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Masonry in Oklahoma, bits and pieces |
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The story of Masonry in Oklahoma
Atoka County The story of Masonry in Oklahoma begins on April 30, 1803, when Robert L. Livingston and James Monroe, Master Masons, negotiated with the French Minister of Finance for the purchase of Louisiana Territory. The United States was represented by President Thomas Jefferson, a Master Mason, while the French were represented by Marbois, who may not have been a Mason at the time he signed the Treaty, but who was reported at one time to have been an initiate. Merriwether Lewis witnessed the signature of the President. Lewis and William Clark, both Master Masons, explored the entire area. However, that part of Louisiana which is now Oklahoma was first officially visited by Captain Zebulon Pike, a Master Mason, prominent in the Craft in 1806. He explored the territory of the Arkansas River to the Mississippi and on to New Orleans. In 1824 Fort Gibson and Fort Towson became headquarters for Colonel Matthew Arbuckle, a Master Mason. Colonel Arbuckle, with advice from Pierre Choteau, a noted fur trader and Master Mason, became a commanding figure in every activity of the early Indian arrival into the area. Masons who played important roles among the Cherokee people include Elias C. Boudinot, delegate to Confederate Congress, Colonel in Confederate States of America, lawyer, whose father was the first editor of the Cherokee Phoenix newspaper; John Ridge, leader of the Cherokee people and signed the Treaty of New Echota; Will Rogers, humorist and philanthropist; Cherokee Chief John Ross; Cherokee Chief William P. Ross; and Stand Watie, signed the Treaty of New Echota and the last Confederate General to surrender the colors during the War Between the States. Charles Moore, who also signed the Treaty of New Echota on December 29, 1835, is the fifth great-grandfather of one of the Wagoner Masonic Lodge No. 98 members. Cherokee Masons petitioned the Grand Lodge of Arkansas for dispensation to open a Lodge in Tahlequah. The efforts of the brethren were so satisfactory that the Grand Lodge F. & A.M. of Arkansas issued a charter to Cherokee Lodge No. 21 on November 7, 1848. After the War Between the States, three of six lodges under the allegiance of the Grand Lodge of Arkansas organized themselves into a Convention and the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory came into existence on October 5, 1874. On November 10, 1892, the Grand Lodge of Oklahoma Territory began with the aid and assistance of the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory. The two Grand Bodies were formally united as the Grand Lodge of Oklahoma during the convention of February 8, 1909, naming Joseph S. Murrow as one of two Grand Secretaries. Murrow was a Southern Baptist missionary who traveled Oklahoma establishing more than 100 Southern Baptist churches, the first Baptist Orphans Home for Indian children in Atoka, Bacone College in Muskogee, and 60 Masonic lodges earning him the distinction of being known as "the father of Freemasonry in Oklahoma." Oklahoma remains to be the only state to have formed three separate Grand Lodges by convention. Wagoner was named after Henry Samuel “Bigfoot” Wagoner who decided the KATY Railroad needed a switch to load cattle and lumber from the area between Flat Rock and Gibson Station in 1883. The first permanent residents arrived in Wagoner on June 5, 1887 -- William H. and Sallie H. McAnnally started the Cottonwood Hotel. On February 25, 1888, the town’s request for a post office was granted and William W. Teague, a native of Indiana, was named the city’s first postmaster. Samuel S. Cobb, Master Mason, became the second postmaster on July 24, 1890. Cobb was also called “the financial power in Wagoner” by Brad Agnew, Ph.D., in his book titled Wagoner, I.T. – “Queen City of the Prairies”. The Masonic Lodge was organized in Wagoner in 1895 – when Wagoner was still in Indian Territory. John Coyle of Valley Lodge No. 6, Pauls Valley, served as Grand Master during this period. Coyle brought a wealth of experience to the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory as he had served his lodge as Worshipful Master for a non-consecutive total of fourteen years. On March 1, several members of the community who were Masons from other states gathered to write the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory so that a Lodge might be opened in Wagoner. The meeting was called to order by W.B. Davis, T.A. Parkinson, S.S. Cobb and James Gates. Among those attending was Leo E. Bennett, who gave instructions on how to properly petition the grand lodge. Bennett served as Grand Master longer than any other in the history of Freemasonry in the area that is now Oklahoma -- 1889, 1890, 1891, and 1892. He also served as an Indian Agent, U.S. Marshal in the Indian Territory, and elected as Mayor of the City of Muskogee. Bennett was raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason on June 1, 1886, in Belle Point Lodge No. 20, of Fort Smith, Arkansas and affiliated with Muskogee Lodge No. 28 on March 15, 1889. That same evening the lodge elected its first officers: James Gates as Worshipful Master, and W.H. Jackson as Secretary. S.S. Cobb was elected Senior Warden and T.A. Parkinson as Junior Warden. The name of the new lodge was to be the same as the town’s – Wagoner. However, during the group’s second meeting held March 16, 1895, at the Episcopal Church, a motion was made to change the group’s name from Wagoner Lodge to St. John’s Lodge. Dues were paid to the state and the lodge was named St. John’s Lodge No. 83, Free and Accepted Masons. A letter of dispensation was given to St. John's Lodge of Wagoner on March 27, 1895, by Grand Secretary Joseph S. Murrow. On April 2, 1895, Alexander Clingan Cobb became the first initiated Entered Apprentice of the lodge. He was passed to the degree of Fellow Craft on May, 25, 1895, and raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason on June 8, 1895. In January of 1896, Wagoner became the first town in Indian Territory to incorporate. The town held its first election on April 28, 1896, electing two Master Masons to office: Captain William Jackson as mayor and Terry Parkinson as a city counselor. Parkinson later served as Wagoner’s fifth mayor in 1902, county clerk, and state representative from 1919 to 1921. St. John’s Lodge No. 83 was changed back to Wagoner Lodge and the group was given the number 98 on February 10, 1909, since the lodge was now under the Grand Lodge of Oklahoma instead of the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory. The lodge met for many years in the upstairs area over Castle and Hoefle Hardware on South Main. On December 1, 1962, they moved to their present location on the west side of Wagoner. Today, Wagoner Lodge No. 98 has about 160 members. Most men who go about their jobs and professions with no hint they are Freemasons except for the way they lead their lives. Several politicians have belonged to Wagoner Masonic Lodge No. 98 over the years, including: two state representatives, one state senator, one district judge, one assistant district judge, one special district judge, two district attorneys, seven mayors, four city counselors, two county clerks, four school board members, one sheriff, one police chief, two Wagoner County Democratic Party chairmen, and one Wagoner County Republican Party chairman. On the national scene, George Washington and 13 other Presidents, 8 Vice Presidents, and 42 Justices of the Supreme Court have been Masons from various lodges. 10 Masons signed the Articles of Association, 9 Masons signed the Declaration of Independence, 13 Masons signed the Constitution of the United States, 33 Masons served as General Officers of the Continental Army (8 Masons served as Aides and Military Secretaries to George Washington), and 9 Masons signed the Articles of Confederation. The lodge is made up of men from all different types of vocations: farmers, cattlemen, business owners, bankers, attorneys, doctors, pharmacists, firefighters, insurance agents, insurance adjusters, retirees, teachers, coaches, politicians, principals, managers, ministers, salesmen, law enforcement, government employees, carpenters, machinists, and others. ============================================ TOP History of Atoka County Located in southeast Oklahoma and settled in the mid-1800's, this county was first called Shappaway, with the county seat located in the Choctaw Court grounds on the banks of the Muddy Boggy River. The name was later changed to Atoka, in honor of Captain Atoka a noted Choctaw who led a band of his people to this area during the removal of the Five Civilized Tribes to Indian Territory. Atoka, the county seat, was a stop on the Texas Road; the route followed when mail service began between Missouri and San Francisco in 1857. Boggy Depot, located in the western part of the county, was established in 1837, when Cyrus Harris, "the future governor of the Chickasaw Nation, " built a log cabin on the divide between clear Boggy River and Sandy Creek. Boggy Depot became a bustling community, and served as an important trading post during these early years and is now historic Boggy Depot State Park. The first post office in Boggy Depot, Choctaw Nation was established November 5, 1849. Postmaster: William R. Guy. The town's church, built in 1840 by the Rev. Cyrus Kingsbury ("Father of the Choctaw Mission") served as the Capitol of the Choctaw Nation in 1859. Boggy Depot served as a commissary depot for the confederates during the Civil War. The Old Butterfield route covered 192 miles and was one of the principal roads, through Indian Territory, from Fort Smith, AR, to Colbert's Ferry on the Red River. Fees to travel from Memphis or St. Louis to San Francisco was $200, a large sum for the time. Local citizens traveled for 10 cents a mile. June 30, 1861, was the last trip made over the route of the Butterfield Stage Line. The efforts to tie the country together, was short lived due to the Civil War. The demise of Boggy Depot began in 1872, when the M-K-T railroad bypassed the town and New Boggy Depot was established two miles south. Atoka County was the site of Oklahoma's first Masonic Lodge chartered in 1869 at Boggy Depot, first chapter of Eastern Star, and first Catholic Church in Indian Territory. Atoka County covering 967 square miles, is well known for its hunting and fishing, since half its area is forested and contains several mountain streams and man-made lakes. Due to the efforts of the late Crockett Lowry it is the site of Oklahoma's largest deer propagation reserve. The largest rock quarry in Oklahoma is located at Stringtown, is the source of granite quarried at this location and delivered all over Oklahoma and TX for use in highway building. You will find that this county site does not contain any frills. My goal is to devote my time gathering information that will be helpful to those researching their ancestors in Atoka County. Please keep in mind, while visiting this web site, that the information found within these pages is not to be reproduced in any manner, or used for profit or publication. The information is the property of the submitter. Thanks for stopping by, this web site. Ruth Atteberry Adams, Atoka County Coordinator. ============================================= TOP Prelude to a State Boggy Depot's contribution to Oklahoma outlasted all her structures, for it was the source of the state's name. Chief Allen Wright, principal chief of the Choctaw Nation, suggested the word "Oklahoma" (meaning "Red People") in 1866 as the name for the proposed Indian Territory. In 1907 the word was made the official state name. The Townsite and adjoining Cemetery are listed on the National Register of Historic Places and on Oklahoma's list of Oldest Historical Places. The name Boggy Depot was derived from the three rivers that flow nearby, the Clear Boggy, the Muddy Boggy, and the North Boggy. "Boggy" was the word given the rivers by the French trader who called the rivers "Vazzures," meaning miry or boggy. The name "Depot" was added after a Choctaw-Chickasaw treaty of 1837 required the Chickasaws to pay annuities on the Choctaw lands at the "Depot of the Boggy." Old Boggy Depot Began in 1837 when Cyrus Harris, the future governor of the Chickasaw Nation, built a log cabin on the divide between clear Boggy River and Sandy Creek. With the settlement of the first Chickasaws along the Boggy and Blue Rivers in 1838, the Depot became a bustling community. The establishment of Fort Washita in 1842 caused the Fort Supply-Boggy Depot Road to become even more important along with the surge of white settlers to Texas in 1846, the gold rush to California in 1849, and an ever-increasing trade business. The town's church, built in 1840 by the Rev. Cyrus Kingsbury (so-called "Father of the Choctaw Missions"), served as the Capitol of the Choctaw Nation in 1859. During the Civil War, when federal forces abandoned southern Indian Territory, the confederates made Boggy Depot their commissary depot. The first Masonic Lodge in the State of Oklahoma was chartered at Boggy Depot in 1869. Later, the Masonic Grand Lodge chartered at Boggy Depot in 1869. Later, the Masonic Grand Lodge of Guthrie erected a granite monument at the location of the old Lodge with the original members' names engraved. Boggy Depot acquired a post office in 1848, along with mail routes to surrounding areas. In 1858, Boggy Depot became a stop on the Butterfield Overland mail route from St. Louis to San Francisco. Boggy Depot's decline began in 1872 when the M-K-T Railroad route bypassed the town and the "New" Boggy Depot was established two miles south. With the move of the established post office and local businesses, Old Boggy Depot faded into a memory. The Boggy Depot State Park near Atoka in southeastern Oklahoma, is popular among travelers for its pleasant surrounding, recreational facilities and its significance as a major historical site. Adjoining the area is the old cemetery maintained by the Oklahoma Tourism Department with graves of Chief Allen Wright and Rev. Cyrus Kingsbury, along with many Confederate troops and other Indian leaders. Located in Atoka County, Boggy Depot can be reached by traveling 11 miles west on SH-7 from Atoka, then 4 miles south on Park Lane, the first road west of the bridge over Clear Boggy Creek.
Boggy Depot State Park BOGGY DEPOT'S PLACE IN OKLAHOMA HISTORY
INSCRIPTION ON HISTORICAL MARKER ON
HIGHWAY 7
BOGGY DEPOT'S CONTRIBUTION TO OKLAHOMA OUT-LASTED ALL HER STRUCTURE, FOR IT WAS THE SOURCE OF THE STATE'S NAME. CHIEF ALLEN WRIGHT, PRINCIPAL CHIEF OF THE CHOCTAW NATION AND RESIDENT OF BOGGY DEPOT, SUGGESTED THE WORD OKLAHOMA, MEANING "RED PEOPLE", AS THE NAME FOR THE PROPOSED INDIAN TERRITORY IN 1866. IN 1907 THE WORD WAS MADE THE OFFICIAL STATE NAME. THE DEPOT BECAME A BUSTLING COMMUNITY IN 1838 WITH THE SETTLEMENT OF THE FIRST CHICKASAWS. THEN THE ESTABLISHMENT OF FORT WASHITA IN 1842 CAUSED THE FORT SUPPLY/BOGGY DEPOT ROAD TO BECOME EVEN MORE IMPORTANT ALONG WITH THE SURGE OF WHITE SETTLERS TO TEXAS IN 1846, THE GOLD RUSH TO CALIFORNIA IN 1849 AND AN EVER-INCREASING TRADE BUSINESS. BOGGY
DEPOT IS NOW A BEAUTIFUL STATE PARK, LOCATED ABOUT 62 MILES NORTHEAST OF
ARDMORE, OKLAHOMA ON HIGHWAY 7. THE TURN OFF TO THE PARK IS APPROXIMATELY 7
MILES EAST OF WAPANUCKA, OKLAHOMA AND APPROXIMATELY 11 MILES WEST OF ATOKA,
OKLAHOMA. FROM EITHER OF THESE POINTS IT IS 4 MILES SOUTH.
THE FOLLOWING WAS TAKEN FROM THE VARIOUS
HISTORICAL SIGN BOARDS LOCATED THROUGH OUT THE STATE PARK. THE SIGN BOARDS
NOT ONLY HAVE WRITTEN TEXT BUT ALSO LARGE MAPS.
TAKING ITS NAME FROM "VASEUX" - FRENCH FOR "MUDDY" - BOGGY DEPOT BECAME
AN IMPORTANT STOP ON TWO OF THE MAJOR ROUTES WEST DURING THE 19TH CENTURY.
HERE WAS LOCATED A STAGE STAND OF THE BUTTERFIELD OVERLAND DURING THE CIVIL WAR BOGGY DEPOT WAS THE MAJOR SUPPLY DEPOT FOR CONFEDERATE TROOPS OPERATING IN INDIAN TERRITORY. THE FIRST MASONIC LODGE IN THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA WAS AT BOGGY DEPOT AND A MONUMENT IS LOCATED AT THE SITE OF THE ORIGINAL LODGE HALL.
SITE DONATED BY
ANOTHER INTERESTING SITE IS THE 1830'S MIDDLE BOGGY BATTLEFIELD SITE AND
CEMETERY LOCATED AT THE WEST ENTRANCE TO BOGGY. A GOOD MANY OF THE
HEADSTONES DATE BACK TO THE EARLIEST BEGINNINGS OF THE HISTORY OF BOGGY.
CHOCTAW CHIEF ALLEN WRIGHT, REV. CYRUS KINGSBURY AND PROMINENT INDIAN
LEADERS ARE AMONG THE MANY BURIED THERE.
ELIZA J GUY SHE WAS BORN IN INDIAN TERRITORY; MARRIED CHARLES HOBART HEALD AT ELM GROVE, I.T. ON APRIL 10, 1861. SHE WAS THE MOTHER OF TEN CHILDREN. SHE DIED IN 1887 AT THE AGE OF 47 AND WAS BURIED IN THE MILL CREEK CEMETERY. SHE WAS REINTERRED BY HER SIX LIVING GRANDCHILDREN AT BOGGY DEPOT ON APRIL 11, 1992. BOGGY DEPOT WAS THE SITE OF HER HOME DURING THE EARLY YEARS OF HER MARRIAGE. WE FEEL THAT WE'VE BROUGHT LIZA JANE HOME. AND WE'RE GLAD.
PEACE EUFAULA MASONIC LODGE OLDEST IN OKLAHOMA (from the INDIAN JOURNAL Thursday, March 2, 1922, page 3) Eufaula Lodge number 1, A. F. & A. M., the oldest lodge in the State of Oklahoma, dates its beginning and history from the year of 1855. At this time the then Indian Territory was very sparsely settled, consisting principally of Indians, augmented by those white men who were real pioneers and missionaries in the Indian country. Prior to 1855, the Reverend C. N. Flover, a Methodist minister, had come into the Creek Indian country. He was a Mason at Van Buren, Arkansas, several years, the exact date is not known, before coming to the Indian country. George W. Stidham, and old-time Creek Indian, was living in the Creek nation. George W. Stidham was a leader among his people and had gone to Washington on tribal affairs several times. During these visits to Washington he had been made a Mason in a lodge at Washington, D. C., and had also received the highest degree in masonry while in Washington. Joseph Coody, a citizen of the Nation of Cherokee and Creek descent, was a Mason, as records of Eufaula lodge show, but the place of his former membership is hot known. These three, Geo. W. Stidham, Reverend Flover and Joseph Coody, with other members of the Masonic fraternity then in the Creek Indian country felt the need of a regularly constituted lodge. At this time, 1855, the Indian agency was located some seven or eight miles northwest of Muskogee. These three men and masons, met at the agency, by appointment. They had decided to obtain a charter for a Masonic lodge. They mounted their horses and rode to Little Rock, Arkansas and obtained a charter from the Grand Lodge of Arkansas, to establish a lodge in the Creek Nation, "at the town of Creek Agency", and the lodge was named "Muscogee number 93" and the date of the charter is November 9th 1855. The three principal officers of the lodge were George W. Stidham, W. M.; Wm. Whitfield, S. W; and Albert Barnwell J. W. This was the first Masonic lodge established in what is now Oklahoma. The lodge continued to work under its original charter for a number of years. At the early out-break of the Civil war, George W. Stidham, who was still master, joined the Confederate army. Joseph Coody was senior warden, but did not join the Confederate army until later. The war suspended Masonic activities, and when Joseph Coody went into the Confederate army, he took charge of the original charter of the Lodge, and the jewels of the officers and carried them with him throughout the entire war. After the close of the Civil war, and the return of George W. Stidham and Joseph Coody, Stidham moved to Old Eufaula, which is about one and one-half miles east of the present site of Eufaula, and erected a store and a dwelling. Acting under the original charter Masonic activities were renewed, meetings of the Lodge were held in the second story of the residence of Geo. W. Stidham. After the building of the Katy railroad the old Town of Eufaula was moved to its present site. George W. Stidham moved his store, and built on the present site of the W. L. Belt Trading Company in Eufaula. There was a second story or floor to the store and the Masonic lodge held its meeting there. On the first day of April, 1874, the Grand Lodge of Arkansas renewed the old charter but changed the number of the lodge from Muskogee number 93 to Muskogee number 90. The lodge operated under its renewed charter and new number until October 7, 1874. Masonry had grown by this time in the Territory to such an extent, that a closer relation between the lodges was needed. A general convention of Masonic lodges in the Indian Territory was called for October 5th, 6th and 7th, 1874 o meet at Caddo, I. T. The delegates from Muscogee Lodge, No. 90, Eufaula, I. T., were George W. Stidham, F. Crabree and Reverend H. F. Buckner. The convention was held and it was decided to organize a Grand Lodge of Indian Territory. The Masonic "Grand Lodge of Indian Territory" was perfected on the 6th and 7th of October 1874. Muscogee lodge number 90 at Eufaula, I. T., became a constituent lodge of the Grand Lodge of the Indian Teritory; was given a charter and was known or numbered as Muskogee number 1. Some of the old settlers or pioneers who were members of Muscogee Lodge number 1, Eufaula, I. T., are: George W. Stidham, Joseph Coody, Reverend H. F. Buckner, R. C. McGee, Dr. H. Lindsay, H. C. Ernest, F. Crabtree, Dr. Leo Bennett, W. E. Gentry, j. M. Perryman, Pleasnat Porter, J. J. McAlister, D. B. Whitlow, C. E. Foley, and many others. Mr. C. E. Foley is still living at Eufaula and retains his membership in the present Eufaula lodge, number 1, A. F. & A. M., and identified with all masonic activities. One of the best known and well loved Masons in Oklahoma, is Brother J. S. Murrow of Atoka, Oklahoma. It can not be definitely stated that he was ever a member of the Eufaula lodge No. 1, but in the very early days he was present at lodge meeting on various occasions. As early as February 25, 1876, by resolution of the Lodge, he was authorized to present certain matters to the Grand Lodge of the Indian Territory; and as late as August 27th 1880, he was refunded by the lodge certain moneys which he had expended for the benefit of the lodge. Another interesting feature abut Eufaula lodge number 1, in its early days is that its membership it was able to confer and exemplify the first three degrees in the English language and the Creek Indian language. As early as 1882, other Masonic lodges that had been established in the Indian Territory requested Muskogee lodge number 1, now Eufaula lodge number 1, to confer the degrees on certain applicants who spoke the Creek Indian language, and who were not sufficiently proficient in the English language to receive the degrees in that language. Muskogee lodge number 1, at Eufaula, I. T., continued to operate under its charter from the Grand Lodge of the Indian Territory, until after statehood. On February 11th 1909, it became a constituent lodge of the Grand Lodge of the State of Oklahoma, and was given a charter and retained its number and is now known as Eufaula Loge No. 1, A. F. & A. M., of the Grand Lodge of the State of Oklahoma. There is much that could be said about the early history of this lodge of which its membership could be justly proud. Updated Friday, 15-Mar-2002 18:10:38 MST McIntosh County Webmaster ================================================= TOP History Heavener Masonic Lodge Heavener Lodge, Indian Territory, was organized July 28, 1900 under dispensation of the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory. Its first meeting place was on Lots 2 and 3, Block 42, of the Town of Heavener - West First Street and West Avenue C, then known as Commercial Hotel Corner and now known as Heavener IGA. Heavener Lodge U.D. (an acronym which probably stood for "under dispensation") became Heavener Lodge No. 110 on Aug. 3, 1901 and then was changed by special dispensation of the Grand Lodge to become Heavener Lodge No. 154 on March 6, 1909. The location of the lodge was moved to the upstairs of the R.L. Walker building May 2, 1914 and the old lodge property was sold to L.B. Wright on July 4, 1914. That location was used until the new Temple above City Hall was completed and is now the location of the lodge. The corner stone was laid Wednesday, Nov. 30, 1927 by Most Worshipful Grand Master Earl G. Flesher assisted by other Grand Lodge officials. On September 15, 1970, Howe Lodge No. 290, with a membership of 47, consolidated with Heavener Lodge No. 154 A.F.&A.M. The first outdoor meeting held for the purpose of conferring the Master Mason Degree was held at the Heavener Runestone State Park on Sept. 22, 1973. The degree was conferred by the Most Worshipful Grand Master John Preble and other Grand Lodge officials making up the team. The present membership of Heavener Lodge No. 154 is 122. Above: Masonic brothers have crossed this threshold in downtown Heavener, ascended the stairs to the top floor and participated in the work of the lodge for more than 80 years. original 1900 charter from the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory,
Dispensation Heavener Lodge Issued July 4, 1900 This is to certify that the within named Lodge was duly organized and set to work on the 28 day of July 1900. GRAND LODGE OF
INDIAN TERRITORY The Most Worshipful the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory To ALL and Every One Worshipful and Loving Brethren – GREETINGS Know ye, That at the petition of the Worshipful and well beloved brethren - J.S. Smith, O.J.M. Brewer, J.D. Fowler, John R. Wilson, Frank Bishop, W.T. Clark, J.C. Patton, E.W. Moore, A.W. Gear and J.T. Hayney, and several other brethren residing at or near Heavener, in Choctaw Indian Nation of the Ancient and Honorable Fraternity of Free and Accepted Masons and for certain other reasons moving our Most Worshipful Grand Lodge do hereby constitute the said Brethren into a regular Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons to be opened in Heavener by the name of Heavener Lodge. At their said request and of their great trust and confidence reposed in every said Brethren, The Most Worshipful Grand Lodge doth appoint our Worshipful Brother J.S. Smith Master, Brother O.J.M. Brewer Senior Warden, and Brother J.D. Fowler Junior Warden for opening said Lodge and governing the same in the several degrees of Entered Apprentice, Fellow Craft and Master Mason. It is required of you our friend and Brother, the Worshipful Master to take special care that all and every of you the said Brethren of your Lodge as well as those hereafter admitted into our body by you, be regular made Masons and that they do observe, perform, and keep all the rules and orders contained in our Book of Constitution and the Ancient Landmarks be strictly attended to and further that you cause the entered into a book to be kept for the purpose and account of your proceedings with a list of those Initiated, Passed, and Raised or otherwise managed and transmit a copy of same with this letter of Dispensation to our Most Worshipful Grand Lodge at our Annual Communication for it expires by limitation on the first day of the session. Given at Atoka under my hand and seal of the Most Worshipful the Grand Lodge by order this 4th day of July, A.L. 5900 A.D. 1900. Joseph S. Murrow From- http://www.paulsvalley.com/community/history/overview.asp Masonic Lodge - The Masonic Lodge of Pauls Valley is the oldest enterprise in Pauls Valley in continuous existence. Valley Lodge #6 was chartered on September 7th, 1875 by the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory and has met continuously since that time. Silas Rogers was the first Master of Valley Lodge #6. Three members of Valley Lodge have gone on to be Grand Masters. John Coyle was a charter member of the Lodge and later served as Grand Master of Mason of the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory. B.A. McCurley and Dee Brown both served as Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of AF&AM of the State of Oklahoma. The Grand Lodge of Indian Territory and The Grand Lodge of Oklahoma Territory merged in 1909 and thus became the Grand Lodge, AF&AM of the State of Oklahoma. The Lodge now has 123 members and plans are underway for their 125th anniversary next year. ========================================
TOP from http://cwis.net/~lodge121/history.html A brief history of Stigler Lodge #121
ALBERT PIKE
LODGE #98
CHARTER MEMBERS
SOME INTERESTING EXCERPTS FROM PAST MINUTES. 4/9/1899 An account for jewels and furniture in the amount of $67.00 was allowed and paid. Whitewashing hall in the amount of $3.75 was allowed and paid. Voted to buy 1 dozen chairs for lodge room in amount of $9.00. Dues reduced from $2.00 to $1.00 1/25/02 15 members 2 guests present Voted to buy 2 dozen spittoons, a coal bucket, a lantern, & camellia sticks. Motion made to build a horse rack, committee appointed. 10/10/03 2 petitions read, committees appointed. Report on unmasonic conduct: charges sustained; prosecutor appointed; trial set for next meeting. $20.00 donated to Master Masons sick daughter. 8/27/04 Motion was made that all try to live right for one month. All so agreeing rose to their feet. Motion carried.
4/22/05 Bro. Head
reprimanded Brother for unmasonic conduct. Brother was charged with
unmasonic conduct, plead guilty, and ask for the mercy of the lodge. Ballot
spread to expel: rejected, Ballot spread to suspend indefinitely: rejected
Ballot spread to reprimand: passed. 10/4/05 Sam Rose, Willie Blankenship, & F.W. Young elected to receive degrees Motion to lease K.P. (knight of Pytheas) Hall for $4.00/month, $5.00 including Order of Eastern Star. The K.P.s will furnish fuel and lights. 6/20/06 Called meeting for funeral of Bro. James McRiley Grace. Marched in procession to Bro. Grace's house where they took charge of the remains and carried them to the Methodist Church where J.W. Stead preached the funeral. Then the body was carried to the cemetery where it was buried with the usual Masonic ceremonies. 11/17/06 Voted that smoking be prohibited in lodge room. Bro. M. Creekmore stated that he had been furnished with a copy of the law and that since he had learned that running a pool hall was against the Masonic law he had been trying to sell his pool hall and ask that if anyone saw anyone that wanted to buy it, to send them to him. He also stated that owing to having his hand hurting he had, at the day of the previous meeting, "drunk some" and come to the lodge and the warm room caused him to go to sleep. He asked pardon and was excused. 10/26/07 Committee reported that they had Bro. J.C. Cole's picture enlarged at a cost of $25.00 and framed at $10.00 and should be hung in lodge hall. Note: Bro. Cole's picture still hangs in our lodge 92 years later. 3/21/08 Brother was charged with unmasonic conduct for being drunk at the Midland Valley Depot. "Outraged public decency in presence of Mrs. Brack and her mother. Hereby that he be dealt with." 12/26/08 A communication was read from Bro. Lee O. Bennett requesting this lodge allow Albert Pike Lodge #60 of Guthrie to retain the name Albert Pike. A resolution was passed granting the name to Albert Pike #60 provided this lodge be given the name Stigler Lodge. 2/20/09 Voted that lodge put a stained glass window in the Methodist Church and assist the Eastern Star to put one in if they wanted to.
12/12/16 Treasurer's report. 4/8/19 Motion carried that lodge now meet on every 2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month. 5/13/19 Motion carried to purchase "Stigler Building" form First National Bank for consideration of $2,500. Motion for lodge to accept $750.00 for its 1/2 interest in lots owned jointly with IOOF. Committee appointed to raise money to buy building. (Committee: Eugene Mayer, J.R. Mathis, S.O. Brown, R.F. Terrell, Guy A. Curry, & O.L. Thomas.) These are some excerpts from the minutes of the early lodge here in Stigler. For obvious reasons some names have been omitted. Cherokee Lodge #10 Tahlequah, Oklahoma From http://www.leftmoon.com/cherokee10/history.asp A Brief History of Cherokee Lodge #10 Tahlequah, Oklahoma "Oldest Masonic Lodge in Oklahoma, Chartered 1848" (Excerpted from a work by George W. Moser and from the Cherokee Advocate, July 23, 1879) On October 3, 1837, the Grand Lodge of Tennessee chartered Washington Lodge #82 at Fayetteville, Arkansas. The Grand Lodge of Louisiana chartered Morning Star No. 42 at Arkansas Post and Western Star Lodge #43 at Little Rock on January 6, 1838. The Grand Master of Alabama issued dispensation to organize Mount Horeb Lodge 3 at Washington, Arkansas. These four bodies met in convention at Little Rock on November 21, 1838 and formed the Grand Lodge of Arkansas. After the formation of that Grand Lodge, Masonry in Arkansas began to spread over the state and farther west into the Indian Territory among the Cherokees and other tribes. The proceedings of the Grand Lodge of Arkansas F. & A. M. show that the Committee on Charters and Dispensations granted a charter to “Cherokee Lodge” at Tahlequah, Cherokee Nation on November 8, 1848. The new lodge was designated as Cherokee Lodge #21. Its first officers were: Walter S. Adair,
Worshipful Master These officers were duly installed on July 1849, in the Cherokee Supreme Court Building. This building was constructed in 1844 and was the first public building in what is now Oklahoma. The installation was presided over by Brother R. P. Pulliam, representing the Grand Lodge of Arkansas. Records show that Cherokee Lodge #21 had a membership of fourteen in 1849 and had grown to thirty-one by the following year. After the Lodge had been at work two years they were visited by Grand Master William H. Sutton of Little Rock, Arkansas who spent several days giving wholesome instruction, as well as exemplifying the work. His visit was of great advantage to the Lodge, and he expressed himself as being delighted with the general appearance and character of the membership. In fact, he went so far as to assure the Lodge that "Cherokee 21 was the Star Lodge of the Jurisdiction." As the lodge was now firmly established, a permanent meeting place was needed. Most of the lodge membership was Cherokee, including several ones of influence. Chief John Ross was a member of another lodge. William P. Ross, the lodge’s first secretary was also editor of the Cherokee Advocate newspaper and would later serve as Chief. The Cherokee National Council met in session at Tahlequah in 1852. Two lots were given jointly to the Masons and the Sons of Temperance on condition that a building be erected within two years. A two-story building was constructed the following year with the Sons of Temperance meeting on the first floor and the Masons on the second. School, church, and other community events were also held in the new structure. By 1853, lodge membership had increased to forty-two. That same year, the Grand Lodge of Arkansas granted a charter to Flint Lodge #74 in nearby Stilwell. It was not until November 9, 1855, seven years after Tahlequah was granted a charter, that Muscogee Lodge #93 (now known as Eufaula Lodge #1) was established in the Creek Nation. Events of the Civil War led to Eufaula securing the number one designation and Tahlequah dropping to number ten. During the first year of the war, the Grand Lodge of Arkansas lost nearly all of its records. At its November communication, held in Little Rock, only 51 of 168 chartered lodges were represented. None from Indian Territory were in attendance. During 1863-1865, the average number of lodges attending Grand Lodge was a mere twenty-three, again none from Indian Territory. In 1865, the Grand Lodge ordered the Grand Secretary to attempt to rebuild the records as much as possible from copies that might be found in the constituent lodges.
None of the Indian Territory lodges had made
a report since 1861. The Grand Secretary Sometime in 1867, Bro. H. D. Reece, Past Master of Cherokee Lodge #21, wrote that the charter and jewels of the lodge had been saved, and since there were only five members, requested more time to round up more members and pay up back dues. His request was refused. A request for reinstatement was made again on November 21, 1870, but denied by the Grand Master because the lodge had been declared dead and its number reassigned to Jasper, Arkansas. Cherokee Lodge #21 returned its charter and requested dispensation for a new lodge, but the request was denied because of no certificate showing the officers named had exemplified the work and lectures. The decision was most unjust as the officers named were officers of the old lodge. An appeal was made to the committee on charters and dispensations, but no action was taken. In 1874, there were six lodges: Oklahoma Lodge #217 at Boggy Depot in the Choctaw Nation, chartered November 18; Doaksville Lodge #279 in the Choctaw Nation, chartered November 7, 1871; Alpha Lodge #122, at Fort Gibson in the Cherokee Nation; Caddo Lodge #311, in the Choctaw Nation; Flint Lodge #74, having been reinstated and moved to Wilsonville, Arkansas was removed to Flint Court House in the Cherokee Nation; and, Muskogee Lodge 393 in the Creek Nation at Eufaula. Alpha Lodge was chartered by the Grand Lodge of Kansas, the remainder by the Grand Lodge of Arkansas. Three of these lodges: Caddo #311; Doaksville #279; and, Eufaula #90, called a meeting at Caddo and established the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory on October 6, 1874. Cherokee Lodge was not invited. It may be observed that Eufaula was given the number one designation before the Grand Lodge of Arkansas re-chartered it on October 15, 1874. Nothing more was heard from Cherokee Lodge until Bro. H. D. Reece made application to, and was granted dispensation on April 24, 1877, by Most Worshipful J. S. Murrow, Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory, for a Lodge at Tahlequah to be called “Cherokee Lodge.” The Committee on Charters and Dispensations reported the work of Cherokee Lodge to be good and recommended that a charter be granted. The charter, dated September 5, 1877 was then issued, and lodge became Cherokee Lodge #10 - and is the oldest Lodge in Oklahoma. June 24, 1878, being St. John’s Day, the newly elected officer, members, and visiting brothers (36) formed procession at 11:00 a.m. and marched in regular order to the capital Square where a public installation of officers was held. The first officers of the reconstituted lodge were:
H. D. Reece, Worshipful Master Other Charter Members were: P. T. Johnson, Jackson R. Gourd, Thomas T. Trainer, William Eubanks, W. P. McCoy, James Shelton, E. P. Harris, W. T. Adair, Leonidas Dobson, J. B. Mays, Joseph F. Thompson, George Keys, Levi Keys, John A. Foreman, John Cookson, T.K.B. McSpadden, and I. D. Leoser. The lodge grew and was soon feeling the need for a new building. A building committee was appointed and by 1889 a contract was let to erect a new temple at the corner of Muskogee and Choctaw streets. It was to be jointly owned by Cherokee Lodge #10 and Royal Arch Chapter #5. The old building sold for $500 and $300 was needed to buy the new site. To finance construction, twenty-two members signed notes bearing 10% interest to cover the $4,123.50 cost. An opera area occupied the first level. Its twenty foot ceiling provided an excellent venue for traveling theatrical companies. It even saw use as a Federal and State Court House. This was accomplished by a lodge with only 50 - 60 members. Even with rental income, the expense of the new lodge proved to be quite a burden on the membership for many years. Our current temple was dedicated April 7, 1955. That piece of land purchased in 1899 for $300 was sold for $10,250. Bro. Sam Willis owned an adjacent tract of land on generously donated it to the lodge. The cost of the new building was $24,323.35. Eight years later, a dining hall was added at a cost of $8,200 and became essentially the lodge as we know it today. In 1998 the Lodge celebrated 150 years of Masonry in Oklahoma. Grand Master Gary Odom and the Grand Lodge Officers came to Tahlequah to commerate the event and to rededicate the Lodge's cornerstone. Today the Lodge has approximately 360 members and is well-known in the community for its charitable giving.
Past Masters Tecumseh A.F. and A.M. (Masonic) Lodge No. 13 From http://www.tecumsehok.com/History/history2.htm Fraternal Lodges in the Farmers Bank-Masonic Hall The Tecumseh A.F. and A.M. (Masonic) Lodge No. 13 was chartered on February 13, 1894, with officers W.C. Baylis, W.N. McGee, S.J. Scott, John Anderson, A.D. King, E.A. Finks, W.J. Dyer, N.B. Goforth, Calvin Lewis and B.L. Greer. When Oklahoma became a state in 1907, the lodge was reorganized under state jurisdiction and became Lodge No. 69. A chapter of the Order of Eastern Star was organized here on April 4, 1896. Mrs. Leach was elected Worthy Master and Miss Nina Clark secretary. Tecumseh I.O.O.F. Lodge No. 24 was organized at Moreland Hall on September 2, 1894. Charter officers were J.H. Smith, J.H. Maxey, William Crossland and Sam Clay. The County Democrat noted that “… the lodge starts out with the most flattering prospects.” Until 1906, the Masons and Odd Fellows lodges met in the Smith Building (which was next door north of the present Countywide News) and in Moreland Hall (on West Park near the northeast corner of Park and 5th streets). During the summer of 1906, these events happened in Tecumseh: the Interurban trolley line between Shawnee and Tecumseh was completed and opened in August; the city began construction of a $53,000 water and electric arc light system (completed in May 1907); the Tecumseh Telephone Company placed a coin-collecting booth for long distance calls in the post office in the Opera House building; Joel F. Legg constructed a two story brick hotel on North Broadway; and after a devastating fire, associates at the Farmers National Bank decided a new building was imperative. Newspaper accounts give the impression that the bank as the sole participant in building the wonderfully ornate structure at the northeast corner of Park and Broadway. However, county records reveal that the upper floor was built by the local Masonic and Odd Fellows lodges. In February of that year, the two lodges borrowed $2,500 from Farmers Bank to finance construction with a verbal agreement that they would own the second floor. F.L. Cotten and Clarence Robison were officers of the Odd Fellows and R.E. Walker and E.W. Millburn were trustees of the Masonic lodge. This document was not recorded at the court house until April 1926 when the second story was sold to the Masonic order (Misc. Bk. 59, p.23). In 1906, Odd Fellows mentioned in newspapers were R.C. Green, George Weed, E.W. Milburn, Clarence Robison, F.L. Cotten and G.M. Platz. Some members of the Jessie Rebekah Lodge No. 18 were Ollie May Johns, Laura Grace, Ollie Gray and Lola Durham (wife of attorney W.F. Durham). In August, the Eastern Star chapter held a going-away reception for Mrs. Ida Durham (her husband E.H. Durham was Tecumseh superintendent of schools and had just accepted a similar position at Holdenville) and the Rebekahs were visited by the state president where “ice cream and cake with luscious bananas” were served in the banquet room. Masons mentioned were D.D. Klapp and Martin Lee. In December 1910, Mrs. John W. (Ida M.) Lewis was appointed Worthy Grand Martha at an international meeting of The Eastern Star in Florida. Mrs. Lewis represented Tecumseh in these activities for many years. At some time (yet unknown to this writer), the Odd Fellows lodge stopped meeting at the Farmers Bank-Masonic Hall. In November 1911, a piano had been secured for the Eastern Star and Rebekah lodges, indicating that both groups were holding meetings in the new hall. In April 1913, the I.O.O.F. lodge met at the Opera House, so their vacating the new hall could have been during this period of time. Virgil M. Reeves of Tecumseh recalls that when the Odd Fellows met upstairs in the old Renfro building (now the Countywide News), the entrance was an outside stairway on the south side. The Odd Fellows lodge purchased the Robertson Bakery site in 1953, and their meetings continue there to the present time. The Modern Woodmen of America organized in Tecumseh in 1912. When V. M. Reeves joined this lodge in 1928, their meetings were upstairs in the Masonic Hall. The Order of Rainbow for Girls was established in McAlester in 1922 and in about 1939, a Tecumseh chapter was organized. Miss Frances Mildred Dickson was Mother Advisor for several years during the 1940s and early 1950s, followed by Mrs. F.E. Willingham. Many girls of ages 12 to 18 learned the Rainbow ritual and some social graces in this auxiliary organization. No doubt there are still Tecumseh ladies who have many memories of trailing long dresses up the creaky old wooden stairs and trying to stifle juvenile antics in the presence of ever vigilant ladies and gentlemen of the lodges! The Farmers Bank closed in 1922. In 1926, the second story was sold to the Masonic lodge. Through the years, memories of the bank faded and youngsters growing up in Tecumseh viewed the fancy building as just what it had become in their lifetime: The Masonic Hall. The Masons moved to their new building three blocks north in 1965. The old Masonic Hall continued in a general state of disrepair for several years and was finally torn down in about 1978. ================================ TOP History of Wagoner Masonic Lodge No. 98 from http://mastermason.com/wagonermasons/ The story of Masonry in Oklahoma begins on April 30, 1803, when Robert L. Livingston and James Monroe, Master Masons, negotiated with the French Minister of Finance for the purchase of Louisiana Territory. The United States was represented by President Thomas Jefferson, a Master Mason, while the French were represented by Marbois, who may not have been a Mason at the time he signed the Treaty, but who was reported at one time to have been an initiate. Merriwether Lewis witnessed the signature of the President. Lewis and William Clark, both Master Masons, explored the entire area. However, that part of Louisiana which is now Oklahoma was first officially visited by Captain Zebulon Pike, a Master Mason, prominent in the Craft in 1806. He explored the territory of the Arkansas River to the Mississippi and on to New Orleans. In 1824 Fort Gibson and Fort Towson became headquarters for Colonel Matthew Arbuckle, a Master Mason. Colonel Arbuckle, with advice from Pierre Choteau, a noted fur trader and Master Mason, became a commanding figure in every activity of the early Indian arrival into the area. Masons who played important roles among the Cherokee people include Elias C. Boudinot, delegate to Confederate Congress, Colonel in Confederate States of America, lawyer, whose father was the first editor of the Cherokee Phoenix newspaper; John Ridge, leader of the Cherokee people and signed the Treaty of New Echota; Will Rogers, humorist and philanthropist; Cherokee Chief John Ross; Cherokee Chief William P. Ross; and Stand Watie, signed the Treaty of New Echota and the last Confederate General to surrender the colors during the War Between the States. Charles Moore, who also signed the Treaty of New Echota on December 29, 1835, is the fifth great-grandfather of one of the Wagoner Masonic Lodge No. 98 members. Cherokee Masons petitioned the Grand Lodge of Arkansas for dispensation to open a Lodge in Tahlequah. The efforts of the brethren were so satisfactory that the Grand Lodge F. & A.M. of Arkansas issued a charter to Cherokee Lodge No. 21 on November 7, 1848. After the War Between the States, three of six lodges under the allegiance of the Grand Lodge of Arkansas organized themselves into a Convention and the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory came into existence on October 5, 1874. On November 10, 1892, the Grand Lodge of Oklahoma Territory began with the aid and assistance of the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory. The two Grand Bodies were formally united as the Grand Lodge of Oklahoma during the convention of February 8, 1909, naming Joseph S. Murrow as one of two Grand Secretaries. Murrow was a Southern Baptist missionary who traveled Oklahoma establishing more than 100 Southern Baptist churches, the first Baptist Orphans Home for Indian children in Atoka, Bacone College in Muskogee, and 60 Masonic lodges earning him the distinction of being known as "the father of Freemasonry in Oklahoma." Oklahoma remains to be the only state to have formed three separate Grand Lodges by convention. Wagoner was named after Henry Samuel “Bigfoot” Wagoner who decided the KATY Railroad needed a switch to load cattle and lumber from the area between Flat Rock and Gibson Station in 1883. The first permanent residents arrived in Wagoner on June 5, 1887 -- William H. and Sallie H. McAnnally started the Cottonwood Hotel. On February 25, 1888, the town’s request for a post office was granted and William W. Teague, a native of Indiana, was named the city’s first postmaster. Samuel S. Cobb, Master Mason, became the second postmaster on July 24, 1890. Cobb was also called “the financial power in Wagoner” by Brad Agnew, Ph.D., in his book titled Wagoner, I.T. – “Queen City of the Prairies”. The Masonic Lodge was organized in Wagoner in 1895 – when Wagoner was still in Indian Territory. John Coyle of Valley Lodge No. 6, Pauls Valley, served as Grand Master during this period. Coyle brought a wealth of experience to the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory as he had served his lodge as Worshipful Master for a non-consecutive total of fourteen years. On March 1, several members of the community who were Masons from other states gathered to write the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory so that a Lodge might be opened in Wagoner. The meeting was called to order by W.B. Davis, T.A. Parkinson, S.S. Cobb and James Gates. Among those attending was Leo E. Bennett, who gave instructions on how to properly petition the grand lodge. Bennett served as Grand Master longer than any other in the history of Freemasonry in the area that is now Oklahoma -- 1889, 1890, 1891, and 1892. He also served as an Indian Agent, U.S. Marshal in the Indian Territory, and elected as Mayor of the City of Muskogee. Bennett was raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason on June 1, 1886, in Belle Point Lodge No. 20, of Fort Smith, Arkansas and affiliated with Muskogee Lodge No. 28 on March 15, 1889. That same evening the lodge elected its first officers: James Gates as Worshipful Master, and W.H. Jackson as Secretary. S.S. Cobb was elected Senior Warden and T.A. Parkinson as Junior Warden. The name of the new lodge was to be the same as the town’s – Wagoner. However, during the group’s second meeting held March 16, 1895, at the Episcopal Church, a motion was made to change the group’s name from Wagoner Lodge to St. John’s Lodge. Dues were paid to the state and the lodge was named St. John’s Lodge No. 83, Free and Accepted Masons. A letter of dispensation was given to St. John's Lodge of Wagoner on March 27, 1895, by Grand Secretary Joseph S. Murrow. On April 2, 1895, Alexander Clingan Cobb became the first initiated Entered Apprentice of the lodge. He was passed to the degree of Fellow Craft on May, 25, 1895, and raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason on June 8, 1895. In January of 1896, Wagoner became the first town in Indian Territory to incorporate. The town held its first election on April 28, 1896, electing two Master Masons to office: Captain William Jackson as mayor and Terry Parkinson as a city counselor. Parkinson later served as Wagoner’s fifth mayor in 1902, county clerk, and state representative from 1919 to 1921. St. John’s Lodge No. 83 was changed back to Wagoner Lodge and the group was given the number 98 on February 10, 1909, since the lodge was now under the Grand Lodge of Oklahoma instead of the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory. The lodge met for many years in the upstairs area over Castle and Hoefle Hardware on South Main. On December 1, 1962, they moved to their present location on the west side of Wagoner. Today, Wagoner Lodge No. 98 has about 160 members. Most men who go about their jobs and professions with no hint they are Freemasons except for the way they lead their lives. Several politicians have belonged to Wagoner Masonic Lodge No. 98 over the years, including: three state representatives, one state senator, one district judge, one assistant district judge, one special district judge, two district attorneys, seven mayors, four city counselors, two county clerks, one county commissioner, four school board members, one sheriff, one police chief, two Wagoner County Democratic Party chairmen, and one Wagoner County Republican Party chairman. On the national scene, George Washington and 13 other Presidents, 8 Vice Presidents, and 42 Justices of the Supreme Court have been Masons from various lodges. 10 Masons signed the Articles of Association, 9 Masons signed the Declaration of Independence, 13 Masons signed the Constitution of the United States, 33 Masons served as General Officers of the Continental Army (8 Masons served as Aides and Military Secretaries to George Washington), and 9 Masons signed the Articles of Confederation. The lodge is made up of men from all different types of vocations: farmers, cattlemen, business owners, bankers, attorneys, doctors, computer technicians, pharmacists, firefighters, insurance agents, insurance adjusters, retirees, teachers, coaches, politicians, principals, managers, ministers, real estate appraisers, salesmen, law enforcement, government employees, carpenters, machinists, and others. |
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