GENERAL NOTES ON FREE MASONRY

       Some sort of elementary fraternity appeared in the very beginning of man's time.  Many primitive societies had a forum for the leaders of the tribe to meet and admit tribal members with secret ceremonies.  As the new members became proficient, they were advanced from degree to degree.   Although exact links are not provable, many historians think these ceremonies had elements that resemble Freemasonry, and may have been the precursor of the Craft itself.

     In 1307 A.D., the Templar Knights caught in France were tortured until they confessed heresy to the Church rulers.  As an element of security, those Knights remaining free developed secret signals and grips for recognition, and these are generally thought to be the source of the traditional Freemasonry gestures.

     English Freemasonry spread throughout Europe and was earned to the American colonies.  The first Masonic Lodge organized on American soil was in Boston, Massachusetts in 1733 under the authority of the Grand Lodge of England.

     Masons among the United States founding fathers included George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and John Hancock..  Thirteen of the 39 men who signed the U.S. Constitution were Masons.

     Masonic Lodges eventually spread across the settled portions of the United States.  By the nineteenth every town of any consequence boasted a Masonic Lodge. California lodges proliferated during the gold-rush days -- our Lodge in Placerville was chartered in 1853

PLACERVILLE LODGE NO. 26 F & A.M.

      The initial meetings of the Masonic Brotherhood in Placerville were not held as a fraternal organizational gathering, but rather as opportunities to discuss and implement methods of giving aid and assistance to distressed fellow Masons and their families.  Placerville, a boisterous mining camp, had become a primary stopping point for many of the travelers entering the geographical area denoted as the Mother Lode.  Far too often, the grueling trip had exacted a heavy toll on the travelers.  Many had lost stock, had broken down wagons, or had ill family members.  They were arriving with depleted cash reserves, were discouraged and had no obvious resources. Thus, the beginnings of Freemasonry in California.

     Brother Lewis Tritt called a meeting of fellow Masons in his log home on the north side of Placerville in February 1850 to discuss some means to aid Masonic brethren and their families that were arriving in almost every immigrant train that spilled over the mountains into the area.  A Masonic committee was appointed to assist these ailing fellow Masons:  Brother W. H. Smith, a butcher would supply meat;   Brother John Buchanan, a baker, would supply bread; Brother Lazarus Tannerwald, owner of a local mercantile, would furnish clothing.  The other Masons in the group would donate funds of other requested assistance.

     On May 6, 1853, Placerville Lodge No.26 was chartered with 26 Master Masons in membership.  The first meeting place was a two story-story framed building with an exterior staircase, which stood near the site of what was later to be called the Rolleri Building.  Meetings were held there every Monday for a year.  The Lodge then moved to Cardwell’s building over L. S. Cardwell’s carpenter shop until renting a hall over the Smith and Nash Hardware Store on Main Street on the approximate site of the present City Hall.

     A disastrous fire swept Placerville in 1856 destroying the Lodge Hall along with many other building on that side of the street.  The fire was thought to be arson as there was an ongoing argument over the rightful location of the county seat at the time.  Two other contenders for the honor, Georgetown and Greenwood, also suffered major blazes started the same day in similar mysterious circumstances.  Placerville Lodge lost all the lodge furnishings and books, with the exception of a few books and papers that happened to be in the office of the Lodge secretary, Dr. Isaac “Ike” Titus.

     1856 brought additional gloom to the Placerville Lodge, as one of the Lodge’s strongest members and Masonry’s staunch advocates, Dr. Benjamin Keene, died in September.  Keene, the first president of the State Medical Society and a founder of the lodge, was well known throughout the mining camps for miles, and was a familiar sight in all the Masonic Lodges of the Mother Lode.  Every member of Placerville Lodge turned out in full regalia for what may have been the largest Masonic funeral in Placerville history.  Two years later the Lodge ordered a large, ornate headstone for Keene’s gravesite.

     Populations in the Mother Lode were not particularly stable through the subsequent decades.  Eventually as gold availability decreased, so did the number of miners and attendant area residents.  Gold strikes in other places were occasionally a drain.  As a result of the fluctuating populace, many of the area Masonic Lodges saw their own membership decline.  Many Lodges combined with other, stronger Lodges.  Some Lodges simply disappeared.  It was quite common for Lodge Masters that remained in the area to remain in Lodge office for a number of years.  Frederick F. Barss, a pioneer jeweler in Placerville and a charter member of El Dorado #26, served as Master thirteen times, serving the Lodge in other capacities when not acting as Master.

     In spite of the large numbers of withdrawals, Placerville #26 actually held its own during the Civil War years, showing as net gain of one member, despite the organization of Palmyra Lodge #151 in Upper Placerville, which undoubtedly cut into potential El Dorado candidates.

At President Lincoln’s death in 1865, Placerville Lodge passed a long resolution, as did many other California Masonic Lodges, praising the late president and denouncing his killer.  The hall was draped in mourning and brothers wore mourning symbols on their coat sleeves.

     The Lodge laid the cornerstone of the Episcopal Church of our Savior in June of 1865, with an elaborate cornerstone ceremony.  The Reverend C. C. Pierce, Chaplain of Placerville Lodge for thirty years, organized and led this congregation from its organization in 1861 to his death in 1903.  The church served as a field hospital several years later for those stricken with cholera as an epidemic raged through Placerville.  during this time, the Placerville Masons served on the front lines, administering to the sick and looking after the still healthy.

     Funding for a new Temple gradually became available.  It appeared the Lodge would remain a stable entity so a committee was appointed to procure a building site for a new Hall on March 10, 1862.  In the meantime, the existing Lodge room was refurbished as it appeared the building process would take an unknown number or years.  Once the building site was chosen, in the center of the business district, Main Street, Placerville, monies were set aside for construction.  The cornerstone of the new temple was not actually laid until August 24, 1893.  The three-story temple was dedicated in 1893 with much pomp and ceremony.  The Knights of Pythias, Native Sons of the Golden West, and members of the International Order of Oddfellows joined the Masonic brethren and the Placerville Marching Band to lead a parade of dignitaries to the new building for the laying of the cornerstone at the northeast corner of the building.

     As part of its community service, Placerville Lodge began to actively observe Public Schools Week in 1964, an opportunity to interact and congratulate local schools and educators.  The Lodge continues to interact with local schools, offering scholarships, workshops, and inviting school personnel as speakers and guest to all its functions.

     The Lodge added Hiram Awards in 1978 as a way to reward those Lodge members that contributed continually and quietly to the betterment of the Lodge and of the community.

     Lodge meetings in the Masonic Temple of Main Street continued to be held until 1982. Unfortunately the venerable old building had begun to show its age, and in the early 1960’s the city fire marshal expressed concerns about the outdated wiring.  The building was rewired to bring it up to safety standards, but it was noted that nothing could be done to alleviate the very long and very steep flight of stairs to the Lodge room, and equally long flight to the second floor dining hall.  Older Masons often had difficulty coping with the long stair flights.

     Worshipful Master Donald P. Dassonville headed a 1966 committee to look into the possibility of financing and constructing a new Temple for El Dorado Lodge.  Hiram Lodge, meeting in the town of El Dorado, was approached for a cooperative effort, but that Lodge preferred to remain separate.  The new Temple became the sole project of Placerville #26.  The construction committee eventually combined with the Temple Board, which administered the Lodge properties.

     Groundbreaking ceremonies were conducted on December 1, 1981under the auspices of Placerville #26 Worshipful Master, Vernon A. Smith.  Most Worshipful Robert O. West, Grand Master of Masons in California and Hawaii, and a Past Master of Placerville #26, turned the first shovelful of dirt.  Assistant Grand Treasurer of the Grand Lodge of California and Hawaii, and Past Master of El Placerville #26 Owen Murry presided as Master of Ceremonies.  A mere eight months later, cornerstone laying ceremonies and the new Temple Dedication were held on Saturday, July 24, 1982, as Most Worshipful Grand Master Robert O. West opened Grand Lodge in the newly completed Temple.

     The Lodge hosted cornerstone ceremonies for the new wing of Marshall Hospital in 1982.  Ceremonies were also conducted for El Dorado High School and Gold Oak School in 1986.  The Lodge continues to support education through Public School Awareness observances, scholarships, and participation with individual school activities.  

     For the past ten years, El Dorado #26 has co-sponsored a Christmas dinner for WEAVE (Women Escaping A Violent Environment), contributing funds and manpower to the organization. 

Until Cal-Trans stopped the activity statewide due to safety concerns, Masons could be found once a month walking along Highway 50 contributing to a road cleanup and beautification project.

     In 1996, Placerville #26 initiated a “Kids ID” program, the first Masonic Lodge in California to promote such an activity.