‘NOLA: Freemasonry and the Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience’

    

Hurd Hatfield in The Picture of Dorian Gray, MGM, 1945.

Second in a series recapping my recent trip to New Orleans.

I fell asleep the night before with the television on and awoke June 5 to Albert Lewin’s The Picture of Dorian Gray from 1945. After breakfast at the Clover Grill (how do they make the eggs like that?!) and while hurrying to get ready for the day of museum hopping, the TV was still on. You see a certain theorem on the chalkboard. The “Non ignoravi mortalem esse” translates, according to some Google hits, to something like “I have not ignored to be mortal,” which could make for a snappy answer to Memento Mori, if you’re an Al Jaffe fan with a better command of Latin.

It was a great day. At 400 Esplanade Avenue, you get two for one: downstairs is the Old U.S. Mint; upstairs, the Jazz Museum. If you ever collected U.S. coins and gathered a Morgan dollar, maybe there is an O on its reverse. That initial means the U.S. Mint at New Orleans struck that coin, as it had in the manufacture of hundreds of millions of dollars in gold and silver coinage between 1838-61, and 1879-1909.

I’ll have to remember to share this with Civil War Lodge of Research: These scraps of fabric are believed to be remnants of the U.S. flag once flown above the U.S. Mint in New Orleans. Early in the Civil War, Commodore David Farragut sent Marines into the city to seize the Mint, for obvious reasons. Mr. William Mumford, with a few accomplices, allegedly managed to steal the flag, and Mumford reportedly wore the flag’s tatters on his jacket henceforth. U.S. Gen. Benjamin Butler had Mumford hanged in front of the Mint on June 7, 1862. An outraged Confederate President Jefferson Davis ordered Butler to be executed immediately if ever captured.

Its museum is a small space, but if you or someone you love is a numismatist, it’s worth visiting.

Upstairs is the New Orleans Jazz Museum. During my research before the trip, I thought maybe a museum devoted to jazz and located in New Orleans would be something on a Smithsonian scale, but not quite. Still a must see, but I was hoping for deeper history than what is offered. There actually was a near absence of Louis Armstrong, which the museum explained is the result of its preparing for Satchmo’s birthday—today! August 4, according to his baptismal certificate—with a special exhibit. The Mint building is the site of Satchmo Summerfest this weekend, if you’re in the neighborhood.

I really thought there might be a Masonic clue somewhere in the exhibits, given how many jazz legends were Freemasons, but I missed it if there is.

In late afternoon, after a bite and a beer at one of the ubiquitous Willie’s Chicken Shacks, I roamed the French quarter and did find something Masonic—finally, after stalking the streets for more than forty-eight hours. A jewelry store on Royal Street had these rings in its window:

Typical Masonic supply company catalog fare.

Satisfied somewhat, I took a seat on the steps of the courthouse on Royal, joining a few homeless men, and lit up an Aroma de Cuba Monarch—a fine Fuente product! Also in my research, I found smoking is prohibited just about everywhere, yet the stench of marijuana is ever-present, so I thought quality tobacco should be represented.

I’m rambling because my memory is failing. I thought this was the day I had visited the Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience, but that actually was June 6. Anyway, I arrived there late that morning and did find a few Masonic items, plus several mentions of famous Masons.

All Masonic historians know how Masonic halls served their neighborhoods in many ways: as schools, post offices, civic meeting spaces, polling places, and even houses of worship.

This is a facsimile of Bro. C.L. Schlom’s Masonic patent from 1902. He was at labor in South Memphis Lodge 118 in Tennessee. It remains of the rolls today, as Memphis 118, and will meet this Thursday at 7 p.m. for its August communication.

And from the Famous Masons Department:

T.R. kicks ass. Typically, when we think of him vis-à-vis Russia, it’s about ending their war with Japan, but apparently he had earlier interactions.

I’ll have to research Jonas Phillips because he was a fascinating figure in Revolutionary America. I believe the quotation above is borrowed from his petition to the Continental Congress of September 7, 1787, in which he lobbied to avoid religious requirements for Federal office holders. During the war, he would write correspondence in Yiddish, confounding the Redcoats who intercepted the letters. A few websites say he was a Freemason as of 1760. Maybe. I’ll check it out.

      

‘Roosevelt Pilgrimage at Oyster Bay’

    

Bro. Roosevelt never was a Past Master.
He was asked to pose for this photo.

I’ve never been able to get to one of these—and I probably won’t this time either, but at least it’s on my calendar—but the 77th Annual Theodore Roosevelt Pilgrimage is scheduled for next Saturday. That’s April 27 at Matinecock Lodge 806 in Oyster Bay, Long Island. (Wednesday the 24th will be the anniversary of his MM Degree in 1901.)

Everyone will gather at 9 a.m. for refreshments and a look at the museum, followed by the ceremony at ten. After the program, the group will undertake the pilgrimage to Bro. Roosevelt’s final resting place, about a mile and a half away, at Youngs Memorial Cemetery for the wreath-laying ceremony.

Check the images below for the details. Maybe I’ll see you there.

     

‘Challenge coins to benefit PTSD research are back’

    

“A man who is good enough to shed his blood for his country is good enough to be given a square deal afterwards.”

President Theodore Roosevelt

July 4, 1903

In very high demand, with supply recently exhausted, our Grand Master’s challenge coin is back!

Heads.

With the face of Bro. Theodore Roosevelt on the obverse and the Grand Lodge seal on the reverse, the token is a fundraiser for The Battle Within Foundation, the group that supports research into PTSD to help military veterans. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder has afflicted thousands of warriors with injuries that cannot be seen. In too many instances, the pain results in suicide.

Tails.

TR, of Matinecock Lodge 806 in Oyster Bay, is Grand Master Richard Kessler’s favorite U.S. President, I’m told, ergo his smiling face scrutinizing squint on the coin. Senior Grand Deacon Larry Kania is charged with distributing the challenge coins (please pray for him), and he can be reached here. He has 500 to share at $20 each.

What is the Masonic link to The Battle Within Foundation? It is our Grand Master’s sponsored charity, and it was initiated by the brethren of Harmonie Lodge 699 after the suicide of a Brother in 2017. Read more here and here.

     

‘King Hiram’s Lodge AF&AM

     

To continue from last Tuesday (see post below) about a quick trip to Massachusetts in May, my stay on Cape Cod coincided with the monthly meeting of King Hiram’s Lodge.

As I recall, this was the brethren’s second lodge meeting since the end of COVIDmania. It was obvious they were very grateful for their Masonic labors!

King Hiram’s is a historic lodge. When you’re a Freemason in the eastern United States, it is easy to take for granted the existence of lodges set to labor during the eighteenth century, that even may be older than the country itself, and which have included historic personages in their memberships over the passing centuries. This is one such Craft lodge.

Warranted by Paul Revere in 1795, when he was grand master of the Grand Lodge of Masons in Massachusetts, King Hiram’s Lodge has counted among its members a number of town fathers, a proud tradition that continues today.

While greeting and meeting everybody present that night of Monday, May 3, I shook hands with several local VIPs. The proprietor of one of the historic, renowned restaurants, for one. After the meeting, a few of us grabbed a few drinks around the corner; one of those brethren is Provincetown’s new Town Crier.

This was the lodge’s 2,184th Communication. In its 226 years, King Hiram’s Lodge has not missed a meeting. During the War of 1812, one of His Majesty’s warships blasted the hell out of this tiny town. A ship’s chaplain was sent ashore to enquire about a surrender. During the discussion, it was ascertained that the ship’s captain and others were on the Square. They were invited to attend the lodge’s meeting, and they did so. Even through the COVID-19 scare, a nucleus of devotees kept the Great Lights beaming (and the bills paid).

On the agenda this evening was the reception of RW John Allen Eldredge, the District Deputy Grand Master, who was making his Fraternal Visit. (Other grand lodges term these events Official Visits, or something similarly institutional. Kudos to Massachusetts for this choice of words.) As a fraternal visitor myself, I was invited to join the DDGM’s procession into the lodge room. I tried to talk my way out of it, not knowing if it involved any floor work unfamiliar to me, but the hospitality is strong at King Hiram’s, so in I went, getting a taste of the grand rank life. My rationalization was “Well, why not? I am President of the Masonic Society after all!” Massachusetts also has District Deputy Grand Secretaries and Marshals.

It was a very enjoyable experience. I’m surprised I didn’t snap more photos, but here are the best of what I have:

Bro. Theodore Roosevelt, President of the United States, used this trowel in the cornerstone ceremony of the Pilgrim Memorial Monument, August 20, 1907.

The Pilgrim Memorial Monument.

It must be remembered that Paul Revere was a silversmith. He crafted this set of officer jewels for King Hiram’s Lodge. The set is one of eleven known to exist.

Edward Horseman (sometimes Horsman) (1775-1819) made these aprons in 1814. 

I have been hoping to have an apron almost exactly like this made for me for my travels.

Tracing board.

Altar Bible.

Murals in the lodge room.

As I get older, I appreciate these lodge officer portraits more.

Provincetown was my family’s vacation spot during the 1960s and ’70s. I was there in May to scatter my mother’s ashes. I really doubt I’ll ever get there again.

     

‘Vacation’

  
If you define a vacation as the act of taking off several days (at least) from work, traveling a notable distance – and one outside your usual orbit – and settling in at one location (at least) for recreation and nothing but, then last week I took my first vacation since the summer of 1994. (Yeah. I know that’s 18 years.)

Provincetown, Massachusetts was my family’s vacation spot every August in the 1970s when I was a child, and it was there I returned for 72 hours of sightseeing, seafood dining, beer tasting, and cigar smoking. The sightseeing included visiting several places of Masonic interest right in the middle of town.

The first stop was obvious: Masonic Place, the address of King Hiram’s Lodge, chartered in 1795 by none other than Paul Revere, Grand Master.

In Provincetown, street signs can be found wherever.

Had I arrived a day earlier, I could have visited the lodge.

Every square foot on Commercial Street is valuable... and occupied. Retail shops, art galleries, inns, restaurants, and other entities are crammed into every possible lot, separated by a network of alleys, driveways, byways, snickelways, and paths. As you can see, King Hiram Lodge has retail space in its frontage, and there is a club in the rear. This Buddhist monk appeared by pure happenstance.

Constructed in the first decade of the 20th century, the Pilgrim Memorial Monument towers over Provincetown from its hilltop perch. Its construction began with a Masonic cornerstone-laying ceremony in 1907, and ended with a Masonic consecration in 1910.

The Monument stands 252 feet. On the way up, you will see dozens of markers placed by sponsoring societies, municipalities, and others who made construction of the landmark possible. Here is that of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts.

Also on the grounds of the Monument is the Provincetown Museum. Among the artifacts on display are ephemera concerning Masonry’s role in bringing the Monument to fruition. Here is the printed program for the cornerstone-laying ceremony of August 20, 1907.

A time capsule was enclosed in the Monument construction. Among its contents is a book of Grand Lodge proceedings from 1907.

An outdoor marker on the grounds of the Monument.

As above, so below.

While surveying the scenery from the top of the Monument, I spotted a cemetery. Visiting Provincetown Cemetery, I did not find any grave markers from the 17th or 18th centuries, as I had hoped, but I certainly did come across a number of Masonic headstones, and some of these were notable.

Bro. McIntosh had the Keystone of Mark Masonry
engraved into his headstone.

Bro. Francis P. Smith has a monument illustrated with the Beehive, the Square and Compasses, and the three-link chain of Odd Fellowship. The Odd Fellows of Marine Lodge No. 96 were an important force in the social and philanthropic lives of Provincetown.

Close-up of the emblems.

Bro. Joshua P. Atkins has the S&C inside the Mark Master Keystone.

I do not know if Capt. Ira B. Atkins was a relation
or only a Masonic brother.

This one could not escape notice.

Bro. Reuben Ryder also has the links of Odd Fellowship with his S&C.

I photographed other stones, and there were others still that I did not stop to shoot, but you get the idea.

I left town on Friday morning, taking the scenic route for a while, and when passing through Sandwich, I happened across Dewitt Clinton Lodge, instituted in 1885.

The lodge building was a church constructed in 1847.

The brethren will host an open house on October 20.
The lodge is located at 175 Main Street.

I cannot help but wonder how a street earns the name
Good Templar Place, but there it is in Provincetown.