Lodge to Lodge (either visiting or moving membership) and upon proper avouchment or by testing be found worthy to attend another Master Mason Lodge. This is much the same as moving from one job to another or from one ancient Masonic guild to another. Also, a Master Mason is a traveler from west to east, as east is the where the sun comes up, hence the source of light. This is why the master sits in the East. Because it is the source of light. Thus being a traveling man represents our journey from darkness to Masonic light (enlightenment). We "traveled" symbolically when we were raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason. Remember the words, "It will be necessary for you to travel"? and the condition of the road we would have to travel?
In Masonry we are told to seek the light. Light in Masonry is knowledge and from that knowledge comes information and understanding.
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Stephen F. Austin, Freemason and Father of Texas
Austin's plan for a colony in Texas was halted when Mexico gained independence from Spain in 1821. Austin was informed that the junta instituyente, the new congress of the government of Agustín I of Mexico, refused to recognize the land grant made to his father by the Spanish government. Austin traveled to Mexico City and managed to persuade the junta instituyente to authorize the grant that had been given to his father, which would, in turn, permit immigration plans by Impresario Austin to continue. By late 1825, Austin had brought the first 300 families, now known in Texas history as the Old Three Hundred, to the land grant originally given to his father. Of the original 300 families, 39 of them are known to have been headed by Master Masons.
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By Tim Tyler - Maple Ridge News
Tim Tyler - Maple Ridge News Published: October 02, 2008 6:00 PM I'm going to make this election easy for you. . . It's a free country. You can vote for a guy with 19th century mutton chops (You vote for me and I'll be your Chum), who has run no less than 7 times and is as much a fixture at election time as roadside signs, photo ops and hyperbole. There are two independent candidates this year for those of you who are fed up with party politics and want the pleasure of voting without the pleasure of making a difference. Besides Chum Richardson, we have Evan Nicholson, whose website, Choosing Truth Ministries (ctm.org) offers diatribes about the evils of Freemasonry and its links to the KKK, the mafia, and the scouting and brownie movements, the latter two promoting witchcraft and giving the devil a foothold into the church through their secret rituals. I knew that Lord Baden Powell was a trouble maker and that every apple I sold on the street as a cub scout was the devil's treat.
Should make for some interesting all-candidates debates. |
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In Bid For Members By Alan Burke Staff writer The Salem News - Beverly, MA
Hollywood couldn't concoct a more ominous crowd. All men, they gather to perform odd rituals. Their roots go back so many centuries, no one knows exactly when they started. They recognize one another through secret handshakes and exotic symbols.
And now the Freemasons have startled the world with the ultimate conspiracy — television commercials aimed at attracting new members.
Except, it's not exactly a conspiracy if it's on television.
In truth, Austin says, the group has always been welcoming of anyone wanting to join. And if Freemasonry is a conspiracy, it's a conspiracy to do good, to provide scholarships, to donate to the Shriners' Hospital and help fellow Masons in need. (The Shriners are a subgroup of the Masons.) "We use the mason's tools," says Austin. "The level. Every mason is on the level. The plumb line. Every mason is upright and erect." "If it was secret," argues John Blaney of the Marblehead lodge, "there wouldn't be a sign outside every town saying 'Philanthropic Lodge of Masons meets every Thursday.'" Nevertheless, not enough people know about the Masons to keep the membership lists stable. Fraternal organizations in general have suffered a loss of members in recent years, says Alan Foulds of the Scottish Rite, another Masonic subgroup. The TV commercials feature an actor portraying Freemason Ben Franklin, calling for young men to join. Over the years a number of lodges across the state have simply disappeared. Membership ranges from as many as 800 men in Salem's two lodges to 200 in Peabody, says Austin. "But if you get 20 percent of those at a meeting, you're doing a good job." Marblehead, half the size of Salem, is apparently doing a very good job, bucking the trend. The town lists as many as 600 at a lodge founded before the Revolution. Paul Revere signed the charter. "I just got my pin for 60 years as a member," says Mason Emerson Brown. Becoming a Mason after service in World War II, the 87-year-old sees the organization partly as a social club. "You have a wonderful time here." More importantly, he adds, "We help a lot of people who need it." "It's a brotherhood dedicated to helping others," echoes Marblehead Mason Harry Christensen. With Masons already in his family, he joined after service in Vietnam inspired him to help others. Centuries of history Freemasonry goes back at least to the 1600s. Almost any man is eligible — women can join auxiliary organizations. "We have members from all the religions," Christensen says, "Jewish, Moslem, Christian." Belief in a supreme being is one of the prerequisites of Freemasonry, says Blaney. He blames the recent declining membership on the time-consuming demands of modern life. Marblehead with its unique sense of history and community has avoided such pitfalls. Marblehead is very close," explains Austin. "It's a neighborhood." Moreover, the lodge itself has been careful to retain all the Masonic rituals and ceremonies. These tend to cement an individual's dedication, Blaney believes. The decision to advertise was not without controversy within Freemasonry. "You may have lost a little bit of the mysticism," says Austin. "One side thought we should have made it more exclusive." In the past, the Masons have waited for potential members to come to them. In just that way they attracted some impressive people, including presidents George Washington, Harry Truman, and Theodore and Franklin Roosevelt. On the other hand, the TV commercials have had an impact.
"We've gotten people who wouldn't have thought of it to consider joining," says Austin. Many are young — although one was old enough to comment, "If I'd known about this, I would have joined 41 years ago."
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For that matter, says Charles Austin, a Freemason at the Salem Masonic Temple, they were never all that shadowy to start with. In the past, he scoffs, "people were claiming we were a secretive, satanic cult."
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There are four different salutes given within a Lodge:
(1. Saluting the Flag during Pledge of Allegiance.
The Obligation and the Oath: The obligation is a promise made by the candidate to the members of his Lodge and to the Fraternity. The oath is the "So help me God!" that follows the obligation.
When the Lodge is open, it is a form of grave disrespect for a member to pass between the East and the Altar except during progression in the degrees. The Master should always have the Holy Writ, his inspiration and Light, directly in view. In jurisdictions in which the Lesser Lights are placed in a triangular form about the Altar, it is customary not to walk between the Altar and a light.
The ballot box should be placed on the Altar, not on the three Great Lights, obscuring them. Nothing but the square and compasses should rest upon the open Book of the Law.
A Lodge may not be adjourned for any purpose. No member has the authority to present a motion for adjournment since that would usurp the Master's power. A Lodge must be in one of three conditions: Closed, open and at work, or at refreshment.
Always be fully "dressed" before entering a Lodge while in session. It is a serious disrespect to the Master to approach the altar while still tying or adjusting your apron. This should be done in the anteroom prior to entry. The Tyler should insure that a brother arriving late is properly dressed before announcing him. When, as sometimes happens upon "big nights", there are not enough aprons, a handkerchief may be tucked in the belt to take its place.
Concerning dress: Many Lodges have dress codes. If you plan to visit a Lodge, make every effort to discern their standards for proper dress before your visit. If that is impossible, then you should dress as you would to attend church. Few, if any, Lodges will find fault with your dress if in a coat and tie, even though they may attend Lodge in formal dress. Some Lodges have a "come as you are" standard, especially those Lodges where many of their members are farmers or laborers who would not be able to return home after a day's work to change and make it to Lodge on time. Attending Lodge is an obligation.
Damaging subjects to the universal good name of Freemasonry are:
1.) Any mention of a goat to any person concerning the workings of a Lodge. The goat has for centuries been seen by many as a symbol of Satan. It is not in good taste, even though in jest, to "threaten" a candidate with "Riding the Goat!" When overheard by the profane, statements such as this add fuel to the long standing Anti-Masonic attitude.
2.) We do not have "Masonic Bibles!" There are no such items. We have Holy Bibles with the Masonic Emblems stamped on the front and some even with graphic illustrations within of King Solomon's Temple. We have them on our Lodge altars and we have personal copies, but those are not "Masonic Bibles!" They should not be referred to as such. For the same reasons as above, those who distrust our great Fraternity have often been heard to say "Freemasons do not believe in God. Why, they even have their own bible!"
In general, discussions of sectarian religion, partisan politics, race or any subject which divides men into opposed schools of thought are prohibited by Masonic law. In most lodges, speaking for or against any candidate prior to election is forbidden; good manners would seem to demand no such discussion even when permitted. The utterance of personalities, the showing of bitterness, ill will, criticism of officers or Grand Officers are of course discourteous.
It is illegal to enter or leave the room during a ballot. It is discourteous to leave during a speech, or during a degree, except at the several natural periods which end one section and begin another.
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If an officer is absent, the officers below his station do not necessarily move up, each a chair. There is no "advancement by right" for any office except that of Master. The Master fills any vacancy by temporary appointment. In the absence of the Master the Senior Warden presides. In some jurisdictions it is Customary for a Master to ask a Past Master to fill a temporarily vacant chair; in others, he may ask any brother he believes qualified.
Being properly dressed is a courtesy to the Lodge officers and it's traditions.
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Richard Stradling, Staff Writer The News & Observer Raleigh, N.C. Tuesday, September 23, 2008
The vote -- at the annual convention of the Ancient, Free and Accepted Masons of North Carolina in Winston-Salem -- follows years of frustration among the group's leadership, which each year had introduced a resolution to recognize the black group. "Old ways, old cultures and old traditions die hard," said the group's grand master, David Cash, a Methodist minister from Kannapolis. "And that's why this is so monumental." The black organization, the Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of North Carolina, officially recognized its white counterpart in 2004. Prince Hall Grand Master Milton "Toby" Fitch Jr. said that Leonard Safrit Jr., a former grand master of the white group who has become a close friend, called him moments after Friday's vote, as he has each year since 2004.
Despite shared roots and goals, each group officially pretended the other did not exist. Friday's vote does not merge the groups in any way. But it should lead to cooperation between the two Masonic organizations, which have about 60,000 members between them. "I suspect that a lot of what we're going to be doing is feeling the relationship out in the coming months and years," said Ric Carter, secretary of the predominantly white group. "Several individual lodges are already cooperating, and I think we will see a lot more of that now." Fitch said he, Cash and other representatives of the two organizations would begin meeting in Raleigh late this week to work out details of their new relationship, including questions about when and under what circumstances members can visit each other's lodges. The resolution recognizing the Prince Hall group passed 642-328. Cash said that with an average age of about 62, most of the Masons in his organization grew up during segregation and have had to work to embrace the notion of diversity. "We've worked really hard to say that what we believe as Masons is that it is the internal qualities of a man that God sees and judges, not the external," Cash said.
There are now 10 state Masonic groups, most in the South, that do not recognize their Prince Hall counterparts as legitimate Masons, according to Paul M. Bessel, a Mason from the Washington, D.C., area who tracks them. |
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Recognized By Local Open House Events
In 1733, Henry Price, a Boston merchant and tailor, received a charter from the Grand Lodge of England allowing him "to Constitute One or More Regular Lodge or Lodges as he shall think fit." On July 30 of that year, Price exercised his authority and 18 Freemasons were empowered to work as a Masonic lodge. On the basis of this precedent, the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts was effectively established; 2008 marks its 275th Anniversary. It now holds the distinction of being the third oldest Grand Lodge in the world and the oldest in the Western Hemisphere. A Grand Lodge is the governing body that oversees the activities of the lodges within its jurisdiction. On Saturday, Oct. 18, Caleb Butler Lodge, 11 Sculley Road, Ayer, will join with 235 lodges throughout the state and host an open house from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., continuing a year-long commemoration that recognizes Massachusetts as the birthplace of American Freemasonry. Members of the lodge will be on hand to give tours of their building, and to help the public gain a better understanding of the fraternity, its history, and the positive impact it has on its members, their families, and the community. The origins and history of Freemasonry are clouded in uncertainty. It is thought to have arisen from English and Scottish guilds of practicing stonemasons and cathedral builders in the Middle Ages. Others have speculated that the order descended from the Knights Templar. Over the years, researchers have never been able to conclusively determine exactly when, where, how or why Freemasonry evolved.
The formation of the first Grand Lodge in London in 1717 marks the beginning of the Modern (or "Speculative") era of Freemasonry, when members were no longer limited to working stonemasons. The Grand Lodge of Ireland was organized in 1725. The Grand Lodge of Massachusetts came next in 1733.
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Then, after school, I found myself back at Garfield
Lodge No 569. I never had the experience of going to lodge on
a regular basis, so I mainly watched from the sidelines. After
almost four years, I never developed a connection with my home
lodge -- an experience I am sure many Masons feel after they
have been through a one-day class. With a lack of connection, I
began to justify a lack of obligation to the operation and growth
of the fraternity. Then, several officers of the Lodge reached out
to me and personally invited me to meetings every week. I started
attending and last year, I agreed to take an appointed office.
I, like many men in my generation, take my obligation
seriously, and now I am developing that connection that I always
looked for in other places. I know when I walk into that lodge
building, or when I meet with any of them, that I can trust them
and I am safe. Masonry is important to me now. Even though
I am tired from working/driving 10 hours every day, I will still
go to Lodge. I know that we do important work, and I want to
truly be a part of that. I learn something new every time I have
Masonic conversation and I now look forward to many years of
service to our community and fellowship with my brothers.
~~Mike Sassman, Junior Steward
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The Sheffield Telegraph 08 October 2008
The University of Sheffield's Centre for Research into Freemasonry, together with the Showroom Cinema, will screen two radical films this Autumn, documenting the mysterious world of the fraternal organisation. Forces Occultes, a Nazi propaganda film made during the 1940's, will be shown for the first time with English subtitles on Monday 13 October 2008. The film opposes the Freemasons and the Jews and depicts them attempting to push France into a war against Germany. The Director, Jean Mamy (a.k.a Paul Riche), a journalist at the French fascist newspaper "Au pilori" and a fierce anti-Semite, was condemned to death because of his overt collaboration with the Nazi's. The film was later used during the Nuremberg trials as evidence of Nazi propaganda. The Scottish Key, the first documentary film to look at the different theories about freemasonry and its origins, will have its UK premiere on Monday 10 November 2008. Spread across the globe, the Freemason's discrete and mysterious association has been a source of curiosity, fascination and suspicion for over 300 years. The film, soon to be broadcast in Australia and Germany, examines previously unrevealed documents and reconstructs intriguing historical events to shed new light on a little known history. Producer and co-author, François de Smet, will attend this special event and be available for the panel discussion that will follow afterwards. De Smet studied political philosophy at the Free University of Brussels and has published books and articles on human rights, racism and cultural diversity. The Centre for Research into Freemasonry was established in 2000 as the first centre in a British university devoted to scholarly research into the freemasons, the fraternal organisation. The Centre studies the historical, social and cultural impact of freemasonry, particularly in Britain. Doctor Andreas Önnerfors, Director of the Centre for Research into Freemasonry, said:
"The origins of freemasonry have triggered the fantasy and imagination of many people. Freemasonry invented a history of its own dating back to the creation of the world and involving many of the most important figures in world history.
Forces Occultes and The Scottish Key will be shown at the Showroom Cinema on Paternoster Row and will be followed by a panel discussion. Tickets will cost £3 and are available from the Showroom Cinema.
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In China the implements of architecture were used in a system of moral philosophy at a very early date. Mencius, who wrote about 300 B.C., said: "A master Mason, in teaching his apprentices, makes use of the compasses and the square. Ye who are engaged in the pursuit of Wisdom, must also make use of the compasses and the square." In a book called Great Learning, 500 B.C., we find that "A man should abstain from doing unto others what he would not they should do unto him; and this is called the principle of acting on the square." 
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by Andrew A. Zellers-Frederick, Executive Director, The Masonic Library and Museum of Pennsylvania
Following the decisive 1781 Battle of Yorktown, Bro. Lafayette secured permission of Congress, which was meeting in Philadelphia, to return to his native France. Thanked by Congress with a fine letter of appreciation for his dedicated services to the young republic, he also received a personal letter from Bro. Washington saying: "I owe it to your friendship and to my affectionate regard for you, my dear Marquis, not to let you leave this country without carrying with you fresh marks of my attachment to you, and new expressions of the high sense I entertain of your military conduct and other important services in the course of the last campaign..." Lafayette's heartfelt reply was "Adieu, my dear General, I know your heart so well that I am sure no distance can alter your attachment to me. With the same candour I assure that my love, respect, my gratitude for you, are above expression..." Brothers Lafayette and Washington would see one another for the last time in 1784 when the Marquis visited America and stayed at Mount Vernon. Nearly half a century after the American Revolution, Bro. Lafayette is officially invited by President and Brother James Monroe to visit the United States. A hectic tour of 25 states, including the sites associated with the war and visits to the remaining aging individuals associated with America's eight-year long independence struggle, began in August 1824 and lasted more than a year, until September 1825. During this time, Bro. Lafayette received more Masonic honors than any Freemason before or since with lodges, chapters, councils, commanderies, Scottish Rite and Grand Lodges conferring honorary degrees, citations, gifts and memberships. Today, there are more than 75 Masonic bodies within the United States named after him including 39 lodges, 18 chapters, four councils, four commanderies and seven Scottish Rite bodies. A high point of Bro. Lafayette's triumphant tour was his visit in Philadelphia. Arriving in the city's environs on Sept. 26, he was treated to a week-long, intense schedule of receptions, balls and special events which rekindled people's interest in the American Revolution and the dedication of those who served in it. An exceptional event of the Philadelphia festivities was the formal reception and dinner presented to him by the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania on Oct. 2, 1824, and held at the rebuilt Chestnut Street Masonic Hall. The building was suitably adorned, and paintings of both Brothers Washington and Lafayette were placed within the banquet room. This year marks the 250th anniversary of Bro. Lafayette's birth (the actual birth date is Sept. 6). To commemorate this special historic occasion and Bro. Lafayette's contributions both to Freemasonry and America, The Masonic Library and Museum of PA has tentatively scheduled an all-day event on Saturday, Oct. 20, which will include scholarly lectures, a walking tour of Lafayetteassociated sites in Philadelphia and a luncheon at the historic City Tavern where Brothers Washington and Lafayette met for the first time. This event will have limited space, so advance reservations are strongly urged to avoid disappointment. For reservations or for inquiries about this event, call (215) 988-1909.  From the collection of The Masonic Library and Museum of PA Translation of Letter from Bro. Lafayette to Peter Du Ponceau
La Grange 10 August 1828Note: DuPonceau, (1760-1844) a lawyer, was Bro. Baron Von Steuben's aide-de-camp during the Revolution. An authority on American Indian languages, he petitioned Lodge No. 2, Philadelphia, and received his entered apprentice and fellow craft degrees on Aug. 14, 1782. There is no mention of a Master Mason degree.
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