Hoot

Edward R. "Hoot" Gibson, Truth Lodge 628 of Los Angeles, had roles in dozens of films and is considered one of the pioneer cowboy movie actors.  Famous for his acting, Brother Gibson was first and foremost a star performer on the rodeo circuit who, among many other honors, won the steer roping World Championship at the Calgary Stampede in 1912.

A Playful Student And A Stream Of Water

Harold E. "Doc" Edgerton of Aurora Lodge 68 in Nebraska, used stroboscopes to study synchronous motors for his doctoral thesis in electrical engineering at MIT in 1931.  One day in his lab, he pointed his "strobe" at a stream coming out of a faucet and was amazed when he could see the individual drops of water.  Brother Edgerton went on to become a professor at MIT and a giant in the electrical engineering field, but continued pointing his strobes at common objects and photographing them, developing the science of stroboscopic photography.  He photographed bouncing balls, golf swings hummingbirds, bullets in flight and in general, anything that moved.  Soon, Edgerton's photographs of everyday events were winning worldwide acclaim and, in 1937, the New York Museum of Modern Art featured his iconic photograph of a milk drop creating a coronet.  Amazingly, today we remember this great scientist more for his artistic work, and it all started with a playful student and a stream of water.

The Gatterburg House

The Gatterburg House, home to the Grand Lodge of Austria, has been in continuous use as a Masonic building since the 18th century. Franz Joseph Haydn, the composer known as the "Father of the Symphony" was a member of Zur Wahren Eintrach ("True Concord") Lodge here, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was a frequent visitor. Ignaz von Born, the leading scientist in the Holy Roman Empire, Master of the Lodge, lived and died in the building.

The American Legion

In 1918, a group of twenty officers met in France to suggest ideas on how to improve troop Morale.  Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., son of the former President, proposed forming an organization of veterans to support the troops and provide them with a source of continued fellowship after their military service was over.  That suggestion led to the formation of the American Legion, which congress formally chartered the following year.  Brother Roosevelt, a member of his father's Lodge, Matinecock Lodge 806 of Oyster Bay, NY, went on to become a World War II hero, winning the Congressional Medal of Honor shortly before his death in 1944.

Brougham

The term "Brougham" has been used by every single American car manufacturer as well as a few foreign ones to designate a car model or trim package with richly appointed features.  It refers to the elegant "Brougham" carriage popular in the 19th century.  That carriage was originally built to the specifications of and named for Lord Henry Peter Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux, a British statesman who became Lord Chancellor of Great Britain.  Brother Brougham was a member of Canongate Kilwinning Lodge 2 of Edinburgh Scotland.

Memphis

Memphis, Tennessee, founded in 1819, was named after Egypt's ancient Nile River capital.  The town was originally to have been named Jackson, in honor of Most Worshipful Brother Andrew Jackson.  Brother Jackson, however, declined to have the town so named.  He got his due when Alexandria, a settlement on the Forked Deer River in central western Tennessee was named for him three years later.  The town so honored Jackson primarily because of his successes as a general, seven years before he became President of the US.

The Bloody Massacre

Paul Revere, Grand Master of Massachusetts from 1794-97, is one of the most famous of the American Revolution patriots. Immortalized in the Henry Wadsworth Longfellow poem, "The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere," Brother Revere was also a participant in the Boston Tea Party, a soldier, arms manufacturer and renowned silversmith.  Lesser known is the fact that his artwork extended beyond his silver pieces.  He is also the creator of the famous engraving "The Bloody Massacre" depicting the Boston Massacre of March 5, 1770, where British Troops killed five civilian men, including Crispus Attucks, a former slave, generally regarded as the first person killed in the Revolution.  The engraving also includes a poem written by Brother Revere, "Unhappy Boston."

Uncle Joe

Joseph G. "Uncle Joe" Cannon (1836-1926), Olive Branch Lodge 38 of Danville, was an Illinois congressman who served as Speaker of the US House of Representatives most years from 1903-11. Time magazine's report on his retirement earned him the eternal honor of having his picture on its first cover, March 3, 1923. (Thanks to Todd Creason for the tip on our Brother "Uncle Joe" at The Midnight Freemason Blog).

The Blue Ribbon

Judges at the Colombian Exposition in 1893 declared Brother Frederick Pabst's brew as the best beer at the event, also known as the Chicago World's Fair. Brother Pabst, Aurora Lodge 30, Milwaukee, won a gold medal for his formula but not, as many think, a blue ribbon. The name of his beer, "Pabst Blue Ribbon," comes from his company's practice of tying (then later sealing) a blue ribbon on the neck of every single bottle of beer he produced from 1882 until 1916.

In Defence of Fort McHenry

Dr. James McHenry (1753-1816), Spiritual Lodge 23 of Baltimore, was a friend and confidant of George Washington.  He served as private secretary to both Washington and Lafayette, was an army surgeon, a member of the Constitutional Convention, a revolutionary war hero who became a prisoner of war, and served as the third US Secretary of War (1796-1800).  In 1798, the US built a military fort in Baltimore and named it after him.  It was a garrison that withstood an intense British attack during the War of 1812.  During that attack, a US diplomat was aboard a British ship to negotiate a prisoner exchange.  After watching the barrage and seeing an oversized American Flag raised the following morning to replace the tattered flag there, that diplomat wrote a poem describing the battle.  That poem by Francis Scott Key eventually became our national anthem, The Star Spangled Banner. Its original title was In Defence of Fort McHenry.

The Great Prestidigitator

Harry Houdini (1874-1926) was a world-famous magician and escape artist.  He was a life member of St. Cecile Lodge No. 568, New York City.  Here are a few facts about the famous prestidigitator:


• He made many attempts to communicate with his mother after she died, but found no evidence of contact.

• Houdini despised fraudulent seers and mediums and worked tirelessly to expose their fraud.

• He believed once the fraud was removed from seances, what was left must be the truth.

• He made a pact with his wife Bessie that the first to die would attempt to contact the other through a coded message.

• No one knows what the full coded message was, but part of the pact was that Houdini would open a pair of silver handcuffs they owned.

• For the first year after his death, his wife sat alone in their parlor for an hour every Sunday, with his picture, waiting for a message.

• Appearing as herself in the 1938 film, Religious Racketeer, Bess Houdini created controversy among spiritualists when she said she did not believe communication with the dead was possible.

• Every year until it was torn down in the early 1980s, on Halloween (the anniversary of his death) Houdini devotees conducted a seance in Grace Hospital, Detroit, where he died. The news media frequently reported on it and the final year, Time Magazine ran a story about it.

• His wife never received any communication from Houdini after his death, but hundreds of psychics claimed they did.

• Houdini was an honorary police lieutenant in New York City.

• He testified before congress against spiritualism.

• He worked in secret with Thomas Edison on a "delicate psychic detecting instrument" and a process that would allow flash photographs without a flash being visible.

• He was an accomplished airplane pilot and one of the first 17 fliers in the world.  He was the first person ever to fly a plane in Australia, March 15, 1910.

• A prankster once trapped him in a phone booth in the Savoy Hotel in Kansas City and he was unable to escape.

• He had a secret bank lock box which has never been found. Known to be among its contents is a box of jewelry he always put there prior to traveling.

• He and Bess had a gala 25th wedding anniversary in Hollywood at which Harry invited all guests to their 50th anniversary party. Among them, Brother Will Rogers.

• Bess held a final seance for Harry on the 10th anniversary of his death, in which he failed to appear.  Bess declared the search over and said she believed he could not come back, "It is finished."

• October 26, 1926, Houdini received a painful blow to the stomach in a demonstration at McGill University in Montreal.  Contrary to popular opinion, most medical experts believe the blow was unrelated to the appendicitis which killed him; however, Houdini failed to get treatment thinking the pain in his stomach was due to the punch to his abdomen.

The Sad And Curious Case Of Brother Gloyd

Brother Charles Gloyd was a successful western Missouri physician who, among other things, organized and became first Master of Holden Lodge 262 in Johnson County, Missouri, in 1867.  That same year, Brother Gloyd's mother began caring for an infant living with a young girl in town, Carrie Moore.  Charles and Carrie met through that relationship, fell in love and married.  Unfortunately, Brother Gloyd had been hiding his dependence on alcohol. The marriage soon fell apart and Dr. Gloyd died less than a year later.  The tragedy devastated young Carrie, who was certain her husband's alcoholism was at the root of the problem.  She remarried, took her second husband's surname and changed the spelling of her first name to "Carry." With an ax in one hand and a Bible in the other, she dedicated her life to eliminating the scourge of alcoholism and showing demon rum it had better not mess with the likes of Carry A. Nation.

There is some controversy over the spelling of Ms. Nations first name.  Her father recorded it as "Carry" in the family Bible, but official records show it as "Carrie."  Nation used "Carrie" most of her life but once her anti-alcohol movement was in full swing she saw the value of the slogan-like name "Carry A. Nation." She adopted that as her official name and even had it trademarked.  That is also how it appears on her tombstone in Belton, Missouri.

Regarding Mysterious Things That Sometimes Happen In Masonic Lodges

Some things in Freemasonry are quite serious, some aren't.  Here's how my Lodge meeting went last night.  We were sitting in Lodge having one of our usual earthshaking discussions — this one about whether or not to cancel an upcoming dinner event.  My friend... let's call him Rod... was the Tyler outside.  Suddenly, we heard an excruciating high-pitched squeal.  Everything stopped and we all shared a WTF moment.  After a pause, we heard a second ungodly squeal.

The Senior Warden rushed out to see what was going on.  Curiosity reigned inside and we speculated about the situation.

"That sounded like a girl."

"It sounded like she sneezed."

"That was no sneeze, it sounded like she was in pain."

"Well, what the heck is Rod doing to her?"

The Senior Warden came back inside and announced that everything was OK, without giving details.

After the meeting was over, I went out into the dining area and cornered Rod.  He was Master the year before me, we have a good relationship and I kinda wanted to give him a bit of a hard time, "So, Rod, just what were you doing to that girl out here?"

"Steve," he insisted, "there was no girl."

"Rod, we heard her screaming."

"Steve, there was no girl."

"Rod, we're friends. You can tell me. I'll keep your secret."

"Steve, there was no girl."

"Rod..."

Rod put his hand on my shoulder, leaned in and whispered, "Steve, I was taking a sh*t."

For the record (and I know you're on the edge of your seat wondering), we did not cancel our upcoming dinner.

The Versatile Patriot

Brother Thomas McKean was the only member of the Continental congress who served from the time it opened until the end of the American Revolution (1774-89).  He was the second president of that body in 1781, earning him the designation by some standards as the "second President of the United States."  In 1777, he added to those responsibilities by serving as both President of Delaware and Chief Justice of the Pennsylvania supreme court.  He signed the Declaration of Independence but... oops... a printer's error left his name off the document distributed to the public.  Amazingly, in 1776, this versatile patriot wrote the constitution of the state of Delaware in a single night!

A Startling Discovery

Worshipful Brother Edward Jenner, Royal Faith and Friendship Lodge 270 of Berkley, England, made a startling discovery in 1789.  He observed milkmaids who contracted cowpox did not get the associated disease smallpox.  The announcement of his discovery led to vaccinations and changed medicine forever.

The Lone Congressman

In 1903, Montana, as did all states, had 2 Untied States Senators.  The area, however was so sparsely populated it only had one congressman.  That unique honor went to Brother Joseph M. Dixon, Missoula Lodge 13.  Dixon served as Montana's lone at-large congressman until 1907, when he became one of the state's US Senators.  Brother Dixon also went on to become Master of his Lodge, Governor of Montana and was national chairman of the Bull Moose party when Theodore Roosevelt ran for US President on that ticket.

First Physician and First Master

Aaron Elliott was the first physician west of the Mississippi River.  He was also the first Master of a Lodge west of the Mississippi, Louisiana Lodge 109.  The Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania chartered the Lodge in 1808 in Ste. Genevieve, in what would become the state of Missouri.

An Oddity From Landlocked Topeka

Dr. William C. Menninger in 1924 became a Freemason in New York City while still an intern at Bellvue Hospital. He co-founded the world renowned Menninger clinic in Topeka, Kansas.  He was medical director of the clinic for 16 years and, along with his brother Karl (Topeka Lodge 17), received world wide recognition in the field of psychiatry.  Amazingly, this psychiatric icon from landlocked Topeka, Kansas, was also the original author of the Sea Scouts Skipper's Handbook!

Cannons

The firing glasses familiar to Table Lodges have thick bases to protect them from breaking when rapped against the table in unison at the completion of a toast.  They are so called because the sound of the glasses hitting the table causes a sound similar to a cannon firing.  For this reason many Lodges refer to them as "cannons."

The Washington Medallion

Struck in 1797, the Washington Medallion commemorated the just-completed presidency of Brother George Washington.  It bore his likeness on the obverse with the simple text, "Washington President."  The real purpose of the medallion, however, became apparent upon viewing the reverse side, which showed the working tools and symbols of a Masonic Lodge.  The initials at the bottom, "GWGGM" stood for "George Washington General Grand Master."  The coin actually was a promotional piece advocating the election of Brother Washington as General Grand Master of Masons in America, representing one of the several campaigns to organize a general Grand Lodge, all of which failed.

Prince Hall

Two hundred thirty seven years ago today, on March 6, 1775, Prince Hall and 14 other African American men were made Master Masons in a British Army Lodge of Irish register.  The Lodge gave them the privilege of meeting, marching in procession, and burying their dead, but not conferring degrees.  In March, 1784, Brother Hall petitioned the Grand Lodge of England for a charter which was issued September 29, 1784, but was not delivered until April 29, 1787, establishing African Lodge 459 on May 6, 1787.  Four years later, on June 24, 1791, the African Grand Lodge was formed with Prince Hall as Grand Master.  MWB Hall died December 7, 1807.  Subsequently, in his honor, the Lodge became M.W. Prince Hall Grand Lodge, F&AM, of Massachusetts.  Today, the great majority of US state Grand Lodges as well as the Grand Lodge of England and many international Grand Lodges recognize Prince Hall Lodges.

George Washington's Death

Brother George Washington's physician diagnosed his illness on his deathbed as "inflammatory quinsy." Modern medicine still debates what his illness actualy might have been.  Suffice it to say it was a form of throat infection.  Brother Washington would almost certainly have survived the affliction with today's medical techniques, perhaps with some simple treatment with antibiotics. Making a significant contribution to his death, however,  was the fact that his doctors repeatedly used the accepted (at the time) technique of "bleeding" the President.  During the ordeal, Washington's doctors took 124-126 ounces or 3.75 liters of his blood, which would have been more than half the blood in his body.  This procedure almost certainly caused him to suffer profound shock.  Ultimately he may have died anyway, but it is not an exaggeration to say that our beloved Brother and first President bled to death!