Scottish Rite Masonic Museum & Library

Civil War Lecture Explores Black Activists in Boston: March 23 at 2 p.m.

Our 2013 Civil War Lecture Series begins this weekend! Join us for the first lecture in the series. The series explores the history of this divisive war and its meaning for our nation today.

Stephen Kantrowitz
A Citizenship of the Heart: Black Activists and Universal Brotherhood in Civil War-Era Boston
Saturday, March 23 at 2 p.m., free

Stephen Kantrowitz, Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, will explore how the fight to abolish slavery was part of a broader campaign by Boston’s African American community to claim full citizenship. The talk will trace the activities of Prince Hall Freemason Lewis Hayden, a fugitive slave and Boston anti-slavery activist. Hayden’s Masonic engagement reflects the development of ideas and practices of black citizenship as tool to remake the republic into a place where all men could belong. Kantrowitz will be available after the talk to sign his book, More than Freedom: Fighting for Black Citizenship in a White Republic, 1829-1889.

The lecture is made possible by the generous support of the Ruby W. and LaVon P. Linn Foundation.

For more information on the Civil War Lecture Series, please refer to the Museum's programs page. For information on visiting the Museum please click here, or call 781 861-6559.

Photo credit: Courtesy Stephen Kantrowitz

 

Prince Hall's Half Century Matrons Club in Los Angeles

Among the new acquisitions this spring 2012, was a manuscript Minute Book of a Prince Hall affiliated "Half Century Matrons Club" dated from 1950 through 1959.  This club was formed in 1950 by Past Matrons of the Order of Eastern Star, Prince Hall Affiliation from the state of California.  The club took its name, "Half Century Matrons Club", because it was formed in mid-20th century. 

Marjorie Herbert (President) of Guiding Star Chapter, ran the meetings beginning on December 6, 1950 in Los Angeles, California.  She offered her house as a venue for the first meeting, which was located at 2286 West 22nd Street in Los Angeles.  Other officers included:  Marguerite Norman (Vice-President)-Victory Chapter, Ella Dastey (Secretary)-Starlight Chapter, Gertrude Devers (Treasurer)-Affectionate Chapter, and Roberta Walkins (Chaplain).  Among the other members were:  Gertrude Allen (Electa Chapter), June Harvey (Deborah Chapter), Alberta Parker (Acacia Chapter). 

According to historian Josh Sides, the 1950s in Los Angeles was a postwar economic and industrial boom time. During World War II, the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) put constant pressure on the federal government to abolish segregation in the armed forces as well as on the homefront workforce.  However, by the 1950s segregation still existed in Los Angeles in industry, in choosing a home, as well as in fraternal groups. 

On March 31, 1951, Parker reported to the club that she had consulted with Los Angeles Urban League about deciding on a charity project.  They recommended that because of "racial barriers" the club should focus their energy on assisting needy children at the local high school, as a project, rather than as foster mothers to a child in an orphanage. Unfortuantely, there are no more details in the minute book about the orphanage.

In 1951, Herbert and Parker sat in on an NAACP conference in Los Angeles.  The NAACP was and is the nation's oldest civil rights organization.  Herbert reported to the club that speaker Franklin P. Williams had stressed the point that African Americans and people of color must continue to move forward.  According to sociologist Theda Skocpol, Prince Hall Masons had a long history of collaborating with the NAACP.  As early as the 1920s Prince Hall members encouraged and gave financial support to the NAACP. 

According to the minute book, in discussions throughout November and December of 1952, the members of the Half Century Matrons Club decided not to admit Past Patrons from Prince Hall. Herbert reported that she "told P[ast] Patrons as tactfully as she could that the club at this time unless and until the club itself decided to amend its bylaws no past [patron] could be admitted to membership, and that the club hoped he [William Henry] would not feel unwanted or unwelcome."  These women wanted to make their own decisions and keep discussions private.  This was an unusual step at the time, as Past Patrons were admitted to chapters of affiliated OES. 

Prince Hall Masons and the affiliated Order of Eastern Star are alive and well in Los Angeles today.  They recently celebrated Prince Hall Day, in September of 2011. 

Do you have more information about any of the original Half Century Matrons Club members of Los Angeles?  Please leave a comment if you do.   

Caption:

Minute Book for Half Century Matrons Club, Order of Eastern Star, Prince Hall, 1950-1959.  Scottish Rite Masonic Museum and Library, Museum  purchase, A2012/9/1.

References:

Sides, Josh.  L.A. City Limits:  African American Los Angeles from the Great Depression to the Present. Berkeley, Los Angeles, and London:  University of California Press, 2003.

Skocpol, Theda et al.  What a Mighty Power We Can Be:  African American Fraternal Groups and the Struggle for Racial Equality.  Princeton and Oxford:  Princeton University Press, 2006

 

 

From Boston to Washington, D.C.: Prince Hall Freemasonry

The National Heritage Museum’s exhibition, "The Initiated Eye: Secrets, Symbols, Freemasonry, and the Architecture of Washington, D.C.," includes the painting seen here, The Good of Masonry Entirely at Heart.  The painting depicts the Prince Hall Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia, which oversees African American lodges in the district.  Located at 1000 U Street, N.W., the building was designed by Albert Cassell (1895-1969), noted African American architect, in 1922.  But Prince Hall Freemasonry actually got its start in Boston.

A leading citizen in Boston’s African American community, Prince Hall (1738-1807) was an active Methodist who campaigned for schools for black children and created a benevolent society.  Drawn to Freemasonry’s values and opportunities, the former slave tried to join Boston’s lodges in the early 1770s, but was denied membership.

Hall and fourteen other African Americans who had been rejected by the established Boston lodges turned to a Masonic lodge attached to a British regiment stationed in the city.  Initiated in 1775, Hall and his Brothers met as members of the British lodge until the Revolutionary War ended.  In 1784, Prince Hall petitioned the Grand Lodge of England to form a new lodge on American soil.  The governing body granted his request, creating African Lodge No. 459.  When Prince Hall died in 1807, African American Masons chose to give their fraternity his name to distinguish it from the white lodges that excluded blacks.

Prince Hall Freemasonry has been practiced in Washington, D.C., since Social Lodge No. 1 was chartered in 1825.  Social Lodge No. 1 joined with two other lodges in 1848 to form the Prince Hall Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia. 

"The Initiated Eye" exhibition presents 21 oil paintings by Peter Waddell based on the architecture of Washington, D.C., and the role that our founding fathers and prominent citizens – many of whom were Freemasons – played in establishing the layout and design of the city.  The exhibition is supplemented with approximately forty objects from the National Heritage Museum’s collection.  In the show, the painting of the D.C. Prince Hall Grand Lodge building is juxtaposed with the photograph seen here.  Taken by noted photographer James Van Der Zee (1886-1983) in 1930, it shows a cornerstone laying for a Masonic temple in New York City.

"The Initiated Eye" will be on view through January 9, 2011.  The paintings in the exhibition are the work of Peter Waddell, and were commissioned by, and are the property of, the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of Washington, D.C., with all rights reserved.  This exhibition is supported by the Scottish Rite Masons of the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction, U.S.A.

Left: The Good of Masonry Entirely at Heart, 2005, Peter Waddell (b. 1955), Washington, D.C.  Courtesy of the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of Washington, D.C.  Right: Cornerstone Laying of Masonic Temple, 1930, James Van Der Zee (1886-1983), New York, New York, National Heritage Museum, 94.052. 

Calling All Masonic and Fraternal Scholars!

The National Heritage Museum announces its first symposium, to be held at the Museum on Friday, April 9, 2010 - New Perspectives on American Freemasonry and Fraternalism. 

We are now seeking proposals for papers to be presented at the symposium.  As one of the largest repositories of American Masonic and fraternal objects, books and manuscripts in the United States, the Museum aims to foster new research on American fraternalism and to encourage the use of its scholarly resources.

The symposium seeks to present the newest research on American Masonic and fraternal groups from the past through the present day.  By 1900, over 250 American fraternal groups existed, numbering six million members.  The study of their activities and influence in the United States, past and present, offers the potential for new interpretations of American society and culture.  Diverse perspectives on this topic are sought; perspectives on and interpretations of all time periods are welcome.

Possible topics include:

• Comparative studies of American fraternalism and European or other international forms of  fraternalism
• Prince Hall Freemasonry and other African-American fraternal groups
• Ethnically- and religiously-based fraternal groups
• Fraternal groups for women or teens
• Role of fraternal groups in social movements
• The material culture of Freemasonry and fraternalism
• Anti-Masonry and anti-fraternal movements, issues and groups
• Fraternal symbolism and ritual
• The expression of Freemasonry and fraternalism through art, music, and literature
• Approaches to Freemasonry – from disciplinary, interdisciplinary, or transnational perspectives;  the historiography and methodology of the study of American fraternalism

Proposals should be for 30 minute research papers; the day’s schedule will allow for audience questions and feedback.

To submit a proposal: Send an abstract of 400 words or less with a resume or c.v. that is no more than two pages.  Be sure to include full contact information (name, address, email, phone, affiliation).

Send proposals to: Aimee E. Newell, Director of Collections, National Heritage Museum, by email at anewell[at]monh.org or by mail to 33 Marrett Road, Lexington, MA  02421. 

Deadline for proposals to be received is August 15, 2009.  For questions, contact Aimee E. Newell as above, or call 781-457-4144.

Masonic checkerboard, ca. 1890, Collection of National Heritage Museum, Special Acquisition Fund, 91.033.  Photograph by David Bohl.

Prince Hall Memorial on Cambridge Common

No, that's not a memorial to Prince Hall shown here, but we've learned that there will be a memorial to Prince Hall erected somewhere near the monument seen here. We recently learned that the City of Cambridge (Massachusetts) is planning to erect a statue of Prince Hall on historic Cambridge Common. Prince Hall is of interest here in the library for much the same reasons that George Washington and Paul Revere are - men who were both actively involved in the American Revolution and actively involved in Freemasonry.  (Prince Hall is buried in Copp's Hill Burying Ground, one of the stops on Boston's famous Freedom Trail.)

The effort to memorialize Prince Hall in Cambridge has been officially in the works for three years. (Read the proclamation that was issued in 2005 by the Cambridge City Council and that officially started the ball rolling to memorialize Prince Hall on Cambridge Common.)

According to the City of Cambridge website the project to memorialize Hall was formally launched this past April 2008: "An effort has begun to place a memorial to Prince Hall, the 18th Century Patriot and Civil Rights Advocate, on the historic Cambridge Common.  A committee formed by Mayor E. Denise Simmons has gained preliminary approval from the Cambridge Historic Commission to design and place the memorial on the Common’s rotunda – near the George Washington Memorial."

Cambridge Common is perhaps now best remembered as the place where George Washington took command of the Continental army on July 3, 1775 - something that was not especially remarkable at the time. I should add that this did not take place under the so-called Washington Elm, a tree that actually existed, but which went from being an ordinary elm tree to iconic symbol (see this postcard) only later when stories were invented, putting Washington directly under that tree as he took command of the Continental army. You can read a bit more about this legend at the Cambridge Historical Commission's FAQ page.

Mythology and inaccuracy have dogged historians interested in learning more about Prince Hall as well. Finding accurate biographical information about Prince Hall isn't easy. It is mostly complicated by the fact that William Grimshaw's 1903 book Official History of Freemasonry Among the Colored People in North America [Call no.: 90.G86 1969] contained a number of factual errors, but which was used as a definitive source, thus spreading the inaccuracies much further beyond this one book. The Phylaxis Society - "an international organization of Prince Hall Freemasons dedicated to studying the life of Prince Hall and researching the history of Prince Hall Freemasonry" - has done an excellent job trying to get at the factual truths of Prince Hall's life, while at the same time refuting the many errors found in Grimshaw's book. Their on-going search for the facts about Prince Hall's life is called the Grimshaw Offensive. Check it out - and learn more about the life of Prince Hall.

If you're interested in learning about Prince Hall or Prince Hall Freemasonry, we have some resources in our library that will get you off to a good start. A great place to start is this book:

Alton G. Roundtree and Paul M. Bessel. Out of the Shadows: The Emergence of Prince Hall Freemasonry in America : Over 225 years of Endurance. Camp Springs, Md. : KLR Publishing , 2006. [Has an excellent annotated bibliography as well.]
Call number: 90 .R68 2006

In addition, we also have a nearly complete run of The Phylaxis Society's magazine, The Phylaxis, which has been published since 1974, as well a number of annual proceedings from various Prince Hall Masonic bodies. That said, we're always interested in building on our collection of Prince Hall Freemasonry here - if you've got something that you'd like to donate, we'd love to consider your donation.

Today's picture, which was taken by yours truly on a recent trip to Cambridge Common, shows a detail of a monument that was erected in 1950 and which is located on the Common. The monument commemorates George Washington assuming command of the Continental forces on July 3, 1775. The detail shown here is from a bas-relief by Leonard Craske that's attached to a larger stone marker. You can see the so-called "Washington elm" depicted on the right-hand side of the scene above; and you can see here that the decision to include this mythological elm in the image above was controversial at the time that the memorial was being designed.

Moses Dickson and the Order of Twelve

Pictured here is Moses Dickson, from the frontispiece illustration of the 1879 book A Manual of the Knights of Tabor and Daughters of the Tabernacle. In 1872, the Rev. Moses Dickson founded the International Order of Twelve of Knights and Daughters of Tabor, an African-American fraternal order focused on benevolence and financial programs. Dickson was born a free man in Cincinnati in 1824, was a Union soldier during the Civil War, and afterwards became a prominent clergyman in the African Methodist Episcopal Church. Dickson showed an interest in progressive fraternal organizations early on - in 1846 Dickson, with others, founded a society known as the Knights of Liberty, whose objective was to overthrow slavery; the group did not get beyond the organizing stages. Dickson was also involved in Freemasonry - he was the second Grand Master of the Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Missouri.

Dickson's International Order of Twelve of Knights and Daughters of Tabor - or Order of Twelve, as it's more commonly know - accepted men and women on equal terms. Men and women met together in higher level groups and in the governance of the organization, although at the local level they met separately - the men in "temples" and the women in "tabernacles" (akin to "lodges" in Freemasonry). The Order of Twelve was most prominent in the South and the lower Midwest. The major benefits to members - similar to many fraternal orders of the time - was a burial policy and weekly cash payments for the sick.

What many people today remember about the Order of Twelve is an institution founded in Mound Bayou, Misssissippi in 1942 - the Taborian Hospital. Michael Premo, a Story Corps facilitator, posted his appreciation for the impact that the Taborian Hospital had on the lives of African-Americans living in the Mississippi Delta from the 1940s-1960s. The Taborian Hospital was on the Mississippi Heritage Trust's 10 Most Endangered List of 2000, and an update to that list indicates that the hospital still stands vacant and seeks funding for renovation. Here are some photos of the Taborian Hospital today.

Want to learn more about the Order of Twelve? Here are a few primary and secondary sources that we have here in our collection (with primary sources listed first):

Dickson, Moses. A Manual of the Knights of Tabor and Daughters of the Tabernacle, including the Ceremonies of the Order, Constitutions, Installations, Dedications, and Funerals, with Forms, and the Taborian Drill and Tactics. St. Louis, Mo. : G. I. Jones [printer], 1879.
Call number: RARE HS 2259 .T3 D5 1879

----. Ritual of Taborian Knighthood, including : the Uniform Rank. St. Louis, Mo. : A. R. Fleming & Co., printers, 1889.
Call number: RARE HS 2230 .T3 D5 1889

Beito, David. From Mutual Aid to the Welfare State: Fraternal Societies and Social services, 1890-1967. Chapel Hill, N.C. : University of North Carolina Press, 2000.
Call number: 44 .B423 2000

Skocpol, Theda, Ariane Liazos, Marshall Ganz. What a Mighty Power We Can Be : African American Fraternal Groups and the Struggle for Racial Equality. Princeton : Princeton University Press, 2006.
Call number: 90 .S616 2006