TO........All FROM......Peter Trei SUBJECT...Freemasonry info (was: Eastern Star) DATE......09:30am 02-Oct-92 ^AUFGATE newsin 1.27 From: ptrei@bistromath.mitre.org (Peter Trei) Date: Thu, 1 Oct 1992 20:07:30 GMT Organization: The MITRE Corporation Message-ID: <1992Oct1.200730.2092@linus.mitre.org> Newsgroups: soc.roots Freemasonry from a soc.roots perspective. I am not a geneaologist (sp), amateur or otherwise. But I am a Freemason, and quite well-read in the field. Every now and then, Masonry pops up on soc.roots, usually in the context of "I know that was a Mason, what more can I find out about him?" This is an attempt to provide a faq file on the subject. It's goal is to provide some context for understanding Masonic documents and artifacts, not teach Masonry. I am most familiar with the regular "blue" masonic lodge, so anything I say about the other groups is a little hazy. At the end is some practical advice for using Masonic sources. Masonry is a fraternal organization for men. While it can definitively be traced back to the mid 17th Century, and arguably back to the late 13th, it became formally organized in 1717, with the formation of the Grand Lodge of England. It soon spread to the American colonies, and has generally prospered here. The Organization of Masonry in America. Masons are organized into lodges. There is generally a lodge in almost any small town, sometimes several. Lodges vary in membership, with a lower limit of seven members, and a practical upper limit around 1000. Most are in the low hundreds. A mason must be a member in a lodge to remain in good standing. Some are members of more than one. Lodges in the same area are grouped into Districts. In Massachusetts, a typical district will have 5-10 lodges. Districts are grouped into Jurisdictions. Each Jurisdiction is presided over by a Grand Lodge. In America, each Grand Lodge generally has exclusive jurisdiction over a state (and there is also one for DC). Masons take three degrees when they join: Entered Apprentice (EA), Fellowcraft (FC), and Master Mason (MM). If they enter the officers' line, they may eventually serve a year as Worshipful Master of the lodge. All Masons can be referred to as "Brother" (Bro.). Those who have been installed as Master of a Lodge, are also refered to as "Worshipful". Past Masters retain this title. In a Masonic document, you might see "W.'. J. Smith", or "J. Smith, PM" (the .'. represents a triangle of dots, and has exactly the same significance as an abbreviating period). Each district is overseen by a District Deputy Grand Master (DDGM), who is the representative of the Grand Master (GM), of the jurisdiction. District level officers are addressed as "Right Worshipful" (RW), and the Grand Master is "Most Worshipful". Once again, they retain these forms of address when their term is over, and prepend "Past" to their titles (PDDGM and PGM). Symbols and artifacts: Not all Masons choose to advertize their membership by displaying symbols, but many do, often on lapel pins, watch fobs, and rings Everyone is probably familiar with the standard symbol of Freemasonry; an interlaced Square & Compasses, surrounding a letter G. Past Masters have an additional symbol: a pair of compasses above an arc, sometimes with a blazing sun in the center. PMs are traditionally given a medal (aka "jewel") in this form, made of gold, to wear at meetings. The jewel should be returned to the lodge when the PM dies. Most Masons also possess a white lambskin apron. If they served as master, or a higher post, they should also have elaborately embroidered aprons from those offices. Most Masons also have an engraved membership certificate. Affiliated organizations. The foundation of Masonry consists of the Masonic (aka "Blue") lodge There are numerous affiliated bodies, which restrict themselves either to Masons or the relatives of Masons. The most important of these are: The "blue lodge" is the foundation of Masonry, and all Masons take the first three degrees. Some wish to learn more, and a number of groups of additional degrees (aka "rites") exist. These degrees are open only to Master Masons, but have a administrative structure unconnected with the Grand Lodge. Principle among them are The York Rite and The Scottish Rite The York Rite: The York Rite degrees are divided into three blocks: Royal Arch Chapter, Council of Royal And Select Masters, and Knights Templar Commandry. I'm kind of vague on titles here. Members of chapter are referred to as "Companions". The head of a Chapter is called the High Priest (HP, PHP). The symbol for Chapter is a keystone with a circle of letters on it. Council and Commandry I don't really know enough to comment on. Knights Templar have rather spiffy uniforms derived from those of Union Admirals during the Civil War, including a bicorne hat. The Scottish Rite: The Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite is the other main group of degrees, ranging from 4 thru 33. Reaching the 32nd degree is no great feat in the US - almost any Mason who desires to can attain it. Scottish Rite Masons are organized into "Valleys". The symbol of the 32nd degree is an eagle with a triangular shield on it's chest, inscribed with the number 32. The 33rd degree is reserved as an honor to those who have provided great service to their community and/or Masonry, and is pretty special. 33rd degree Masons often wear a ring consisting of 3 gold rings joined together, with a number 33 in a triangle in place of a stone. Masons can join both the York and Scottish Rites, and many do. They must maintain good standing in their blue lodge. The Shriners: The Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine dates back to 1872. It's members are well known for their red fezzes and for parading in unusual vehicles. Their symbol (often seen on the back of cars) is a star and crescent moon suspended from a scimitar. Shriners are organized into "Temples". The Shrine is open to 32nd degree Masons and Knights Templar, and they must maintain good standing in their Scottish or York Rite bodies, as well as blue lodge. Order of the Eastern Star: OES is open both to female relatives of Master Masons, and to Master Masons themselves. All OES chapters are sponsored by blue lodges. The OES symbol is an inverted five-pointed star, with each point filled with a different color. The presiding officers of a OES chapter are the Worthy Patron (WP/PWP) and Worthy Matron (WM/PWM). Order of Demolay: A boys order, open to male relatives of Master Masons between the ages of 13? and 21. Rainbow Girls: A girls order, open to female relatives of Master Masons between the ages of 11 and 21. Symbol is a rainbow. Daughters of the Nile: Female auxiliary to the Shriners. There are any number of other "rites" and organizations, but these are the principle ones. Prince Hall Masonry: Because of the color bar maintained by most mainstream American lodges up until the 1950s, a parallel system of black Masonic organizations came into being, named "Prince Hall" after a prominent early black Freemason. Prince Hall and mainstream lodges do not recognize each other as legitimate (this is slowly changing). -------------------------------------------------- Getting information from the Masons. The is important to realize is that while Masons keep records, doing so is not their raison d'etre, nor are they particularly motivated to do searches for you. A query may be met with anything from enthusiastic cooperation to complete indifference. Politeness and tact are essential. The description here applies to blue lodges, but the method is quite applicable for the other orders. Making contact: The first thing to do is to get in contact with the Masons. If you know a Mason, just ask. If not, look in the phone book. Lodges are listed in the white pages with some combination of "Masonic", "Masons", or "Freemasons" followed by "Hall" or "Temple". In the Yellow Pages, they are usually under Fraternal Organizations. In extremis simply walk up to a lodge and knock on the door (we don't bite :-). You want to get in contact with either the Master or Secretary of a lodge near you. They have books listing all the lodges, or they may put you in touch with Grand Lodge, where the Grand Secretary's office can give you further information. What you need to find out is who has the records and archives of the lodge you are interested in. In the case of still-extant lodges, they are kept at the lodge itself. Lodges sometimes go defunct, or merge with other local lodges. In the first case, the records are probably at the Grand Lodge. In the second, the lodge into which the merge occured should have them. Once you have located the records, the fun begins. You will probably NOT be allowed to paw through them unsupervised - so you should try to develop a good relationship with the archivist. Don't expect computerized records, nor expect all the records to be terribly well organized. What can you find out? The most valuable single documents you can find for most Masons are his petitions for initiation or affiliation (the latter are used when a Mason moves to a new lodge). This should contain the following information: Date and place of birth. Address Occupation Previous lodge (only on affiliations). It may also contain Marital Status Religious Affiliation If he moved out of town, or left the Masons for some other reason, there may also be a petition for "demit", giving much the same information. Most other information the lodge would possess relates only to things like attendance, and Masonic activities. While this can be interesting in fleshing out his life, it will not aid much in tracing your family tree back further. Peter Trei Senior Warden Wilder Lodge Leominster Massachusetts --- ConfMail V4.00 * Origin: f555.n125.z1.fidonet.org (1:125/555) SEEN-BY: 125/30 555 ^APATH: 125/555