James J. McAlester: Pioneer Freemason

By. T.S. Akers

Oklahoma has two great Masonic cities.  One had dreams of being the state capital and it would ultimately serve in a similar capacity as it became home to the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of the State of Oklahoma.  The vestiges of Freemasonry are still very evident in Guthrie, ranging from the old Masonic Children’s Home to the imposing Scottish Rite Temple perched atop what was to be Capitol Hill at the end of Oklahoma Avenue.  The other city was born of a Freemason and though many of her Masonic halls are now fading memories, such as Mount Moriah, McAlester is still one of the great Masonic cities of Oklahoma.

McAlester is named for the famed merchant of Indian Territory James J. McAlester, who was immortalized by Charles Portis in his novel True Grit.[i]  McAlester was born in Sebastian County, Arkansas on October 1, 1842.  At the outbreak of the Civil War, McAlester volunteered for service in the Confederate Army, rising to the rank of Captain.[ii]  McAlester was present at the Battle of Pea Ridge in 1862 and escorted the body of the Late General Benjamin McCulloch to Fort Smith.[iii]

 James J. McAlester
(Courtesy of the Oklahoma Historical Society) 

McAlester took up residence in Fort Smith after the Civil War, boarding with an engineer by the name of Oliver Weldon who had surveyed the Indian Territory.  Armed with Weldon’s memorandum book that noted the coal outcrops at the crossroads of the Texas and California Roads, McAlester set out for Indian Territory.[iv]  Serving as a teamster, McAlester was helping transport a saw-mill to Fort Sill.  In about 1868, McAlester became a salesman for the firm of Reynolds and Hannaford; ultimately buying out his partners.[v]  It was in 1869 that McAlester opened his general store, in a tent, at “The Crossroads.”[vi]  

A few years later in 1872, McAlester married Rebecca Burney, sister of future Chickasaw Governor Ben Burney, which gave McAlester full citizenship in the Chickasaw Nation as well as rights in the Choctaw Nation.[vii]  This allowed McAlester to stake a claim in the coal deposits at “The Crossroads.”[viii]  Owing to the quality of the coal in the area, which McAlester had a controlling interest in, the MKT Railroad established a line through what was then Tobucksy County.  This would help the city of McAlester to flourish.[ix]  Officials of the MKT Railroad gave the railway stop at the “The Crossroads” the name McAlester.[x]

McAlester accepted his first political appointment as a Democrat in 1893 as United States Marshal having jurisdiction over matters with the Choctaw Nation, a post he would hold until 1897.[xi]  McAlester sold his mercantile to another area Mason, William Busby, in 1904.[xii]  It was during this period that McAlester was engaged in banking.  In 1901, McAlester appeared in the City Directory of Denison, Texas, as Vice President of the National Bank of Denison.[xiii]  By 1905, McAlester was serving as President of the Bank of McAlester.[xiv]  McAlester’s banking interests secured him a seat on the Corporation Commission after Statehood for a term from 1907 to 1911.[xv]  McAlester left the Corporation Commission to serve as the second Lieutenant Governor under Governor Lee Cruce.  McAlester was acting Governor in the absence of Cruce on at least one occasion, as evidenced by his issuing a pardon in 1915 in the case of Sibenaler v State.[xvi]

For all that McAlester did to see that the city that bore his name flourished; he was an equal proponent of Freemasonry.  Records indicate that McAlester affiliated with Muscogee (Eufaula) Lodge No. 1 in December of 1876, serving as Junior Warden of that Lodge in 1877.[xvii]  McAlester Lodge No. 9 was chartered by the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory on September 5, 1877.[xviii]  McAlester then affiliated with Lodge No. 9 in 1878.[xix]

McAlester would go on to be a charter member of two Masonic bodies in Southeastern Oklahoma.  In 1878, McAlester along with a number of other Companions petitioned for a Chapter of Royal Arch Masons and a charter was granted to Indian Chapter No. 1 in August of 1880.[xx]  McAlester was also one of the Sir Knights who petitioned for a Commandery of Knights Templar in 1894.[xxi]  

When the Grand Chapter of Royal Arch Masons of Indian Territory was formed in 1890, McAlester was elected the first Grand Treasurer.[xxii]  McAlester also served as first Grand Treasurer of the Grand Commandery Knights Templar of Indian Territory in 1895.[xxiii]  As further evidence of his financial prowess, McAlester also saw service as Grand Treasurer of the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory from 1878 to 1879 and 1889 to 1899.[xxiv]

J.J. McAlester in Templar uniform with Frank Smith, Past Grand Commander of Indian Territory
(Unknown Source)

James J. McAlester laid down the working tools of life on September 21, 1920, in the city that bore his name.[xxv]  As a testament to his life, the Oklahoman noted the following on McAlester’s death:

Followed probably by the largest concourse of mourners ever witnessed in this city, the remains of Col. J.J. McAlester were buried today in the Masonic cemetery here. Funeral services were conducted at the residence and were heard by nearly 2,000 people.
Out of respect for the memory of Colonel McAlester and the fact that he was the founder of this city, business and industrial life of the city was at a standstill from 2 until 4 o'clock this afternoon.
Preceding the funeral at the home, the Kadosh funeral rites were exemplified at the Masonic temple at midnight. In the procession behind the funeral bier on its way to the cemetery were the allied Masonic bodies, in which Colonel McAlester had been active, the confederate veterans in uniform, the allied civic organizations, 200 members of the chamber of commerce, the United Daughters of the Confederacy and other women's organizations.[xxvi]

The hand of James J. McAlester can still be seen across the city of McAlester today, from the buildings that bore his name to the Masonic halls he once graced, McAlester lives on in the city he helped establish.

---

[i]  “History of McAlester.” McAlester, OK, accessed May 7, 2014, http://www.cityofmcalester.com/index.aspx?nid=130.

[ii]  LaRadius Allen, “McAlester, James Jackson (1842-1920),” Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture, accessed May 7, 2014, http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/M/MC003.html.

[iii]  Clyde Wooldridge, McAlester: The Capital of Little Dixie : A History of McAlester, Krebs and South McAlester (Rich Hill, MO: Bell Books, 2001), 8-9.

[iv]  Allen.

[v]  Wooldridge, 8-9.

[vi]  Jeanne LeFlore, “McAlester History,” McAlester News-Capital, last modified July 23, 2013, http://www.mcalesternews.com/local/x1724758902/McAlester-History.

[vii]  Allen.

[viii]  Ibid.

[ix]  Wooldridge, 8-9.

[x]  Paul Nesbitt, “J.J. McAlester,” Chronicles of Oklahoma 11, no. 2 (1933): 758-764.

[xi]  “Necrology,” Chronicles of Oklahoma 5, no. 3 (1927): 352.

[xii]  Wooldridge, 69.

[xiii]  “James Jackson McAlester,” Grayson County TXGenWeb, accessed May 7, 2014, http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~txgrayso/Ethnic/Native%20American/Choctaw/Choctaw_JamesMcAlester.html.

[xiv]  Wooldridge, 80.

[xv]  “Necrology.”

[xvi]  “James Jackson McAlester,” Grayson County TXGenWeb.

[xvii]  “McAlester, James Jackson” (member profile, Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of the State of Oklahoma AF&AM).

[xviii]  Oklahoma Masonic Centennial Lodges 1874-1974 (Oklahoma: Oklahoma Lodge of Research, 1974), 9.

[xix]  “McAlester, James Jackson” (member profile).

[xx]  Norman E. Angel, Kenneth S. Adams, and William A. Hensley, History of the Grand Chapter of the Royal Arch Masons of Oklahoma (Oklahoma: 1964), 2-3.

[xxi]  “McAlester Commandery No. 3” (charter, Grand Encampment of Knights Templar of the United States of America, August 29, 1895).

[xxii]  Angel, 12.

[xxiii]  Grand Commandery Knights Templar of Oklahoma, Proceedings of the 118^th Annual Conclave (Oklahoma:  2013).

[xxiv]  “McAlester, James Jackson” (member profile).

[xxv]  Allen.

[xxvi]  “Capt. James Jackson McAlester,” Find A Grave, accessed May 7, 2014, http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=13398592.

The Commanderies of Oklahoma

 By T.S. Akers

 

Officers of the Grand Commandery Knights Templar of Oklahoma in Ponca City, 1923

(Courtesy of the Grand Commandery of Oklahoma)

It is the job of the Historian to relate the events of the past by analyzing the primary sources of the day and paint an accurate picture of what actually occurred.  Sometimes this can be as simple as lists with bare facts and while that can be a bore, they are often essential for other Historians and can contain vital information. 

In Oklahoma, a total of fifty-three Commanderies of Knights Templar have received charters.  Unfortunately, a number of Grand Commanders have had to make the hard decision to revoke charters in order to secure the survival of the Order, while other Commanderies chose to consolidate with nearby Commanderies or simply ceased to exist.  Today there are sixteen active Commanderies in Oklahoma, perpetuating the legacy put forth by their predecessors.

The following is a complete listing of all fifty-three Commanderies of Oklahoma and their present status.

Guthrie No. 1                           July 12, 1890(d)           Guthrie

                                                August 11, 1892(c)

Muskogee No. 2                      October 1, 1891(d)      Muskogee

                                                August 11, 1892(c)

Oklahoma No. 3                      March 5, 1892(d)         Oklahoma City

                                                August 11, 1892(c)

Ascension No. 4                       May 8, 1893(d)            El Reno

                                                August 29, 1895(c)

- Consolidated with Oklahoma No. 3 in 1965

Chickasaw No. 5                     May 31, 1894(d)          Purcell

                                                August 29, 1895(c)

- Consolidated with Norman No. 38 in 1934

McAlester No. 6                      July 14, 1894(d)           McAlester

                                                August 29, 1895(c)

DeMolay No. 7                        August 19, 1896           Chickasha

- Consolidated with Lawton No. 18 in 2008

St. Johns No. 8                        February 1, 1897         Stillwater

Ardmore No. 9                        November 2, 1897       Ardmore

Perry No. 10                            April 10, 1900              Perry

- Consolidated with St. Johns No. 8 in 1987

Cyrene No. 11                         April 10, 1901              Kingfisher

- Charter surrendered in 1932

Pawnee No. 12                        April 10, 1901              Pawnee

- Charter surrendered in 1939

Enid No. 13                             February 14, 1902       Enid

- Consolidated with Guthrie No. 1 in 2004

Ben Hur No. 14                       February 12, 1903       Ponca City

Hobart No. 15                         February 16, 1905       Hobart

- Consolidated with Lawton No. 18 in 1990

Ada No. 16                              April 22, 1905              Ada

- Consolidated with Shawnee No. 36 in 1998

Weatherford No. 17                 February 15, 1906       Weatherford

- Charter surrendered in 1934

Lawton No. 18                        February 15, 1906       Lawton

Frederick No. 19                     February 15, 1906       Frederick

- Charter surrendered in 1939

Trinity No. 20                           April 19, 1906              Tulsa

Ivanhoe No. 21                        March 20, 1907           Sayre

- Charter surrendered in 1955

Elk City No. 22                        March 20, 1907           Elk City

Emmanuel No. 23                     March 20, 1907           Blackwell

- Consolidated with Ben Hur No. 14 in 1990

Lincoln No. 24                         March 20, 1907           Chandler

- Charter surrendered in 1940

Gethsemane No. 25                  April 23, 1908              Okmulgee
- Consolidated with Muskogee No. 2 in 2014

Calvary No. 26                        April 23, 1908              Bartlesville

- Charter surrendered in 2025

Eldorado No. 27                      February 16, 1909       Eldorado

- Consolidated with Lawton No. 18 in 1939

Okemah No. 28                       April 23, 1909              Okemah

- Consolidated with Gethsemane No. 25 in 1938

St. Aumer No. 29                     March 8, 1910             Taloga

- Now stationed in Woodward

Hugo No. 30                            April 22, 1910              Hugo

- Charter arrested in 1983

Durant No. 31                          April 22, 1910              Durant

- Charter surrendered in 1928

Hugh de Payen No. 32             April 22, 1910              Atoka

- Consolidated with Ada No. 16 in 1939

Sapulpa No. 33                        April 22, 1910              Sapulpa

- Consolidated with Trinity No. 20 in 1968

Foraker No. 34                        February 21, 1911       Foraker

- Charter surrendered in 1920

Palestine No. 35                       February 21, 1911       Pawhuska

- Charter surrendered in 1954

Shawnee No. 36                      April 19, 1912              Shawnee

- Consolidated with Norman No. 38 in 2009

St. Augustine No. 37                April 19, 1912              Alva

- Charter surrendered in 1932

Norman No. 38                        April 24, 1914              Norman

Malta No. 39                           April 21, 1916              Heavener

- Consolidated with Hugo No. 30 in 1954

Poteau No. 40                          April 21, 1916              Poteau

- Consolidated with Malta No. 39 in 1939

Claremore No. 41                    April 21, 1916              Claremore

- Charter revoked 1955

Cushing No. 42                        April 17, 1919              Cushing

- Moved to Drumright in 1978 as Cimarron Valley No. 42
- Consolidated with St. Johns No. 8 in 2017

Holdenville No. 43                   May 17, 1922              Holdenville

- Charter revoked in 1948

Cleveland No. 44                     May 17, 1922              Cleveland

- Charter revoked in 1940

Bethlehem No. 45                    May 17, 1922              Oklahoma City

- Consolidated with Capitol Hill No. 53 in 2006

Duncan No. 46                        May 23, 1923              Duncan

- Consolidated with DeMolay No. 7 in 1967

Drumright No. 47                     May 21, 1924              Drumright

- Consolidated with Cushing No. 42 in 1964

Hominy No. 48                        May 20, 1925              Hominy

- Consolidated with Drumright No. 47 in 1954

Miami No. 49                           May 18, 1927              Miami

- Charter revoked in 1998

Hugh de Payen No. 50             April 26, 1960              Atoka

- Charter revoked in 1979

Guymon No. 51                       April 25, 1961              Guymon

- Consolidated with St. Aumer No 29 in 2005

Tipton No. 52                          May 8, 1989                Tipton

- Consolidated with Lawton No. 18 in 1995

Capitol Hill No. 53                   May 8, 1989                Oklahoma City

- Consolidated with Oklahoma No. 3 in 2024

________________________

(d) - date of dispensation 

(c) - date of charter
These charter dates were compiled from the Annual Proceedings of the Grand Commandery Knights Templar of Oklahoma.

General William S. Key, Soldier and Freemason

By T.S. Akers

Major General William S. Key

The profession of arms and the fraternity of Freemasonry have long marched together.  The British military has throughout its years had Masonic Lodges attached to several of its regiments.  Jessica Harland-Jacobs chronicles the history of Freemasonry in the British Empire in her book Builders of Empire, illustrating how Irish military lodges spread the influence of Freemasonry across the Empire.[i]  The idea of Manifest Destiny in the United States also helped with the spread of Freemasonry.  One can find evidence of Freemasons stationed at the various frontier posts, such as Fort Larned, Kansas; where soldiers with time on their hands carved their names and the square and compasses into the soft stone that comprised the fort’s buildings.

Oklahoma is no exception when it comes to military activity and the advance of Freemasonry.  Several Masonic leaders in Oklahoma have had noteworthy military careers, one of those being Major General William Shaffer Key. 

General Key was born in Dudleyville, Alabama on October 6, 1889.[ii]  Both of his grandfathers had served the Confederacy during the Civil War.[iii]  Key enlisted in the Georgia National Guard on April 7, 1907 and served as a private until 1910 when he was commissioned a First Lieutenant in the Infantry.[iv]  It was in 1911 that Key made his way to Oklahoma, setting up his residence in Wewoka.  There he established the Key Hardware Company and the Wewoka Gas Company.[v]  On July 12, 1912, Key enlisted in the Oklahoma National Guard and was again commissioned a First Lieutenant in 1914.[vi]  It was in Wewoka that he met his future bride Irene Davis and they were married in 1914.[vii]

Key first saw action in 1916 with the First Infantry on the Mexican Border during the Punitive Expedition.  He would be mustered into Federal service a second time in 1917 when the Oklahoma National Guard left for France.  Key rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel during WWI, serving as Quartermaster of the 7^th Division.  He would participate in the Champagne Defensive, Chateau Thiery, St. Mihiel, and the Meusse-Argonne Offensive.[viii]

In 1924, Key was appointed to serve as Warden of the Oklahoma State Penitentiary at McAlester.   During his tenure there he was able to place the prison on a self operating basis requiring no state appropriation for maintenance.  Key moved to Oklahoma City in 1927 and became an independent oil and gas operator and built the Key Building which he owned and operated.  In addition to serving as Chairman of the State Pardon and Parole Board from 1928 to 1932, Key also served as the director of the Security National Bank (1928-1929) and the First National Bank and Trust Company (1929-1933).  He again served as Warden of the State Penitentiary in 1935 at the appointment of Governor E.W. Marland.[ix]

Key found himself in Federal service once more in 1935 as the head of the Works Progress Administration in Oklahoma.  In this capacity he oversaw the construction of more than 350 schools and twenty libraries.  Of the 126 armories built in the United States during this period, fifty-three were constructed in Oklahoma.  The WPA provided $43 million in funds to Oklahoma by March of 1937 and employed over one hundred thousand Oklahomans.[x]  Key entered the political arena briefly in 1938 as the Democratic candidate for governor.  He was defeated by Leon C. Phillips in a 3,000 vote margin.[xi]

Key, having been made a Brigadier General in 1928, was promoted to Major General of the Line in 1937.[xii]  As Commander of the 45^th Infantry Division, he was mobilized for maneuvers in Louisiana and then assumed command of Fort Sill.  In October of 1942, Key received his orders for Europe as Provost Marshall General of the United States Army.  He would next be posted as Commanding General of the American Forces in Iceland, this being one of the most strategic points as it commanded the sea and air lanes to Europe.  For his service in Iceland, Key would be made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Falcon.  He would complete his WWII service in Hungary as Head of the American Armistice Control, directing the successful repatriation of thousands of Hungarian displaced persons.[xiii]

Key had numerous passions throughout his lifetime.  One of those was the Indian and military history of Oklahoma, his adopted home.  Key was first elected to the Board of Directors of the Oklahoma Historical Society in 1927.  He went on to serve as Vice President from 1936 to 1950 and acting President in 1948 until his election as President in 1950.  Key remained as President of the Board until 1958.  During his tenure on the Board, the Oklahoma Historical Society broadened its program of work including the marking of historic sites across the state.[xiv]

One of Key’s other passions was Freemasonry.  He was raised a Master Mason in Seminole Lodge No. 147 at Wewoka in 1913, serving as Worshipful Master in 1921.  Key took the degrees of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry (AASR) in 1920 at Indian Consistory in McAlester.  He would be exalted to the august degree of Royal Arch Mason in Indian Chapter No. 1 and become a Royal and Select Master of Union Council No. 3 both of McAlester.  Key was dubbed and created a Knight of the Temple in Bethlehem Commandery No. 45 of Oklahoma City.[xv]

Key was decorated a Knight Commander of the Court of Honor of the Scottish Rite in 1929 and coroneted a Thirty-Third Degree Mason in 1937.  During this period he was also elected to the Board of the Masonic Charity Foundation in 1930, serving as President in 1950.  That same year Key was appointed Deputy of the Supreme Council of the AASR upon the death of Sovereign Grand Inspector General Rufus Renfrew.  Key was elected an Active Member of the Supreme Council in 1951 and served as Sovereign Grand Inspector General of Oklahoma until his death in 1959.[xvi]

Like many great Oklahoma Masons, Key made a lasting contribution to the landscape of Oklahoma Freemasonry.  Prior to his death he secured Letters Temporary for a Scottish Rite Valley in Tulsa.  It was at the third Reunion of the Tulsa Valley in 1958 that Key invited Sovereign Grand Commander Luther A. Smith to attend.  Key made the trip to Tulsa from Oklahoma City each day of the three day Reunion that December.  Grand Commander Smith noted that Key did not look well, but Key seemed as lively as ever.[xvii]  Key would pass to that house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens on January 5, 1959.[xviii]

Key’s funeral was held at the First Baptist Church in Oklahoma City.  The officiates were Herschel Hobbs, a member of Guthrie Scottish Rite and Chairman of the Southern Baptist Convention, and Dr. John Wesley Raley, president of Oklahoma Baptist University and former Assistant Division Chaplain of the 45^th Infantry Division.[xix]

Upon learning of the passing of Key, his wife received the following message from the President.

            January 21, 1959

            Dear Mrs. Key:

Word reached me recently of the death, early this month of General Key.  He was a fine soldier and citizen, and served his country with devotion and courage.  I was fortunate to count him among my friends.

            Mrs. Eisenhower joins me in deepest sympathy to you.

            Sincerely,

            Dwight D. Eisenhower[xx]

General William Shaffer Key embodied all that defined the American citizen soldier.  He once remarked “The greatest thing in life is friends.  They comprise the greatest wealth a person may have…”[xxi]  Key was widely respected in the many facets of his life and many would be well served to emulate his example.  

 

William S. Key, 33° 

(From the collections of the McAlester Scottish Rite)

---

[i]  Jessica L. Harland-Jacobs, Builders of Empire: Freemasons and British Imperialism, 1717-1927 (North Carolina:  The University of North Carolina Press, 2007).

[ii]  “Key, William Shaffer,” Oklahoma Historical Society’s Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture, <http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/k/ke014.html>, Accessed 31 October 2013.

[iii]  Muriel H. Wright, “William Shaffer Key: Oklahoma Patriot,” The Chronicles of Oklahoma 37 (1959):  138.

[iv]  Oklahoma Military Department, Historical Annual National Guard of the State of Oklahoma 1938 (Baton Rouge, Louisiana:  Army and Navy Publishing Co., 1938), 23.

[v]  Wright, 141.

[vi]  Oklahoma Military Department, 23.

[vii]  Robert G. Davis, The Honored Men of Oklahoma Scottish Rite Masonry (Oklahoma:  Oklahoma Lodge of Research, 1997), 55.

[viii]  Oklahoma Military Department, 23.

[ix]  Wright, 141-142.

[x]  “Key, William Shaffer.”

[xi]  Wright, 142.

[xii]  Oklahoma Military Department, 23.

[xiii]  Wright, 139-141.

[xiv]  Ibid., 143.

[xv]  Davis, 58.

[xvi]  Ibid., 58.

[xvii]  Ibid., 59.

[xviii]  “Key, William Shaffer.”

[xix]  Davis, 59.

[xx]  Wright, 148.

[xxi]  Davis., 55.

Masonic Guthrie

By T.S. Akers

Recently the town of Guthrie, Oklahoma, played host to a historic event.  On the first weekend of September in 2013 over 50,000 people flocked to the first capital of Oklahoma for the Mumford and Sons Gentlemen of the Road Stopover music festival.  In an interview with a local television station, the band Mumford and Sons noted they chose Guthrie owing to its “weird” history.[i]  This of course was not the first time the population of Guthrie exploded overnight with a thriving tent city.  It was on April 22, 1889, that roughly 50,000 settlers raced across the prairie to stake their land claims.  On that day, the bustling town of Guthrie sprang into existence.  Owing to the number of people wanting lots within the city limits, four towns were actually established in what is present-day Guthrie: Guthrie, East Guthrie, West Guthrie, and Capitol Hill.  With the passage of the Organic Act in 1890, the four towns were merged as one with Guthrie serving as the territorial and then state capital until 1913.[ii]

Those men who came to Guthrie to start new lives in a new territory brought with them their various associations, including Freemasonry.  Much of the architecture that came to comprise the Victorian city of Guthrie still exists as it has become the nation’s largest Historic Preservation District.[iii]  Walking the streets of Guthrie can transport a visitor to a bygone era.  To the benefit of Masonic historians and lovers of architecture, many of those early Masonic edifices of Guthrie stand today, offering a glimpse of early territorial Freemasonry.

The second home of Guthrie Masonic Lodge No. 35

(Courtesy of T.S. Akers)

Like all Masonic journeys, one must begin with Ancient Craft Masonry.  Four short months after the Land Run of ’89, a dispensation to work was issued to what would become Guthrie Lodge No. 35 on August 29, 1889, with a charter being issued the following November by the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory.  The building Guthrie Lodge No. 35 first met in no longer stands, but the second does.  The structure residing at 121 E. Oklahoma Avenue was completed around 1902 at a cost of $15,000.  Guthrie Lodge No. 35 moved from this building to the Grand Lodge building around 1926 but returned to the 121 E. Oklahoma Avenue structure in the 1960s.   The Brethren of Guthrie Lodge No. 35 continued to meet there until 1994.[iv]  Today the building houses the Double Stop Fiddle Shop and Music Hall.  

The De Steiguer Building

(Courtesy of T.S. Akers)

What is probably the most prominent Masonic structure in the City of Guthrie is the Scottish Rite Temple residing at the end of Oklahoma Avenue.  The temple that stands today is actually the third meeting place of the Guthrie Valley of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite.  After the Guthrie Valley was organized by Harper S. Cunningham on January 19, 1896, the Brethren commenced meeting in the De Steiguer Building which still stands at 110 and 112 E. Oklahoma Avenue.[v]  The cornerstone for the first Scottish Rite Temple in Guthrie was laid by Grand Master of Masons William L. Eagleton on October 4, 1899 at the corner of Broad Street and Harrison Avenue.  On May 26, 1900, the Scottish Rite Brethren of Guthrie opened the doors of their new temple for the public to see.[vi]  In time, the Guthrie Valley of the Scottish Rite outgrew its first temple and transferred the building to the Grand Lodge of the State of Oklahoma in 1922.[vii]  The first temple, deemed unsuitable for use, was razed in the 1950s.[viii]

The Guthrie Scottish Rite Temple

(Courtesy of T.S. Akers)

Upon transferring the first Scottish Rite Temple to the Grand Lodge, the Brethren of Guthrie set out to erect their second temple.  Guthrie had originally served as the capital of Oklahoma Territory and at the end of Oklahoma Avenue sat a prime piece of property that was to serve as Capitol Park.  The City of Guthrie erected a convention hall there for the purpose of a capitol building.  Unfortunately, Guthrie lost the bid to serve as the state capital on June 11, 1910.  The Methodist Church in Oklahoma and Texas then showed an interest in the convention hall, hoping to occupy it as the Methodist University.  Ultimately, the church could not support a campus in Guthrie and closed it in May of 1919.[ix]  The very next month, the City of Guthrie agreed to transfer the convention hall and area known as Capitol Park to the Guthrie Valley of the Scottish Rite for one dollar.[x]  Standing as a testament to the men of Guthrie Scottish Rite, the second temple was completed in 1924 and would be labeled the largest Masonic structure in the world.[xi]  The original convention hall also remains connected by way of a corridor, though now serving as a dining hall and hotel for Brethren attending events at the temple.

The Masonic Children's Home

(Courtesy of T.S. Akers)

While downtown Guthrie contains many architectural treasures, another former Masonic jewel resides just off the beaten path.  In 1907 the Grand Lodge of Indian Territory established a Masonic Home at Atoka for orphans and the elderly.  By Act of Congress, the Grand Lodge was able to purchase the former Cheyenne-Arapaho Indian School at Darlington and the Home was moved there in 1910.  In 1922 the Home moved again, this time to Guthrie.[xii]  It was ultimately decided that the elderly should be housed separately from the children and they occupied their own quarters.  Located at 602 E. College Avenue, what was originally the Masonic Children’s Home now serves as a wedding and event venue.  The campus originally contained numerous structures including a print shop for Masonic publications financed by the Grand Chapter of Royal Arch Masons of Oklahoma.[xiii]  Today only the federal style main building and gymnasium, now a ballroom, remain.

Freemasonry remained an active force in Guthrie in the latter half of the twentieth century as well.  The current home of the Grand Lodge of the State of Oklahoma is situated on the same block as the original Scottish Rite Temple, which was once home to the Grand Lodge.  A uniquely modern building, the cornerstone was laid in 1955.[xiv]  Other more recent structures dedicated to Freemasonry include the former Masonic Retirement Home and the headquarters of the Grand Chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star of Oklahoma.  As can be seen, Freemasonry has gone hand in hand with the “weird” history of Guthrie since the beginning. 

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[i]  "News 9 Sits Down With Mumford & Sons Before They Rock Guthrie,” News9.com, <http://www.news9.com/story/23370338/news-9-sits-down-with-mumford-sons-before-they-rock-guthrie>, Accessed 6 October 2013.

[ii]  “Guthrie,” Oklahoma Historical Society’s Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture, <http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/g/gu003.html>, Accessed 6 October 2013.

[iii]  “Guthrie Awaits Eager Suitors Nation's Largest Historic Preservation District Ready to Make Its Entrance,” NewsOK.com, <http://newsok.com/guthrie-awaits-eager-suitors-nations-largest-historic-preservation-district-ready-to-make-its-entrance/article/2243331>, Accessed 6 October 2013.

[iv]  “About Guthrie Masonic Lodge No. 35,” Guthrie Masonic Lodge No. 35, <http://www.guthrielodge35.org/about.php>, Accessed 6 October 2013.

[v]  Robert G. Davis and Frank A. Derr, 100 Years of Scottish Rite Masonry in the Valley of Guthrie (Oklahoma:  Guthrie Valley AASR), 11-12.

[vi]  Ibid., 28-44.

[vii]  Ibid., 104.

[viii]  Ibid., 177-178.

[ix]  Ibid., 79-85.

[x]  Ibid., 90-91.

[xi]  Ibid., 128-134.

[xii]  William H. Phelps, Memories:  Oklahoma Masonic Children’s Home (Oklahoma:  Oklahoma Lodge of Research, 1995), 2-16.

[xiii]  Norman E. Angel, Kenneth S. Adams, and William A. Hensley, History of the Grand Chapter of the Royal Arch Masons of Oklahoma (Oklahoma:  1964), 52.

[xiv]  “1955 - Oklahoma Grand Lodge - Guthrie, OK,” Waymarking.com, <http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WMGAXW_1955_Oklahoma_Grand_Lodge_Guthrie_OK>, Accessed 6 October 2013.