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Article Obituary. Page 1 of 1 Article BRO. DR. JOHN STAPLES KEDDELL. Page 1 of 2 Article BRO. DR. JOHN STAPLES KEDDELL. Page 1 of 2 Article BRO. DR. JOHN STAPLES KEDDELL. Page 1 of 2 →
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Obituary.
Obituary .
9 . BRO . JOHN UDALL , P . J . G . D . We deeply regret having to announce the decease of this well-known and estimable brother , who died on the 21 st inst . Bro . Udall ' s career
in connection with the Cratt commenced on the 7 th February , 1836 , when he was initiated in the Westminster and Keystone Lodge , No . 10 , in
which lodge he also served the office of Master . He was exalted on the 19 th January , 1838 , in the Chapter of Fidelity , No . 3 , and became M . E . Z . in due course . Bro . Udall's Masonic exertions were fittingly rewarded at a comparatively early period by the Grand Master , who
appointed him Junior Grand Deacon in April , 1849 , and subsequently Second Assistant Sojourner of the Supreme Grand Chapter at the meeting in May following . Our deceased brother was likewise an active Knight Templar , a Mark Master , and had attained the rank of
S . P . R . S ., 32 ° , in the Ancient and Accepted Rite . But it is more especially in connection with his untiring efforts to promote the Masonic charities that Bro . Udall ' s name will be long and fondly remembered . Year after year he worked on in conjunction with other kindred spirits to place
the great Masonic institutions on a permanent footing of usefulness ; and although it is now the fashion in some quarters to decry the services rendered and the results achieved by the members of our charity committees , those services , we feel convinced , will nevertheless continue to
be cheerfully given by men of the Udall stamp . It is almost needless to add that the deceased was a Vice-President of all the institutions , as well as a most active and useful member of the various boards and committees of the Order , and
his loss is , consequently , one which will be felt and mourned by a very large circle of friends and acquaintances . Bro . Udall , we are informed , was in the 71 st year of his age , and his health had been for some time past declining , although a fatal termination was not expected so soon .
Bro. Dr. John Staples Keddell.
BRO . DR . JOHN STAPLES KEDDELL .
Our Brother John Staples Keddell , M . D ., F . R . C . S ., of Sheerness , one of the oldest and best-known among the Masonic brethren of the Province of Kent , has just passed to his rest , after a most active and useful life , at the ripe age of seventy-two . In the belief that a brief
memoir of so marked and deserving a brother would be read by the Craft generally witli some interest , we publish the following particulars , which have been supplied by one who was well acquainted with him . Dr . Keddell was born in the Old Garrison , at Sheerness , at the close of
the eighteenth century , about the time of the far-famed " Mutiny at the ] S ore . " His father , Ambrose Keddell , held a responsible appointment in Sheerness dockyard , and , at a suitable age , the subject of our notice was articled to the , to him not very congenial , profession of
medicine . Despite his disinclination for his profession , he , to use his own words , " stuck to it , and made the best of it , " and he continued to follow it until almost the time of his death . He was for years an active member of the Sheerness Improvement Commission , and by his far-seeing
intelligence , coupled with an unyielding determination in anything he believed to be for the good of the locality in which he lived , he was the cause of many local improvements . When the powers of the Public Health Act were applied to the extensive parish of Minster , in the Isle of Sheppy ( in which Sheerness is
situate ) , Dr . Keddell was one of the most active promoters of that measure of social progress ; in fact , throughout his long life he never omitted an opportunity of giving his aid to any proposition or endeavour to enhance the progress of his native town , cither socially , commercially , or scientifically . His unceasing efforts , too , in the cause of education were of infinite benefit to
successive generations of his fellow-townsmen , many of whom are not slow to give audible expression to their feelings of gratitude and obligation to " the Doctor , " as he was generally termed when spoken of in almost all classes of
Bro. Dr. John Staples Keddell.
society . He was , nearly from its commencement , the Secretary of the National School Committee of Sheerness , and year after year he quietly and unobtrusively worked on in the cause , because he fully recognised the value and importance of popular education . As Secretary of the Isle of
Sheppy Agricultural Association , Dr . Keddell was well-known for his untiring perseverance in recommending the adoption of each succeeding modern improvement in the cultivation of the soil ; and his name in connection with this society alone , is known and appreciated
throughout the whole county of Kent . His chanties were extensive—far too extensive for his means , for , now that he is taking his rest , it can be truthfully said of him , " By charity he impoverished himself . " He was one of those—few , alas ! now to be found—who
Do good by stealth , And blush to find it fame . But it was in the Masonic Order that Dr . Keddell ' s widest circle of intimate friends were to be found . He was initiated in the Adam ' s Lodge , 158 , Sheerness , in the year 18 34 , and from
that period there was seen in him a thorough and devout reverence for the grand principles of the Order , which he was never tired of inculcating . His addresses were regarded as models and masterpieces among the Craft ; in fact , he had throughout distinguished himself as one of
the most efficient brethren in the province of Kent . In addition to having been elected on four several occasions as W . M . of his mother lodge , he has assisted in the formation of others , and presided over their councils . As an Installing Master he was not to be surpassed , and
many Masons are now living who can affirm that to him they are indebted for the knowledge of everything that is good in the Craft . In addition to the elevated and important positionsheheld in Craft Masonry , Bro . Keddell has been the Presiding Officer on several occasions in the
Mark Masters' lodge at Sheerness and other places , and was P . A . G . D . C . of the Grand Lodge of Mark Masters . He had also been elevated to the sublime position of Z . in the Royal Arch Chapter of England on several occasions , both
at the Adams Chapter , 158 , Sheerness , and the Royal Kent Chapter of Antiquity , No . 20 , Chatham . He was also installed a Knight Templar , and was a member of several Orders of Chivalry to the 31 st degree .
It was not to be expected that the remains of so marked and deserving a brother in Freemasonry would be permitted to be consigned to their last resting-place without the distinguished ceremonies observed by the Ancient Craft on all solemn occasions . The brethren of Adam ' s
Lodge , 158 , aware that upon them would devolve the , in more than one sense , unwelcome duty of principally arranging for the Masonic observances , at once made it known that it was their intention to cause the rites of the Craft to be followed out in the fullest possible manner ,
permission for which was readily accorded by the G . M . of the province of Kent . The brethren of the De Shurland Lodge , 108 9 , also determined to assist on the sad occasion ; indeed , it might be truly said that the brethren for miles around Sheerness displayed an earnest desire to
be present at the funeral . The deceased brother , when he became aware of the awful change he was about to undergo , and which he prepared for in the most cheerful and resigned manner , expressed a wish that his remains should be interred in the retired and rural churchyard of
I wade , about seven miles from Sheerness , and it is needless to add that his wish was acceded to in every particular . The procession was formed from the late residence of the deceased , and consisted of the brethren of De Shurland Lodge , 108 9 ( Bro . Morris AV . WV-t , W . M ) , and about twenty-six officers and brethren , together with
several brethren of other lodges , who took the lead in the procession , and were followed by the officers and brethren of the parent lodge of the deceased , Adam ' s Lodge . 158 ( Pro Bagshaw W . M . ) , to the number of about forty-eight , who immediately preceded the body through Hi ghstreet , which was crowded with spectators , mast of the shops en route being closed . In this order the procession was conducted as far as the
Bro. Dr. John Staples Keddell.
Halfway Houses on foot , when the members of the lodges and many of the neighbours of our late brother availed themselves of several vans and carriages , in which they were conveyed to the vicinity of the church at Iwade , where the procession was re-formed . The brethren of the
St . Michael ' s Lodge , 1273 ( Bro . the Rev . J . Grabham , W . M . ) , about forty in number , who had arrived from Sittingbourne to join the mournful ceremony , led the van , and proceeded to the church , where the Rev . Bro . Grabham ,
P . G . Asst . Chap ., at the particular request of Dr . Keddell , expressed some time before his death , most fervently performed the burial ceremony according to the rites of the Church of England , after which the rev . brother delivered the
following address to the brethren : — "Thus far , brethren , we have brought our brother —we have come to the end of the burial rites of the Church of which he was a member not slightly attached ; and I now ask you to bear with me a few moments before we drop the sprig , and pay
our last act of respect to the departed . There are many here present who have known him longer than I have , but I believe there are few who have known him better . It was my lot to make his acquaintance before that , in my our expression , ' I saw the light , ' and I well remember how our
friendship was cemented when John Staples Keddell found that I could give him the right hand of brotherhood . I speak as I myself hatfe found him , and I am sure that my words will call forth an echo in the hearts of many here . The little that I have learned of the letter , and better still , the spirit of
Masonry , had been woefully scanty but for his encouragement and assistance . A bright Mason himself , it was his happiness to do his best to render others also such ; and never did his countenance change , never did his face cloud over as he learned my errand , that I sought a master of whom
I could receive instruction . And I feel that , could he speak from the gloom that shrouds him from our eyes , he would tell us something in this way . We are not assembled here to exalt his virtues and cry up his good qualities—not assembled here to make him equal to our two great parallels , or the
many bright examples quoted in the Sacred Volume for our example—but we are to let him live in our affections and memories as a man who tried to make the Institution a reality , who tried to recommend it to others , not by words , but by his daily life . Few of us there are who do not know his
value , far and wide is his name a familiar one , as of a brother who was always ready to help when help was wanted , whether by a lodge or an individual member . Among his latest acts , discontinued only by reason of his illness , was the regular superintendence of a new lodge , when its chosen head was laid by
with sickness ; and , when I tell you that head was myself , I need not say that I shall not soon forget him who now lies low at our feet , and I can surely say , brethren , neither will you . We have laid him in the grave , and there must we leave him , and we may believe that he is in safe keeping . I had it from himself that in life he had lifted his eyes to the bright
morning star above , and had found the glance to bring him peace and salvation , He knew that in death he could say . - ' Thou also shalt light my candle . The Lord my God shall make my darkness to be light . ' And he has entered on his long sleep in a firm , though humble , confidence that in due time he will arise from the tomb of transgression to shine as the stars for ever . "
The church and also the churchyard were crowded with spectators , and amongst the sad throng not a few evinced theiresteemand respect for our deceased brother by tears . In addition to the brethren of the lodges already named , the following lodges were
represented : —Royal Lodge of Antiquity , No . 20 , Chatham : Bro . Owen J . Carter , W . M ., and several brethren ; Lodge of Harmony , No . 133 , Faversham : Bro Griggs , W . M ., and several brethren ; Lodge of Benevolence , No . 184 Bro . Redman , W . M ., and several brethren ; the
Gundolph Lodge , No . 1050 , Rochester : Bro . Fry , W . M ., and several brethren ; and the Pentangle Lotlge , No . 1174 . Chatham , by Bros . Dr . Seabrook , P . M ., and Dr . Ely . The Prov . Grand Lodge of Kent , of which the deceased Bro . Kcrkiell was P . P . S . G . W ., was
representid by Bros Isaac Townseud ( 158 ) , who was initiated in 1815 , was W . M . of Adam ' s Lodge in 1834 ( the year in which Dr . Keddell was initiated ) , P . Z . in 18 42 , and P . P . G . Supt . of Wks . and P . P . G . D . in 1853 ; Samuel Townsend P . M ., P . Z . 158 , P . P . G . S . I ) . ; John George Green , P . M ., P . Z . i ^ Z , P . P . G . J . D . ; C . B . Shrubsole , P . M . 108 9 , p P-G . Supt . of Wks . ;
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Obituary.
Obituary .
9 . BRO . JOHN UDALL , P . J . G . D . We deeply regret having to announce the decease of this well-known and estimable brother , who died on the 21 st inst . Bro . Udall ' s career
in connection with the Cratt commenced on the 7 th February , 1836 , when he was initiated in the Westminster and Keystone Lodge , No . 10 , in
which lodge he also served the office of Master . He was exalted on the 19 th January , 1838 , in the Chapter of Fidelity , No . 3 , and became M . E . Z . in due course . Bro . Udall's Masonic exertions were fittingly rewarded at a comparatively early period by the Grand Master , who
appointed him Junior Grand Deacon in April , 1849 , and subsequently Second Assistant Sojourner of the Supreme Grand Chapter at the meeting in May following . Our deceased brother was likewise an active Knight Templar , a Mark Master , and had attained the rank of
S . P . R . S ., 32 ° , in the Ancient and Accepted Rite . But it is more especially in connection with his untiring efforts to promote the Masonic charities that Bro . Udall ' s name will be long and fondly remembered . Year after year he worked on in conjunction with other kindred spirits to place
the great Masonic institutions on a permanent footing of usefulness ; and although it is now the fashion in some quarters to decry the services rendered and the results achieved by the members of our charity committees , those services , we feel convinced , will nevertheless continue to
be cheerfully given by men of the Udall stamp . It is almost needless to add that the deceased was a Vice-President of all the institutions , as well as a most active and useful member of the various boards and committees of the Order , and
his loss is , consequently , one which will be felt and mourned by a very large circle of friends and acquaintances . Bro . Udall , we are informed , was in the 71 st year of his age , and his health had been for some time past declining , although a fatal termination was not expected so soon .
Bro. Dr. John Staples Keddell.
BRO . DR . JOHN STAPLES KEDDELL .
Our Brother John Staples Keddell , M . D ., F . R . C . S ., of Sheerness , one of the oldest and best-known among the Masonic brethren of the Province of Kent , has just passed to his rest , after a most active and useful life , at the ripe age of seventy-two . In the belief that a brief
memoir of so marked and deserving a brother would be read by the Craft generally witli some interest , we publish the following particulars , which have been supplied by one who was well acquainted with him . Dr . Keddell was born in the Old Garrison , at Sheerness , at the close of
the eighteenth century , about the time of the far-famed " Mutiny at the ] S ore . " His father , Ambrose Keddell , held a responsible appointment in Sheerness dockyard , and , at a suitable age , the subject of our notice was articled to the , to him not very congenial , profession of
medicine . Despite his disinclination for his profession , he , to use his own words , " stuck to it , and made the best of it , " and he continued to follow it until almost the time of his death . He was for years an active member of the Sheerness Improvement Commission , and by his far-seeing
intelligence , coupled with an unyielding determination in anything he believed to be for the good of the locality in which he lived , he was the cause of many local improvements . When the powers of the Public Health Act were applied to the extensive parish of Minster , in the Isle of Sheppy ( in which Sheerness is
situate ) , Dr . Keddell was one of the most active promoters of that measure of social progress ; in fact , throughout his long life he never omitted an opportunity of giving his aid to any proposition or endeavour to enhance the progress of his native town , cither socially , commercially , or scientifically . His unceasing efforts , too , in the cause of education were of infinite benefit to
successive generations of his fellow-townsmen , many of whom are not slow to give audible expression to their feelings of gratitude and obligation to " the Doctor , " as he was generally termed when spoken of in almost all classes of
Bro. Dr. John Staples Keddell.
society . He was , nearly from its commencement , the Secretary of the National School Committee of Sheerness , and year after year he quietly and unobtrusively worked on in the cause , because he fully recognised the value and importance of popular education . As Secretary of the Isle of
Sheppy Agricultural Association , Dr . Keddell was well-known for his untiring perseverance in recommending the adoption of each succeeding modern improvement in the cultivation of the soil ; and his name in connection with this society alone , is known and appreciated
throughout the whole county of Kent . His chanties were extensive—far too extensive for his means , for , now that he is taking his rest , it can be truthfully said of him , " By charity he impoverished himself . " He was one of those—few , alas ! now to be found—who
Do good by stealth , And blush to find it fame . But it was in the Masonic Order that Dr . Keddell ' s widest circle of intimate friends were to be found . He was initiated in the Adam ' s Lodge , 158 , Sheerness , in the year 18 34 , and from
that period there was seen in him a thorough and devout reverence for the grand principles of the Order , which he was never tired of inculcating . His addresses were regarded as models and masterpieces among the Craft ; in fact , he had throughout distinguished himself as one of
the most efficient brethren in the province of Kent . In addition to having been elected on four several occasions as W . M . of his mother lodge , he has assisted in the formation of others , and presided over their councils . As an Installing Master he was not to be surpassed , and
many Masons are now living who can affirm that to him they are indebted for the knowledge of everything that is good in the Craft . In addition to the elevated and important positionsheheld in Craft Masonry , Bro . Keddell has been the Presiding Officer on several occasions in the
Mark Masters' lodge at Sheerness and other places , and was P . A . G . D . C . of the Grand Lodge of Mark Masters . He had also been elevated to the sublime position of Z . in the Royal Arch Chapter of England on several occasions , both
at the Adams Chapter , 158 , Sheerness , and the Royal Kent Chapter of Antiquity , No . 20 , Chatham . He was also installed a Knight Templar , and was a member of several Orders of Chivalry to the 31 st degree .
It was not to be expected that the remains of so marked and deserving a brother in Freemasonry would be permitted to be consigned to their last resting-place without the distinguished ceremonies observed by the Ancient Craft on all solemn occasions . The brethren of Adam ' s
Lodge , 158 , aware that upon them would devolve the , in more than one sense , unwelcome duty of principally arranging for the Masonic observances , at once made it known that it was their intention to cause the rites of the Craft to be followed out in the fullest possible manner ,
permission for which was readily accorded by the G . M . of the province of Kent . The brethren of the De Shurland Lodge , 108 9 , also determined to assist on the sad occasion ; indeed , it might be truly said that the brethren for miles around Sheerness displayed an earnest desire to
be present at the funeral . The deceased brother , when he became aware of the awful change he was about to undergo , and which he prepared for in the most cheerful and resigned manner , expressed a wish that his remains should be interred in the retired and rural churchyard of
I wade , about seven miles from Sheerness , and it is needless to add that his wish was acceded to in every particular . The procession was formed from the late residence of the deceased , and consisted of the brethren of De Shurland Lodge , 108 9 ( Bro . Morris AV . WV-t , W . M ) , and about twenty-six officers and brethren , together with
several brethren of other lodges , who took the lead in the procession , and were followed by the officers and brethren of the parent lodge of the deceased , Adam ' s Lodge . 158 ( Pro Bagshaw W . M . ) , to the number of about forty-eight , who immediately preceded the body through Hi ghstreet , which was crowded with spectators , mast of the shops en route being closed . In this order the procession was conducted as far as the
Bro. Dr. John Staples Keddell.
Halfway Houses on foot , when the members of the lodges and many of the neighbours of our late brother availed themselves of several vans and carriages , in which they were conveyed to the vicinity of the church at Iwade , where the procession was re-formed . The brethren of the
St . Michael ' s Lodge , 1273 ( Bro . the Rev . J . Grabham , W . M . ) , about forty in number , who had arrived from Sittingbourne to join the mournful ceremony , led the van , and proceeded to the church , where the Rev . Bro . Grabham ,
P . G . Asst . Chap ., at the particular request of Dr . Keddell , expressed some time before his death , most fervently performed the burial ceremony according to the rites of the Church of England , after which the rev . brother delivered the
following address to the brethren : — "Thus far , brethren , we have brought our brother —we have come to the end of the burial rites of the Church of which he was a member not slightly attached ; and I now ask you to bear with me a few moments before we drop the sprig , and pay
our last act of respect to the departed . There are many here present who have known him longer than I have , but I believe there are few who have known him better . It was my lot to make his acquaintance before that , in my our expression , ' I saw the light , ' and I well remember how our
friendship was cemented when John Staples Keddell found that I could give him the right hand of brotherhood . I speak as I myself hatfe found him , and I am sure that my words will call forth an echo in the hearts of many here . The little that I have learned of the letter , and better still , the spirit of
Masonry , had been woefully scanty but for his encouragement and assistance . A bright Mason himself , it was his happiness to do his best to render others also such ; and never did his countenance change , never did his face cloud over as he learned my errand , that I sought a master of whom
I could receive instruction . And I feel that , could he speak from the gloom that shrouds him from our eyes , he would tell us something in this way . We are not assembled here to exalt his virtues and cry up his good qualities—not assembled here to make him equal to our two great parallels , or the
many bright examples quoted in the Sacred Volume for our example—but we are to let him live in our affections and memories as a man who tried to make the Institution a reality , who tried to recommend it to others , not by words , but by his daily life . Few of us there are who do not know his
value , far and wide is his name a familiar one , as of a brother who was always ready to help when help was wanted , whether by a lodge or an individual member . Among his latest acts , discontinued only by reason of his illness , was the regular superintendence of a new lodge , when its chosen head was laid by
with sickness ; and , when I tell you that head was myself , I need not say that I shall not soon forget him who now lies low at our feet , and I can surely say , brethren , neither will you . We have laid him in the grave , and there must we leave him , and we may believe that he is in safe keeping . I had it from himself that in life he had lifted his eyes to the bright
morning star above , and had found the glance to bring him peace and salvation , He knew that in death he could say . - ' Thou also shalt light my candle . The Lord my God shall make my darkness to be light . ' And he has entered on his long sleep in a firm , though humble , confidence that in due time he will arise from the tomb of transgression to shine as the stars for ever . "
The church and also the churchyard were crowded with spectators , and amongst the sad throng not a few evinced theiresteemand respect for our deceased brother by tears . In addition to the brethren of the lodges already named , the following lodges were
represented : —Royal Lodge of Antiquity , No . 20 , Chatham : Bro . Owen J . Carter , W . M ., and several brethren ; Lodge of Harmony , No . 133 , Faversham : Bro Griggs , W . M ., and several brethren ; Lodge of Benevolence , No . 184 Bro . Redman , W . M ., and several brethren ; the
Gundolph Lodge , No . 1050 , Rochester : Bro . Fry , W . M ., and several brethren ; and the Pentangle Lotlge , No . 1174 . Chatham , by Bros . Dr . Seabrook , P . M ., and Dr . Ely . The Prov . Grand Lodge of Kent , of which the deceased Bro . Kcrkiell was P . P . S . G . W ., was
representid by Bros Isaac Townseud ( 158 ) , who was initiated in 1815 , was W . M . of Adam ' s Lodge in 1834 ( the year in which Dr . Keddell was initiated ) , P . Z . in 18 42 , and P . P . G . Supt . of Wks . and P . P . G . D . in 1853 ; Samuel Townsend P . M ., P . Z . 158 , P . P . G . S . I ) . ; John George Green , P . M ., P . Z . i ^ Z , P . P . G . J . D . ; C . B . Shrubsole , P . M . 108 9 , p P-G . Supt . of Wks . ;