Editing 1872 Lodge Dedication

HALL DEDICATION, FEBRUARY 1872
From Moore's Freemason's Monthly Magazine, Vol. XXXI, No. 6, April 1872, Page 169:

Corinthian Lodge of Concord, one of the oldest Lodges in this State, after more than half a century in their old hall, have just obtained a new suit of rooms, with a very spacious and handsome hall, for their future use. Thursday, 29th day of February, was selected fur the dedication, and on that day at half-past five o'clock, the Grand Officers of the Grand Lodge left Boston by the Fitchburg Railroad for Concord. They were met at the depot in that town by a committee from Corinthian Lodge, with carriages, and after a short stop at the residence of a past officer of the Grand Lodge, were conveyed directly to the hall, in the business centre of the village.

The dedicatory services were to be public, and previously to the entrance of the Lodge, the ladies had taken possession of the hall, and decorated it with bouquets of flowers, filling it with their sweet fragrance. Just before the entrance of the Grand Lodge, Mrs. William H. Brown, daughter of the Master of Corinthian Lodge, arose and addressed the W. M. in a neat and appropriate manner, and in behalf of the ladies of the members, presented to the Lodge an elegant set of Working Tools, the cost of which was about one hundred dollars. Owing to a pressure for time, a brief response to the address of the young lady was made by the W. M. Bro. W. F. Hurd, in which he returned the thanks of the Lodge for the timely and appropriate present, and hoped the ladies would never have occasion to regret the confidence which had been expressed in their name, in the character and usefulness of the institution.

The Grand Lodge now entered, and after the usual ceremonies of introduction, proceeded at once with the services as expressed in the ritual.

The members of the Grand Lodge present were:

Grand Master Nickerson;
Past Grand Masters Winslow Lewis, John T. Heard and W. D. Coolidge;
Deputy Grand Master Percival L. Everett;
Senior Grand Warden Charles Kimball;
Junior Grand Warden Tracy P. Cheever;
Grand Treasurer John McClellan;
Recording Grand Secretary, pro tem. Wm. T. Grammer;
Corresponding Grand Secretary Charles W. Moore;
District Deputy Grand Master Charles A. Welch;
Grand Marshal William H. Chessman;
Grand Tyler Fred. A. Pierce.
Prayer was offered by Bro. Titus, who officiated as Grand Chaplain for the occasion.

The dedicatory exercises were in the customary form, including a brief address by the architect in surrendering the working tools, examination of the apartments, prayer, reading of the Scriptures, dedication, and pouring out of the corn, wine and oil, with the recitations and grand honors—the whole interspersed with appropriate music and singing by a select choir of ladies and gentlemen. All the exercises were impressive and peculiar and very much interested all who were present. They were performed with promptitude and according to the ancient usages of the craft on similar occasions.

BRO. WHEILDON'S ADDRESS.

At the conclusion of the ceremonies of dedication, an address upon the subject of Masonry and Masonic history, with some special references to the organization and history of Corinthian Lodge, was delivered by R. W. Bro. Wm. W. Wheildon, occupying some three quarters of an hour in the delivery. In hi* exordium, in behalf of Corinthian Lodge, he thanked the Grand Master and the members of the Grand Lodge for their presence and the manner in which they had performed the services of the evening in the dedication of the hall to Freemasonry, to Virtue and to Universal Benevolence. He referred to the Charter of Corinthian Lodge, which was issued in 1797, and bore the signatures of Paul Revere, Isaiah Thomas and John Soley; its first meeting in the Grand Jury room of the County Conrt House, and of its first master, Bro. Isaac Hurd, Grandfather of the present Master of the Lodge. He spoke emphatically of the antiquity of the Institution, and its claims to respect on that score alone, and said if there was nothing to be found in Masonry itself to justify its continuance, its past age and preservation was an evidence at least of the countenance and favor of the great Grand Master of the Universe. But Masons do not rest the character of their institution upon its antiquity, nor yet upon the distinguished names of its patrons and supporters in the past ages and modern history of the order. Masonry is a Christian brotherhood, and in its "universal benevolence" has no compeer among human institutions. A mere Mason is not Masonry any more than a mere Christian man is Christianity: the better mason the better man, or man and mason, a brother.

He spoke of the Great Light in Masonry, to be found on the altar of every Masonic Lodge in the Christian world, the open Bible, as containing the law and the lessons of the fraternity, and referred to its presence at the earliest Masonic gatherings on the Continent, its constant use through the revolutionary war, where Masons were to be found, and the reverence always and everywhere paid to it by Masonic Lodges.

Having thus, as he believed, established the claims of the. Masonic institution to respectability and respect, however unnecessary to the members of the order, he thought they were justified in desiring more suitable and commodious apartments for the holding of their meetings than those they had occupied for more than a half century. He congratulated the members of Corinthian Lodge upon their position and prosperity, which enabled them to secure such admirable rooms for their use, and was glad to know that these had been furnished by the enterprise and public spirit of one of their own members, Past Master James Garty, who had shown himself not less skillful in operative than he was in speculative Masonry.

Bro. Wheildon then again returned the thanks of the Lodge to the Grand Master and his suite, and trusted that Corinthian Lodge, which for three quarters of a century had been able, amid all the vicissitudes of the times, to maintain its character and preserve its charter, would still prosper and never fail to manifest its respect for and interest in the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of the Commonwealth.

We have thus given a very incomplete and imperfect sketch of this able address by Bro. Wheildon, which was listened/to with marked attention by the audience and the Grand Officers.

THE BANQUET.

At nine o'clock, at the conclusion of the exercises in the hall, the members of Corinthian Lodge and their guests of the Grand Lodge, and ladies and gentlemen, repaired to the banquet hall. W. M. Hurd presided at the tables, assisted by Bros. Edward C. Damon and Henry F. Smith, Senior and Junior Wardens. The tables were bountifully and elegantly spread and decorated with bouquets of choice flowers. After the generous entertainment had been fully partaken of, the company was called to order by W. M. Hurd, who in a few complimentary words, introduced M. W. Grand Master Nickerson, who briefly expressed his interest in the occasion and in the continued prosperity of one of the oldest lodges in the State. There were present by his invitation in his suite, three of the Past Grand Masters of the Grand Lodge, and a fourth, who had been invited, found himself unable to be present. He then referred to some interesting points in Masonic history and spoke of the patriotic and Masonic services of Paul Revere and Joseph Warren, and complimented the speaker upon the interesting address delivered by him. We regret that we are unable to give a more complete sketch of the appropriate and excellent remarks of the Grand Master.

Past Grand Master Coolidge was next introduced and made an excellent speech concerning Masonry and the deprivations of the brotherhood in the necessary absence of the ladies from the ordinary meetings. His remarks were well received by the fraternity and especially by the ladies, who sympathized with the sufferings of the speaker and the brotherhood!

It was deeply regretted by the company present that time was not at command in which to hear remarks from Brothers Lewis, Heard, Moore, District Deputy Welch, and several others who were present and whom the company were so anxious to hear ; but these gentlemen having other engagements felt compelled to return to Boston by the special train at a quarter before ten o'clock, which they accomplished. The Grand Master and all the members of his suite expressed themselves highly pleased and gratified with their visit and the exercises of the evening. Of the recent Grand Masters, one only, we believe, previous to this occasion, has ever while in office, visited Corinthian Lodge, and that was Past Grand Master John T. Heard, in 1857.