South Shore Long Beach Lodge #1126 F.&A.M

10/05/2024

Today in Masonic History Alexander Carl Wilhelm Christoph von Benckendorff passes away in 1844.

Alexander Carl Wilhelm Christoph von Benckendorff was a Russian General.

Benckendorff was born on July 4th, 1781, although some records indicate it was 1783. He was born in Reval which is now Tallinn, Estonia. Both his father and grandfather were Generals. His mother was the senior lady in waiting to Empress Maria Fyodorovna in the Romanov Court.

During the Napoleanic Wars Benckendorff served in the militar. During Napolean's invasion of Russia, Benckendorff led the Velizh offensive, a small town in Smolensk Oblast, Russia. He took three French generals prisoner during the offensive. When Moscow was liberated, he was placed in command of the garrison guarding the city. He then turned his attentions to foreign campaigns against Napolean's forces. He was one of the first Russians to set foot in Berlin. He helped to remove French foces from the Netherlands. When British and Prussian forces arrived he headed to Belgium. There he took two cities and in the process liberated 600 English soldiers.

In 1821, Benckendorff sent a letter to Alexander I of Russia warning him about the the Decembrist organization. The Decembrist's were unhappy Alexander's brother, Nicolas (later Nicolas I), was going to ascend to the throne instead of Constantine, who was older than Nicolas. Constantine removed himself from the line of ascension.

When the Decembrist Revolt occured in 1825, Benckendorff lobbied for the creation of the Corps of Gendarmes, a secret police force was tasked with the internal security of Russia. As part of the Corps of Gendarmes, Benckendorff was the Chief Censor for Russia. Under his tenure strict censorship over literature and theatre performances were implemented. This caused Benckendorff to have a direct connection with Alexander Pushkin and ultimately bare some responsibility in the poet's death in a duel.

Benckendorff passed away on October 5th, 1844.

Benckendorff was a member of Lodge of United Friends which records indicate was in Moscow during the French occupation. Several Camp or Military lodges were formed at the time. During the Napoleonic Wars Masonry was popular with members of the Russian Army.

10/04/2024

Today in Masonic History Samuel H. Huntington is born in 1765.

Samuel H. Huntington was an American politician.

Huntington was born in the Colony of Connecticut on October 4th, 1765. It is unclear what happened by Huntington was adopted by his uncle, also Samuel Huntington, who served as the fourth President of the Continental Congress and First President of the United States in Congress under the Articles of Confederation, essentially the Government formed prior to the acceptance of the United States Constitution. The younger Huntington attended Dartmouth College before transferring to Yale College in his junior year. He graduated from Yale in 1785. Shortly after he was admitted to the bar in Connecticut.

In 1801, Huntington moved with his wife and sons to Ohio, settling in the tiny village of Cleveland.

In Ohio, Huntington served as the Trumball County Delegate to the Ohio's first constitutional convention. He also served in the Ohio State Senate in 1803. Huntington became an Associate Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court the same year. A year later he became the Chief Justice. His time as Chief Justice was rocky. Two judges at the time were impeached for upholding the principals of judicial review. Huntington himself might have been impeached if he had not successfully been elected as Governor in 1808.

Huntington served only one term as Governor and did not seek reelection. He decided, instead, to run for the United States Senate, losing in the general election.

In 1811, Huntington was elected to the Ohio State House of Representatives.

Huntington passed away on June 8th, 1817.

Huntington appears to have originally joined Somerset Lodge No. 34 in Norwich, Connecticut. The evidence for this is he served as a proxy for the lodge's Junior Warden at the Grand Lodge Session in 1796. In Ohio he joined Scioto Lodge No. 6 in Chillicothe, Ohio. In 1809 he was elected as the Most Worshipful Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Ohio.

10/03/2024

10/03/2024

Today in Masonic History David Johnson is born in 1782.

David Johnson was an American politician.

Johnson was born Louisa County, Virginia on October 3rd, 1782. His initial education occurred in Virginia before his family moved to Chester County, South Carolina when he was 7.

In South Carolina Johnson studied the law. In 1812 he became solicitor of Union County, South Carolina. The same year he was also elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives.

In 1815, Johnson began the first of several judgeships. First he was a circuit judge. In 1824 he was a judge on the South Carolina Court of Appeals, now the Supreme Court of South Carolina. In 1830 he was the presiding judge on the Court of Appeals and then in 1835 the chancellor. During his time on the bench, Johnson was a noted Unionist. He felt a violation of the law of the United States was a violation of the law of South Carolina. He used this philosophy to strike down the South Carolina militia oath.

In 1846, Johnson was elected by the General Assembly of South Carolina to be Governor for a two year term. During his term the Mexican-American war took place. Although South Carolina participated in the war, the Wilmost Proviso was a hot topic in South Carolina. The proviso stated any lands taken from Mexico during the war were free lands, meaning they outlawed slavery in those areas. This pushed South Carolina closer to secession. It also made Johnson the last Unionist to be Governor of South Carolina until after the American Civil War.

Despite Johnson's Unionist stance, his son-in-law was General John A. Wharton who is considered to be the Confederacy's top strategist.

After Johnson's term he lived in the Upstate, the north west corner of South Carolina until the time of his passing on January 7th, 1855.

Johnson was a member of Union Lodge No. 43 in South Carolina.

10/03/2024

It was a wonderful evening at the first ever joint communication of Spartan Lodge No. 956 and South Shore Long Beach lodge No.1126 F&AM. I was delighted to present my lecture, Lafayette, My Favorite Mason, which seemed to be well received. With Worshipful Jim being away, I was also honored to sit in the East for the first time at Spartan Lodge right next to one of the best, RW Ed Callahan. I was given the distinction of using the lions' paw gavel, which is made from the old gas lights of the Grand Lodge before the restoration.

10/02/2024

King Solomon's Temple is a biblical structure built in Jerusalem during the reign of King Solomon.

King Solomon's Temple, here after simply called the Temple or the First Temple, is believed to have been built some time around the 9th or 10th century B.C.E. Most of the details known about the Temple come from the Hebrew Bible or Old Testament.

The dimensions of the Temple are given in cubits. A cubit is roughly the distance from the tip of your middle finger to the base of the elbow. In fact the word cubit in English comes from the Latin word cubitum which means elbow. The Temple is described as being 20 cubits wide, 60 cubits long and 30 cubits high. It consisted of three areas inside the structure and two courts which surrounded the Temple where priests and others assembled for prayer. There were also chambers built on the south, west and north side of the Temple. The chambers were believed to be for storage of some kind.

The three inside areas of the Temple consisted of the Porch or Vestibule, the Holy Place or Great House and the Holy of Holies or Inner House.

The Porch is described as 20 cubits in width with two great pillars standing on either side of the porch. It was 10 cubits deep. The Porch is stated to have been 120 cubits high. It is unclear by the descriptions given in the Bible whether a wall separated the Porch from the Great House.

The Great House was 30 cubits high, 40 cubits in length and 20 cubits in width. The walls were wooden and covered in gold. They had carvings of palm trees, flowers in bloom and cherubim.

The final and most sacred portion of the Temple was the Holy of Holies, the inner most room of the Temple. The room is described as being a perfect cube, 20 cubits in width height and length. The discrepancy of the missing 10 cubits from the height has been explained by the belief the Holy of Holies was actually elevated and there was a space underneath. The Holy of Holies is believed to have contained all of the sacred relics of the time. This included the seven branched candlestick and more importantly the Ark of the Covenant.

There is no archaeological evidence the Temple ever existed. Most scholars agree it did exist and when, roughly, it was built. There has been no real excavation of the Temple Mount since the late 1800's. This is due to the religious conflicts existing in the region.

For Freemasonry Solomon's Temple has become a metaphor for the building up of the individual into a better person and member of society. The stones used in the building of the Temple become metaphors for the good deeds and knowledge one gains in life and through positive life experiences.

10/01/2024

Today in Masonic History David Rowland Francis is born in 1850.

David Rowland Francis was an American politician.

Francis was born in Richmond, Kentucky on October 1st, 1850. He graduated from Washington University in St. Louis in 1870. Afterwards he became a successful businessman in the St. Louis area. He also served as the president of the Merchant's Exchange.

In 1885, Francis was elected the mayor of St. Louis. In 1888 he was elected as the Governor of Missouri. This made him the only person to have served as both Mayor of St. Louis and Governor of the Missouri. In 1896, he was appointed as the Secretary of the Interior by President Grover Cleveland. He served in the position until 1897.

Francis served as president of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, also known as the St. Louis World's Fair. More than 60 countries and 43 of the then 45 states had booths at the fair. The attendance was marked at 19.7 million people. Most historians generally emphasize the prominence of themes of race and empire, and the Fair's long-lasting impact on intellectuals in the fields of history, art history, architecture and anthropology. For the average the attendees of the fair it was a primarily promoted as entertainment, consumer goods and popular culture exhibits and events.

The World's Fair was also set to coincide with the 1904 Summer Olympic games. Francis became the only American to open the games without every having served as President of the United States.

From 1916 to 1917, Francis served as the United States Ambassador to the Russian Empire. His tenure included the Russian Revolution of 1917 which removed the Tsars from power. Francis' biographer stated about Francis' time in Russia as "shrouded in myth - some heroic, more of it comic and tragic."

Francis passed away on January 15th, 1927.

Francis was a member of George Washington Lodge No. 9 in St. Louis, Missouri. He was also a member of Oriental Chapter No. 78 Royal Arch Masons and Ascalon Commandery No. 16 Knights Templar. He withdrew from fraternity in 1898 for political reasons.

09/29/2024

Today in Masonic History James Kimbrough Jones is born in 1839.

James Kimbrough Jones was an American politician.

Jones was born on September 29th, 1839 in Marshall County, Mississippi. In 1848, he moved with is father to Dallas County, Arkansas. He pursued classical studies with a private tutor and eventually studied the law. In 1874 he was admitted to the bar and began practicing in Washington, Arkansas.

Prior to passing the bar, Jones served in the American Civil War a Confederate soldier. After the war he returned home to his plantation in Arkansas.

In 1873, Jones was elected to the Arkansas State Senate. He served until 1879. During his time in office he served as the President of the Senate from 1877 to 1879.

In 1881, Jones began serving in the United States House of Representatives. This was first of three times he was elected to the seat. After serving two complete terms he resigned in 1885, shortly after his third re-election when he was elected to the United States Senate. He was reelected to the United States Senate twice serving from 1885 to 1903. He also served as the Chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 1896 to 1900. He unsuccessfully sought reelection a fourth time in 1902.

After losing his reelection bid, Jones remained in Washington, D.C. where he opened a law practice.

Jones passed away on June 1st, 1908.

Jones was a member of Arkadelphia Lodge No. 19 in Arkadelphia, Arkansas.