MassachusettsHamiltonHistoryCh5

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CHAPTER 5: TOMLINSON AND OXNARD

Taking up the story from the organization of the Provincial Grand Lodge hereafter designated as St. John's Grand Lodge, Pelham remarks at the end of the year that nothing further remarkable happened that year except the observance of the Feast of St, John the Evangelist, He remarks that "Masonry caused great speculation in these days in Hew England to the great vulgar and the small." The next year came the extension of Price's authority and the establishment of a Lodge in Philadelphia under his warrant. This was probably the regularization of a voluntary Lodge already working.

Under date of February 5, 1735/6 six Brethren from Portsmouth wrote asking for a warrant and Price promptly granted their request. It is quite clear from the. wording of the letter that these Brethren were already working without a Charter and desired to be regularized.

In 1735 the First Lodge changed its place of meeting from the Bunch of Grapes to the Royal Exchange and thereafter appears in the engraved lists of the Grand Lodge of England as located at the Royal Exchange.

In the same year it is recorded that "sundry Brethren going to South Carolina met with some Masons in Charlestown who thereupon went to work from which sprung Masonry in those parts."

On December 27, 1736, Robert Tomlinson was appointed Deputy Grand Master. This was a step toward the Grand Mastership. The next year Price, who always believed in short terms resigned and, probably on his nomination, Tomlinson was appointed Grand Master.

We know very little about Tomlinson, sometimes spelled Thomlinson. The first record concerning him is his marriage in 1730. He was always designated as a merchant, probably in the West India trade as he had an estate in Antigua and owned wharf property in Boston.

Tomlinson's Commission was received April 27, 1737, and in June he celebrated the Feast of St. John the Baptist with much ceremony. The Brethren marched in a body to Governor Belcher's house and escorted him thence to the Royal Exchange. A quaint contemporary account in the Saint James Evening Post (London) says: "It being the first procession in America they appeared in the proper badges of their Order, some gold and some silver."

During Tomlinson*s brief tenure of office he was much absent from his jurisdiction. Sometime in 1738 he went to Antigua on his way to England. While in Antigua he met some Boston Masons and erected them into a Lodge which conferred the degrees on the Governor and other distinguished citizens. Pelham seems to claim this as the beginning of Masonry In the West Indies, but is probably wrong as three Lodges appear to have been constituted in Antigua about this time, one of which at least must have antedated Tomlinson's visit. They were Parham Lodge, January 31, 1737/8, Court House Lodge, November 28, 1738, and Baker's Lodge, March 14, 1738/9. If either of these was Tomlinson's it was probably the Court House Lodge. Its name suggests a membership drawn from official circles and the date of organization would have just about time for Tomlinson to f-et to London by the end of January. On January 31, 1738/9 he is recorded at a meeting of the Grand Lodge of England. He did not return to Boston until May, 1739. In about a year he went to Antigua again and died there in July, 1740.

At the close of his entries for 1740 Pelham inserts: "Omitted in place 'That Our Rt. Worsh'l Grand Master Mr. Price Granted a Deputation at ye Pettition of sundry Brethren, at Annapolis in Nova Scocia to hold a Lodge there, and Appointed Maj'r Erasm's Ja's. Phillipps D. G. M. who has since at ye Request of sundry Brethren at Halifax, Granted a Constitution to hold a Lodge there, and appointed The R't Worsh'l His Excellency Edw'd Gornwallis Esq'r their First Master."

We can be rather more definite in our account of what happened. In 1787 Major Phillips and Mr, J. Sherriff came to Boston to act as disinterested commissioners to adjust a boundary dispute between Massachusetts and Rhode Island. On November 14, 1737, Phillips was made in the First Lodge and Sheriff, who had been made elsewhere, was admitted. They returned in 1738 armed with Price's commission and proceeded to act as Pelham records.

The commission was executed by Price because, as it will be remembered, in 1738 and 1739 Tomlinson was out of the jurisdiction, and Price was Acting Grand Master, It was then the custom in case of the death or absence of the Grand Master his predecessor, if available, took over, and not the Deputy Grand Master, as would now be done.

On January 2, 1738/9 the Master's Lodge was founded. Tomlinson was still absent and this warrant must have been issued by Price. In spite of that Price was chosen Master. This Lodge was organized for the purpose of conferring the Master's degree. The ritual had not yet assumed its present form. Ordinary Lodges conferred only two degrees. The second seems to have contained part, at least of the present third, and the original records of the old Lodges constantly used the expression "raised Fellowcraft." Exactly whet the Master's degree was we do not know. Very likely it contained some elements of the Royal Arch. At a later date the Grand Lodge of England (Moderns) limited the work of the Lodges to the three degrees of Entered Apprentice, Fellowcraft, and Master Mason, including the Holy Royal Arch, clearly indicating a very close connection.

The New England Grand Masters evidently did not consider ordinary Lodges authorized to confer the Master's degree. This is clearly shown by the wording of the warrant issued by Gridley in 1759 to a Master's Lodge in Newport. He says: "Whereas a considerable Number of Master Masons have from Time to Time congregated themselves at Newport in the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations within our district as a Lodge of Master Masons, and have therein raised some Brothers of the Fellow Grafts to Master Masons, not thinking but they had Authority so to do x x x x x We therefore x x x x do hereby confirm the said Degree to which any Brothers have been so raised, and do appoint x x x to be Master of a Right Worshipful Masters Lodge to be held at the said New Port xxxxx." The ordinary Lodges in the St. John's Grand Lodge never conferred the Master's degree until after the union of 1792. It was generally conferred in a Master's Lodge, but there are some instances on record where an occasional Master's Lodge was convened for that purpose.

From the death of Tomlinson in July 1740 to the appointment of Oxnard in September 1743 a strange and unaccountable silence descends upon St. John's Grand Lodge. Pelham records nothing during those three years except the elections of Masters of the First Lodge. There is no evidence of the issuing of any warrants or of any other Grand Lodge activity. One of Tomlinson's last official acts was the appointment of Thomas Oxnard as deputy. It has been assumed that Oxnard took over but this was probably not the case. We have seen that Price took over in Tomlinson's absence from the country and we know that he did so on the death of Oxnard and again on the death of Gridley. It is wife to assume that he did so on the death of Tomlinson.

The peculiarities of the Oxnard commission have already been discussed. The statement in the preamble that several Brethren have requested that an appointment be made would indicate that It was not made as Tomlinson's probably was on nomination of Price, but on application signed by a group of Boston men who asked not only that an appointment be made, but that Oxnard be appointed. It is possible that the delay may have been caused by the unwillingness of Price, who dearly loved authority, to consent to having anybody but himself approach the English Grand Master, or there may have been some disagreement in Boston as to the nominee.

Oxnard was a leading merchant of Boston. He was born about 1703 in the Bishopric of Durham in England. The date of his arrival in Massachusetts is not known. He was made in the First Lodge January 21, 1735/6 and was elected Master in the following March.

Oxnard carried into his Masonic work the same energy which had made him successful in business. During his administration of a little over ten years he warranted two new Lodges in Boston, Lodges in Newfoundland, Newport, R. I., Annapolis, Md., New Haven, New London, and Middletown, Conn., and probably the Lodge at Fredericksburg, Va. in which George Washington took his degrees. It was during his administration that the "Humble Remonstrance" already discussed was sent to England.

Oxnard was absent in England for about a year 1751 and 1752. Very probably he took with him the "Humble Remonstrance." That document was dated October 7, 1751. Oxnard was not present in Grand Lodge at its meeting October 11, 1751 and does not again appear until October 13, 1752.

With the meeting of April 13, 1750, the regular entries of Grand Lodge meetings begin to be recorded, and we are henceforth definitely informed as to proceedings. At the meeting of October 11, 1751, the Deputy Grand Master, Hugh McDaniel, took the chair. He presided at the Feast of St. John the Evangelist dm December 27 and also at the quarterly meeting January 10. The regularity of his action was questioned and he called a special meeting "to consider the 21st Article in the printed book of Constitutions relating to the successor to the Chair in the absence of the Grand Master."

This Article relates to the absence of the Grand Master of the Grand Lodge and the question came upon its application to a Provincial Grand Master. In the Anderson Constitutions of 1722 this Article reads as follows:

"If the Grand Master die during his Mastership or by sickness, or by being beyond sea, or in any other way should he rendered incapable of discharging his office, the Deputy, or in his absence the Senior G. Warden, or in his absence the Junior G. Warden, or in his absence any 3 present Masters of Lodges, shall assemble the G. Lodge immediately; in order to advise together upon the Emergency, and to send two of their number to invite the last Grand Master to resume his office, which now reverts to him: and if he refuse to act, then the next last, and so backward. But if no former G. Master be found, the present Deputy shall act as Principal till a new G. lister is chosen: or if there be no Deputy, then the oldest Mason the present Master of a Lodge."

In the 1738 and 1746 editions of Anderson's "new regulations" (amendments) appear side by side with the old. The new regulation reads:

"Upon such vacancy, if no former G. Master nor former Deputy be found, the present Senior G. Warden fills the Chair, or in his absence the Junior till a new G. Master is chosen: And if no present nor former G. Warden be found, then the oldest Freemason who is now Master of a Lodge."

R. W. Bro. Price was not present. It was moved that in the absence from the country of the Grand Master the right to the chair devolved upon Price. (It will be remembered that in the absence of Tomlinson he had assumed it). After a general discussion the vote was put whether two members should be sent to desire Price to come and resume his office, "which passed in the negative."

Price accepted the decision with a good grace and was present at the next quarterly meeting. Before the Feast of St. John the Baptist, June 24, a commission arrived from England appointing Lord Colvill Deputy Grand Master and he presided at the feast.

William Alexander Lord Colvill was a naval officer commanding His Majesty's Ship Success, then stationed in New England waters for two years or more. He was made iu the Jirst Lodge, October 28, 1750. On January 11, 1750/1 he sat in Grand Lodge as Master of the Second Lodge, holding that position until appointed Deputy Grand Master. He presided at the Feast of St. John on June 24 and at the regular meeting on July 10. Shortly thereafter he was ordered home to England and at the regular meeting of October 13 Oxnard, who had returned to Boston, reappointed Hugh WcDaniel Deputy.

In 1749 the Feast of St. John the Evangelist fell on Sunday. The brethren attended services at Christ Church and listened to a sermon by Rev. Charles Brookwell, King's Chapel Chaplain. This was the first published Masonic Sermon ever preached in America, and one of the first anywhere. The First Lodge in Boston had it printed and published early in the next month. The Grand Lodge library contains several copies of this very rare pamphlet.

The procession to the church on the occasion of this sermon called forth a scurrilous and indecent poem lampooning the affair which appeared in the Boston Evening Post, a newspaper published by Thomas and John Fleet. The poem was promptly (1750) published in pamphlet form and was reprinted in 1795. The lampooned Brethren were so annoyed that on January 11, the Grand Lodge voted "That Letters be sent to the Several Lodges abroad under our R. W. G. M. acquainting them of the scandalous piece of Ribaldry in T. Fleet's paper, and Instructing them by all means to discourage said paper, etc." The skirmish, however, does not seem to have done either party any particular harm.

Brookwell became Assistant Rector of King's Chapel early in 1747 and served in that capacity until his death in 1755. Made a Mason before coming to Boston, he was admitted to the First Lodge January 28, 1746/7. On February 5, 1747/8 he was elected Junior Warden of the Master's Lodge. As this is the first time his name appears in the records, he was probably admitted to membership on the same night, having received the Master's degree before coming to Boston. From that time on he was almost continuously in Masonic office, He was elected Master of the Master's Lodge January 5, 1749/50. After two years service there he was chosen Master of the First Lodge in 1751. In 1753 Oxnard appointed him his Senior Grand Warden and he died in office. His last official act was to sign as a member of the "grand committee" the memorial which Grand Lodge voted October 11, 1754 requesting the appointment of Jeremy Gridley to succeed Oxnard, who had just died.

A curious episode in the last days of Oxnard's administration throws an interesting light on existing Masonic conditions. On January 11, 1754, Grand Lodge voted "That no Brother within our district shall be Master of any Regular Lodge, under Thirty Years of age." The reaction was Immediate. On July 12 petitions were received from the Lodges in Middletown and New London claiming that "they being young Lodges are incapable of compliance," and it was voted that the Grand Master, Deputy Grand Master and Grand Wardens should have power to waive the rule in their discretion, and on January 11, 1755, the rule was repealed.

As early as 1754 the first steps were taken in the Grand Lodge to provide for the gathering of a Charity Fund and the orderly expenditure of it. This resulted in the formation of a Grand Committee on Charity. Applications for relief were laid before this Committee and after consideration recommendations were made to Grand Lodge. Price's original commission contained an injunction that he recommend the establishment of a General Charity for the relief of poor Brethren. The very first entry in the regular records of the St. John's Grand Lodge (April 13, 1750) contains a vote that the Grand Committee of Charity, organized in conformity to the English Constitutions shall meet at least eight days before every quarterly communication. On January 11, 1750/1 three appropriations were made, one of ten pounds and two of twenty pounds "old tenor." Very probably there were previous cases of the relief of distressed Brethren, but from this time on the stream of Masonic charity flows steadily.


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