Cannonball Paul

When Missouri Freemason Paul Creason launched his career, he did it literally.  Because, Missouri Masons, you have a brother who was a GEN-U-INE human cannonball.  Brother Paul "Zacchinni" Creason is a member of Forsyth Lodge #453.  While many of us have worked to support the Shrine Circus, Brother Paul can brag that he has actually been a performer in it.  He came well-prepared for his rare skill being a graduate of the "Gil Gray School Of Circus Experience", & "Paul Kaye Circus University."  The admittedly grainy video below shows Brother Paul "going ballistic" in one of his many death-defying performances.  It is a clip of a longer video courtesy Yesterday's Towns.

Thanks to Todd Creason for the tip on Brother Paul.  One of Todd's articles was featured in the current "Missouri Freemason" and, seeing they had the same name, "Cannonball Paul" contacted Todd. They're not sure they are related but they are Brothers nonetheless.  Todd's article on Brother Paul can be found on his blog, The Midnight Freemasons

Thayendanegea

Joseph Brant (Thayendanegea), Mohawk Chief and later Chief of the Six Nations, was the first recorded Native American Freemason.  Somewhat controversial because of his efforts as a warrior and soldier, Brant is known to have spared at least four Brothers who made an appeal to him with the grand hailing sign of distress. Raised in Hiram's Cliftonian Lodge 417, London, WB Brant was also the first Master of Lodge 11, Brantford, Mohawk Village.  In 1787, Brother Brant translated and published the Gospel of Mark into the Mohawk language.  In 1807 he died and was buried near what today is the town of Burlington, Ontario.  In 1850, several young tribesmen carried his remains in a 34 mile relay from his original grave site to the Chapel of the Mohawks in Brantford, where it rests today.

Brother Nicholas' Recruiting Program

On November 5, 1775, the Second Continental Congress commissioned Samuel Nicholas "Captain of Marines" making him the first Marine officer and, by definition, the first Commandant of the Marine Corps.  Brother Nicholas, Lodge 13, Philadelphia, faced a tough recruiting environment head-on by opening his office in the Tun Tavern and provisioning the corps with sharp uniforms of red, white, black, and green that appealed not only to the young recruits but, possibly more importantly, to young ladies.

The Penniless Oil Baron

Edwin L. Drake, Oil Creek Lodge 303 (Now Titusville Lodge 754), drilled the world's first successful oil well in August of 1859.  Seneca oil hired Drake to manage the project but the company was only halfheartedly committed to the effort.  Seneca was so underfunded it hired Drake mainly because, as a former railroad employee, he had free use of the rails.  When the project did not produce immediate results, Seneca bailed out and left Drake on his own.  Brother Drake developed successful drilling techniques which are in use yet today, but failed to patent them and died penniless, having pioneered an industry that has made others billions.

Brother Perkins' Amazing Contraption

The nearly-forgotten Jacob Perkins (1766-1849), St. Peter's Lodge, Newburyport, MA was such a prolific inventor he probably ranks with the likes of Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Edison.  Among his inventions were coinage dies, the first refrigerator, a machine for making nails, improved engraving plates, a "bathometer" to measure the depth of water and a "pleometer" to mark with precision the speed with which a vessel moved through water.  He also engraved England's first adhesive-backed postage stamp, the famous "penny black."  Perhaps his most intriguing invention, however, was the ridiculous-sounding steam gun.  Demonstrations of the amazing contraption fascinated the public.  The weapon was capable of shooting 1,000 rounds per minute and could penetrate its ball-shaped projectiles through eleven one-inch pine boards at a distance of 35 yards.  Perkins even invented an accessory that allowed the gun to shoot around corners, a derivative of which was used in World War II.  In other words, in a day when muskets fired a single bullet and required a tedious reloading process, Brother Perkins invented the ultimate weapon.  The military, however, although impressed by the gun's overwhelming firing power and accuracy, rejected it because it was so powerful it deformed the bullets!

President Harding's Last Speech

Brother Warren G. Harding's last speech was delivered after his death.  Brother Harding had planned to make an address at a meeting of Hollywood Commandery 56, KT, on August 2, 1923, but died earlier that day.  His private secretary, Sir Knight George B. Christian, Marion Lodge 70, Ohio, attended in his stead.  In front of a somber and saddened gathering, Brother Christian gave the speech the President had planned to deliver.

Largest Master's Chair

Ophir Lodge 33, Murphys, California has the largest known Master's chair, measuring 15 feet long.  The chair seats the Master, Past Master and all visiting dignitaries. In use for decades, Ophir now keeps the chair in its upstairs "Museum Lodge" and uses it on special occasions and when performing degree work for other Lodges.