St. John's Lodge celebrates 250th anniversary - NorthJersey.com

John's Lodge celebrates 250th anniversary - NorthJersey.com

PARSIPPANY LIFEFRIDAY, MAY 27, 2011
On May 14, people gathered at Parsippany Hilton to celebrate an event 250 years in the making. St. John's Lodge 1 of Free and Accepted Masons held a 250th anniversary gala to commemorate its distinction as being the oldest Masonic Lodge in New Jersey.

PHOTO COURTESY OF DAVID BERGER

Most Worshipful William L. Morris Jr., left, grand master of Masons for the Jurisdiction of New Jersey, holds the Charter to St. John's Lodge 1 Free and Accepted Masons, with Right Worshipful Harold Buchanan, right, worshipful master of St. John's Lodge on the 250th anniversary of the lodge, established in 1761.

Freemasonry has been woven throughout the nation's history, including many notable Masonic leaders like 15 U.S. presidents starting with General George Washington, who at one time used some of the furniture and equipment from St. John's Lodge to create a military lodge room so he and some of his entrusted brethren could hold Masonic meetings between battles in Morristown back to the days of the Revolutionary War.
The evening included dedication ceremonies by a Benjamin Franklin re-enactor and a personal visit by Most Worshipful William L. Morris Jr., grand master of Masons for the Jurisdiction of New Jersey,
St. John's Lodge in Mountain Lakes was established on May 13, 1761, in Newark. Through the years, it merged with three other Masonic Lodges inParsippany, Boonton and Mountain Lakes to form the lodge that exists now.
The lodge was created more than 25 years before the Grand Lodge of New Jersey was established by St. John's Lodge 1 of the Grand Lodge or New York, the same lodge that owns the Bible that several presidents have taken the oath of office on, as did George Washington.
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