“To all Brethren through the world” American Masonic Traveling Certificates

by Jeffrey Croteau, Director of the Van Gorden-Williams Library and Archives

Cover Photo: Master Mason certificate issued to James Harding, 1756. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Gift of the Supreme Council of the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction of the Scottish Rite, A1990/036/001. https://digitalvgw.omeka. net/items/show/881

Freemasons have long used words, grips, and tokens to identify themselves to other members of the Fraternity. For nearly three centuries, Brethren have also carried official documents to further prove their Masonic membership when they are far from home. Masonic lodges in the American colonies began issuing credentials to members and new initiates in the mid-1700s. These documents, when presented at another lodge, helped demonstrate that the holder was a Mason in good standing—a Brother entitled to a warm welcome, hospitality, and, in some cases, charity.

Until the end of the 1700s, Masonic certificates were not issued as a matter of course, but only if requested. Recognized by their fellow lodge Brethren, members did not need a certificate to attend meetings at their home lodge. A Masonic Brother who relocated or who was traveling might want a certificate to help him verify his status as a Mason. Certificates from the handful of lodges that met in North America in the mid-1700s, if issued at all, were handwritten, rather than printed, documents. They could be folded up into a small rectangle – about the size of an index card – that could fit in a pocket or pouch.

32° Scottish Rite Northern Masonic Jurisdiction certificate issued to Wayne Edwin Stichter, 1930. Boston, Massachusetts. Gift of Richard H. Curtis, A2000/033/001. https://digitalvgw.omeka.net/items/show/987 Master Mason certificate issued to Samuel Derby, 1796. Salem, Massachusetts. Museum Purchase, A1984/021/001. https://digitalvgw.omeka. net/items/show/397

The oldest Masonic certificate in the Scottish Rite Masonic Museum & Library’s collection was originally issued to James Harding by Philadelphia Lodge No. 2 in 1756. Measuring approximately 11 x 14 inches, the certificate’s fold lines indicate that it was once folded into a rectangle about 3 x 5 inches, easy to tuck away when traveling. Samuel Derby carried a certificate that was issued forty years later, in 1796. Derby’s certificate is a printed document. It proclaimed “To all Brethren through the world” that he had received the Master Mason degree at Essex Lodge in Salem, Massachusetts. This certificate’s design reflected Essex Lodge’s many seafaring members’ interest in the world; the four allegorical figures at the bottom represent the continents of Africa, America, Asia, and Europe. Lines show that Derby’s certificate was folded into eighths.

During the 19th century and into the 20th, many Freemasons continued to carry traveling certificates. In some cases, such as Arthur Anton Pearson’s Master Mason certificate, issued by the Grand Lodge of Maine, the certificates were pasted into a pocket-sized cover so that they could be protected and easily carried. For years, many members of the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction were issued both a large presentation-style certificate and a portable traveling certificate. Many members, including the Valley of Toledo’s Wayne Edwin Stitcher, carried their traveling certificates with them and asked fellow Scottish Rite Brothers to sign them. Stichter’s certificate, dated 1930, functioned not only as a way of identifying himself as a Scottish Rite Mason, but also as a personalized souvenir of his participation in Masonic activities.

Master Mason certificate issued to Samuel Derby, 1796. Salem, Massachusetts. Museum Purchase, A1984/021/001. https://digitalvgw.omeka. net/items/show/397

Gradually, the Masonic dues card has come to function like a traveling certificate. Proving that members are paid up on their dues, these wallet-sized cards can help a Mason establish his membership to Brethren throughout the world, just as James Harding’s certificate did over two hundred and fifty years ago.

Master Mason certificate issued to Arthur Anton Pearson, 1942. Portland, Maine. Gift of Linda Barrows, A1997/085/001. https://digitalvgw.omeka.net/items/show/930

The Van Gorden-Williams Library & Archives is located in Lexington, Massachusetts, at the Scottish Rite Masonic Museum & Library and is open to the public.