The history of the Grand Commandery Knights Templar of
Oklahoma is unique in that like the state of Oklahoma, it was born of two
territories. Templary first arrived in what became the state of Oklahoma at
Guthrie in the Oklahoma Territory. It was there on the 12th of July, 1890, that
a group of Sir Knights were granted a dispensation to form a commandery of
Knights Templar. They received their charter in 1892, becoming Guthrie
Commandery No. 1.[1]
The man who served as their first Eminent Commander was Cassius M. Barnes, a
Union army veteran who later became the fourth territorial governor.[2] About the same time,
Templary also arrived in the Indian Territory at Muskogee. On the 1st of
October, 1891, Sir Knights in that city were granted a dispensation to form a
commandery. Muskogee Commandery No. 1 was also chartered in 1892, during
Twenty-Fifth Triennial Conclave of the Grand Encampment at Denver, the same as
Guthrie Commandery.[3]
Muskogee Commandery’s first eminent commander was Robert W. Hill, a
Presbyterian minister who had been knighted in Guthrie Commandery in 1890.[4]
With the establishment of additional commanderies in
each of the Twin Territories, as the Indian and Oklahoma Territories have come
to be known, the decision to form grand commanderies was soon made. This first
happened in the Indian Territory when on the 27th of December, 1895, the three
commanderies of Muskogee No. 1, Chickasaw No. 2 at Purcell, and McAlester No. 3
formed the Grand Commandery Knights Templar of the Indian Territory. They
selected Robert W. Hill as their first Grand Commander. Oklahoma Territory
followed suit in forming a grand commandery on the 10th of February, 1896,
consisting of the commanderies of Guthrie No. 1, Oklahoma No. 2 at Oklahoma
City, and Ascension No. 3 at El Reno. The first Grand Commander of the Grand
Commandery Knights Templar of Oklahoma was Cassius M. Barnes.[5]
The two grand commanderies marched forth in parallel
lines in the years leading up to statehood, each enjoying growth in membership.
Through her years of existence, the Grand Commandery of the Indian Territory
consisted of a total of fourteen commanderies and her Oklahoma counterpart
boasted twenty-one.[6]
It was in 1907 that the Twin Territories were admitted into the Union as the
state of Oklahoma; however, this is not how it was meant to be. The creation of
the “Unassigned Lands” that became the Oklahoma Territory goes back to the
Reconstruction Treaties of 1866, which were meant to punish the Five Tribes for
their alliance with the Confederacy. These treaties reduced land holdings for
the Five Tribes and that land was then in turn used as reservations for other
Indian nations. The land that was thus not assigned was opened for non-native
settlement by land run in 1889.[7] The 1890s saw further
efforts to eliminate tribal sovereignty for the Five Tribes with the Dawes
Commission, which ended communal land ownership, and the Curtis Act, which
eliminated tribal governments beginning in 1905. It had been the popular belief
that Oklahoma Territory would become its own state. Leading tribal headmen in
the Indian Territory (the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee, and Seminole
Nations comprised the Indian Territory) had hoped to form a state of their own,
the state of Sequoyah, and held conventions do to so in 1905. Unfortunately,
Congress refused to hear any bills on Sequoyah statehood and the reason was
entirely political. The Republican controlled Congress of the day had no
interest in admitting a state to the Union that was heavily Democratic.[8]
With statehood came the existence of two grand lodges
within one state, which was an issue that required attention. The grand
commanderies of the Twin Territories watched as the necessary negotiations took
place and details were arranged for the Grand Lodges of the Indian Territory
and Oklahoma to consolidate into the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of the State
of Oklahoma. This consolidation was completed on the 10th of February, 1909.[9] For the other Masonic
institutions that comprised the landscape of Freemasonry in the new state, only
Templary and the Eastern Star found it necessary to consolidate grand
jurisdictions, as they were the only other entities that operated under two
territorial jurisdictions. For Templary though, that consolidation took some
time. In 1908, the Grand Commander of Oklahoma Territory commented on how the
state now existed with two grand bodies in its borders, stating “that ought not
to prevail.” The year also saw the Sir Knights of the Indian Territory consider
a motion to consolidate at their annual conclave, with the Grand Master of the
Grand Encampment in attendance. The motion failed to garner the necessary
two-thirds of the vote to proceed.[10] This is interesting, as
consolidation for the two grand lodges was progressing, but perhaps as that had
not yet occurred, the membership had a desire to wait. In took urging from the
Grand Master of the Grand Encampment in 1911 to bring about consolidation for
the two grand commanderies, which was finally realized on the 6th of October
that year.[11]
An important piece that is often overlooked here is how the grand commanderies
of the Twin Territories became one. The Templar grand jurisdiction of Oklahoma
Territory was simply known as the Grand Commandery Knights Templar of Oklahoma;
similarly, it was also the Grand Lodge of Oklahoma there. This is why the
consolidated grand lodge became the Grand Lodge of the State of Oklahoma. When
Grand Master William B. Melish of the Grand Encampment presided over the
consolidation of the two grand commanderies, he declared the Grand Commandery
Knights Templar of the Indian Territory “closed without day forever,” thus
folding it into the Grand Commandery of Oklahoma.[12]
Indian Territory Past Grand Commander jewel of Daniel M. Hailey, c. 1903.
(From the author's collection)
During her years of existence, the Grand Commandery of
the Indian Territory created a special jewel to present to its Past Grand
Commanders. Those jewels were of 10K gold, in the form of a passion cross. On
the upper arms of the cross were the letters P, G, and C for Past Grand
Commander. On the lower arm was an engraved American Indian figure with the
letters TER for the Indian Territory. Only three of these jewels are known to
exist today.
It does not appear that during her existence as solely
a territorial jurisdiction that the Grand Commandery of Oklahoma created a Past
Grand Commander jewel. After the consolidation of the two grand commanderies in
1911 though, this looks to have changed. There is a photo of Past Grand
Commander DeForest F. Leach (1897-1898) wearing an Oklahoma jewel, but he also
wears a 1910 triennial jewel, which likely dates the image to after consolidation.
The earliest known jewel still in existence dates to 1913.
Oklahoma Past Grand Commander Jewel of Rennie L. Moore, c. 1956.
(From the collections of the McAlester Scottish Rite)
The jewel that was created may have been produced by R.M. Johnson & Son, Masonic Jewelers of Chicago. This belief stems from the dies
of their work being very similar to that of the Oklahoma Past Grand Commander
jewel and the fact that Past Grand Master jewels were being acquired from them. The jewels, which were originally of 10K gold, were quite large,
measuring around 6 inches in length and weighing roughly 50 grams. The upper
bar of the jewel bears the words “Past Grand” with banners that were engraved
with the years denoting the Past Grand Commander’s term of office. From this
bar a disc is suspended which bears the central image of the Great Seal of the
State of Oklahoma, which originally appeared on the seal of Oklahoma Territory.
It contains the state motto "Labor Omnia Vincit" or "Labor Conquers
All Things." Columbia is the central figure, representing justice and
statehood. She is surrounded by a pioneer and an American Indian shaking hands,
which symbolizes equality. Beneath the three figures is the cornucopia of
plenty. The sun of progress is situated behind them. From the upper bar of the
jewel is also suspended a second bar which reads “Commander” in the same bold
letters as the upper bar. From this second bar is suspended a striking
medallion in the form of a Maltese cross with crown and crossed swords. In the
center is a purple Templar cross behind a shield in black and white. The shield
bears a passion cross in red stones.
These impressive and unique Past Grand Commander jewels
were presented to Oklahoma Sir Knights who held that office through the 1970s,
though it is unclear when they stopped being produced and later examples were
gold plated. There are around twenty-one of these jewels in existence and one came
up for sale in 2011 for around $2,000, which was purchased by the Grand
Commandery Knights Templar of Oklahoma. Of these known surviving jewels, one is
held in a private collection and one is in a museum collection. The other nineteen
jewels are currently in circulation with living Past Grand Commanders who wear
them until their passing, at which time their survivors are to return the
jewels to the Grand Commandery of Oklahoma.
Whilst it is a good thing to have more living Past
Grand Commanders than historic jewels available for them, it also creates a
problem, as no jewels currently being produced are of the same quality and
uniqueness as Oklahoma’s original jewels. The year 2022 saw this all change with
an idea that originated at All Masonic Week in Washington, D.C. A retailer
there had a jewel for sale that was based on Florida’s Grand Commander jewel,
which featured a crowned Maltese cross strikingly like Oklahoma’s jewels. On
seeing these jewels, a proposal was submitted to John Bridegroom of The Masters
Craft to recreate Oklahoma’s original Past Grand Commander jewels. Many emails
were exchanged to get each detail correct, but an exquisite and true to the
original jewel was ultimately produced. These new jewels are something every
Oklahoma Past Grand Commander can be proud to wear for years to come.
Recreated Oklahoma Past Grand Commander jewel, produced by The Masters
Craft.
[1]
T.S. Akers, "The Commanderies of Oklahoma," Oklahoma
Masonic History, last modified December 12, 2013,
http://okmasonichistory.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-commanderies-of-oklahoma.html.
[2]
Dianna Everett, "Barnes, Cassius McDonald (1845-1925)," The
Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture, accessed December 23, 2021,
https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry?entry=BA021.
[3]
Akers, "The Commanderies of Oklahoma.”
[4]
T.S. Akers, The Grand High Priests of Oklahoma Royal Arch Masonry
(Oklahoma City: Akers and Sons, 2019), 13.
[5]
T.S. Akers, Knights on the Prairie: A History of Templary in Oklahoma
(Oklahoma City: Akers and Sons, 2018), 5-9.
[6]
Akers, Knights on the Prairie: A History of Templary in Oklahoma,
106-107.
[7]
Bob L. Blackburn, "Unassigned Lands," The Encyclopedia of
Oklahoma History and Culture, accessed December 23, 2021, https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=UN001.
[8]
T.S. Akers, "Three Grand Lodges, One State: How Oklahoma Came to
Be," Oklahoma Masonic History, last modified September 1, 2022, http://okmasonichistory.blogspot.com/2022/09/three-grand-lodges-one-state-how.html.
[9]
Akers, "Three Grand Lodges, One State: How Oklahoma Came to Be.”
[10]
Akers, Knights on the Prairie: A History of Templary in Oklahoma,
22.
