Milford chronicle., 1953-04-17
A SPECIAL BULLETIN ON THE
ANNIVERSARY OF THE
FOUNDING OF ODD
FELLOWSHIP IN AMERICA

On the evening of April 26th.
1919, five men assembled in a small
room in the rear of a tavern on
Second Street in Baltimore, were
engaged in earnest conversation.
BY the faint light of a few taIIow
candles, they were examining books
ana papers e.. questions were be-
ing asked, and answers given.
The apparent leader of this
group, short stout man with rud-
dy cheeks, is about 35 years of age.
has a round full face, and dark
brown curly hair. He is pacing the
to0r with short impatient steps.
and frequently interrupts the prO
ceedlngs to ask a question, or cor
rect a reply. It is very evident from
his aggressive and dominant man
ner, that he is the controlling ele-
ment in this meeting. His name is
Thomas Wildey.
John Welch, clearly the second
IN Importance, is tall lean man,
and is slightly deaf. He has for the
past hour been conducting the ex-
animation with patience and toler-
ance. Although his acquaintance
with Wildey for several months
has not developed into what we
would call a staunch fellowship,
they have been closely united be-
cause of the fact they had discOv-
cred each had been a member of
the Society of Odd Fellows in Eng
land.
The three others, John Duncan,
Richard Rushworth, and John
Cheatham, were present as a re-
suit Of an invitation in the form of
an advertisement which had ap-
peared recently in the Baltimore
American. 1t had read as follows:
Notice to all Odd Fellows;
A few members of the Society
of Odd Fellows will be glad
to meet their brethren for
consultation upon the subject
of forming a lodge. The meet
ing will be held on Friday
evening, April 26th, at the
Seven Stars Tavern on Sec
Ond Street, at the hour of 1880
p NJ"
These men meet tonight to prove
to each other former membership.
Their object is to try to form a
lodge of Odd Fellows in Baltimore.
These five men were. hungry for the
society of men of their own kind.
All were Englishmen-strangers in
a strange land. None of them had
been in America for longer than
thEee years. Each had experienced
tha difficulty of making friends.
The citizens of Baltimore retained
vivid recollection of a British
frigate shelling Fort McHenry a
scant seven years before, and any
thing English, either material or
human, received short attention in
this City. Hence the burning desire
OF these men to associate them
selves with Others who had one or
more things in common.
And so the meeting went on
questions here answers there
. memories logged for long for
gotten words and signs quiet
suggestions short replies
and at last, tired, weary, exhausted, |
nerves frayed, the four sat back |
and looked expectantly at Wildey. |
Silence for an endless long minute |
four pairs of anxious eyes l,xed |
on the face of a man who, on this
April night, held in his hand the |
future of society based on the |
FatherhoOd of God, and the Bro
therhOOd o. Man. After so many |
weary months Of unsuccessful ef-
fort, this maG knew that is must
tonight be the beginning, or de-
fnitely the end.
Finally at last, this rough, blunt,
gruff English coach
spring maker, using the ancient rit-
ceremony, with a prayer to
God to crown their efforts
with success, instituted what they
called Washington Lodge No. l of
the Order of Odd Fellows.
This then, was the beginning of
Odd Fellowship in America. From
This humble origin, five men assem-
bled in an obscure tavern, in a
room lighted only by the fitful
glow of penny candles, the world
was given the great Order of which
we are members. 1t is fitting that
each of us on this anniversary re-
dedicate ourselves to the primary
principles set up by those first five