MAGLSThaxter

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SAMUEL THAXTER 1769-1842

SamuelThaxter.jpg

  • MM 1802, WM 1808, 1810, 1813, Mount Lebanon
  • Senior Grand Steward 1819
  • Junior Grand Deacon 1820, 1821
  • Senior Grand Deacon 1822
  • Junior Grand Warden, 1823
  • Senior Grand Warden, 1824-1826

MEMORIAL

From Proceedings, Page IV-546:

As the good & the faithful are removed from among us, no more to be seen of men, their work completed, their earthly labours ended, it becomes the duty of those who remain, to improve the inflictions of the all-wise Disposer of events, by keeping alive the memories of the just, that by the light they shed while on earth; still unextinguished, still beaming from their Bright example; they yet shall minister to our service, & though Dead yet speak from their dark abode. Therefore, with these motives, & that the virtues of a departed Brother shall survive in our hearts:

Resolved. That we mourn, though not as those without hope, for the great loss the masonic family in general & the Gr. Lodge of Massachusetts in particular, have sustained by the decease of our R. W, & Honored Brother Samuel Thaxter, Esq.

Resolved. — That in his example & character we have another testimonial that the good christian, the upright Citisen, & God's noblest work, the honest man, are but the practical excellencies inculcated by the precepts of our Institution.

Resolved.—That this tribute of our feelings be transmitted to the family of the deceased as an earnest of the esteem & consideration with which we cherish his memory — with the assurance of our deepest sympathy in this bereavement, which has taken from them the good husband & father, & from us the devoted and honored Masonic Brother.

From Moore's Freemason's Monthly, Vol. I, No. 8, June 1842, p. 254:

On the 20th of April, at his residence in this city, Mr. Samuel Thaxter, Past Senior Grand Warden of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts. He was an ardent and consistent Mason, and Past Master of Columbian Lodge. Mr. Huntoon, in his Eulogy on Dr. Harris, speaks of him as follows: "In all the duties of a citizen, a man, and a Christian, he was found worthy and well qualified for his Master's service and approbation. As a Mason, he was justly esteemed, respected, and honored for his integrity, uprightness and benevolence. He who discharges these great social, civil, and religious duties of life, manifests in the best manner his attachment to the principles, precepts and institutions of Freemasonry. The highest distinction we ever claim for our Association is, that it is the handmaid of virtue, morality, and religion. For the holy ministrations to beneficence ; for its strong arm of protection to the defenceless; for the substantial comfort it brings to the wretched; and for the radiant smile of joy it lights up on the withered brow of sorrow, it received, in its darkest hours, his constant attach¬ ment, unhesitating countenance and manly support; and for these, we respect his character and revere his well earned reputation. And in the language of pious ' faith and hope, and charity' we would say

' Servant of God well done !
Rest from thy loved employ ;
The battle's fought, the victory 's won,
Enter thy Master's joy.' "

BIOGRAPHY

MOUNT LEBANON BY-LAWS, 1867

From Mount Lebanon By-Laws, 1867, p. 81:

This worthy and venerated member of our Lodge was descended from Deacon Thomas Thaxter, who emigrated to this country from England, and settled in Hingham, Mass., in 1635. His father, Samuel Thaxter, was a trader in that town. He was born there on the 13th of December, 1769; served an apprenticeship with William Williams, of Boston, a manufacturer of mathematical and nautical instruments.

At the age of twenty-one years, Mr. Thaxter commenced business on his own account, and continued it to near the close of his life, He died on the 18th of April, 1842, in the 73rd year of his age.

Bro. Thaxter united with the Lodge as a member in 1802; and from that time to the day of his death, a period of forty years, he was a constant attendant upon its meetings, when his health permitted. He was Master of the Lodge in 1808, '09, '10, and '13, and at various times held other important offices. As a member of the Masonic Brotherhood, he ever held fast the principles of the Order, through good report and through evil report. Modest and unassuming in his deportment, he was respected as a man; firm and unshaken in his integrity as a Mason, he was venerated and beloved by the Fraternity. As a Christian, he was a man with clean hands and a pure heart and walked uprightly before God and man.

SURVEYING HISTORY WEB SITE

From Surveying History web site:

1777_SamuelThaxter_Boston.png

Samuel Thaxter was born in Hingham, Massachusetts in 1769 and died in Boston in 1842. He is first listed in the 1796 Boston Directory as a mathematical instrument maker. In the 1822-23 edition, the business is listed as Samuel Thaxter & Son (Joseph H. 1801-1835). Samuel Thaxter's grandson, Samuel Thaxter Cushing (1821-1882), took over the business around 1843. Upon the death of Samuel Thaxter Cushing, his widow, Abby C. Cushing took over management of the business until 1905 at which time Herbert Risteen Starratt became manager. The last entry of the company (Samuel Thaxter & Son) in the Boston Directory is 1916.



Distinguished Brothers