What is a Mason?
Masonry, also known as Freemasonry, is the oldest and largest
fraternity in the world. There is no other organization where a
man can walk into a room full of strangers, anywhere on the face
of the earth, and immediately be welcomed and honored as a
friend and as a Brother. It has been estimated that over 100,000
books have been written about it and although we certainly can't
replicate all of that knowledge here (though we wish we could!),
our website has been designed to provide you with a wide variety
of information. Obviously, we'll be telling you about
Freemasonry in our own state of Vermont but we'll also attempt
to address the most common questions one might have about our
organization.
Freemasonry has no regard for differences in a person's race,
color, creed or station in life. Its history and traditions date
from antiquity. It has two purposes: first to inspire its
members to live by the tenets of Brotherly Love, Relief and
Truth, and, second, to join its members in the endeavor to build
a world where justice, equality, and compassion shine forth in
the happiness of all human kind. While its moral philosophy is
founded upon religious principles, it is not a religion nor a
substitute for one. It does not solicit membership but welcomes
men who have good morals and who profess a belief in a Supreme
Being. Any man sincerely desirous of serving humanity only needs
to ask a member in order to receive a petition for membership.
When a man asks to join a Masonic Lodge, he enters into an
opportunity for personal development, character building, and
the acquisition of leadership capacities. Through his Masonic
journey and his association which his brethren, a Mason learns
the skill and finds the understanding with which he can enhance
his community and strengthen his family.
Much of the structure of the Masonic Fraternity is modeled on
the medieval guilds of stone masons who constructed the
magnificent cathedrals in Europe during the middle ages.
Similarly, a great deal of modern Freemasonry's moral symbolism
draws from the art and science of these builders. Much the same
as these master workmen labored to build an expression of a
community’s faith, so Freemasons today labor within their
communities to make them a finer place to live. While our
earliest Masonic documents date from the close of the thirteenth
century, present Masonic practice and structure emerged some
three hundred years ago when lodges of masons began to accept
men of prominence and learning who were not stone masons. In
1717, four lodges in England met and formed the first Grand
Lodge with a Grand Master at its head. Freemasonry came to
Vermont in 1791 and today there are some 89 lodges in the Green
Mountain State.
Since its beginnings in Vermont, Freemasons have been active
in promoting education, supporting stronger communities and
practicing charity. This proud tradition continues through a
wide range of community betterment programs, and most especially
our Vermont C.A.R.E. program. Perhaps the civic service of
Freemasonry to our communities is in no place more clearly
evident than the laying of the cornerstones of public buildings.
In this ceremony, Freemasonry reminds itself and all citizens of
the moral convictions and dedication to others which are
necessary to any well ordered and compassionate society.
Who was
Prince Hall?
Prince Hall is recognized as the Father of Black Masonry in
the United States. Historically, he made it possible for Negroes
to be recognized and enjoy all privileges of free and accepted
masonry.
Many rumors of the birth of Prince Hall have arisen. A few
records and papers have been found of him in Barbados where it
was rumored that he was born in 1748, but no record of birth by
church or by state, has been found there, and none in Boston.
All 11 countries were searched and churches with baptismal
records were examined without finding the name of Prince Hall.
One widely circulated rumor states that "Prince Hall was free
born in British West Indies. His father, Thomas Prince Hall, was
an Englishman and his mother a free colored woman of French
extraction. In 1765 he worked his passage on a ship to Boston,
where he worked as a leather worker, a trade learned from his
father. During this time he married Sarah Ritchery. Shortly
after their marriage, she died at the age of 24. Eight years
later he had acquired real estate and was qualified to vote.
Prince Hall also pressed John Hancock to be allowed to join the
Continental Army and was one of a few blacks who fought at the
battle of Bunker Hill. Religiously inclined, he later became a
minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church with a charge
in Cambridge and fought for the abolition of slavery." Some
accounts are paraphrased from the generally discredited Grimshaw
book of 1903.
Free Masonry among Black men began during the War of
Independence, when Prince Hall and fourteen other free black men
were initiated into Lodge # 441, Irish Constitution, attached to
the 38th Regiment of Foot, British Army Garrisoned at Castle
Williams (now Fort Independence) Boston Harbor on March 6, 1775.
The Master of the Lodge was Sergeant John Batt. Along with
Prince Hall, the other newly made masons were Cyrus Johnson,
Bueston Slinger, Prince Rees, John Canton, Peter Freeman,
Benjamin Tiler, Duff Ruform, Thomas Santerson, Prince Rayden,
Cato Spain, Boston Smith, Peter Best, Forten Howard and Richard
Titley.
When the British Army left Boston, this Lodge, # 441, granted
Prince Hall and his brethren authority to meet as a lodge, to go
in procession on Saints John Day, and as a Lodge to bury their
dead; but they could not confer degrees nor perform any other
Masonic "work". For nine years these brethren, together with
others who had received their degrees elsewhere, assembled and
enjoyed their limited privileges as Masons. Finally in March 2,
1784, Prince Hall petitioned the Grand Lodge of England, through
a Worshipful Master of a subordinate Lodge in London (William
Moody of Brotherly Love Lodge # 55) for a warrant or charter.
The warrant was granted on September 29, 1784 under the name
of African Lodge, # 459 on the register of the Grand Lodge of
England by authority of then Grand Master, the Duke of
Cumberland, delivered in Boston on April 29, 1787 by Captain
James Scott, brother-in-law of John Hancock and Master of the
Neptune. Prince Hall was the first Master of the lodge which was
organized one week later, May 6, 1787.
The warrant to African Lodge # 459 of Boston is the most
significant and highly prized document known to the Prince Hall
Masonic Fraternity. Through it, Masonic legitimacy among free
black men is traced, and on it more than any other factor, rests
their case. That charter, which is authenticated and in
safekeeping, is believed to be the only original charter issued
from the Grand Lodge of England still in the possession of
any Lodge in the United States. African Lodge allowed itself
to slip into arrears in the late 1790's and was stricken from
the rolls after the Union of 1813 although it had attempted
correspondence in 1802 and 1806. In 1827, after further
unreplied communication, it declared its independence and began
to call itself African Grand Lodge # 1. It is interesting to
note that when the Massachusetts lodges which were acting as a
Provincial Grand Lodge also declared themselves an independent
Grand Lodge, and even when the present Grand Lodge of
Massachusetts was formed by the amalgamation of the two separate
lodges, African Lodge was not invited to take part, even though
it held a warrant every bit as valid as the others.
The question of extending Masonry arose when Absalom Jones of
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania appeared in 1791 in Boston. He was an
ordained Episcopal priest and a mason who was interested in
establishing a Masonic lodge in Philadelphia. Delegations also
traveled from Providence, Rhode Island and New York to establish
the African Grand Lodge that year. Prince Hall was appointed
Grand Master, serving in this capacity until his death in 1807.
Upon his death, Nero Prince became Grand Master. When Nero
Prince sailed to Russia in 1808, George Middleton succeeded him.
After Middleton, Petrert Lew, Samuel H. Moody and then, John T.
Hilton became Grand Master. In 1827, it was Hilton who
recommended a Declaration of Independence from the English Grand
Lodge.
In 1869 a fire destroyed Massachusetts' Grand Lodge
headquarters and a number of its priceless records. The charter
in its metal tube was in the Grand Lodge chest. The tube saved
the charter from the flames, but the intense heat charred the
paper. It was at this time that Grand Master S.T. Kendall
crawled into the burning building and in peril of his life,
saved the charter from complete destruction. Thus a Grand
Master's devotion and heroism further consecrated this parchment
to us, and added a further detail to its already interesting
history. The original Charter # 459 has long since been made
secure between heavy plate glass and is kept in a fire-proof
vault in a downtown Boston bank.
In 1946, the Grand Lodge of England again extended
recognition to the Prince Hall Grand Lodge but withdrew it the
same year. In 1994, the Grand Lodge of England finally accepted
a petition for recognition by Prince Hall Grand Lodge of
Massachusetts. "England cited several reasons recognition was
witheld," Nicholas B. Locker, Grand Master of Prince Hall from
1992-1994, said in an interview in June 1996. "One was
'territorial boundries,' because the Grand Lodge of England had
already recognized the white Grand Lodge of Massachusetts, which
shared the same jurisdiction with us. "Another factor was that
Prince Hall owed back payment of dues to the Grand Lodge. Back
200 years ago, there were no checks, and often dues for England
were put in the hands of sailing ship captains. It was several
months before the ships arrived in England, and money was lost.
So it wasn't possible to say for sure that Prince Hall paid all
his dues."
The ties were arranged to be formalized in June 1996. In its
212 years, the Prince Hall Grand Lodge has spawned over 44 other
Grand Lodges. The subordinate lodges receive recognition once
their grand lodges are recognized.
Today, the Prince Hall fraternity has over 4,500 lodges
worldwide, forming 44 independent jurisdictions with a
membership of over 300,000 masons whereby any good hearted man
who is worthy and well qualified, can seek more light in
masonry.
Prince Hall is buried in a cemetery overlooking the
Charlestown naval yard in Boston's north end. His grave is
situated near a large tree, his wife's grave is directly behind
his. The site is marked by a broken column; a monument erected
88 years after his death by Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand
Lodge F. & A.M. of Massachusetts. Still today, believers in the
Deity and travelers from all walks of life can be seen winding
their way to that sacred spot to pay homage at the final resting
place of the first Grand Master of the "colored" Grand Lodge of
Masons. This great Mason, Statesman, and Soldier, having
traveled to that undiscovered country from who's bourne no
traveler returns; remains as the pillar of wisdom, strength, and
beauty among all masons today.
