Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Some Memorials Of The Globe Lodge, No.23, And Of The "Red Apron."
year before his death in 18 33 . His name is not on the Register of the British Lodge in 1814 , and we have no means of ascertaining the period of his-membership of that Lodge . It seems , however , that the " Globe " was his favorite Lodge , although he joined several others iand served the office of Master in all of them .
GEORGE SHILLIBEER , MEMBER OF THE GLOUE LODGE . An engraved portrait drawn by his friendJohn Harrisof
, , Tracing Board fame , published in 1820 , bears the following inscription : " To the Globe Lodge of Freemasons , No . 25 . This portrait of one of their Past Masters , is , with their permission , most respectfully Dedicated by their most Obedient Servant , Brother Jno . Harris . " The portrait , of which the
accompanying is a reduced copy , is said to have been a striking likeness . In 1822 he was presented by some of his pupils with a handsome Past Master's jewel set with brilliants , which he had intended to bequeath to Br . Meyer of the Globe Lodge ,
but that brother having pre-deceased him , he left it to another of his pupils , Bro . Key , also a member of this Lodge , whose fame as a teacher of Masonry is said to have been nearly equal to that of Gilkes himself . This Jewel ultimately became the property of the Percy Lodge , which Lodge was good
enough to allow me to have it for reproduction in my recent history of the Emulation Lodge of Improvement , in which a short sketch of the life of Peter Gilkes appears . In 1888 , while seeking information relative to the Installation Ceremony , I was fortunate enough to make the acquaintance of a venerable brother who had been on terms
of personal intimacy with Peter Gilkes , and had worked with him in various Lodges of Instruction . This was the late John Canham , Past Master of the Lodge of Honour and Generosity , who was initiated in that Lodge as far back as 1825 . As Master of his mother Lodge he attended the
meetings of the authorized Board of Installation appointed by the Duke of Sussex in 1827 , and was , therefore , able to give most valuable information on the subject of my search , as well as to relate some amusing reminiscences of Peter Gilkes and other old craftsmen . Our worthy brother passed away on the 15 th of July , 18 93 , in his 90 th year , and his 68 th year as a Mason . I was , I believe , the only one of his Masonic friends who attended
his iuneral in Norwood Cemetery , most of them having preceded him , and those that were left being unable to be present . In the course of my previous address the name of George Shillibeer was mentioned as having joined the Globe Lodge in 1829 , and as being the inventor of a certain vehicle used
by undertakers for their patrons of the humbler class—a combination of hearse and mourning coach—one part being for those who had " gone before , " and the other part for those who were " left behind . "
This distinguished brother , who , I lind , was initiated 111 the Etonian Lodge , Windsor , 25 th February , 1827 , has , quite unwittingly , of course , been a source of considerable anxiety to me . He is registered as a coachmaker , residing at No . 12 , Bury Street , Bloomsbury . Having some knowledge of the period when the vehicle which bears his name , a very
uncommon one be it noted , came into use , I considered myself justified in crediting him with its invention . But after-dinner speaking is one thing and printing your remarks is another ; so before venturing into type I deemed it advisable to verify my statement .
The fame of this gentleman is based , not so much upon the afore-mentioned invention , as upon the fact of his having undoubtedly been the first to introduce that popular and useful conveyance , the omnibus , to the streets of London , and eventually all over the country . On consulting such
ordinary books of reference as we have in our library , I found that the gentleman in question is generally described as " Mr . Shillibeer , " and occasionally as " J . Shillibeer , " but one of these works , which professes to give the fullest information , boldly refers to" him as " John Shillibeer , coach proprietor . "
This description seemed hardly to tally with the Grand Lodge Register , but , in my experience , historians are not quite infallible , nor , for that matter , are Grand Lodge records .
Happening to have in the library a copy of Pigot ' s London and Provincial Directory for 1826-7 , I consulted that , and found to my disgust that the only Shillibeer therein mentioned was " Shillibeer and Cavill , Livery Stable Keepers , " I , however , derived no little consolation from the fact that the address there given is the same as that given in the Grand
Lodge Register . Being still in doubt as to whether there might not have been two Shillibeers at the same house , I have since extended my research to that never failing source of reliable information , the British Museum , when I had the satisfaction of learning that the Grand Lodge Register is correct , and
that his name was George and not John . He was born in Tottenham Court Road in 1797 , and at an early period of his life served for a short time as a midshipman in the Royal Navy , on board the San Josef and the Royal George . He afterwards learnt coach building in Long
Acre , London , subsequently setting up in business for himself and building the first two omnibuses in England , which he started on the 4 th of July , 1829 , from The Yorkshire Slingo at Paddington , to the Bank . Each of these vehicles carried 22 passengers inside , with only the driver outside ,
and were drawn by three horses abreast , the fare for the whole journey was one shilling , half way , sixpence , with light literature thrown in . It is said that his first conductors were the sons of naval officers , and that they were succeeded by men attired in a handsome uniform .
The enterprise was financially successful until railways , litigation , and competition , drove Shillibeer off the road . He then set up in business as an undertaker , and invented the machine before referred to , thereby greatly reducing the cost of funerals . As secretary to the committee of post-masters he took
the lead in securing the repeal of the post-horse duties and the tax upon carriages let on hire . In celebration of this auspicious event a large gathering of the post-masters of England , Scotland and Wales took place at The London Tavern on the 10 th of October 1853 on which occasion a
, , valuable testimonial was presented to Bro . Shillibeer in acknowledgment of his services . The testimonial took the form of a handsome silver candelabrum bearing the following inscription : — " Presented by the Postmasters of Great Britain to George Shillibeer as a testimonial of their respect ,
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Some Memorials Of The Globe Lodge, No.23, And Of The "Red Apron."
year before his death in 18 33 . His name is not on the Register of the British Lodge in 1814 , and we have no means of ascertaining the period of his-membership of that Lodge . It seems , however , that the " Globe " was his favorite Lodge , although he joined several others iand served the office of Master in all of them .
GEORGE SHILLIBEER , MEMBER OF THE GLOUE LODGE . An engraved portrait drawn by his friendJohn Harrisof
, , Tracing Board fame , published in 1820 , bears the following inscription : " To the Globe Lodge of Freemasons , No . 25 . This portrait of one of their Past Masters , is , with their permission , most respectfully Dedicated by their most Obedient Servant , Brother Jno . Harris . " The portrait , of which the
accompanying is a reduced copy , is said to have been a striking likeness . In 1822 he was presented by some of his pupils with a handsome Past Master's jewel set with brilliants , which he had intended to bequeath to Br . Meyer of the Globe Lodge ,
but that brother having pre-deceased him , he left it to another of his pupils , Bro . Key , also a member of this Lodge , whose fame as a teacher of Masonry is said to have been nearly equal to that of Gilkes himself . This Jewel ultimately became the property of the Percy Lodge , which Lodge was good
enough to allow me to have it for reproduction in my recent history of the Emulation Lodge of Improvement , in which a short sketch of the life of Peter Gilkes appears . In 1888 , while seeking information relative to the Installation Ceremony , I was fortunate enough to make the acquaintance of a venerable brother who had been on terms
of personal intimacy with Peter Gilkes , and had worked with him in various Lodges of Instruction . This was the late John Canham , Past Master of the Lodge of Honour and Generosity , who was initiated in that Lodge as far back as 1825 . As Master of his mother Lodge he attended the
meetings of the authorized Board of Installation appointed by the Duke of Sussex in 1827 , and was , therefore , able to give most valuable information on the subject of my search , as well as to relate some amusing reminiscences of Peter Gilkes and other old craftsmen . Our worthy brother passed away on the 15 th of July , 18 93 , in his 90 th year , and his 68 th year as a Mason . I was , I believe , the only one of his Masonic friends who attended
his iuneral in Norwood Cemetery , most of them having preceded him , and those that were left being unable to be present . In the course of my previous address the name of George Shillibeer was mentioned as having joined the Globe Lodge in 1829 , and as being the inventor of a certain vehicle used
by undertakers for their patrons of the humbler class—a combination of hearse and mourning coach—one part being for those who had " gone before , " and the other part for those who were " left behind . "
This distinguished brother , who , I lind , was initiated 111 the Etonian Lodge , Windsor , 25 th February , 1827 , has , quite unwittingly , of course , been a source of considerable anxiety to me . He is registered as a coachmaker , residing at No . 12 , Bury Street , Bloomsbury . Having some knowledge of the period when the vehicle which bears his name , a very
uncommon one be it noted , came into use , I considered myself justified in crediting him with its invention . But after-dinner speaking is one thing and printing your remarks is another ; so before venturing into type I deemed it advisable to verify my statement .
The fame of this gentleman is based , not so much upon the afore-mentioned invention , as upon the fact of his having undoubtedly been the first to introduce that popular and useful conveyance , the omnibus , to the streets of London , and eventually all over the country . On consulting such
ordinary books of reference as we have in our library , I found that the gentleman in question is generally described as " Mr . Shillibeer , " and occasionally as " J . Shillibeer , " but one of these works , which professes to give the fullest information , boldly refers to" him as " John Shillibeer , coach proprietor . "
This description seemed hardly to tally with the Grand Lodge Register , but , in my experience , historians are not quite infallible , nor , for that matter , are Grand Lodge records .
Happening to have in the library a copy of Pigot ' s London and Provincial Directory for 1826-7 , I consulted that , and found to my disgust that the only Shillibeer therein mentioned was " Shillibeer and Cavill , Livery Stable Keepers , " I , however , derived no little consolation from the fact that the address there given is the same as that given in the Grand
Lodge Register . Being still in doubt as to whether there might not have been two Shillibeers at the same house , I have since extended my research to that never failing source of reliable information , the British Museum , when I had the satisfaction of learning that the Grand Lodge Register is correct , and
that his name was George and not John . He was born in Tottenham Court Road in 1797 , and at an early period of his life served for a short time as a midshipman in the Royal Navy , on board the San Josef and the Royal George . He afterwards learnt coach building in Long
Acre , London , subsequently setting up in business for himself and building the first two omnibuses in England , which he started on the 4 th of July , 1829 , from The Yorkshire Slingo at Paddington , to the Bank . Each of these vehicles carried 22 passengers inside , with only the driver outside ,
and were drawn by three horses abreast , the fare for the whole journey was one shilling , half way , sixpence , with light literature thrown in . It is said that his first conductors were the sons of naval officers , and that they were succeeded by men attired in a handsome uniform .
The enterprise was financially successful until railways , litigation , and competition , drove Shillibeer off the road . He then set up in business as an undertaker , and invented the machine before referred to , thereby greatly reducing the cost of funerals . As secretary to the committee of post-masters he took
the lead in securing the repeal of the post-horse duties and the tax upon carriages let on hire . In celebration of this auspicious event a large gathering of the post-masters of England , Scotland and Wales took place at The London Tavern on the 10 th of October 1853 on which occasion a
, , valuable testimonial was presented to Bro . Shillibeer in acknowledgment of his services . The testimonial took the form of a handsome silver candelabrum bearing the following inscription : — " Presented by the Postmasters of Great Britain to George Shillibeer as a testimonial of their respect ,