The Early Introduction of Bogus Freemasonry in the United States of America and Texas Among Colored MasonsMitchell, C. L. (Charles L.)
History
The Early Introduction of Bogus Freemasonry in the United States of America and Texas Among Colored Masons
Mitchell, C. L. (Charles L.)
African American freemasonry
When a Grand Lodge of a state has been organized in an unlawful Masonic
way and manner it is then considered as no Grand Lodge at all and
another lawful and regular Grand Lodge has the authority and power to
invade such territories and there organize regular subordinate Lodges.
The White Masonic Grand Lodge of Alabama in the year of 1821 rendered
the following decisions at the session held at Montgomery, Alabama,
Thomas W. Farrar was Grand Master and Thomas A. Rogers was Grand
Secretary.
A Grand Lodge of a State cannot be regularly organized unless there is
not less than three regularly warranted Lodges.
WHITE MASONIC GRAND LODGE OF DELAWARE.
The Masonic Lodge of the State of Delaware since it was organized on
June the 6th, 1806, has rendered some very important decisions which has
been a guide for many of the Grand Lodges that have been organized since
that time.
The African Grand Lodge of Colored Masons in the State of Massachusetts
cannot be recognized not because they are Colored Masons but for the
reason that they were unlawfully instituted. They organized a Grand
Lodge with only one Lodge when they should have had not less than
three.
A regular Grand Lodge must be organized with not less than three
warranted Lodges.
THE LIGHT TURNED ON, ON BOGUS MASONRY IN TEXAS.
The record shows the first Lodges In Texas were organized by Capt. W. D.
Matthews, Grand Master of the King Solomon Compact Grand Lodge of
Kansas, on April 10, 1873, by organizing Mt. Bonnell Lodge No. 1,
Austin, No. 2, San Antonio and No. 3 Houston, No. 4 at Galveston. On the
19th of August, 1875, these four lodges met at Brenham, Texas, and
organized a Compact Grand Lodge with N. W. Cuney as the Grand Master,
and J. J. Hamilton as Grand Secretary.
Some years after, about 1885, (the record is not clear,) C. C. Dean
succeeded N. W. Cuney as Grand Master. Rev. A. Grant, W. D. G. M., and
in the year 1886 C. C. Dean, G. M.
Rev. A. Grant, W. D. G. M., called a special session of the Grand Lodge
and at that session declared and adopted the act of Secession from the
National Compact Grand Lodge, elected delegates to go to Houston, Texas,
as special commissioners to meet the Worshipful Grand Lodge of White
Masons for the purpose of being healed and chartered.
Now, according to the record found in Sayles' Masonic Jurisprudence, on
the History of Negro Masonry in Texas, emphatically states that these
Negro delegates did appear and did present to the White Grand Lodge a
petition to be healed and chartered.
Sayles does not give the names of the petitioners. The petition sets
forth that there were 650 members at that time, to be healed.
The record shows that the White Grand Lodge appointed a committee to
investigate the petition, and the record further shows that the
committee made the following report:
COMMITTEE REPORT ON NEGRO MASONRY IN TEXAS.
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