History and Culture by Bicycle: masonic

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Friday, January 2, 2015

Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Final Thoughts

While no official record exists Masonic work was conducted during the Lewis and Clark Expedition there is evidence and proof Captain Lewis took his Masonic beliefs with him and that they had a positive influence and helped guide him on the expedition. He named three river tributaries after three of Freemasonry's important tenants. Captain Lewis may have been the only known Freemason on the expedition with Captain Clark becoming a Freemason after the expedition returned in 1806 it is possible and plausible others from the expedition joined the fraternity especially when the Ancients and Moderns joined to form one belief in Freemasonry. As of yet no known records exist proving if anyone but Lewis and Clark joined the Masonic Fraternity.

Something that has been proven is were it not for the expedition Freemasonry would not have expanded as it did during and especially after the expedition returned in 1806. Ever since 1806 every new territory, which developed into individual states which thus caused grand lodge jurisdictions in each of the respective states was a result of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

Would Freemasonry have expanded otherwise? Yes, it would have, but not as quickly.

Previous articles:
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Introduction
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Thank You
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Information Sources
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Timeline
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: The Type of Men who Joined Freemasonry in the Past
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Was Masonic Work Conducted during the Expedition?
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: We Proceeded On Article.
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Royal Arch Mason Article
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: First Series Summary
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Freemasonry West of the Mississippi River, Kaskaskia 1700 to 1775
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Freemasonry West of the Mississippi River, Kaskaskia 1775 to 1825
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Freemasonry West of the Mississippi River, Kaskaskia after 1825
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Freemasonry West of the Mississippi River, Freemasonry after the Expedition; the next Masonic Lodge

Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Freemasonry West of the Mississippi River, Freemasonry after the Expedition; the next Masonic Lodge

The previous two articles talk about Freemasonry after the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Freemasonry continued to expand with each new territory, state and thus new grand lodge jurisdiction after the expedition returned in 1806.

This articles talks about one of the next if not the second Masonic Lodge formed west of the Mississippi River:

Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Freemasonry West of the Mississippi River, Kaskaskia after 1825

Kaskaskia, the state of Illinois, Western Star Lodge and the Grand Lodge of Illinois went through some dramatic changes after 1825. From the Grand Lodge of Illinois going out of existence and reforming to flooding in Kaskaskia which started a population reduction the community, state and grand lodge survived and still exist today.

This article and the links below it further explain the history of Kaskaskia, Illinois and the Grand Lodge of Illinois:

Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Freemasonry West of the Mississippi River, Kaskaskia 1775 to 1825

The first known Freemason to enter Kaskaskia was George Rogers Clark. Clark and a force of over 200 men defeated the British during the American Revolution. It is plausible other Freemasons were in Kaskaskia at this time and they may have conducted Masonic work. If degree work was conducted it would have likely been done as a Time Immemorial Lodge granted by an existing Grand Lodge Jurisdiction, though no record or proof of this has been discovered.

Timeline of Kaskaskia 1775 to 1825:
July 4, 1778 - George Rogers Clark and his force of 200 men, including Captain Leonard Helm, defeated the British during one of the western-most battles of the American Revolution. The parish rang the church bell in celebration, which has since been called the "liberty bell".

George Rogers Clark is the first known Freemason to enter Kaskaskia but it would be another 27 years before the first known Masonic Lodge is chartered.

September 3, 1783 - The American Revolution ended.
1794 - Shadrach Bond Jr. came to the Illinois country and settled in Monroe County.

Shadrach Bond Jr. later moved to Kaskaskia where he built the first brick residence a short distance west of the town.

April 30, 1803 - The Louisiana Purchase is completed, expanding the territory of the United States west of the Mississippi River Valley.
March 9, 1805 - Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania is petitioned to to form a Masonic Lodge in Kaskaskia. Seven Freemasons signed the petition sent to the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania. They were: Robert McMahan, William Arundel, James Edgar, Michale Jones, James, Galbreath, Rufus Easton, and Robert Robinson.
June 6, 1806 - The Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania granted the charter for Western Star Lodge No. 107.

The charter was mailed to the Robert Robinson.

September 13, 1806 - Kaskaskia Masons met for the first time to constitute their new lodge. Robert Robinson presided over the lodge acted as Worshipful Master, James Gilbreath acted as Senior Warden, William Arundel acred as Junior Warden.

The following officers were installed: James Edgar was installed as Worshipful Master; Michael Jones was installed as Senior Warden; and James Gilbreath was installed as Junior Warden; William Arundel was installed as Secretary; Robert Robinson as Treasurer and Senior Deacon; George Fisher was installed Junior Deacon and Steward.

October 4, 1806 - Western Star Lodge No. 107 recorded a visitor from Temple Lodge No. 26 located in Reisters Town in Baltimore County, Maryland The visitor was Shadrach Bond Jr. who petition Western Star Lodge No, 107 for affiliation.
October 20, 1806 - Robert Robinson reported to the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania that the Western Star Lodge officers had been installed " and invested with the ensigns of their respective offices, and the lodge was closed in due form".
December 27, 1806 - Shadrach Bond Jr. is elected to membership in Western Star Lodge No. 107.

Shadrach Bond Jr. was active in public affairs all of his adult life. He served in the territorial legislature and was the area's first delegate to Congress

October 3, 1814 - Shadrach resigend from Congress and became the receiver of public monies at Kaskaskia.
1814 - Shadrach Bond Jr. served as Junior Deacon of Western Star Lodge.
1815 & 1818 - Shadrach Bond, Jr. served as Worshipful Master or the presiding officer of Western Star Lodge No. 107.
December 3, 1818 - Illinois is granted statehood. Shadrach Bond Jr. is elected as the first governor without much opposition.
1820 - Libanus Lodge of Edwardsville proposed to Western Star Lodge of Kaskaskia that a Grand Lodge of Illinois be formed.
December 9, 1822 - A convention was called to meet about the issue of forming a Grand Lodge of Illinois.
December 11, 1822 - The convention decided to form the Grand Lodge of Illinois and elected Shadrach Bond Jr. as the first Grand Master of Illinois. Western Star Lodge No. 107 became Western Star Lodge No. 1 under the charter of the Grand Lodge of Illinois.

Info. source:
Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania - Wikipedia
Louisiana Purchase - About Education
Freemasonry Comes to Illinois - Alphonse Cerza
Freemasonry in Ste. Genevieve - Ste. Genevieve, Missouri
Horicon Lodge No. 244 - blog
History - St. Louis Missouri Lodge #1
Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania
Grand Lodge of Missouri
The Missouri Freemason Spring 2007 - magazine
Western Star Lodge #240
Freemasonry in Illinois - Masonic Voice Review
Kaskaskia, Illinois - Wikipedia
Curse of Kaskaskia
History of the M. W. Grand Lodge of Illinois
Shadrach Bond - Wikipedia
Grand Lodge of Illinois

Previous articles:
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Introduction
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Thank You
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Information Sources
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Timeline
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: The Type of Men who Joined Freemasonry in the Past
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Was Masonic Work Conducted during the Expedition?
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: We Proceeded On Article.
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Royal Arch Mason Article
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: First Series Summary
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Freemasonry West of the Mississippi River, Kaskaskia 1700 to 1775

Thursday, January 1, 2015

Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Freemasonry West of the Mississippi River, Kaskaskia 1700 to 1775

This is the second half of the Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition series. This half will focus on Masonic work that took place at the same time as, but separate from the expedition and what happened with Freemasonry west of the Mississippi River after the expedition returned.

While the Masonic work conducted during the Lewis and Clark Expedition was unofficial, official Masonic work was conducted while the expedition was taking place. In the villiage of Kaskaskia the first Masonic Lodge west of the Mississippi was chartered while the Lewis and Clark Expedition was making their way to the Pacific Northwest. Though not directly related to the expedition, those who conducted the Masonic work in Kaskaskia may be have been inspired by the members of the expedition. These men who conducted this work may have had the foresight to realize there was going to be further expansion to the west once the expedition returned. The lodge was called Western Star Lodge No. 107. This area was the Indiana Territory which became the state of Illinois. Kaskaskia, Illinois exists today.

Timeline of Kaskaskia 1700 to 1775:
1703 - French Jesuit missionaries established a mission with the goal of converting the Illini Native Americans to Catholicism.
1707 - The population of the community was estimated at 2,200
Before 1714 - Of 21 children whose birth and baptism was recorded in Kaskaskia, 18 mothers were Indian and twenty fathers were French. One devout Catholic full-blooded Indian woman disowned her half-breed son for living "among the savage nations," as she referred to the French.
1714 - The first stone church is built.
1715 - A a visitor wrote that the village consisted of 400 Illinois men, " good people;" two Jesuit missionaries, and "about twenty French voyageurs who have settled there and married Indian women.
Between 1714 to 1718 - The French had a fur trading post in the village. French settlers moved into the area to farm and exploit the lead mines on the Missouri side of the river. Kaskaskia became the capitol of Upper Louisiana.
1718 - The French built Fort de Chartres. The French imported the first enslaved Africans, shipped from Santo Domingo in the Caribbean, to work as laborers in the lead mines being developed in Missouri. This region became both a fur trading and slave trading post.
1719 - The French goals stimulated the expedition of Claude Charles Du Tisne to establish trade relations with the Plains Indians.
1733 - The French built Fort Kaskaskia near the village.
1741 - King Louis XV sent a bell to Kaskaskia for one of the several churches constructed there.
1754 - The French Indian War, also known as he Seven Years War, started with the British.
1763 - Fort Kaskaskia was destroyed by the British and the French Indian War ended.
March 24, 1773 - Shardach Bond Jr. is born in Fredricktown, Maryland. He would become toe first governor of Illinois.
April 19, 1775 - The American Revolution started.

Up to this point no record of Masonic activity or work has been found or is known to have taken place in Kaskaskia. But it is plausible Freemasons of French and British decent were in the area at some point since its beginning and that Masonic work was conducted.

Info. source:
Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania - Wikipedia
Louisiana Purchase - About Education
Freemasonry Comes to Illinois - Alphonse Cerza
Freemasonry in Ste. Genevieve - Ste. Genevieve, Missouri
Horicon Lodge No. 244 - blog
History - St. Louis Missouri Lodge #1
Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania
Grand Lodge of Missouri
The Missouri Freemason Spring 2007 - magazine
Western Star Lodge #240
Freemasonry in Illinois - Masonic Voice Review
Kaskaskia, Illinois - Wikipedia
Curse of Kaskaskia
History of the M. W. Grand Lodge of Illinois
Shadrach Bond - Wikipedia
Grand Lodge of Illinois

Previous articles:
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Introduction
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Thank You
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Information Sources
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Timeline
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: The Type of Men who Joined Freemasonry in the Past
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Was Masonic Work Conducted during the Expedition?
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: We Proceeded On Article.
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Royal Arch Mason Article
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: First Series Summary

Wednesday, December 3, 2014

Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: First Series Summary

Freemasonry had an interesting beginning prior to the Lewis and Clark Expedition, especially in the American Colonies. There has been no evidence found that any other member of the expedition was a Freemason before and during the expedition, except for Meriwether Lewis. The only other known member who became a Freemason after the expedition was William Clark. No other records have been found to date as to anyone else being a Freemason before, becoming one during or becoming one after the expedition was over.

There is nothing in the journals Lewis and Clark kept indicating any sort of tyled or un-tyled masonic work or activities was conducted during the expedition. There is proof Captain Meriwether Lewis took his masonic beliefs with him on the expedition and named three river tributaries after three of the Masonic Virtues.

The question as to whether or not masonic work was conducted on the expedition is no at least not among the other members of the expedition, from researching the known journals and records. It can be interpreted and said Masonic work was conducted by Meriwether Lewis when he named the three river tributaries, even if none of the other members of the expedition knew it at the time. When WIlliam Clark became a Freemason after the expedition it is likely he understood why Lewis named the river tributaries as he did.

The research will continue for any other journals, records, etc.

There will be a break from this series after this first half. The second half will be about what happened within Freemasonry during the expedition and right after it ended.

Previous articles:
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Introduction
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Thank You
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Information Sources
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Timeline
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: The Type of Men who Joined Freemasonry in the Past
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Was Masonic Work Conducted during the Expedition?
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: We Proceeded On Article.
Freemasonry and the Lewis and Clark Expedition: Royal Arch Mason Article