Mark your calendars for the Centennial Celebration of the founding of the Valley of Columbus, Ancient & Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry – Saturday, September 23, 2023. We have gained acceptance of our invitation to Sovereign Grand Commander, Illustrious James D. Cole, 33°, Supreme Council of the Scottish Rite of the Southern Masonic Jurisdiction, who will be in attendance for this event. Additionally, we have gained acceptance to attend by Right Worshipful & Illustrious Michael A. Kessler, 33° who is currently the Deputy Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Free & Accepted Masons of Georgia. Expectations is that he will be the Grand Master at the time of our Centennial celebration. The Grand line will also be in attendance.

Critical to this presentation is that there is a preponderance of information on the events I am about to discuss, but there is very little factual evidence. Most of what I have investigated is conjecture, opinion and speculation. Even today, we do not know what really happened on that fateful day in September 1826.

Some background:

• After the American Revolution, the State of New York was a contrast of cultures.

• New York City and the Hudson Valley had become one of the major centers of the new Republic. It was a center of culture, commerce and industrialization. The economy of this part of New York State was thriving.

• By contrast, Western New York was agriculturally based. Citizens of which were poorly educated, often with little means and suffering economically.

• The Western New Yorker tended to be highly religious and superstitious.

• Several Christian Revivals had swept the western part of the state by 1820’s known as the second great awakening. Several religious sects sprang up, not to mention the founding of the Mormon religion in Palmyra, New York (28 miles east of Rochester) in 1820 by Joseph Smith.

• Western New York in the early 1800’s also took to Freemasonry, as well

• The Northern Jurisdiction of the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry was going through a battle at this time as well, a battle that often hit the papers and gave people a poor taste in their mouth concerning Freemasonry. There were several prominent Freemasons that claimed jurisdiction for the Degrees of the Scottish Rite in and around New York. Finally, the Southern Jurisdiction sent a representative, its Treasurer General, Emanuel De La Motta, to review all claims and finally pronounced that the group headed by Antoine Bideaud be given the charter to become the Supreme Council of the 33rd Degree of the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction – That would ultimately include 17 states in the Northeast part of our country…but that is for a different story.

So, Western New York at this time was fertile ground for unrest: religious, political and fraternal.

William Morgan: He was born in Culpepper County, Virginia in 1774. He did not have much formal education. In his early teens, he became an apprentice stone-mason.

• He attempted to start several businesses without success.

• In his 40’s he married Lucinda Pendleton. Some accounts have her age at 19 and some around 15. Which even in the early 1800’s would have been considered as “robbing the cradle”.

• 2 years after his marriage he moves the family to York, Ontario, Canada and starts a Brewery. It burns down and this reduces him to poverty.

• Moves the family to Rochester, New York

• In Rochester, he gets jobs as a stone-mason/brick layer.

• It is here that he begins to claim that he was a Captain in the Virginia Militia during the War of 1812. Actual records of the roles of the Militia - there are several “William Morgan’s” but no Captain William Morgan.

• The Masonic Dictionary .com says this of William Morgan: “Few are so wicked as to be without friends; few are so good they have not their detractors. from the estimates of both enemies and friends, the years have brought an evaluation of Morgan which shows him as a shiftless rolling stone; uneducated but shrewd; careless of financial obligations: often arrested for debt; idle and impoverished; frequently the beneficiary of Masonic charity.”

• Some say he was an eavesdropper of a Lodge in Rochester.

• He moved 33 miles south west from Rochester to Batavia, New York where he got a friend, and possibly his employer, to vouch for him to join Wells Lodge No. 282 of that same village.

• There is absolutely no evidence that he ever received the Degrees or was raised as a Master Mason.

• There is records that he did receive the Royal Arch Degree on May 31, 1825 in Western Star Chapter No. 33 of Le Roy, New York.

• Given that Le Roy was over 20 miles from Batavia there were several members that petition the Grand Chapter for a charter to open a Chapter in Batavia. Initially William Morgan’s name was on the original request.

• But as suspicions grew as to his actual Masonic history, his name was removed from the petition.

• Thus, there were two things that happened that cause William Morgan’s animosity towards the Masons of Batavia. 1. The removal of his name from the petition to the Grand Chapter of New York to establish a Royal Arch Chapter in Batavia; and 2. He was denied to even bid on the brick work for a new Masonic Lodge that was going to be built in the village.

• He became friends with David Cade Miller, a Newspaper Editor in Batavia. Records indicate that Miller had been initiated as an Entered Apprentice, but was not approved to go any further. Miller owned a printing press.

• Morgan’s animosity grew. It is said that he threatened, openly and especially when he was at the local tavern, that we was going to write and publish and expose on the rituals of Freemasonry.

• In fact, after one long night of drinking with friends, he had left in a very public location a copy of an expose on Freemasonry written 1814 and a copy of the Rituals of the Bavarian Illuminati. These were returned to him, but was the center of gossip in such a small town.

• In September of 1826, David Miller’s print shop caught fire – some say it was Masons, other say Miller started the fire to flame the excitement brewing and to gain some promotion of Morgan’s soon to be published book. Both Wells Lodge No. 282 and the Royal Arch Chapter condemn the act and even offered reward for information leading to the culprit or culprits. To no avail.

• On September 11, 1826, William Morgan was arrested by the Sheriff of Niagara County, a Freemason by the name of Eli Bruce, for non-payment of a debt and stealing a shirt and a tie.

My Brethren, Hope all is well with each of you and Family.

Update on building issues,

1.) There has been a abnormal amount of water usage at the building the usage would be intermittent or continuous at different times mostly starting after or around midnight, several of the toilets would occasionally stick, we must make sure they are not running when we leave the building. 1 toilet has been repaired. As a preventive measure I installed locks on our two outside faucets.

2.) We are in the process of getting some estimates to convert one of our restrooms to be handicap accessible.

3.) Still need some help replacing some ceiling tile in the auditorium.

4.) Also, desperately need help with plaster repair in our ladies restroom.

5.) About have all the supplies to start adding pictures to our deceased Honormen wall.

6.) And anyone that has any idea of what we can do to make our building look good from the outside, please share with us, that old vinyl is so brittle it would just crack to pieces if we pressure washed it.

That's about all for now, Please contact myself or the General Secretary if you can help.

Thank You,

Fraternally & Sincerely

Harry Ross 32°, KCCH

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