A Visit To The Congressional Cemetery in Washington D. C.

by Midnight Freemason Regular Contributor

Gregory J. Knott

I have long been fascinated by cemeteries, not for any morbid reason, but because of the quest to learn the history of some of the people whose final resting place they contain. 

One of the most historic cemeteries in the United States is Congressional Cemetery located on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C.  This 35 acre site has over 55,000 burials and contains some of the most prolific names in Washington D.C. and in turn our nation’s history.  Amongst the dignitaries buried at Congressional are President William Henry Harrison,  President John Quincy Adams, President Zachary Taylor and numerous members of Congress, cabinet members and military officers.

On my visit I was focused on finding out about the Masonic connection to the cemetery.    I didn’t have to look far as I saw a Masonic Flag flying in one section of the cemetery.

 

Beneath the flag was a granite monument placed by the Grand Lodge of Washington D.C. in memory of their fraternal dead.  There were numerous grave markers in the vicinity with Masonic symbols on the stones, providing a clue to some of the past members of the DC Grand Lodge. 

There were hundreds of grave markers with Masonic symbols on them.  Some had merely the square and compass while others had Scottish Rite, York Rite and other Masonic bodies on them.    As I was walking down a row of graves, I stumbled upon Brother John Phillips Sousa, who was one of the most famous band leaders in the world and composed many of the famous march songs still played to this day.  Brother Sousa became a member of Hiram Lodge No. 10, Washington D.C. on July 15, 1881.  He was also a member of Almas Shriners, the York Rite and other Masonic bodies.  Upon his burial on March 10, 1932, the Almas Temple Band played in his honor. 

Congressional Cemetery contains a chapel located in the center of the cemetery.  I was given a personal tour of the facility by the caretaker.   The chapel was used for funerals and holds approximately 75 people.  Inside there are several holding vaults that the caskets would have sat in while awaiting their turn for a funeral.  In its’ heyday there were burials per day.  The casket was placed through the outside of the building and there was a door on the interior that opened when it was time to be removed. 

The chapel also had a Masonic connection.  The three chairs on the altar area had the symbols of the 3 principal officers of a lodge WM, SW and JW.   I suspect because of the large number of fraternity members buried in the early days, these might have played a role in the Masonic funeral service. 

 One of the most interesting stories I was told is about former US Attorney General William Wirt who died in 1834. Mr. Wirt was the anti-Masonic party candidate for President of the United States in 1832.  Some claim that Mr. Wirt was a former Freemason.  

He is buried at Congressional and sometime in the 1970’s, his tomb was broken into and his skull was removed.   It was not even noticed until sometime in the early 2000’s that it had been stolen.   An anonymous phone call set off a series of events that eventually returned it to the cemetery to be reunited with the rest of Mr. Wirt’s remains after verification by the Smithsonian Institute.  I was shown the box that held the skull for many years.  Perhaps another Masonic Conspiracy or Dan Brown novel waiting to happen!

One of my final stops on the journey was to the grave of Peter P. Pitchlynn who was a Native American member of the Choctaw Nation and a prominent Freemason.  Brother Pitchlyn was a member of Washington Commandery of Knights Templar, a 33^rd Degree Scottish Rite Mason, and  was Chief of the Choctaw Nation and extremely active in national affairs serving as an advocate for his people.

It was incredible visit and time didn’t allow me to even see the entire cemetery.  I highly recommend a visit when you are in Washington D.C.  Congressional has several walking tours that you can take that help you undestand the hisotry of those there.  The Cememtery is open daily. 

I have made a gallery of many of the Masonic headstones and monuments that I saw that day at https://picasaweb.google.com/100541014602276671939/CongressionalCemeteryDC#

~GJK

WB Gregory J. Knott is the Past Master of St. Joseph Lodge No. 970 in St. Joseph (IL) and a plural member of Ogden Lodge No. 754 (IL), and Homer Lodge No. 199 (IL). He's a member of both the Scottish Rite, and the York Rite, and is the Charter Secretary of the Illini High Twelve Club in Champaign-Urbana. He's also a member of the Ansar Shrine (IL). Greg is very involved in Boy Scouts--an Eagle Scout himself, he serves the Grand Lodge of Illinois A. F. & A. M. as their representative to the National Association of Masonic Scouters. 

Trivia: A Few Fun Facts About Famous Freemasons

by Midnight Freemasons Regular Contributor

Todd E. Creason

Originally posted 9/15/10

Here's a few interesting facts you may not know about famous Freemasons: 

General George Washington

-Although George Washington seemed reluctant to accept the commission as Commander in Chief of the Continental Army, he had done very little to try and stop the nomination, and had taken to wearing his buff and blue military uniform every day when the Second Continental Congress met.

John Philips Sousa

-As a boy, John Philips Sousa accompanied his father to Gettysburg with the Marine Marching Band, where he witnessed Abraham Lincoln give his famous speech. He would later grow up to conduct that same band, and would spend his life writing patriotic marches.

Roy Rogers & Trigger

-Roy Roger's famous horse Trigger had a job even before he met Roy.  He was horse ridden by Olivia de Haviland in the Errol Flynn classic film Robin Hood.  Back then, Trigger's name was "Golden Cloud."

Harry S Truman

-Harry S Truman cheated on his eye exam in order to qualify for military service. He once joked that his weak eyesight had always been a problem, in fact, he was unable to play baseball as a boy until his teammates found him a job he could do that didn't require good vision--umpire.

John Wayne

-John Wayne's nickname "Duke" came from his boyhood when he used to run around around town with the family dog--a giant Airedale.  The local firemen used to call the two "Big Duke" (the dog) and "Little Duke" (the boy).

Now wasn't that interesting?

~TEC



Todd E. Creason is the author of several books, including the Famous American Freemasons series. He is the Past Master of Ogden Lodge No. 754 (IL), and a member of the Scottish Rite, the York Rite, and a Shriner

If you enjoyed these, many more little known facts about famous Freemasons can be found in Famous American Freemasons

Masonic Photography: The Art Of Gregory J. Knott

by The Midnight Freemason

Todd E. Creason

Final resting place of the March King
Sir Knight John Philip Sousa

Over the last several years, I've had an amazing resource for this blog--the photographs of WB Greg Knott.  He's allowed me to borrow from his massive photo archives, and his photos have enhanced the posts on here for years.  It's not easy finding unique art for blog posts.  Greg's photos have been a great resource for original art.

Greg and I have known each other for over twenty years, and since we've both become Masons, we travel in the same circles--same lodges, same Scottish Rite Valley, same York Rite Chapter, Council & Commandery.  And Greg was recently my sponsor in becoming a Shriner.

I think the thing Greg and I are most proud of recently is chartering a new High Twelve Club in Champaign/Urbana (IL)--the Illini High Twelve No. 768, which is the largest newly-chartered High Twelve in the United States in the last decade.  Greg is the Secretary of that organization, and I'm the President.  We just received our charter last month with all due pomp and circumstance.  It's something we've been talking about for a long time finally realized.

Greg is  now a regular contributor on The Midnight Freemasons, and his pieces are very popular with the readers of this blog.  You can find all of Greg's pieces thus far by clicking here.

Just look at the subtle Masonic detail on this stone

And the good news is, he sent a piece to me this week about his visit to the Congressional Cemetery in Washington, D.C. (including about a dozen of his remarkable photos).  Be sure and watch for it--it's scheduled for June 18th.

The photos in his upcoming piece are remarkable, and I got looking through all the photos he took at the Congressional Cemetery this evening, and decided I'd share a few more he hadn't included in his article--he took nearly 500 photos that day.

The broken column...

It never ceases to amaze me how many Masonic symbols you'll find in cemeteries.  I first noticed it shortly after I became a Mason and visited Bonaventure Cemetery in Savannah, GA.  I've taken a lot of photos of these myself (not as good).  Greg also has an interest in history, and visits cemeteries like I do.  Masons sure aren't shy about advertising the fact they were Masons, even after they are gone.  You don't have to look very far to find a Mason in just about any cemetery you decide to visit.  It's there, if you're looking for it.

I visited a local cemetery a few months ago, and found a square and compass on one of the stones--a Master Mason that passed to the Celestial Lodge in 1938.  I knew he had probably been a member of my lodge. So I wrote his name down, and checked the register for my lodge--a book every Mason signs when they become a Master Mason.  The same book Greg and I signed just a few years ago.  And there was his signature--he'd signed that same book about eighty years before we did--in 1925. And that's what I love about history--we're all a part of it.  What we do today will become part of history tomorrow, and what we're doing today is because of all the things that happened yesterday.

So I hope these photos whet your appetite for what's to come in the next few weeks. There are a few more of Greg's photos from the Congressional Cemetery below.

~TEC

His name has faded away, but his
affiliation sure hasn't--Sir Knight!

Another Sir Knight decided to memorialize his affiliation in bronze, now green with verdigris

This was obviously an "Illustrious" member 

Again, much about who he was has faded away over time,
but there's no question about what he was--a Master Mason

Famous Freemason Trivia: Freemasons And Guns

WWII Hero Audie Murphy

The Hero

Audie Murphy grew up in poverty, and even when he was a very young boy he often helped put food on the family table by hunting rabbits—with a slingshot. He rarely missed with the makeshift weapon. One day , a young man home from college, knowing the Murphy family was very poor, loaned Audie a .22 rifle to hunt rabbits with, and gave him eight rounds to use. Audie returned the rifle some hours later, but he only had four rabbits. Before the college boy could tease him about his accuracy, Audie handed him four unused rounds. When Audie grew older, it was said he could hit a darting rabbit from the window of a moving car with a .22.

"God created man but Samuel Colt
made them equal."

The Equalizer

Samuel Colt got the idea for invention that made him famous while working as a young man on the sailing ship Corlo—he was watching the wheel of the ship when the idea of the rotating chamber came to him. “Regardless of which way the wheel was spun, each spoke always came in direct line with a clutch that could be set to hold it . . . the revolver was conceived!” Colt’s single-action six-chamber revolver revolutionized firearms. Colt’s style of manufacture was different as well—he wanted all the parts of his guns machined to precise tolerances so the parts were interchangeable instead of requiring each gun to be hand tooled by a gunsmith. That meant parts could be ordered by customers when they needed to be replaced, and the guns could be assembled in a very efficient method invented by Samuel Colt—the assembly line.

Sousa at the range

The Shotgun Maestro

Known as The March King John Philips Sousa is one of the most famous composers in American history—but he had a hobby. He was one of the best trapshooters in the United States. He won trophies and medals in many national competitions, and it wasn’t unusual for him to shoot more than 15,000 targets in a single season—with an average accuracy rate of between 75 and 98 percent during competitions. He was elected president of the American Amateur Trapshooters’ Association in 1916, and in 1917, became chairman of the National Association of Shotgun Owners.

1835 Jackson assasination attempt

Divine Intervention?

In 1835, Andrew Jackson became the first President that was subjected to an assassination attempt. As he was leaving a memorial service in the United States Capitol, and as he walked through the Rotunda surrounded by friends, a man stepped out the crowd, pulled a pistol, and shot him in the chest. Before anybody could react, the man pulled and fired a second pistol. Surprised, but uninjured, Andrew Jackson went after the assailant with his cane. The shooter was apprehended by a group that included United States Representative Davey Crockett. The priming caps on both pistols had fired, but failed to ignite the charge in the pistols. They were later re-primed with fresh caps, and both guns fired flawlessly. Nobody knows why they failed to go off—they were properly loaded. A few believed that Jackson was extraordinarily lucky—most believed it was Divine Intervention that saved Andrew Jackson’s life that day. A statue of Jackson still stands to this day in the Capitol Rotunda where that attempt occurred.

~TEC

Trivia: A Few Fun Facts About Famous Freemasons

Here's a few interesting facts you may not know about famous Freemasons: 

General George Washington

-Although George Washington seemed reluctant to accept the commission as Commander in Chief of the Continental Army, he had done very little to try and stop the nomination, and had taken to wearing his buff and blue military uniform every day when the Second Continental Congress met.

John Philips Sousa

-As a boy, John Philips Sousa accompanied his father to Gettysburg with the Marine Marching Band, where he witnessed Abraham Lincoln give his famous speech. He would later grow up to conduct that same band, and would spend his life writing patriotic marches.

Roy Rogers & Trigger

-Roy Roger's famous horse Trigger had a job even before he met Roy.  He was horse ridden by Olivia de Haviland in the Errol Flynn classic film Robin Hood.  Back then, Trigger's name was "Golden Cloud."

Harry S Truman

-Harry S Truman cheated on his eye exam in order to qualify for military service. He once joked that his weak eyesight had always been a problem, in fact, he was unable to play baseball as a boy until his teammates found him a job he could do that didn't require good vision--umpire.

John Wayne

-John Wayne's nickname "Duke" came from his boyhood when he used to run around around town with the family dog--a giant Airedale.  The local firemen used to call the two "Big Duke" (the dog) and "Little Duke" (the boy).

Now wasn't that interesting?

~TEC

If you enjoyed these, many more little known facts about famous Freemasons can be found in Famous American Freemasons: Volumes I & II