Old Masonic Cross

Ohio, the Grand Master of Ohio, Charles S. Hoskinson, made soon-to-be-25th President William Taft a “Mason at sight.” Taft later affiliated with Kilwinning Lodge No. 356 in Cincinnati, the same lodge that his father had joined. Roosevelt expressed this sentiment in a 1935 speech to members of Architect Lodge No. 519 on the day his sons, Franklin and James, were raised as Master Masons.

The fourth president and Freemason from Ohio, Harding was initiated into Marion Lodge No. 70, in Marion, Ohio, in 1901. He became a Master Mason in 1920, one year before being elected 28th president. In 1921, the Scottish Rite Supreme Council of the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction elected Harding to receive the 33rd Degree at their annual meeting in Cleveland.

Due to illness and his schedule, Harding was unable to attend the meeting. He died in office in 1923, before receiving the degree. The photograph right, shows the 33rd Degree jewel crafted for Harding. Harry Truman (32nd President) was initiated into Belton Lodge, No. 450 in Belton, Missouri, in 1909. Dedicated to Freemasonry, Truman helped to organize Grandview Lodge No. 618, also in Missouri, and filled the role as its first Worshipful Master. He later served as the Grand Master of Masons in Missouri in 1940. Truman was also a member of the Knights Templar, Royal Arch, and Shrine, and was a 33° Scottish Rite Mason.

In 1949, Gerald Ford was initiated into Malta Lodge No. 465 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He was raised a Master Mason by Columbia Lodge No. 3 in Washington, D.C. in 1951. Ford continued his lifelong commitment to Freemasonry and joined the Saladin Shriners in Kentwood, Michigan, in 1959. In 1962, he was made a 33° Scottish Rite Mason and Honorary Member of the Supreme Council A.A.S.R., NMJ. Ford is pictured above with Barnett Samuels, Potentate Fred Spencer, and Recorder Harvey B. Leggee (1901-1989), members of Aleppo Temple in Wilmington, Massachusetts, in the 1970s.

In 1911, Franklin Roosevelt (31st President) was initiated into Holland Lodge No. 8 in New York City. He remained an active Mason throughout his life. His three sons, Elliott (1919-1990), Franklin Jr. (1914-1988), and James (1907-1991) were also Masons and members of Architect Lodge No. 519 in New York City.

I have come in contact with Brother Masons throughout this country, and I have seen the splendid work that Masonry is doing for our fellowmen.