September 19, 2023

Recreating an Oklahoma Templar Jewel

 By T.S. Akers

This article was originally published in Volume 69, Issue No. 4 of the Knight Templar magazine.
 
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.
[11]  Ibid., 22.
[12]  Ibid., 23.

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