Skip to main content
Museum of Freemasonry

Masonic Periodicals Online

  • Explore
  • Advanced Search
  • Home
  • Explore
  • The Freemason
  • Aug. 20, 1892
  • Page 2
  • MASONIC LIBRARIES.
Current:

The Freemason, Aug. 20, 1892: Page 2

  • Back to The Freemason, Aug. 20, 1892
  • Print image
  • Articles/Ads
    Article MASONIC LIBRARIES. ← Page 2 of 3
    Article MASONIC LIBRARIES. Page 2 of 3 →
Page 2

Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.

Masonic Libraries.

of Grand Lodge should be again loosened , in order that the reproach may be avoided of our national Masonic collection falling altogether behind the

times . When the grant of £ 25 was first voted—Bro . Sadler will correct me if I err— -I think we were to work together in its appropriation , though I hasten to state , at the outset , that my share of the labour was confined to what I may perhaps venture to term an intelligent interest in the work performed

by Bro . Sadler . At the period in question the collection , though unique in the sense of comprising a larger number of books , of which there were no known counter parts , than any other Masonic library , was in every sense a ragged one . Bound books required re-binding , unbound books were falling

to pieces , and the Proceedings , or Transactions of foreign Grand Bodies were mouldering towards their final decay . Gaps , too , existed everywhere ! in the files of English Masonic journals , and among the series of works from the pens of Preston , Oliver , and other wen-known and prolific authors .

It is not too much to say that little by little all , or nearly all , these blemishes have been removed . Also additions have been made with equal judgment and success , and withal , the humble pittance doled out for the support of the library , has been so carefully husbanded by Bro . Sadler , that he has been able in a few instances to widen the sphere of his operations ,

and to secure for the Grand Lodge more than one rare print and ancient manuscript . A new catalogue has supplanted the old one , and—in a word —the treasures of the Grand Lodge Library are readily accessibl e to all members of the Craft . They comprise more than 2000 books , or including By-laws , Provincial Calendars and Reports , and the unbound Proceedings of American Grand Lodges considerably over 5000 volumes .

The number of books in the library of the Supreme Council at Goldensquare I do not know . The printed catalogue was compiled many years ago , and the subsequent additions to the collection must now almost outnumber the original stock . This library is a very fine one , and the governing body of the Rite—as I can testify from experience—are animated

b y similar sentiments to those which were so eloquently expressed by the late Albert Pike : " The life of an Order consists of what it does . It lives by doing good , and if it sends out no rays of beneficence on any side , its life is only the life of a fungus . It seems to me that the spirit of a writer is in his books , and that if they are not read , it is imimprisoned there like an old King of Egypt in its sarcophagus . "

Nor does the Masonic portion of the British Museum Library fall short of the expectations that naturally arise with regard to it .

Each of the three chief Masonic libraries in the United kingdom , i . e ., at Freemasons' Hall , Golden-square , and the British Museum , respectively , has its distinctive features , and unitedly they offer to students of the Craft greater facilities for research , than would be equalled , were it possible to bring every other Masonic collection in the universe uiv * ; r a single roof .

In recent years , owing no doubt to a favourable conjecture of circumstances , the West Yorkshire Masonic Library has perhaps made a greater advance than any other similar institution of the second rank , and that their Prov . Grand Master and their Honorary Librarian may long be spared to them , must be the earnest wish of all studious Masons in that extensive jurisdiction .

Other provincial collections might be referred to , also the libraries of the Grand Lodge of Scotland ( embracing the numerous works amassed by the late Dr . Morrison ) , of trie Quatuor Coronati Lodge , of Bro . H . J . Whymper , Punjab , and of Bros . E . T . Carson and S . C . Lawrence , in the United States .

But all these I must pass over on the present occasion , in order that space may be found for the examples I wish to give of the way some Grand Lodges deal with a subject , which seems to me highly worthy of close consideration by our own .

In the United States of America there are 49 Grand Lodges , and the total membership under each of them respectively varies greatly , ranging from 77 , 923 Masons in the jurisdiction of New York , down to 451 in that of Arizona .

In numerical standing the Grand Lodge of New York easily takes the first place , as will appear from the following table , where the 10 Grand Lodges having the largest membership are shown in the order which they rank : COA 1 PARISON TABLE .

r , \ NuMKRlCM . I NUMBRR OF TOTAL U » AMI i . -nut . STANDING . SUBORDINATES . MI-MHKRSIIIP .

New Yo k I 1 721 77 . 923 Illinois I 2 C > 32 43 . 930 Pennsylvania j 3 395 42 , 412 Ohio 4 4 'Ji 35 . r' <> 3 Michigan 5 360 33 . 09 S Alafsachusetts C 226 3 i , ? W > Missouri 7 550 2 S , 8 i 6 Indiana 8 409 24 , 776 Texas ... y 540 23 . KJ 3 Iowa 10 452 22 , 525

I he above figures present some discrepancies upon which a word or two may be said . It will be seen that Pennsylvania , with only 395 lodges , ranks third on the list , while Missouri , with 550 , only reaches the seventh place . But the average of members to each lodge is greater

in the District of Columbia ( 183 ) , with 23 lodges and 4202 Masons , and Connecticut ( t 40 > witn nl lodges and 15 , 641 Masons , than in any one of the ten larger jurisdictions whereof statistics have been given . The Grand Lodges having subordinates with the largest membership are —Connecticut ( 57 6 ) , Illinois ( 555 ) , New York ( 546 ) , Michigan ( 540 ) ,

Masonic Libraries.

Colorado ( 531 ) , Minnesota ( 525 ) , Pennsylvania ( 453 ) , California ( 442 ) , Ohio ( 437 ) , Massachusetts ( 432 ) , District of Columbia ( 402 ) , and Rhode Island ( 401 ) . It seems a little curious that there should be more Masons in a sing le

lodge in the States of Connecticut , Illinois , and New York than are to be found either in the nine lodges making up the Masonic jurisdiction of Arizona , or the seven ( with a total membership of 544 brethren ) which con , stitute that of Utah .

More curious still would be the narrative of what has been effected in the tiny jurisdiction which I have last named by Christopher Diehl , the Grand Secretary , with respect to the formation of a Masonic library . But

this story must be related at another time , as I am at present concerned with the Grand Lodges at the other end of the scale , from which I shall select those of New York and Iowa—at the top and bottom respectively of the list given above—as the subjects for illustration in the present article .

At the yearly meeting of the Grand Lodge of New York , in June last , Bro . Herman G . Carter presented his tenth annual report as Grand Librarian : — " The Grand Lodge library has been increased by many valuable works , and during the year these have been bound and added to the large collection

of Proceedings of the Grand Bodies , which are a history of the Craft . One hundred and seven volumes have been added to the seventeen hundred and seventy-one volumes reported in the preceding nine years , making a total of eighteen hundred and seventy-eight volumes added in 10 years

Here are to be found the Proceedings of all the Masonic Grand Bodies , the standard books of the Craft , and the monthly Masonic magazines . . . . Year after year more interest is evinced in the collection of volumes , and the Grand Lodge library is rapidly assuming an importance second to none in its special collections . "

The report of the Grand Librarian extends from p . 60 to p . 67 of the Transactions , and gives the names of donors of books , as well as catalogues of the Masonic and non-Masonic works acquired during the previous year . The report of the Committee on Finance , including the following item : —

" For Assistant in the Library and Reading Room ; to purchase current and foreign literature and magazines ; for purchasing and binding Masonic works , and for services , cataloguing , etc § 1000 was received , and its recommendations adopted . " ( p . 126 . )

In the same month—June , 1892—Bro . T . S . Parvin , Grand Secretary , Iowa , presented \ ns forty-sixth report as Librarian , which covers 23 pages of the Proceedings of that Grand Lodge . The following are extracts from it : — " Masonic libraries are of recent date , none of them dating back half a century . Our own , being the first and oldest , was founded in 1844 .

" When this Grand [ library ] building was completed and first occupied , May 7 th , 1885 , it was thought by the Committee having in charge its construction , that it would be large enough to answer our purpose for at least one hundred years . Seven years only have elapsed , and the Grand Lodge is confronted with the fact that at an early period in the future it will become absolutely necessary to enlarge the building . "

A supplemental catalogue—works , 174 ; volumes , 185 ; exclusive o proceedings , periodicals , and pamphlets—is annexed to the report . The Committee of Finance ( p . 193 ) made the following report : — " We recommend that instead of the annual appropriation for the support of the library , and running expenses of the building , the sum of

eig ht and one-half ( 81 ) cents , for each and every member returned , as shown by the report of the Committee on Chartered Lodges at this session of the Grand Lodge , viz .: Twenty-three thousand and sixteen * at eight and onehalf cents . —^ 1956-26—be set apart for library and building expenses for 1892-93 . " The report was adopted .

In the Keystone ( Philadelphia ) of the 9 th ult ., the Iowa collection is tluis referred to : " The largest Masonic library in the world , the only Masonic library

building on the face of the globe , a Grand Secretary whose service has exceeded that of any other in the history of the Fraternity in America—such is the remarkable combination of the exceptional to be found at Cctlar Rapids , Iowa .

" ' Parvin ' s hobby , ' as the Iowa library is called in fraternal circles , was started in 1845 with an appropriation of S 5 . The first book in the collection was Cole's Ahiman Rezon . He picked up the volume from a lady ' s centre table while making a call , and his attention was so much distracted by glances at the book that the lady suggested he should take it and go . 'I hat

volume is still in the library . " Very small appropriations were made by the Grand Lodge , but in 1 SS 2 the library was estimated to be worth Ki 8 , ooo , though it had cost the Grand Lodge barely one-eighth of that sum . In that year the collection of Masonic works made by R . V . Bowerof Keokuk , Iowa , the largest private library

, of the kind in the world , was purchased for S 4000 . It had cost its collector three times that sum . This made a building imperative , and the Gran Inrlo-n sot nside S 20 . 000 for a lire nroof structure . Cedar Raoids secure '

the location by donating a valuable lot and $ 10 , 000 in cash . This unexpecte money donation permitted the construction of a building of brick , stone , a " iron , costing 832 , 000 , and it is a handsome structure , of which the city a " tlin Stntp . is wnll HR the Frnternitv . arc nrmitl .

" The library has quite a number of valuable books , of which no dup hca pi are known to be in existence . It is gradually becoming a museum as we It is , perhaps , too much to expect that in the life time of the p rcse , ^ generation , the Grand Lodge of England will imitate its Masonic sisters

“The Freemason: 1892-08-20, Page 2” Masonic Periodicals Online, Library and Museum of Freemasonry, 6 Aug. 2025, django:8000/periodicals/fvl/issues/fvl_20081892/page/2/.
  • List
  • Grid
Title Category Page
THE CRAFT IN CANADA {PROVINCE OF ONTARIO). Article 1
MASONIC LIBRARIES. Article 1
PROVINCIAL GRAND LODGE OF HAMPSHIRE AND ISLE OF WIGHT. Article 3
CONSECRATION OF THE ST. LAWRENCE CHAPTER, No. 2016, AT ALTON. Article 3
PROVINCIAL GRAND MARK LODGE OF CORN WALL. Article 3
JURISPRUDENCE. Article 4
FOUNDATIONS OF THE TEMPLE. Article 4
DORSET MASONIC CHARITY. Article 5
ANNUAL PICNIC OF THE DORIC LODGE,No..2350. Article 5
SUMMER EXCURSION OF THE JOHN HERVEY LODGE, No.1200. Article 5
CENTENARY OF THE ANCIENT UNION LODGE. No. 203. Article 5
UNITED GRAND LODGE OF VICTORIA. Article 5
ANNUAL OUTING OF THE DUBLIN CHAPTER,No.225. Article 5
IS MASONRY DRY? Article 5
SUTTON'S BULB CATALOGUE FOR 1892. Article 5
Untitled Ad 6
Untitled Ad 6
Untitled Ad 6
Untitled Ad 6
Untitled Ad 6
Untitled Ad 6
Untitled Ad 6
Untitled Ad 6
Untitled Ad 6
Untitled Ad 6
Untitled Ad 6
Untitled Ad 6
Untitled Ad 6
Untitled Ad 6
Untitled Ad 6
Untitled Ad 6
Untitled Ad 7
Untitled Ad 7
Untitled Ad 7
Untitled Ad 7
Untitled Ad 7
Untitled Ad 7
Untitled Article 7
Masonic Notes. Article 7
Correspondence. Article 7
Masonic Notes and Queries. Article 8
Reviews. Article 8
Craft Masonry. Article 8
Lodges and Chapters of Instruction. Article 9
The Craft Abroad. Article 9
MASONIC LITERATURE. Article 9
The Thretres. Article 9
Death. Article 9
MASONIC AND GENERAL TIDINGS. Article 10
Page 1

Page 1

3 Articles
Page 2

Page 2

2 Articles
Page 3

Page 3

5 Articles
Page 4

Page 4

4 Articles
Page 5

Page 5

10 Articles
Page 6

Page 6

16 Articles
Page 7

Page 7

10 Articles
Page 8

Page 8

6 Articles
Page 9

Page 9

8 Articles
Page 10

Page 10

3 Articles
Page 2

Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.

Masonic Libraries.

of Grand Lodge should be again loosened , in order that the reproach may be avoided of our national Masonic collection falling altogether behind the

times . When the grant of £ 25 was first voted—Bro . Sadler will correct me if I err— -I think we were to work together in its appropriation , though I hasten to state , at the outset , that my share of the labour was confined to what I may perhaps venture to term an intelligent interest in the work performed

by Bro . Sadler . At the period in question the collection , though unique in the sense of comprising a larger number of books , of which there were no known counter parts , than any other Masonic library , was in every sense a ragged one . Bound books required re-binding , unbound books were falling

to pieces , and the Proceedings , or Transactions of foreign Grand Bodies were mouldering towards their final decay . Gaps , too , existed everywhere ! in the files of English Masonic journals , and among the series of works from the pens of Preston , Oliver , and other wen-known and prolific authors .

It is not too much to say that little by little all , or nearly all , these blemishes have been removed . Also additions have been made with equal judgment and success , and withal , the humble pittance doled out for the support of the library , has been so carefully husbanded by Bro . Sadler , that he has been able in a few instances to widen the sphere of his operations ,

and to secure for the Grand Lodge more than one rare print and ancient manuscript . A new catalogue has supplanted the old one , and—in a word —the treasures of the Grand Lodge Library are readily accessibl e to all members of the Craft . They comprise more than 2000 books , or including By-laws , Provincial Calendars and Reports , and the unbound Proceedings of American Grand Lodges considerably over 5000 volumes .

The number of books in the library of the Supreme Council at Goldensquare I do not know . The printed catalogue was compiled many years ago , and the subsequent additions to the collection must now almost outnumber the original stock . This library is a very fine one , and the governing body of the Rite—as I can testify from experience—are animated

b y similar sentiments to those which were so eloquently expressed by the late Albert Pike : " The life of an Order consists of what it does . It lives by doing good , and if it sends out no rays of beneficence on any side , its life is only the life of a fungus . It seems to me that the spirit of a writer is in his books , and that if they are not read , it is imimprisoned there like an old King of Egypt in its sarcophagus . "

Nor does the Masonic portion of the British Museum Library fall short of the expectations that naturally arise with regard to it .

Each of the three chief Masonic libraries in the United kingdom , i . e ., at Freemasons' Hall , Golden-square , and the British Museum , respectively , has its distinctive features , and unitedly they offer to students of the Craft greater facilities for research , than would be equalled , were it possible to bring every other Masonic collection in the universe uiv * ; r a single roof .

In recent years , owing no doubt to a favourable conjecture of circumstances , the West Yorkshire Masonic Library has perhaps made a greater advance than any other similar institution of the second rank , and that their Prov . Grand Master and their Honorary Librarian may long be spared to them , must be the earnest wish of all studious Masons in that extensive jurisdiction .

Other provincial collections might be referred to , also the libraries of the Grand Lodge of Scotland ( embracing the numerous works amassed by the late Dr . Morrison ) , of trie Quatuor Coronati Lodge , of Bro . H . J . Whymper , Punjab , and of Bros . E . T . Carson and S . C . Lawrence , in the United States .

But all these I must pass over on the present occasion , in order that space may be found for the examples I wish to give of the way some Grand Lodges deal with a subject , which seems to me highly worthy of close consideration by our own .

In the United States of America there are 49 Grand Lodges , and the total membership under each of them respectively varies greatly , ranging from 77 , 923 Masons in the jurisdiction of New York , down to 451 in that of Arizona .

In numerical standing the Grand Lodge of New York easily takes the first place , as will appear from the following table , where the 10 Grand Lodges having the largest membership are shown in the order which they rank : COA 1 PARISON TABLE .

r , \ NuMKRlCM . I NUMBRR OF TOTAL U » AMI i . -nut . STANDING . SUBORDINATES . MI-MHKRSIIIP .

New Yo k I 1 721 77 . 923 Illinois I 2 C > 32 43 . 930 Pennsylvania j 3 395 42 , 412 Ohio 4 4 'Ji 35 . r' <> 3 Michigan 5 360 33 . 09 S Alafsachusetts C 226 3 i , ? W > Missouri 7 550 2 S , 8 i 6 Indiana 8 409 24 , 776 Texas ... y 540 23 . KJ 3 Iowa 10 452 22 , 525

I he above figures present some discrepancies upon which a word or two may be said . It will be seen that Pennsylvania , with only 395 lodges , ranks third on the list , while Missouri , with 550 , only reaches the seventh place . But the average of members to each lodge is greater

in the District of Columbia ( 183 ) , with 23 lodges and 4202 Masons , and Connecticut ( t 40 > witn nl lodges and 15 , 641 Masons , than in any one of the ten larger jurisdictions whereof statistics have been given . The Grand Lodges having subordinates with the largest membership are —Connecticut ( 57 6 ) , Illinois ( 555 ) , New York ( 546 ) , Michigan ( 540 ) ,

Masonic Libraries.

Colorado ( 531 ) , Minnesota ( 525 ) , Pennsylvania ( 453 ) , California ( 442 ) , Ohio ( 437 ) , Massachusetts ( 432 ) , District of Columbia ( 402 ) , and Rhode Island ( 401 ) . It seems a little curious that there should be more Masons in a sing le

lodge in the States of Connecticut , Illinois , and New York than are to be found either in the nine lodges making up the Masonic jurisdiction of Arizona , or the seven ( with a total membership of 544 brethren ) which con , stitute that of Utah .

More curious still would be the narrative of what has been effected in the tiny jurisdiction which I have last named by Christopher Diehl , the Grand Secretary , with respect to the formation of a Masonic library . But

this story must be related at another time , as I am at present concerned with the Grand Lodges at the other end of the scale , from which I shall select those of New York and Iowa—at the top and bottom respectively of the list given above—as the subjects for illustration in the present article .

At the yearly meeting of the Grand Lodge of New York , in June last , Bro . Herman G . Carter presented his tenth annual report as Grand Librarian : — " The Grand Lodge library has been increased by many valuable works , and during the year these have been bound and added to the large collection

of Proceedings of the Grand Bodies , which are a history of the Craft . One hundred and seven volumes have been added to the seventeen hundred and seventy-one volumes reported in the preceding nine years , making a total of eighteen hundred and seventy-eight volumes added in 10 years

Here are to be found the Proceedings of all the Masonic Grand Bodies , the standard books of the Craft , and the monthly Masonic magazines . . . . Year after year more interest is evinced in the collection of volumes , and the Grand Lodge library is rapidly assuming an importance second to none in its special collections . "

The report of the Grand Librarian extends from p . 60 to p . 67 of the Transactions , and gives the names of donors of books , as well as catalogues of the Masonic and non-Masonic works acquired during the previous year . The report of the Committee on Finance , including the following item : —

" For Assistant in the Library and Reading Room ; to purchase current and foreign literature and magazines ; for purchasing and binding Masonic works , and for services , cataloguing , etc § 1000 was received , and its recommendations adopted . " ( p . 126 . )

In the same month—June , 1892—Bro . T . S . Parvin , Grand Secretary , Iowa , presented \ ns forty-sixth report as Librarian , which covers 23 pages of the Proceedings of that Grand Lodge . The following are extracts from it : — " Masonic libraries are of recent date , none of them dating back half a century . Our own , being the first and oldest , was founded in 1844 .

" When this Grand [ library ] building was completed and first occupied , May 7 th , 1885 , it was thought by the Committee having in charge its construction , that it would be large enough to answer our purpose for at least one hundred years . Seven years only have elapsed , and the Grand Lodge is confronted with the fact that at an early period in the future it will become absolutely necessary to enlarge the building . "

A supplemental catalogue—works , 174 ; volumes , 185 ; exclusive o proceedings , periodicals , and pamphlets—is annexed to the report . The Committee of Finance ( p . 193 ) made the following report : — " We recommend that instead of the annual appropriation for the support of the library , and running expenses of the building , the sum of

eig ht and one-half ( 81 ) cents , for each and every member returned , as shown by the report of the Committee on Chartered Lodges at this session of the Grand Lodge , viz .: Twenty-three thousand and sixteen * at eight and onehalf cents . —^ 1956-26—be set apart for library and building expenses for 1892-93 . " The report was adopted .

In the Keystone ( Philadelphia ) of the 9 th ult ., the Iowa collection is tluis referred to : " The largest Masonic library in the world , the only Masonic library

building on the face of the globe , a Grand Secretary whose service has exceeded that of any other in the history of the Fraternity in America—such is the remarkable combination of the exceptional to be found at Cctlar Rapids , Iowa .

" ' Parvin ' s hobby , ' as the Iowa library is called in fraternal circles , was started in 1845 with an appropriation of S 5 . The first book in the collection was Cole's Ahiman Rezon . He picked up the volume from a lady ' s centre table while making a call , and his attention was so much distracted by glances at the book that the lady suggested he should take it and go . 'I hat

volume is still in the library . " Very small appropriations were made by the Grand Lodge , but in 1 SS 2 the library was estimated to be worth Ki 8 , ooo , though it had cost the Grand Lodge barely one-eighth of that sum . In that year the collection of Masonic works made by R . V . Bowerof Keokuk , Iowa , the largest private library

, of the kind in the world , was purchased for S 4000 . It had cost its collector three times that sum . This made a building imperative , and the Gran Inrlo-n sot nside S 20 . 000 for a lire nroof structure . Cedar Raoids secure '

the location by donating a valuable lot and $ 10 , 000 in cash . This unexpecte money donation permitted the construction of a building of brick , stone , a " iron , costing 832 , 000 , and it is a handsome structure , of which the city a " tlin Stntp . is wnll HR the Frnternitv . arc nrmitl .

" The library has quite a number of valuable books , of which no dup hca pi are known to be in existence . It is gradually becoming a museum as we It is , perhaps , too much to expect that in the life time of the p rcse , ^ generation , the Grand Lodge of England will imitate its Masonic sisters

  • Prev page
  • 1
  • You're on page2
  • 3
  • 10
  • Next page
  • Accredited Museum Designated Outstanding Collection
  • LIBRARY AND MUSEUM CHARITABLE TRUST OF THE UNITED GRAND LODGE OF ENGLAND REGISTERED CHARITY NUMBER 1058497 / ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © 2025

  • Accessibility statement

  • Designed, developed, and maintained by King's Digital Lab

We use cookies to track usage and preferences.

Privacy & cookie policy