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               THE BALTIMORE CONVENTION OF 1843
                     By Bob J Jensen, MPS
                                
               The Baltimore Convention of 1843 had long lasting and
          important effects on Masonry in the United States, including
          the idea of standardizing the ritual among all Grand Lodges,
          the idea of a General Grand Lodge and a plan for the various
          Grand Lodges to solve mutual problems through future
          conventions.   The results of the convention did not meet the
          expectations of many of the organizers, but to understand the
          need for such a program it is necessary to go back and look at
          what had transpired in Masonry in the United States since the
          1780's.  
               In 1778, some members of Pennsylvania had suggested
          that George Washington should become Grand Master of all
          the American States, and in 1779 Pennsylvania passed a
          resolution to that effect.  The Massachusetts Grand Master
          agreed, but was concerned about the prerogatives of present
          Grand Lodge Officers, and this idea died out, although over
          the next fifty years it was revived many times, always with less
          interest and no success.
                    The ritual of Masonry was always one of the most
          important parts of the system and often brought strong feelings
          among its members to the surface.  The original Rituals of
          Anderson, Dunckerly, Preston and others were changed
          slightly as they evolved until 1797 when Thomas Smith Webb
          wrote his "Freemasons    Monitor."  This and other adaptations
          spread across the United States in the early 1800's, while
          there were still many variations used in different areas. 
          Massachusetts and New Hampshire went so far as to adopt a
          resolution in 1802 that said  "In the three degrees, each
          Master should be indulged with the liberty of adopting
          historical details, and the personification of the passing scene,
          as most agreeable to himself, his supporting officers and
          assisting Lodge."  Other similar references can be found
          indicating that the Ritual and Grand Lodge regulations and
          rules were many and varied and there were little variations
          which made for disputes among Masons in visiting different
          Lodges than their own.  Many Grand Lodges adopted various
          forms of traveling lecturers, or as they were sometimes called
          "degree peddlers."  Many of these men made their living
          visiting Lodges, and for a fee, would teach the Lodge members
          whatever system of ritual they themselves believed was
          correct, or often some version of the Webb work.  With no
          written ritual, the variations were many, the arguments must
          have been also, and as men moved westward they took their
          favorite ritual, sometimes with their own modifications, further
          confusing the situation.
               On March 9, 1822, a group of Freemasons, who were
          members of Congress, instigated a move for unification by
          calling for a General Grand Lodge and called for a Conference
          to be held in February of 1823 in Washington.  Strong
          opposition by Pennsylvania, New York and Kentucky stopped
          this plan before it was begun.          The Morgan Affair of
          1826  saw the rise of the Anti-Masonic Party, degree exposes
          and the general decline of Masonry in most of the New
          England states,  The first National Convention of the Anti-
          Masonic Party met in 1830 with delegates from nine states
          present. 1832 saw them nominate William Wirt for President. 
          He had received at least his Fellowcraft Degree and had
          spoken favorably about Masonry.  Henry Clay, a Past Grand
          Master of Kentucky and Andrew Jackson, a Past Grand Master
          of Tennessee were also candidates with Jackson winning the
          election. In 1836 the Anti-Masonic party nominated William
          Henry Harrison, who was defeated by Martin Van Buren, with
          Jackson's help.  The Anti-Masonic Party ceased to exist after
          this time. In Kentucky during this period, the sixty-six Lodges
          of the state had dropped to thirty-seven and the membership
          had been cut in half.  Similar situations existed in many Grand
          Lodges.  Pennsylvania noted that the Anti-Masons offered
          rituals, passwords, etc. for all degrees, making it very difficult
          to tell who was actually a Mason.   Many Lodges turned away
          visitors because they could not prove themselves according to
          the work used by that particular Lodge. Many Lodges had lost
          so many members to resignation and death since the Morgan
          Affair,  that when they resumed labor in the late 1830's and
          early 1840's, there were not enough members who
          remembered the work.  The younger generation was given
          very poor instruction and visitations were very difficult between
          Lodges and Grand Lodges.
               The Grand Lodge of Alabama meeting in 1839, voted to
          request all Grand Lodges to send a delegate to the City of
          Washington on the first Monday in March 1842, "for the
          purpose of determining upon a uniform mode of work
          throughout all the Lodges  of the United States and to make
          other lawful regulations for the interest and security of the
          Craft."  This Convention was held on March 7, 1842 in the
          Central Masonic Hall in Washington with ten Grand Lodges
          represented.  These were Alabama, Connecticut, District of
          Columbia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New
          York, Rhode Island, South Carolina and Virginia. Michigan
          was not seated, as it was determined that the delegate was not
          chosen under constitutional principles.  After due
          consideration, it was decided  that not enough Grand Lodges
          were represented and that there was not enough time to
          formulate a uniform ritual that would be acceptable to all
          Grand Lodges.  They voted to ask each Grand Lodge to
          appoint some well-versed Mason and style him as a Grand
          Lecturer to report to a Convention to be held the following
          year.  The Convention then resolved that should a majority of
          the Grand Lodges adopt the appointment of Grand Lecturers, 
          their first meeting should be  held in the city of Baltimore May
          8, 1843. They also recommended that each Grand Lodge give
          a certificate of good standing to each member, and that all
          business be transacted in the third degree, as it was felt that
          "Entered Apprentices and Fellowcrafts were not members of
          the Lodge and not entitled to the franchises of members."
               The 1843 Convention was held on May 8, 1843 and met
          until May 17th.  Of the  twenty-three Grand Lodges in the
          United States, sixteen were represented.  Grand Lodges and
          their delegates present were Alabama - Edward Herndon,
          PGM; District of Columbia - Nathanial Seevers, Grand
          Lecturer; Florida - Thomas Hayward, PDGM; Georgia - Lemuel
          Dwelle, GL; Louisiana - E. Cruben (a visitor); Maryland -
          Daniel Piper, GL; W.E. Wyantt, Chaplain of the Convention;
          Charles Gilman (a visitor); Cornelius Smith S.G.W. (a visitor);
          and Joseph Stapleton D.G.M of the Grand Encampment (a
          visitor).  Massachusetts - Charles W. Moore, G.Secretary;
          Missouri - Stephen W.B. Carnegy, PGM; Joseph Foster, SGW;
          Fred'k. Billon, PGS (a visitor); and Hiram Chamberlain, GC (a
          visitor); Mississippi - John Delafield GL; New Hampshire -
          Thomas Clapham; North Carolina - John H. Wheeler, GM;
          New York - Ebenezer Wadsworth, PGS; Ohio - John Barney,
          GL and W.J. Reese, GM (a visitor); Rhode Island - William
          Field; South Carolina - Albert Case, GC; South Wales -
          Edward John Hutchins PPD (a visitor) and Virginia - John
          Dove, GS.  On the opening day John Dove was elected
          president and Rev. Albert Case of South Carolina was made
          Secretary. On the second day, an agenda was adopted
          declaring the objects and purposes were:
          1. To produce uniformity of Masonic work.
          2. To recommend such measures as shall tend to the elevation
          of this Order to its due degree of respect throughout the world
          at large.
          
               No mention was made of the often quoted charge that
          the Convention planned to organize a General Grand Lodge. 
          During the proceeding year, several Grand Lodges had made
          changes discussed at the 1842 meeting.  Maryland ordered
          the Grand Secretary to procure certificates of good standing
          for Master Masons.  Lodges in Virginia started conducting their
          business in the Master Mason Degree, and many appointed
          the recommended Grand Lecturers.
               To accomplish the above stated proposals, four
          Committees were appointed:
          1. On the work and lectures in conferring the degrees.
          2. On the Funeral service.
          3. On the ceremonies and Consecration and Installation.
          4. On Masonic Jurisprudence.
               The various Committees met and reported their ideas.
          The Committee on work and lecturers gave a report and
          exemplified each degree that was adopted by the delegates.
          The Committee on Consecrations and Installations reported
          that the work of Thomas Smith Webb, republished in 1812,
          possessed the least faults and had a high claim to antiquity. 
          They did recommend six  minor changes, three of them in the
          Installation ceremony.  The only change of consequence was
          in the due guards of the second and third degrees, which were
          changed and made to conform to that of the first degree in
          position and explanation.  According to the old system in
          England, the immovable jewels of the Lodge are the Rough
          Ashlar, Perfect Ashlar and Trestle Board.  This Convention of
          1843 changed that to consist of the Square, Level and Plumb. 
          They also adopted a resolution to prepare and publish at an
          early date, a text book, to be called "The Masonic
          Trestleboard," to embrace three distinct, full and complete
          Masonic Carpets, illustrative of the three degrees of ancient
          Craft Masonry; together with the ceremonies of consecrations,
          dedications and installation; laying of cornerstones of public
          edifices; the funeral service and order of processions...... The
          Committee on Jurisprudence said that the reason this
          convention had been called was to remove various evils of the
          system.   That because of the actions of individual Grand
          Lodges and lack of unity between them, the purity and unity of
          the work prevalent in Europe was therefore missing.  To
          correct these evils, the committee had considered two plans:
          1. A General Grand Lodge of the United States.
          2. A triennial convention of representatives of the several
          Grand Lodges of the United States.
               It went on to state, that they recommended the second
          course of action, which will best attain the ends proposed. 
          Contrary to popular belief the 1843 Convention did NOT
          recommend the establishment of a General Grand Lodge. 
          They did recommend that   the several Grand Lodges enter
          into and form a National Masonic Convention.  They also
          recommended that for the good of Masonry there should be a
          publication devoted to Masonry, and they suggested that the
          FREEMASON'S MONTHLY, edited and published by Charles
          W. Moore of Boston, Massachusetts was  eminently useful and
          well-deserving of generous patronage, support and study of
          the whole fraternity.
               The next Convention was called for 1846, at the  city of
          Winchester, Virginia, but there were only eight delegates
          present.  The next Convention was called for September 23,
          1847 to be again held in Baltimore.  This time only seven
          jurisdictions were represented.  The Secretary was  instructed
          to send  copies of a constitution to all jurisdictions, with the
          instructions that if sixteen were in approval of the constitution
          as written before January 1, 1849, they would hold their next
          convention on the second Tuesday of July in 1849.  Not
          enough passed it  to hold the meeting.  The idea of a General
          Grand Lodge arose again to unify Masonry and solve many
          small problems as they arose.  Further efforts to meet were
          planned for 1855 and 1859, but were not held.  The coming
          Civil War of the 1860's made this a dead issue and it was not
          until Rob Morris and the Conservator movement that we again
          see attempts to really standardize the Ritual.
               In 1909, Most Worshipful Joseph W. Eggleston
          extended an invitation to the several Grand  Masters of the
          United States to assemble at Alexandria Virginia on February
          22, 1910 for the purpose of organizing a national Masonic
          Memorial Association with the object of erecting a memorial to
          George Washington.  Twenty-six  Grand Jurisdictions met and
          adopted a plan to create what eventually became the
          magnificent memorial we now have to the Father of our
          country.  World War I saw a need for Masons to help
          servicemen.  The United States Government would not let
          each Grand Lodge get involved, so eventually the Masonic
          Service Association of the United States was begun.  These
          were not Supreme or General Grand Lodges, and the Grand
          Lodges that did join in these activities did so with the express
          idea that no such suggestion would be proposed.
               What did the 1843 Baltimore Convention accomplish? 
          A generally uniform Ritual, although many Grand Lodges
          made changes, and those new Grand Lodges formed after this
          time often used various parts of different Rituals they were
          familiar with, as their members came from many different
          areas.  A Dues Card or Certificate of Membership was
          generally used after that time.  The due guards of the 2nd and
          3rd degrees were made to conform to that of the first degree
          and the immovable jewels were changed.  Recently several
          Grand Lodges went  back to working their business meetings
          in the first degree, allowing first and second degree members
          the privilege of voting and being full members, usually with the
          exemption of being Officers.  Small changes still are made in
          the Ritual at various times.  In recent years no call has come
          for a General Grand Lodge, and although some benefits might
          come from such an organization, all Grand Lodges jealously
          guard their own prerogatives and would not willingly give up
          their sovereignty to such an organization.  The Baltimore
          Convention of 1843 was important as it did give some
          unification to the various Grand Lodges of the period, it gave
          them a place to iron out differences, it gave them a generally
          unified Ritual although Pennsylvania did not accept it, and
          others made changes as they thought best.  It gave possibly
          the best minds in Masonry a chance to get together and
          discuss their various problems, and although they could not
          solve all of them, they succeeded in a more unified Masonry
          than had been seen since before the Morgan Affair of 1826.
          
           BIBLIOGRAPHY
          
          Short Talk Bulletin January 1936, Masonic Service Association 
               Baltimore Convention of 1843.  Henry C. Chiles.
          Short Talk Bulletin October 1986, Masonic Service Association
               The Convention That Changed the Face of Masonry. 
          Allen E. Roberts FPS.
          Conversations on Masonry.  Henry W. Coil 1976
          Freemasonry in American History.  Allen E. Roberts FPS, 1985
          Stalwart Builders - A History of the Grand Lodge of
          Massachusetts.  Thomas Sherrard Roy, 1980
          Master Builders, Pennsylvania  Vol 1. 1731-1873.  Wayne A
          Huss      1986
          Kentucky Freemasonry 1788-1978.  Charles Snow Guthrie,
          1981
          Goodly Heritage - 150 years of Freemasonry in Indiana. 
          Dwight L. Smith  1968 
          
          
          EDITOR'S NOTE:
          Bro. Bob J Jensen is the Worshipful Master of the Walter F
          Meier Lodge of Research No.281 Grand Lodge of Washington