Washington's Masonic Correspondence
Washington's Masonic Correspondence FOREWORDIIIIIIIVVVIVIIVIIIIXXXIXIIXIIIXIVXVCopyright
Washington's Masonic Correspondence
George Washington
FOREWORD
Washington'sMasonic
correspondence as found among the Washington papers in the
Manuscript department of the Library of Congress, affords an
insight of the great esteem in which Washington held the Masonic
Fraternity, of which since his early days he had been an honored
member.This is further shown by his great courtesy to the Brethren,
in his replies to their addresses, no matter whether they were from
a Grand or Subordinate Lodge. In this collection, were also found
some of the original drafts of Washington's replies, together with
copies of the various masonic addresses and letters to him, and in
the case of Dominie Snyder, press copies of his
answers.In the present work an attempt has been made to group this
matter together in chronological order, also to show some of the
surroundings and conditions under which this correspondence was
made, and of the Brethren who were prominent in the presentation of
these Eleven Addresses, which came to him from Seven of the
Thirteen Colonies.A complete set of photostatic fac-similes of these documents
in the Library of Congress, has been secured for the Museum of the
Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania. Efforts were also made to obtain
photographic copies of such of the Washington Masonic letters as
were still in existence, which were successful except in two
instances as noted in the text.It will be noted that on April 30, 1789, Washington, while
Master of his Lodge, was inaugurated President of the United
States; this is the only instance where one of the fourteen
Presidents, who were Members of our Fraternity was a Master of a
Lodge during their term as President.The esteem in which Washington held the Masonic Fraternity,
is shown by the fact, that in almost every case he had both the
address and his reply, copied upon opposite pages of one of his
folio letter-books, now in the Library of Congress. These copies
are respectively in the handwriting of Washington's private
secretaries, viz:—Major William Jackson: Tobias Lear: Bartholomew
Dandridge and G. W. Craik.In addition to the above copies we have Washington's original
drafts of his letters to Watson and Cassoul, to the Grand Lodges of
Massachusetts, South Carolina, and Maryland, to Paul Revere, and as
before stated press copies of his answers to Mr.
Snyder.A perusal of these original documents, as here presented,
affords an excellent illustration of theentente
cordiale, which existed between Washington and
his Masonic Brethren.Upon the other hand, how the Masonic Fraternity, during
Washington's lifetime, venerated their august Brother, is shown by
the addresses of this correspondence as retained by
Washington.Also by the various Masonic Memorial services held, after
Washington's death, the chief of which was in Philadelphia, under
the auspices of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania. The Masonic
services held in every State of the Union, the many Eulogies and
Sermons delivered and printed are matters of history.How this veneration of the great Washington continued during
the past years, is shown by the fact that there are no less than 53
Masonic Lodges in the United States, named after the illustrious
Brother. This is independent of the numerous Royal Arch Chapters,
Commanderies, and other Masonic bodies, that bear the name
"Washington."Washington Lodges are found in thirty-eight of the
forty-eight States of the American Union.The other ten States, which thus far have no "Washington
Lodge" within their Jurisdiction, are Mississippi and Texas,
together with the newer western States lately admitted into the
American Union, viz:—Nevada, North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Wyoming,
Utah, New Mexico and Arizona.In addition to the fifty-three Washington Lodges, there is
also one each in Canada, the Island of Cuba and the District of
Columbia.In the Masonic Fraternity throughout the world, the name of
Washington is ever kept in remembrance, as one of the brightest
luminaries in the Masonic constellation, one of the most prominent
examples, being his full length oil portrait in Masonic clothing in
the Hall of the Grand Lodge of England at London.Acknowledgments are due to the Hon. Herbert Putnam, Librarian
of Congress, for placing these documents at the disposal of the
writer, and giving permission to have photostat copies made of
same; also to J. Henry Williams, Esq., R. W. Grand Master of Masons
in Pennsylvania and Masonic Jurisdiction thereunto belonging, for
suggestions and encouragement in the preparation of this
work.The Masonic
Correspondence of
WashingtonMuchhas been written pro and
con about Washington and his connection with the Masonic
Fraternity. Thus far no complete set of his Masonic writings have
been compiled or published. Such portions as have been printed were
fragmentary, and issued for what may be called local
purposes.How careful Washington was of his Masonic correspondence is
shown by the fact that he had copies made, in his private letter
books, of most all letters sent him by the various Masonic Grand
and Subordinate bodies, and his answers thereto, usually upon
opposite pages. He thus had both the addresses and his reply at
hand for easy reference. This fact shows the esteem in which
Washington held his Brethren of the Masonic Fraternity, as well as
his own opinion of Freemasonry.These letter-books are now in the Library of Congress, and
photostat copies of such as relate to Freemasonry have been made
for the Library of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania.As to the authenticity of the Washington Letter Books, and
how they came into the possession of the United States Government
is explained by the following statement by Mr. Galliard Hunt, chief
Manuscript division, Library of
Congress:[1]"They are a part of the Washington papers in"the Government's possession, purchased from the"Washington family, one lot in 1834 and the re-"mainder in 1849, and deposited in the
Department"of State until 1903, when, by the President's
order,"they were sent to this Library. They range in
date"from 1754 to 1799. Some of them are partly"or wholly in Washington's hand-writing, and
others"in the writing of his secretaries and their
clerks."There are no volumes of press copies, but there
are"some press copies among the papers."Washington in writing his answer to the various greetings, in
most cases would first make a rough copy of his reply, then digest,
alter, correct or change such parts or sentences as he thought
proper. Then after deliberate consideration, a fair copy would be
made either by Washington or one of his Secretaries and signed by
him, and sent to the Masonic bodies for which they were
intended.Fortunately some of the original drafts of these Masonic
letters have come down to us; thus far five autographic copies have
been found among the Washington papers in the Library of Congress
at Washington.1. Draft of letter written at Newburg, New York, August 19,
1782, to Watson and Cassoul of Nantes, France, thanking them for
the Masonic Apron, embroidered by the nuns at Nantes, and which is
now in possession of Alexandria-Washington Lodge, No. 22, at
Alexandria, Virginia.2. To the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts.3. To the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania.4. To the Grand Lodge of South Carolina.5. To the Grand Lodge of Maryland; this draft is a two-page
letter written upon a letter sheet and shows many changes and
corrections; it is dated 1798.In addition to the above original drafts there were found
several addresses and the accompanying answers, which thus far have
never been published, in fact no mention of them has ever appeared
in print, viz:—1. An address from the Grand Lodge of Georgia, together with
Washington's reply.2. A letter to Paul Revere, Grand Master of Massachusetts and
his Grand Officers.3. An address from the Brethren of Prince George's Lodge, No.
16, Georgetown, South Carolina, presented to President Washington
during his visit to South Carolina, April 30, 1791, also his reply
to same.4. An address from the Brethren of St. John's Lodge, No. 2,
of Newbern, North Carolina, and the reply to same.Photostat copies of the above have also been obtained which
make the most complete collection of the Masonic Correspondence of
Washington which has thus far been compiled.A careful study of this correspondence so carefully cherished
by Washington puts an entirely new phase upon Washington's
connection with the Masonic Fraternity, and his esteem of
Freemasonry.These papers absolutely thrust aside all of the statements,
arguments and libels, brought forth by our misguided enemies at the
time of the Anti-Masonic craze during the last century, and in a
small way kept alive even down to the present day by some people
who are blinded by their ignorance or malice.Referring to some of their published statements that
Washington never belonged to the Masonic Fraternity, and that there
were no authentic Masonic letters nor copies thereof among his
records so frequently made during the political Anti-Masonic craze,
which swept over New England and the Middle States about
eighty-five years ago, the following quotations from the Masonic
literature of the period will prove interesting
examples.One of the chief statements made by these people, and brought
before all their conventions and heralded in the public prints was:
"That though General Washington caused to be carefully copied in
books kept for that purpose, all his letters on every subject, no
trace whatever of any of the five letters under
consideration,[2]nor any letters to any
other Lodge or Masonic body whatever, are to be found among the
records of his correspondence."[3]The chief authority upon whom the leaders of the Anti-Masonic
movement at that time depended in their defamation of Washington,
was Jared Sparks of Boston, who at the time was engaged writing a
life of Washington, and then had access to all the Washington
letter-books and papers, and from his connection with the
Washington correspondence, was supposed to be the best qualified to
pass upon their authenticity.Another of the charges made by the Anti-Masonic bigots whose
chief object was to controvert facts was:"That although Washington wasextremely
scrupulousin preserving his correspondence with
all public or private bodies, there is not a line of hisrelating to Freemasonry, to be found
among all his papers, except the correspondence with Mr.
Snyder![4]It is also a fact, that
Washington was equally scrupulous in dating his letters, and it is
believed that not one can be found, which is without a
date."[5]It appears that the chairman of a committee of citizens of
Boston called upon the officers of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts
to submit their two Washington letters to Jared Sparks for his
inspection. This the Grand Officers refused to do.In return Sparks sent the following letter to the
Chairman:"Boston, February 18, 1833."Sir,—I received this
morning your letter of the 15th instant, in which you
inquire:"Whether I have yet seen or had in my possession any original
letter or letters, in the hand writing of General Washington,
addressed to any body of men denominating themselves
Freemasons."In reply, I can only state that I have seen no letters from
General Washington of the kind described in yours, nor received any
communication on the subject, either verbal or
written.[6]"I am, Sir,"Very respectfully,"Your ob't servant,"Jared Sparks."How Sparks could have overlooked the numerous entries in the
letter books whose numbers and folios are here quoted, also the
drafts of replies in Washington's hand-writing and signed by him
(copies of which are here given in this work), can only be
accounted for by the fact that he must have been carried away by
the political excitement of the day.Washington's connection with the Masonic Fraternity has been
exhaustively traced by Brother James M. Lamberton, Past Master of
Perseverance Lodge, No. 21, in his address "Washington as a
Freemason," from the day of his entrance into Fredericksburg Lodge,
No. 4, of Virginia, September 1, 1752, until the day of his death,
December 14, 1799, before the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania, at its
celebration of the Sesqui-Centennial Anniversary of the Initiation
of Brother George Washington into the Fraternity of
Freemasons,[7]held in the Masonic Temple,
in the city of Philadelphia on Wednesday, November 5,
1902.It must also be remembered that Washington made a public
profession of his membership in Philadelphia, Monday, December 28,
1778, when he walked in procession with his brethren of the Grand
Lodge of Pennsylvania, from the College at Fourth and Arch Streets
to Christ Church on Second Street above Market Street,
Philadelphia, where, after a prayer by Rev. William White, a sermon
was preached for the "[Benefit of the POOR] by appointment of and
before | The General Communication | of | Free and Accepted |
MASONS | of the | State of PENNSYLVANIA, | on Monday, December 28,
1788, | Celebrated, agreeable to their Constitution, | as the
Anniversary of | ST. JOHN the Evangelist, | by William Smith, D.D.,
| Provost of the College and Academy of Philadelphia."
|This Sermon was printed and dedicated to Brother Washington
and a copy sent to him, which was bound with other pamphlets in a
volume lettered "Masonic Sermons," and is so mentioned in the
inventory of his estate and now in the Boston
Athenæum.[8]At this service over four
hundred pounds were collected for the relief of the
poor.Rev. Brother William Smith, D.D., preached a number of
Masonic Sermons in Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maryland; three of
which delivered at the request of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania
were printed, viz.:Sermon 1.—On Brotherly Love, &c.
Preached on the Anniversary of St. John the Baptist, June 24,
1755,Sermon 2.—Preached on Monday, December
28, 1778, celebrated as the Anniversary of St. John the Evangelist.
With an Appendix on the Character of Lucius Quintius
Cincinnatus,Sermon 3.