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Article TWO WELL-KNOWN* MASONS; ← Page 2 of 8 →
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Two Well-Known* Masons;
facts in reference to that part of his history . But it was not from Sparks ' s , or any other sketch of Washington ' s career , large or small , that these facts were to be derived . With a consistent disregard of all Masonic claims to influencing the moral and social virtues of men which has characterized American historians since 1826 , these writers could give prominence to the minutest circumstances of a political ,
domestic , social , or religious east , calculated to affect Washington ' s character , but no prominence and no credit to those binding engagements , those important charges , which make up the moral system of Freemasonry . Eailing to gain from the records of our country what was desired , the orators of that interesting anniversary necessarily fell back upon the researches of Mr . Ereneh , as we , forsooth , in a large degree , shall be compelled in like manner to do .
Washington was initiated in Eredericksburg Lodge , Va ., Nov . 4 , 1752 : passed , March 3 , 1753 ; and raised , August 4 , of the same year . There is no evidence yet published that makes him a Knight Templar , or even a Royal Arch Mason , although the fact of his serving as first Master of Washington Alexandria Lodge , at
Alexandria , an office which demands the degree or order of Past Master as a pre-requisite , may be a clue to something further . He was not quite of age at the date of-his initiation , a fact which may be explained , if the Eredericksburg Lodge was then working under its original Scotch Charter ; as in all Lodges of that jurisdiction initiates are received at the immature age of eighteen .
Through all the period of the devolution Washington visited , at every opportunity , the Masonic Lodges at the various places of his stay , and even united with his own soldiers in camp in the work of the Order . In 1788 , April 28 , he is found associated with Robert McCrea , William Hunter , Jr ., and John Allison , in the charter of
Alexandria Washington Lodge , No . 22 , as its first Master . This Lodge attended his burial , December 18 , 1799 . His various letters to individuals and to Lodges , acknowledging the many Masonic compliments he received , have frequently been republished ; they glow with Masonic ardour , not surpassed by any communications of a
similar character . With all the staid and retiring appearance of Washington , and despite that dignity which few ever possessed in greater measure than he , there is abundant evidence that he could unbend in proper society , and this more than any where else in the Lodge , where men meet upon the level and part upon the square .
We came into possession of a medal , not long since , which has been for a considerable period in the keeping of Dr . John Dove , the venerable Grand Secretary of Yirginia . It is of a strictly Masonic character , and particularly worthy of notice in this work , because the only Masonic medal , so far as we know , ever struck in the United States .
A brief description of this medal is given in Mersdorf ' s work , " Die Denkmiinzen der Ereimaurer Bruderschaft" ( The Medals of the Ereemasons ) , Oldenburg , 1851 , 8 vo ., pp . 151 , of which the following passages are kindly translated for us by Bro . E . Barthelmess , M . D .,
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Two Well-Known* Masons;
facts in reference to that part of his history . But it was not from Sparks ' s , or any other sketch of Washington ' s career , large or small , that these facts were to be derived . With a consistent disregard of all Masonic claims to influencing the moral and social virtues of men which has characterized American historians since 1826 , these writers could give prominence to the minutest circumstances of a political ,
domestic , social , or religious east , calculated to affect Washington ' s character , but no prominence and no credit to those binding engagements , those important charges , which make up the moral system of Freemasonry . Eailing to gain from the records of our country what was desired , the orators of that interesting anniversary necessarily fell back upon the researches of Mr . Ereneh , as we , forsooth , in a large degree , shall be compelled in like manner to do .
Washington was initiated in Eredericksburg Lodge , Va ., Nov . 4 , 1752 : passed , March 3 , 1753 ; and raised , August 4 , of the same year . There is no evidence yet published that makes him a Knight Templar , or even a Royal Arch Mason , although the fact of his serving as first Master of Washington Alexandria Lodge , at
Alexandria , an office which demands the degree or order of Past Master as a pre-requisite , may be a clue to something further . He was not quite of age at the date of-his initiation , a fact which may be explained , if the Eredericksburg Lodge was then working under its original Scotch Charter ; as in all Lodges of that jurisdiction initiates are received at the immature age of eighteen .
Through all the period of the devolution Washington visited , at every opportunity , the Masonic Lodges at the various places of his stay , and even united with his own soldiers in camp in the work of the Order . In 1788 , April 28 , he is found associated with Robert McCrea , William Hunter , Jr ., and John Allison , in the charter of
Alexandria Washington Lodge , No . 22 , as its first Master . This Lodge attended his burial , December 18 , 1799 . His various letters to individuals and to Lodges , acknowledging the many Masonic compliments he received , have frequently been republished ; they glow with Masonic ardour , not surpassed by any communications of a
similar character . With all the staid and retiring appearance of Washington , and despite that dignity which few ever possessed in greater measure than he , there is abundant evidence that he could unbend in proper society , and this more than any where else in the Lodge , where men meet upon the level and part upon the square .
We came into possession of a medal , not long since , which has been for a considerable period in the keeping of Dr . John Dove , the venerable Grand Secretary of Yirginia . It is of a strictly Masonic character , and particularly worthy of notice in this work , because the only Masonic medal , so far as we know , ever struck in the United States .
A brief description of this medal is given in Mersdorf ' s work , " Die Denkmiinzen der Ereimaurer Bruderschaft" ( The Medals of the Ereemasons ) , Oldenburg , 1851 , 8 vo ., pp . 151 , of which the following passages are kindly translated for us by Bro . E . Barthelmess , M . D .,