‘Grand Lodge announces new historians’

    

I won’t try to recap all the news from the summer I neglected, except I have to congratulate two deserving brethren on their appointments to grand rank. In July, R.W. Bro. Pierre F. de Ravel d’Esclapon was named Grand Historian, and R.W. Bro. Lee Justo is now our Deputy Grand Historian.

BBC

Among other things, Bro. Pierre is a Past Master and currently Historian of France La Clémente Amitié Cosmopolite Lodge 410 in the Tenth Manhattan District. Of course, he also is a Past Master (2009-10) of The American Lodge of Research, and he was elected a Fellow of The ALR on the strength of his inaugural paper as Master, “The History of French Lodges in New York City, 1760 to 1800.”

Bro. Lee is Master and Historian of Huguenot Lodge 46 in Mount Kisco; is Co-Chairman of Grand Lodge’s 250th Committee; is the face of Huguenot Lodge’s YouTube channel; and probably more that I don’t know about.

A solid team. I look forward to reading their research for many years to come.

Let me “shout ‘Bravo!’ at an annoyingly loud volume.”

BBC

     

‘Help wanted: Grand Historian’

    

The Grand Lodge of New York seeks a Grand Historian.

After serving under several Grand Masters, RW Gary Heinmiller apparently is exiting that office, and MW Steven Rubin, our Grand Master as of last month, is looking for a successor.

Rubin, during his time as Deputy Grand Master, built the foundation for a Grand Lodge that honors its illustrious history. And let’s be honest, few grand lodges have accomplished anything approaching what New York has.

His initiatives, just off the top of my head, include: Craftsmen Online, the Lafayette bicentennial, the lodge history project, Masonic Leadership Academy, the Masonic history project. That last one involves self-guiding walking tours in various parts of the state to see places significant to Freemasonry. There’s probably more, but I can’t remember.

And Gary? I don’t hear from him lately, but he and I go back to the Masonic Light group twenty or so years ago. He is a legend in local historian work way up in the Liverpool area. He has compiled meticulous histories and biographies on Masons. Amazing dedication to preserving information that, frankly, only the nerdiest among us appreciate. Read more about him here, although that is very out of date.

In the graphic above, that is Tacitus on the right. I don’t recognize the fellow on the left, but since he’s smoking a pipe, you can bet he knows what he’s talking about!

Tacitus? Arguably, the great historian of Rome’s first century CE empire period. I got to know him during my college days. Not breezy reading.

Good luck with the application!

(Yes, I applied, last fall. No, I don’t have what it takes. If you know me, you recognize I’m not Grand Lodge material.)