Evening star., 1937-02-21
By John Clagen Proctor.

~ ALL the illustrious Masons
that the Masonic fraternity
can single out for laudatory
comment. none compares
with the first President Of the United
states-Gen. George Washington
whose interest in the order began when
he was a young man and never ceased
as long as he lived. and the stately me-
mortal on Shooters Hill. Alexandria,
Va, erected by the Freemasons Of the
States as q tribute to his mem
ory, though one of the most expensive
shrines in this country. reflects, to only
q very small degree, the sincere at
tachment and reverence in which he Is
held by the members Of this ancient
body.
There are members Of this we'll
known order. such as will be found in
all other so-called fraternal bodies,
who simply pay dues and get by,
but Washington by no means was one
of these, since he always took q keen
interest in the work Of the order and
in its affairs whenever official duties
did not prevent, and. above all. he act
ed out the part of Mason. both in his
private and in his public life.
Washington, as stated was young
when he embraced Freemasonry and
received his degrees in Fredericksburg
Lodge, No. 4, Of Virginia. then known
as "the lodge at Fredericksburg" His
Entered Apprentice degree was re-
ceived November 4, 1852. when he was
less than 81 years of age. His second,
or Fellowcraft, degree he received
March 3, 1883, and he was made
Master Mason August 4, 1888. This,
Of course, is authenticated by the rec
ords Of Fredericksburg Lodge.
However. it is claimed by the Eng
iish Masons that Washington was
made a member Of the craft during
the old French War, In British mill
tary lodge, holding warrant from the
Grand Lodge Of Ireland. granted in
1752. This lodge, called 1.-The Lodge OF
Social and Military Virtues" was No.
227 on the registry Of the Grand Lodge
Of Ireland and was held in the 46th
British Regiment. In 1857 this lodge
vss said to be still in existence as
Lodge Of Antiquity" in Canada. which
claimed to have the Bible in its pos
session on which Washington was OBJ
ligated when he joined the order. Hay
den and other well-known Masonic au-
thorities refute this claim.
"A VERY high Masonic honor came
to Washington at an adjourned
meeting of the nine Virginia lodges,
called by Williamsburg Lodge to con-
slider the organization Of a Virginia
Grand Lodge. This was on June %,
l777, when his name was suggested
as q proper person for grand master Of
the State, which Washington de-
clined, giving as his reasons that he
had never filled any of the offices Of
the lodge; therefore, he did not con-
slider himself eligible. An even higher
honor was rendered him as early as
1850, when Pennsylvania was consid-
ering the propriety Of appointing
general grand master, and had even
gone so far as formally to elect Gen.
Washington to that exalted Office and
invited the Grand Lodges Of Virginia
and Massachusetts, to join in the move
ment. But since the two other States
held aloof and failed to embrace the
idea, the election was naturally not
consummated and the matter dropped.
Alexandria Lodge, No. 80, Of Alex
andria, Va, was granted q charter
by the Provincial Grand Lodge Of
Pennsylvania on February 3, 1888,
and held its first meeting on Febru-
ary as, q few weeks later.
In August, 17s6. the Grand Lodge
Of Pennsylvania notified Alexandria
Lodge, No. 80, that it intended to es-
tablish its own Grand Lodge inde-
pendent of Great Britain and invited
Lodge No. 80 to a conference to be
held the following month for the pur-
pose stated. Deeming the Grand
Lodge Of Pennsylvania too far re-
moved, the Alexandria Lodge decided
to toin forces with the Virginia Grand
Lodge, and on April %. 1888. a char
ter was granted by this Grand Lodge
to the brethren Of this lodge, and from
this time on it became known as
Alexandria Lodge. No. a.. with George
Washington heading the officers as
grand master, an Office he accepted
and retained from April %, 1888, to
December 20, 1889, being the first
vorshipful master Of this lodge after
IL was placed under the Virginia
jurisdiction.
Rather interesting also Is fact
that the last eight months OF MS
term as master Of Alexandria Lodge
also found him serving as President
of the United States.
washington died at Mount Vernon
On December IA, 1899. and was given
a Masonic funeral. Later. on De-
cember II, 1905. at the lodges re-
quest, its name was changed by the
Grand Lodge Of Virginia to Alexan-
dria-w washington Lodge, No. ~, and
this n still its name.
zen. WASHINGTON took q great
~ interest in the city which bears
his name and particularly in the Ma
sonic lodges of the District Of Colum-
bia, which embraced, subsequent to
17e1, what is now the City Of WASH
ington, Georgetown and Alexandria,
which latter, together with all OF
Alexandria County, was fetroceded to
Virginia by proclamation, dated Sep
tember Z, 1886.
Il will be seen that. although Alex
Arfa II 1S{r