"A Winter's Day in 1791"

W. Bro. James G. Inglis, Historian

In our temple, a banner hangs proudly commemorating the chartering of Hiram Lodge # 18 on January 17, 1791. We look at that banner each time in lodge whether aware of it or not, but how many of us have reflected on what the times were like 216 years ago?

Wor. Bro. George Washington was President, having assumed office in 1789, John Adams was Vice President; Thomas Jefferson, Secretary of State; and Alexander Hamilton, Secretary of the Treasury. Our own Connecticut Grand Lodge had just been formed in July, 1789 with Pierpont Edwards as the first Grand Master.

The Peace of Paris, drafted in 1783, ended the Revolutionary War for Independence when it was ratified by act of Congress on January 14, 1784. Thus, our new nation had only been at peace but a few days more than eight years when Hiram Lodge #18 came into existence. The brother's comprising our newly constituted lodge would have been substantially influenced by formative years as British subjects; the Revolutionary War, and it's aftermath. While it's possible that some brother's may have still harbored a certain fondness for the English Crown, it is unlikely, as New England was not an especially hospitable environment for loyalists during, or after the war. More likely, there were both federalists and antifederalists  amongst the brethren, the former in favor of the Constitution, ratified in 1788, and the later, antifederalists, who were skeptical of the Constitution for many reasons, including concern that the document ceded too much influence to urban and monied interests. Regardless, politics while in lodge would have had no place then, nor does it today.

Newtown was an agricultural community and many of it's population had to work hard just to survive. January's in Connecticut can be bitter, and thus a gathering to form a lodge would have entailed sacrifice in time and energy just to attend a meeting. Travel by horse was of course possible, but for those less fortunate, by foot. Most brother's would have been tired, not just due to travel to the gathering, but because earning a living by brow was commonplace and the rhythms of life largely governed by daylight hours. Whereas significant masonic functions today often entail regalia, suits or tuxedos, and considerable pomp, it's possible that the chartering of the lodge was less elaborate, though certainly imbued with enormous importance. Relatively few organizations existed in comparison to the plethora of choices we have these days, and so formation of a lodge a major event in the life of the community. Membership was considered prestigious, while the average age of it's membership younger, as life expectancy far less than now. Because of the symbolism and philosophical orientation of the fraternity, we can be assured that our founding brother's were relatively sophisticated by the standards of the time...    

- To be continued -

This is the first installment in a series of articles on the History of Hiram Lodge No. 18 presented by our Historian, W. Bro. James G. Inglis