THE BUILDER JUNE 1918

GEORGE FRANKLIN FORT, MASONIC HISTORIAN

BY JOHN HENRY FORT, NEW JERSEY

The following biographical sketch of Brother George Franklin Fort,
author of "The Early History and Antiquities of Freemasonry,"
written at our request by his brother, Mr. John Henry Fort of New
Jersey, is intended as an introduction to an article to appear in
the next issue of THE BUILDER, The Masonic Writings of George
Franklin Fort, by Brother Oliver D. Street of Alabama.

GEORGE FRANKLIN FORT was born at Absecon, Atlantic County, New
Jersey, on November 20th, 1843. His father was Rev. John Fort, a
member of the New Jersey Methodist Episcopal Conference, who
entered the ministry in the old days of the itinerancy and whose
father was one of the founders of the faith in New Jersey. George
Flanklin Fort was named after his uncle, Dr. George Franklin Fort,
who was Governor of New Jersey from 1851 to 1855. In later years
the State historian accredited the uncle with the authorship of the
work by confusing the names. George F. Fort was descended from an
old Norman French-Anglo-Saxon ancestry. The original Fort, or "Le
Fort," was the Captain of the Body Guard of William the Conqueror
at Hastings in 1066 and his descendents remained in England till
1695, when Roger Fort settled at Hampton-Hanover, afterwards New
Mills and now Pemberton, Burlington County, New Jersey, upon a
plantation which has remained in the family for generations. His
family settled in New Jersey when the population was probably not
over five thousand, as against nearly two million now. The period
was an epochal one in the State and the Fort family were distinctly
active in the development of the State. His great-great grandfather
on his mother's side, William Emley, was a surveyor to the Crown
and acted as Colonial Governor of New Jersey and helped to survey
the lines dividing East and West Jersey. He was quite a linguist
and of Scotch-English descent, coming from Yorkshire.

George F. Fort's family were not only very prominent in New Jersey,
in having contributed two governors to the State, both born in the
old homestead at Pemberton, but also were honored by having two
Assemblymen and one State Senator in the Legislature, and one Judge
of the Supreme Court, and two of the Court of Errors and Appeals.
The family had several ministers and physicians, all prominent, and
in the Revolutionary days contributed ten members to the
Continental Army, both the Line and Militia. With an ancestry
dating back to the Vikings and in which several languages had been
spoken, it is not surprising that George F. Fort easily acquired a
knowledge of and mastered seventeen languages and dialects. He read
Latin, French, Spanish and Italian with as much ease as English,
and amused himself with reading the works of noted writers in these
languages. He read and spoke German as fluently as English and his
several trips to Europe widened his knowledge and perfection. He
attended lectures at Heidleburg University and studied Anglo-Saxon
and several dialects for historical purposes. The acquiring of a
language with him was a sort of heredity and if no glossary was
available he would dig out certain roots from dictionaries and in
a short time would construct a grammar and glossary and soon be
reading the language as readily as English. It was a gift.

Mr. Fort studied law with Abraham Browning of Camden, then the
leading attorney of the State and at one time Attorney General,
when family prestige and ability made the appointment instead of
political influence as in modern times. While he was successful in
his practice his tastes were of a literary character and he
regularly pursued a literary course. There is no question but that
he was one of the most learned men of the century and his knowledge
was not confined to archaic research and antiquities, but was
universal. Science, belles-letters, literature, mathematics,
astronomy and ancient history, all alike claimed his attention. He
was a modest and retiring man and any attempt to draw him out or
into a discussion was fruitless, but if something happened whereby
he expressed an opinion, his erudition was apparent at once and in
a few moments extemporaneously a magnificent oration was delivered
upon any subject he spoke upon. It was like a prophet speaking and
when finished evidenced the depth of learning and greatness of
thought.

In early life he became prominent in Masonic circles and with
several friends and an older brother established Trimble Lodge No.
117, A. F. & A. M., at Camden, New Jersey, his residence. The new
lodge aimed at a higher personality than the other lodges and did
not meet with immediate success. Mr. Fort in order to infuse life
into the lodge of which he was first Senior Warden and had then
become Worshipful Master, inaugurated a series of lectures and
while others spoke, his great knowledge upon the antiquities of
Freemasonry attracted so much attention and comment that he was
urged to pursue his researches and write a work upon the subject,
which he afterwards did, first visiting the Libraries of Europe and
many of the old Cathedrals, the British Museum, Library at the
Vatican and the Bodlein at Oxford. This work was named the Early
History and Antiquities of Freemasonry. It was immediately
recognized by the literally world as the authority, and the
Encyclopedia Britannica in all succeeding editions recognized it as
authoritive and quoted it on the subject of Freemasonry.
Immediately the literary men of the world began to write him for
opinions upon other Masonic subjects and this caused him to write
"A Historical Treatise on Early Builders' Marks," and a monograph
entitled "Medieval Builders." Later he wrote the Medical Economy of
the Middle Ages. The latter was written after, as associate editor
of his brother's newspaper, he criticised the statement of a
prominent physician at the 100th Anniversary of the New Jersey
Medical Society "that medicine had no history beyond Galen and
Hippocrates," and a committee from the Association requested him to
write a history of the ancient cult.

Mr. Fort was a regular contributor to the several newspapers owned
by his youngest brother, John H. Fort, upon Masonic subjects. Some
of them were fugitive and others in series. They were copied in the
Masonic Journals of France, England, Australia, and the leading
magazines, and often created a learned controversy, but his
knowledge of languages always enabled him to give authoritive data.
Some of the critics thought he should literally translate his
authorities, as but few could read the original. This he always
refrained from doing as he claimed the quotation was the authority.
Among his correspondents were such men as Hughan, Gould, Woodford
and other Masonic writers and antiquarians. His books were reviewed
by all the great newspapers of the world such as the New York
Herald, Sun, Times, World, the London Times, Globe, Blackwoods
Magazine and Masonic Journals, the Chaine d'Union of Paris, the
Melbourne Australian, all the Philadelphia papers, especially the
Ledger, Press, Record, Bulletin, Telegraph and the Keystone. Gould,
the Masonic writer, said of him "Fort has succeeded where all
others failed in making the study of our antiquities an interesting
task." Other writers said "his history of Freemasonry is as
interesting as a Romance of the Middle Ages." The Golden Age of New
York characterizes it as "a work of which members of the craft may
well be proud." The Encyclopedia Britannica says of it, "the book
is instructive as throwing light on certain phases of Middle Age
life." In fact the newspaper criticisms are all highly eulogistic
and place the History as the highest contribution to Masonic
literature. All his other works were just as favorably received by
the press of the world. The criticisms are in many languages and
would fill a volume in themselves. In a scrap book of Mr. Fort's
are not only the notices of the press but letters in many languages
from the literatti of the world and most of his fugitive articles
which are well worth publishing collectively in book form. All his
other works were equally as well received. Mr. Fort has been
compared to such writers as Hallam, Draper, Lecky, Macauley, and
other archaic, historic and antiquarian writers, and all refer to
his writings as showing vast erudition and research.

George F. Fort was primarily educated in the Public Schools of New
Jersey in the various towns his father was stationed at as a
pastor, and afterwards graduated from Pennington Seminary, a
Methodist Institution of learning, under the direction of the New
Jersey Annual Conference. His after studies of the various
languages and literature were by his own effort and attendance of
lectures abroad and by visits to European Institutions of Learning.
Mr. Fort has given to America the credit of being the standard
writer upon Masonic and Medical histories.

Mr. Fort was a member of Trimble Lodge No. 117, A. F. & A. M., of
which he was practically the founder. He was the first Senior
Warden and Second Worshipful Master. He lived to see the lodge
become the largest in membership in New Jersey. He was a Knight
Templar, belonging to Cyrene Commandery Vale (No. 7) of Camden,
Vanhook Council No. 8, Royal and Select Masters, Siloam Chapter
Royal Arch Masons, Excelsior Consistory 32nd Degree, and all the
intermediate Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite degrees. It has been
stated that he was also a 33rd Degree Mason, it having been
conferred upon him in Europe.

In December, 1877, York Lodge of England in recognition of his
great services to Freemasonry, conferred upon him Honorary Life
Membership and sent him a specially engraved certificate bearing a
picture of the crypt in York Minster where the lodge anciently met.
The original certificate from York Lodge is now in possession of
Trimble Lodge No. 117 of Camden.

Mr. Fort spent a long time in Europe on different trips and was
well acquainted there in Masonic circles. He was made the Grand
Representative of the Grand Lodge of England to the Grand Lodge of
New Jersey by the then Prince of Wales, Grand Master of Masons of
England, who afterwards became the King of England as Edward VII.

George F. Fort died at the home of his nephew while on a visit at
Atlantic City, a few miles from where he was born, on March 30th,
1909. Mr. Fort was practically a recluse the latter years of his
life. His health was poor and his literary tastes naturally caused
him to avoid society. For years he was editor of the Keystone, a
Masonic Journal published in Philadelphia, and a contributor to the
America Notes and Queries and several newspapers published by his
brother John H. Fort. Some time before his death he told a friend
he had finished a History of Norse Mythology and claimed he had in
the destruction of the God Baldur by the other Mythological Norse
Gods discovered the origin of the story of Hiram Abif. He stated
the work was ready for the printer but he was holding it back as he
had been unable to secure a font of Norse type and was afraid he
would have to have it cast to give the data exact. Since his death
no trace has so far been found of the manuscript. In all
probability this valuable history may be lost and the researches of
a master mind for nearly a half century gone to waste. His scrap
book would be a most interesting publication if edited by someone
skilled in Masonic lore. There are many articles of rare interest
that never got beyond local readers.

Mr. Fort's works are on the shelves of most all the prominent
libraries of the world, such as the East India Library, British
Museum, Congressional Library at Washington, and Institutions of
learning everywhere, and thousands of private libraries. His own
library was entirely filled with works in foreign languages and
were upon historic, antiquarian and archaic subjects. He was at one
time Judge Advocate of the Sixth Regiment National Guard of New
Jersey with rank of Captain.

