Chandler
Lodge: The first 100 years
A paper
presented in two parts by Bro:. Josh Heller
January
2001 and January 2002
The year, brethren, was
1848. It was a year of chaos, struggle, conflict
and revolution for many people throughout the
world. This was not to be the case, however, in
Reading, Pennsylvania.
In Europe, the late 1840’s brought about a
Depression in many areas that lasted several
years. Angry and suffering citizens had had enough
by March of 1848 and revolutions began in many
places including Vienna, Rhineland, Berlin, Milan
and Venice. As armed conflict broke out in these
regions, several men in Reading, Pennsylvania
wished to further the ideas of brotherly love,
relief and truth.
As we have it today, the
minutes of the Grand Lodge of England for June 5th,
1730 show that Daniel Coxe, Esq. was made
Provincial Grand Master of the Provinces of New
York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania in America. The
first official Grand Lodge on record in
Pennsylvania is dated from June 24th,
1731 with William Allen as Grand Master. It never
had more than four lodges under its jurisdiction
and was not very active as such.
In the UK in 1751, a rival
Grand Lodge was formed with the name “The Most
Ancient and Honorable Fraternity of Free and
Accepted Masons”. Calling themselves
“Antients” and the existing Grand Lodge
“Moderns”, the new Grand Lodge set out to gain
support. The Antients were upset that the Grand
Lodge had erased the ancient charge “to be true
to God and Holy Church” and substituted
“obeying the moral law; never to be a stupid
atheist nor an irreligious Libertine; that is to
be good men and true”. This charge was of
extreme importance for it founded modern
speculative Freemasonry on the rock of
non-sectarianism and the brotherhood of all men
who believe in the Great Architect of the
Universe. It eliminated any discrimination based
upon the name of God or in the manner in which he
is worshipped. The Antients, however, were a
Christian body and its constitutions contained
many Christian references.
The continual stream of
settlers from England brought members of the
Antient Grand Lodge to Pennsylvania. The members
of the Antients were of a somewhat lower class
than the members of the Moderns. Many of the
Antients were also made in military lodges charted
under the Grand Lodge of Ireland who had a
preference for the Antient workings.
Soon, there was Masonic conflict in New
World in addition to England. In 1757, some
brethren of Lodge # 4 under the existing Grand
Lodge here in Pennsylvania were accused by
brethren of Lodges # 1 and 2 of being
“Antients”. The accused did not deny this
charge and petitioned the Grand Lodge of Ancient
and Accepted Freemasons of England for a charter,
which was granted on June 7th, 1758,
and they became Lodge # 1. (Believe this was later
known as Lodge # 69)
The Grand Lodge of Ancient
York Freemasonry in the Province of Pennsylvania
was formed on February 13, 1760 and warranted on
July 15, 1761. Following the American Revolution,
the Provincial Grand Lodge declared itself
independent and transformed itself in 1786 into
“The Right Worshipful Grand Lodge of the Most
Ancient and Honorable Fraternity of Free and
Accepted Masons of Pennsylvania”.
Both Grand Lodges grew
rapidly in Europe and in America during the
following fifty years. Finally, on St. John’s
Day, December 27, 1813 reconciliation took place
in London at Freemasons’ Hall. The Duke of Kent
retired as Grand Master in favor of the Duke of
Sussex who was elected Grand Master of the United
Grand Lodge. A united Freemasonry agreed that it
would no longer have religious disagreements and
would welcome and admit worthy men of all creeds
and every race.
Lodge # 62, our Mother
Lodge, has the honor of being the oldest Masonic
Lodge in Berks County.
Lodge # 62 was constituted on April 9,
1794. Lodge # 66 of Caernarvon Township was
warranted on June 1, 1795. This lodge moved to
Morgantown in 1823 and later had its warrant
vacated in 1837. After fifty years of growth in
Lodge # 62, five brethren with 2 others withdrew
from their respective lodges and petitioned the
Grand Lodge for a warrant, which was granted.
Chandler Lodge # 227 of
Reading, Pennsylvania was organized on May 4,
1848. The Right Worshipful Grand Master of the
Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania, Peter Fritz,
performed the installation ceremonies along with
his fellow officers. The following brethren were
installed as the first officers of the Lodge to
serve the balance of Masonic Year ending on St.
John's Day next:
John O.D. Lilly,
Worshipful Master - Age: 24
Daniel H. Feger, Senior Warden - Age: 24
J. F. Greiner, Junior Warden
Robert Caldwell, Treasurer
David E. Stoudt, Secretary
The Worshipful Master appointed the following
brethren:
E. H. Mason, Senior Deacon
Sydenham E. Ancona, Junior Deacon
H. Witman, Tyler
Chandler Lodge's first
meeting place was in the "State House"
building on the northeast corner of 5th
and Penn Streets. It had been the meeting place
for Lodge 62 from 1806 to 1847. This particular
building was erected in 1792 and later destroyed
by first in January of 1872. Due to the layout of
the structure, the station of the Worshipful
Master was physically located in the North in this
room, with the Senior Warden in the South and
Junior Warden in the South. The altar, which
rested on a carpeted floor, was in the middle of
the room with three candlesticks arranged about
the altar in the form of a right triangle. A
beautiful chandelier with six oil lamps was hung
directly over the altar. The Worshipful Masters
chair was of an old-fashioned pattern with a high
hickory stick back and a heavy headboard. Carved
and gilded on the headboard was an elaborate
rising sun. Over the pedestal was a handsomely
decorated canopy supported by two columns. The
walls of the lodge were decorated with photos in
exquisite frames featuring Washington, Lafayette
and members of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania.
Chandler Lodge made a most favorable
impression upon its candidates and visitors alike!
John O.D. Lilly, as I
mentioned, was Chandler Lodge's first Worshipful
Master at the ripe old age of 26! He was born in
Yates County, New York in 1822. He moved to Carbon
County, PA after his schooling and learned to be a
machinist; eventually being made a foreman before
his being of legal age He came to Reading and
became a foreman in the P&R Shops. He was made
a Mason in Lodge 62 in 1847 and then withdrew from
Lodge 62 to assist in founding our lodge. In 1849,
after his tenure as the first Worshipful Master of
our lodge, he moved to Madison, Indiana and was
appointed master mechanic of the Madison and
Indiana Railroad, the first railroad in Indiana.
PM Lilly served in the Civil War as a part of the
68th Indiana Volunteer Infantry. He was
appointed master mechanic of the US military
Railroad Service, was given the rank of Colonel
and stationed in Philadelphia for the duration of
the war. Shortly before the war broke out, PM
Lilly founded the Lilly Varnish Manufacturing
Company in Indianapolis, Indiana, when he
partnered with Henry Mears who had been operating
a small manufacturing shop at the time. PM Lilly
continued to run the company until his death in
1888 when he was killed by a passenger train while
visiting his brother, General William Lilly, who
was also a member of Chandler Lodge. Today known
as Lilly Industries, the company is still
headquartered in Indianapolis, has revenues of
nearly $1,000,000,000 dollars, 2,200 employees and
over 15,000 worldwide customers.
But who was Joseph R.
Chandler; the man whom this lodge is named for?
PGM Chandler was born in 1792 in Massachusetts and
became a schoolteacher. Brother Chandler was
entered, passed and raised in Colombian Lodge in
Boston, Massachusetts between October 1813 and
January 1814. He and his family relocated to
Philadelphia in 1815. He became a published author
when in 1821 he published a book entitled
“Grammar of the English Language.” In 1822 he
became a member of Phoenix Lodge # 130 under the
Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania and associated himself
with the U.S. Gazette. In 1825, he became
Worshipful Master of Phoenix Lodge for the first
time. He entered public service in 1832 as a
member of Philadelphia City Council.
The Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania elected him
Junior Warden in 1836, Senior Warden in 1837 and
Deputy GrandMaster in 1838 and 1839. He served 2
terms as Grand Master between December 1840 and
December 1842. In 1848 he left Philadelphia City
Council and became a US Congressman. Later, in
1858, President Buchanan appointed him as the
minister to the Five Sicilies. In the fullness of
years, after a life of exceptional usefulness,
this man of high character and stainless
reputation, distinguished as a statesman and a
true philanthropist dies in Philadelphia in July
of 1880 at the age of 87.
It is interesting to look
back nearly 153 years to the time of the formation
of Chandler Lodge to see what Reading was like.
Reading had only been incorporated as a city just
1 year earlier on March 16, 1847.
The population at the time was 13,044. The
vast majority of the population lived between
Walnut and Chestnut and 3rd and 9th
Streets. There
were two bridges used to cross the Schuylkill
River. One at the foot of Penn Street, which was
built in 1815 and one at Bingaman Street built in
1831, both of which charged a toll to cross.
Reading had no City Hall until 1870, but it did
have a fantastic Court House and new county prison
in City Park. The Pottsville to Philadelphia
Railroad had been completed for only 6 years and
the new invention at the time was, my brethren,
the Telegraph! The people led active and busy
lives; nearly everyone preserved fruit and boiled
apple butter in the fall. Popular foods were
sausage, pudding, scrapple, ham and mincemeat.
There were no streetlights yet and homes used
candles and oil lamps for light. However, things
were about to change. The officers of Chandler
Lodge laid the cornerstone for the Gas Works and
gas was soon introduced for lighting!
The end of Chandler
Lodge’s first year saw membership grow from 7 to
22 men and the Treasury contained about $125. The
beginning of its first full year in 1849 saw
Chandler Lodge accept a proposition from Lodge 62
to furnish Chandler with a Lodge room, lights,
fuel and a Tyler for $100 per year. This room was
on the 4th floor in the Keystone House,
a hotel situated on the northwest corner of 6th
and Penn Streets. (Yes, this time the Worshipful
Master would be located in the East) Later in the
year, Worshipful Master John O.D. Lilly announced
that he was leaving Pennsylvania for another
state. The
Lodge adopted a suitable resolution acknowledging
him for his hard work in forming the lodge and
expressing appreciation for the services had
performed on behalf of the Lodge.
While 1850 was a fairly
uneventful year, excepting for the meeting that
instituted our regular Tuesday meetings, 1851 was
a noteworthy year in our Lodge. We had a
disagreement with Lodge 62 over the number of
meetings and the proportional rent which resulted
in Chandler Lodge meeting in Odd Fellows Hall from
February 1851 to June of 1852 for a rental of
$40.00 per year. In July of 1852, we returned to
the regular hall at the invitation of Lodge 62 as
“being in the best interests of Freemasonry
generally”. In 1851, our first charitable
contribution was made to the Washington National
Monument Society in the amount of $10.00. Also in
1851, the Worshipful Master suggested that some
action be taken to reduce the Grand Lodge dues,
which he viewed as onerous and subversive. A
committee was appointed to communicate with all
other Lodges in good standing throughout the state
to discuss the propriety of asking for a reduction
in Grand Lodge dues. In April, Chandler Lodge
received an invitation to be present at the
dedication of a new lodge in Pottstown, Stichter
Lodge # 254. Brother Milholland engaged an extra
car on the P & R to accommodate all at a rate
of 50 cents per person. Later in the year, Past
Grand Master William Barger attended Chandler
lodge, witnessed a 3rd degree and then
presented an address entitled “The Principals of
Masonry”. 1851 ended after 23 meetings with a
total of 111 members.
1852 saw the death of the
first Chandler Lodge member, Francis A. Vache. The
death was announced and appropriate actions taken.
In 1853, Chandler Lodge
and Lodge 62 jointly celebrated the Centennial
Anniversary of George Washington's initiation into
Freemasonry. A musical band played and PGM Joseph
R. Chandler himself delivered an address. $30.00
was donated toward building a monumental Masonic
Temple in Fredericksburg, Virginia.
In February of 1854, a
petition signed by seven members was presented to
the Lodge for the purpose of opening an
"Encampment of Knights Templar". The
petition was granted and thus, Demolay Commandery
#9 was born.
1855 was a year of good
financial fortune for Chandler. The assets of the
Lodge totaled nearly $2000.00. Lodge reports
record that the Lodge had a prosperous year and
also dispensed a great deal of charity to widows
and orphans.
1857 saw nine members of
Chandler Lodge petition the Grand Lodge for a new
lodge to be located in Womelsdorf.
Williamson Lodge # 307, named after the
then RWGM Peter Williamson, was subsequently born
with Brother John M. Stephen as the first
Worshipful Master.
We have come to the end of
the first decade in the history of Chandler Lodge.
The lodge was a vibrant and vigorous organization.
It had fulfilled all of its Masonic obligations.
It had been charitable to those in need, it had
assisted the establishment of other lodges and
Masonic bodies; single handedly forming the
nucleus of the encampment of Knights Templar. Yes,
it had its share of disagreements between men of
strong character, but ended its first decade in
peace, prosperity and harmony.
The second decade of
Chandler’s life was an eventful one. Lodge
business continued during the Civil War with
reduced numbers of initiations and much difficulty
in filling stations of the Lodge.
Many of the officers of the lodge had
enlisted in the Volunteer Army. By November of
1861, there were 24 members of this lodge in the
Army. The
lodge resolved to not collect dues from any
brother who have now or had previously held
honorable positions in the Volunteer Army of the
United States. It appears that at least 55 members
of Chandler Lodge were involved in the Civil War.
This is just a partial list of members who
participated in the Civil War:
Colonel George W.
Alexander
Captain John E. Arthur
Dr. Jonathan C. Bertolette
Captain William W. Diehl, PM
Amos Drenkle
Captain George W. Durell
Lieutenant Adam Faust
Captain David A. Griffith
Samuel Hamilton
John C. A. Hoffeditz
Lieutenant Gideon S. Kinsey
Edward C. Knoske
Captain William M, Knox, MD
Colonel James M. Carter
Lieutenant Colonel Joseph A. McLean, PM – Died
in the 2nd Battle of Bull Run on
8/30/1862
Captain Henry R. Myers
John Quimby, Chaplain
Lieutenant Emmanuel J. Rauch, PM
Lieutenant Darius G. Rhoads
Lieutenant Thomas W. Richards, Secretary
F. S. Ritter
Lieutenant William A. Sands
Jeremiah Seiders
J. W. Seltzer
John W. Souder
In March of 1862, a fire
broke out in one of the rooms in the “American
House”. Chandler Lodge had met at the American
House, which was on the 4th floor on
the southwest corner of 4th and Penn
Streets since 1859. Lodge 62, Chandler Lodge #
227, Reading Chapter # 152 and DeMolay Commandery
# 9 all lost regalia, books and property in the
fire.
Chandler Lodge continued
to meet in the Odd Fellows Hall that it had
occupied earlier. The Worshipful Master feared
that Chandler’s warrant had been destroyed in
the fire. He applied to the Grand Lodge for a
dispensation to continue meetings until a new
warrant could be obtained.
The dispensation was approved and then the
old warrant was found, somewhat disfigured, but
not too worse for wear.
From January of 1864 comes
an interesting story regarding the Worshipful
Master’s discretion to admit visiting members
from other lodges. At the January 5th
meeting, William Y. Lyon’s name was announced as
a visitor. The Worshipful Master objected to his
entering on the grounds that he was an unsuitable
person. Soon, much discussion took place about the
right of the Worshipful Master to keep him from
entering the lodge. The Worshipful Master put it
up for vote whether the visitor should be allowed
in or not. The
vote was nearly unanimous for his non-admittance
with only 2 brothers voting in his favor. William
“The Bully” Lyon was not permitted to enter
the Lodge.
In October of 1864, a
communication was received from Chambersburg Lodge
# 143. Their property had been destroyed in the
War by a late rebel raid and they were applying
for relief. A motion was quickly entered, seconded
and approved for a donation of $100.00 to help our
brothers in need.
The mid-1800’s brought
increased German immigration to our area and by
1865, more and more of Chandler’s work was being
conducted in German. Soon, there was enough demand
for a German-speaking lodge. Accordingly, the
following members were permitted to withdraw from
Chandler Lodge: John George Ziegler, Henry Reager,
Adam Heilman, Frederick Schneider, Conrad Kessler,
Arnold Mellert and John Becker. Chandler lodge
officially recommended the granting of a warrant
to the new Lodge. On June 5, 1866 $100.00 was
voted to Teutonia Lodge # 367 to help in defraying
their startup costs.
The second decade of
Chandler Lodge’s existence closed in
considerable prosperity. 130 members attended the
annual banquet. Chandler assisted at the founding
of Vaux lodge # 406 in Hamburg and entertained the
proposition to establish a new lodge in Reading,
to be known as St. John’s lodge.
The 1870's brought a
number of charitable requests to Chandler Lodge.
The lodge made numerous donations to brothers who
were in need including those who lost their tools
to the fire at the Fink and Eisenhower Mill. The
great fire in Chicago of October 1871 was also
cause for charity to be dispensed as Chandler
Lodge donated $150.00 dollars to aid the victims
of the fire. I found it interesting to note that
Chandler lodge donated one barrel of flour, one
ton of coal and one turkey to each Masonic widow
under its care in 1871.
In 1872, $500 was given to help establish
the Masonic Home in Philadelphia during the same
meeting that a 25th anniversary
committee was established to celebrate this
lodge's first 25 years of existence.
Later in 1872, it was decided that Chandler
Lodge would meet in the new Masonic Lodge room on
the third floor of City Hall, which was on the
northeast corner of 5th and Franklin
streets. Appropriate details were worked out with
St. John's Lodge # 435 who had secured and
furnished the room and the lodge moved once again.
On Friday, February 4,
1873, this new room served to host an event that
featured all city and county lodges, Williamson,
Huguenot, Vaux, Union, 62, Chandler, Teutonia and
St. John's for an all day affair which served to
properly conduct lodge business and exemplify all
three degrees. The hope was to ensure uniformity
between all lodges and to promote fraternal
friendship amongst each other.
Chandler Lodge had its 25th
Anniversary a party, a barbecue, at Rose Valley
Park, also known as the Schweitzer house, on May
3, 1873 for all members and their families. The
total cost was $275.00.
In August of 1873, the
mood of the lodge turned somber. At the dedication
of the new Masonic Temple in Philadelphia, Past
Master Samuel McDonnell was killed in accident,
details of which I have not discovered.
The remainder of the
1870's was a busy period for Chandler Lodge. It
amended its bylaws to establish a permanent
Charity fund, helped lay the cornerstone for a new
Masonic Temple on 6th street, gave
birth to yet another lodge, that being Reading
Lodge # 549, and continued in the giving of
charity by donating $50.00 to the victims of
Yellow Fever who lived in the South.
The 1880's were a time of
worldwide depression and it saw Chandler lodge
conducting routine business and continuing its
charitable ways, despite poor meeting attendance,
by making donations to St. Joseph Hospital,
Reading Hospital, Home for the Friendless Children
of the City, the victims of an earthquake in
Charleston, South Carolina and the Johnstown
Floods.
The 1890's were marked
with much improved attendance and a greater number
of initiations. Many requests for charity were
again received; many from out of town, and not one
request was refused. The highlight of the decade
would have to be the purchase of and the
cornerstone laying ceremony of the new Masonic
Temple on the 100 hundred block of North 5th
Street. The ceremony, on June 24, 1897, was
attended by nearly 400 members of all the Masonic
bodies in the area despite the extreme heat.
Chandler Lodge's 50th
year, 1898, saw only one remaining Charter member
still living.
Due to much of Chandler Lodge's finances
being used to finance the Masonic Temple, it was
decided that there would be no 50th
Anniversary party; just a special program at it's
anniversary meeting. At the 50th
Anniversary meeting in May, the Worshipful Master
turned over his station to PM S. E. Ancona, the
only living Charter member of Chandler Lodge. PM
Ancona was delighted to be in the East and gave a
fine speech on the formation of Chandler Lodge,
naming every member present at its constitution.
He talked highly of Chandler' first Worshipful
Master, John O.D Lilly, the amicable feelings
between Lodge 62 and Chandler Lodge and of the
many meeting places Chandler had occupied in its
first 50 years. A number of Past Masters gave
similar speeches and all agreed that the spirit of
Freemasonry was alive and well in Chandler Lodge.
They believed they had set the stage for another
prosperous 50 years.
While the mood and morale
of Chandler Lodge was good at the beginning of the
20th century, more money (about
$53,000) was still needed to complete the new
Masonic Temple to be located at 123 North Fifth
Street, formerly the Wilhelm Property. A committee
was appointed by the Lodge for the solicitation of
further contributions to the building fund.
In 1902, the Masonic Temple was completed
and ready for occupancy, but for Chandler Lodge,
there was a small problem. The committee appointed
in July to negotiate a rental agreement with the
Masonic Temple Trustees failed in their efforts. A
motion to move Chandler Lodge into the new Masonic
Temple was deferred until the Lodge could be sure
that base rental rates
would be fair and
equitable. Things went from bad to worse when in
October 1902 when “Brother Guide” was asked to
retire and prepare a candidate for initiation. It
seems the required articles for the initiation had
previously been removed and taken to the new
Masonic Temple. The Worshipful Master was forced
to postpone this initiation. Later in October, a
special meeting of Chandler Lodge was held and it
was reluctantly decided to move the lodge to the
new Masonic Temple under the terms set by the
Building Trust. As such, the first Stated Meeting
of Chandler Lodge was held in the new building on
November 4, 1902 with 108 members and 47 visitors
present.
The next several years
were unremarkable in the history of Chandler until
we reach the year 1907. It seems that many Masons
from the Berks County lodges were involved in a
railroad accident on May 11 in the town of Honda,
California. Chandler Lodge was the only lodge in
Berks County not to have suffered the death of one
or more of its members in this horrific accident.
A suitable resolution was adopted by the lodge
expressing its deepest sympathies to all of those
affected by the accident.
Chandler Lodge continued
to prosper and in 1908, after not celebrating its
50th anniversary properly 10 years
before, celebrated its 60th anniversary
in grand style at a banquet lasting into the wee
hours of the morning. The most revered speaker of
the evening was the only living member who was
present at Chandler Lodge’s institution, Past
Master Sydenham E. Ancona.
Later in 1908, a
communication was received from Fredericksburg
Lodge # 4 of Virginia soliciting for contributions
to create a George Washington Masonic Memorial who
was a lifelong member of Fredericksburg Lodge. A
resolution was adopted and $5.00 was donated to
the cause.
In August 1908, a petition
to the Grand Lodge was read requesting a warrant
for a new lodge in our area to be called Isaac
Hiester Lodge. Chandler lodge approved the
petition that was soon granted by the Grand Lodge.
Isaac Hiester Lodge No. 660 was born and grew
rapidly.
1910 is the year of our
next item of interest.
At the December meeting, just after Brother
Jacob H. McConnell had been installed as
Worshipful Master, Brother Henry price hurried
into the lodge and announced to the Worshipful
Master that fire had broken out in the basement of
the building. The Worshipful Master quickly
suspended the business of the lodge and with
assistance of the brethren, carried all of the
lodge records to the drug store of Brother L.
Scott Kemp at 124 North Fifth Street.
City firefighters promptly extinguished the
blaze and the business of the lodge resumed just
after 8:30pm.
At noon on Tuesday,
September 26, 1911, the cornerstone of Masonic
Hall at the Masonic Homes in Elizabethtown was
laid by the officers of the Right Worshipful Grand
Lodge. It was estimated that 3,500 to 4,000
brethren approximately 10,000 visitors attended
this event.
The records show that
there were few events of historical significance
between 1912 and 1917. Two items I would like to
note are as follows:
The first is that in October of 1917,
Chandler Lodge resolved to cooperate with the
Masonic Relief Association of the United States
and Canada – and to contribute one cent per
capita thereto. The purpose of this Association,
which was made up by representatives of more than
40 Grand Lodges and 100 Masonic Relief Boards, was
to prevent the imposition upon the fraternity by
impostors and unworthy members. The second
reflects a request from the Right Worshipful Grand
Master that all Lodges should cooperate in
eliminating waste by holding smaller-scale
banquets during war-time.
The next decade in
Chandler Lodge’s history, 1918 – 1928,
reflects the era of great national prosperity our
country enjoyed. Chandler Lodge increased its
membership to 921, a gain of 369. In 1920 alone,
Chandler Lodge initiated 97 members at 22 Extra
Meetings. The assets of the Lodge were practically
doubled. This decade also saw the end of the first
World War, in which 41 of our brethren played a
noble role. One of our Chandler Lodge brothers
made the ultimate sacrifice. The names of these
brave heroes are recorded in our Chandler Lodge
History book.
In 1918, an appeal from
the United States Food Administrator Herbert C.
Hoover was read in lodge asking everyone to
conserve food and abstain from wheat until the
next harvest. Later in 1918, a communication was
read from the Grand Master stating that by
permission from the Acting State Health
Commissioner, Lodge may hold meetings with a
limited number of members present for a sufficient
amount of time to transact urgent and necessary
business for up to one hour. No banquets were to
be had until the ban was lifted.
These notes from our
records didn’t make much sense to me until a
brief search of our country’s notable historical
events revealed information about the 1918 Flu
epidemic. This
virus, which is believed to have originated at
Fort Riley, Kansas, and spread through the lungs
of soldiers heading to Europe for World War I,
killed 675,000 Americans. Conservative estimates
are that 21,000,000 people worldwide died from
this outbreak, but research in the late 1990’s
indicates that approximately 20,000,000 people
died in India alone. More accurate totals may
place the worldwide death toll to between 40 and
50 million people.
On a more positive note,
1922 saw the members of our local lodges in
addition to the Officers of the Grand Lodge of
Pennsylvania lay the cornerstone for the new
Northeast Junior High School in Reading. The first
50-year members of the lodge, 14 of them in all,
were presented with their Life Membership cards,
exempting them from further dues.
1923 was Chandler’s 75th
birthday. Chandler celebrated with a wonderful
banquet on May 4th featuring fine food,
speakers and musical entertainment. During the
year, Chandler Lodge also was represented at the
cornerstone of the George Washington Masonic
National Memorial in Alexandria, VA.
1925 saw Chandler involved
in Education yet again when the Right Worshipful
Grand Master Samuel M. Goodyear laid the
cornerstone of Southern Junior High School at 10th
and Chestnut streets in Reading.
1925 also saw Chandler
witness the founding of Puritan Lodge # 740.
Puritan Lodge, which was originally intended to be
called Pilgrim Lodge, was originally made up of
lodge members from other towns or cities that now
reside in or around Reading. It started with
exactly 100 members. J. Edward Billheimer of
Potomac Lodge # 5, Washington, D.C. was its first
Worshipful Master. Chandler Lodge had now a part
in starting 5 new lodges in its first 77 years.
Further items of
historical interest for the late 1920’s include
several events from 1927. These events include
Chandler lodge donating $200 to the Mississippi
Flood Fund and $400 to the Berks Memorial
Endowment Fund in 1927, a stone gavel from King
Solomon’s quarries being presented to the lodge
by Past Master Harry J. G. Schad and Chandler’s
resolution to join with the other Masonic Bodies
in the district to establish a Masonic Library and
Museum.
While the 1920’s were
prosperous times, the 1930’s and early 1940’s
were anything but. Membership in Chandler Lodge
dropped from a peak of 940 members to 728, while
the total number of Pennsylvania Masons went from
201,618 to 170,138 – a net loss of over 31,000
members.
1931 was, however, the 200th
Anniversary of the Organization of Freemasonry in
Pennsylvania. The Grand Lodge celebrated the event
in style with representation from Chandler Lodge.
Chandler Lodge also celebrated in conjunction with
the rest of the 7th Masonic District
with a program at the Rajah Temple in late
October.
1932 saw the completion
and dedication of the George Washington Masonic
National Memorial in Alexandria, VA on May 12,
1932 a 12 Noon. A number of brethren made the
trip. Price
of the roundtrip excursion was $ 4.50.
During the 1930’s, with
the Great Depression underway, the Worshipful
master ordered that 30 members’ past due dues
should be paid from the Relief Fund. Meetings were
very brief and not well attended. Chandler Lodge
continued its ‘Educational’ activities by
assisting at the cornerstone laying ceremonies of
both Northwest and Southwest Junior High Schools.
Later, a program held in observance of the
150th Anniversary of the Signing of the
Constitution of the United States.
These were certainly tough times for nearly
everyone and Chandler’s history certainly
reflects the tone of day. It was not until 1939
that things began to take a turn for the better.
In 1939, our records show
that the Grand Lodge laid the cornerstone for the
new Reading Post Office, meeting attendance was
very good and there were many entertaining and
informative programs.
It was in 1940 that
Worshipful Master Douglass E. Weidner announced
the appointment of a committee to prepare for
Chandler Lodge's 100th Anniversary.
This was 8 full years ahead of time. Brothers Earl
E. Fake and Michael S. Strebig were the members of
this committee and they set about their work.
At the Stated Meeting on
March 3, 1942, the members were instructed as to
the proper procedure in the event of an air raid
in compliance with the regulations prescribed by
civilian defense authorities. This, of course,
occurring in the days of World War II.
The Lodge also voted favorably on a motion
to remit the dues of all members presently serving
in our country's armed forces.
During those difficult
times, Extra Meetings were held in the summer
months so that certain candidates could receive
their three degrees by special dispensation. 37
Members of Chandler Lodge, their names recorded in
our 100 year history book, served in the Armed
Forces during World War II.
At the February 1945
Stated Meeting, exactly 47 years ago, the flag
ceremony was performed for the first time in the
Lodge. This ceremony has since become a mainstay
in our proceedings. Later in the year, a motion
was passed that dues for all members serving in
the Armed Forces would be remitted for the
duration of the war and six months thereafter.
Finally, in 1946, Silver Masonic Medals, suitably
inscribed, be purchased and presented to those
members who served during World War II.
At the end of 1947,
Chandler was ending its 99th year of
existence and there were nearly 5,100 Freemasons
in all city and county lodges. On May 8th,
1948 at 6:00pm in the Rajah Temple Ballroom,
Chandler Lodge had a magnificent banquet with much
entertainment, good food and fine fellowship.
I end this brief history
of the first 100 years of Chandler Lodge with a
quotation from the speech our then Worshipful
Master John D. Glase gave in 1948 at the 100th
Anniversary Banquet as his words are ever so
appropriate today.
"The world today
needs the lessons and teachings of Freemasonry
more than it ever has needed them before.
Friendship and brotherly love and the will to work
side by side in peace and harmony are great ideals
which we all sincerely hope will become a
worldwide creed long before Chandler Lodge
celebrates its two hundredth anniversary."
