Helion Lodge 1

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Coordinates: 34°43′49″N 86°34′53″W / 34.73029°N 86.58127°W / 34.73029; -86.58127
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Helion Lodge Building (2006)

Helion Lodge #1 is a Masonic lodge in Huntsville, Alabama. It is the oldest operating lodge of Freemasons in the state. According to Grand Historian Joseph Abram Jackson's Masonry in Alabama, it is "the birthplace of Freemasonry in Alabama." Helion Lodge is also the common name for the building (actually named Eunomia Hall for Eunomia Chapter #5 Royal Arch Masons who financed its construction), built in 1911, where the lodge meets.

History[edit]

In 1805, a Revolutionary War veteran named John Hunt built a log cabin at the Big Spring and began what would grow to become the modern city of Huntsville, Alabama. Just six years later, on August 21, 1811, Madison Lodge #21 received its dispensation from the Grand Lodge of Kentucky. In 1812, it received its official charter from the Grand Lodge of Kentucky. John Hunt was among the first members, as was LeRoy Pope, who had given the city its original name of Twickenham. On April 6, 1818, a second Lodge was formed in the county, Bethesda Lodge #2. In 1824 the two Lodges combined as Helion Lodge #1 under the Grand Lodge of Alabama.

Helion Lodge survived the dark years of the American Civil War, when Huntsville was often occupied by the invading Union Army. The quiet little town grew rapidly after World War II, when the area became host to both Redstone Arsenal and the Marshall Spaceflight Center. Notable members involved in the growth of Huntsville's defense and space industry are Senator John Sparkman and Mayor Joe W. Davis. Helion Lodge soon came to have the largest membership in the state. As a result, in 1962 a new Lodge was formed in Huntsville, Solar Lodge #914. Most of the members came from Helion Lodge. Five years later, in 1967, a third Huntsville Lodge was formed, Apollo #921. Both younger Lodges consider Helion as their mother Lodge and dual membership is common.

On Wednesday night, August 30th, 1922, Helion was the location of the formation of Twickenham Chapter of The Order of DeMolay; the first chapter of The Order of DeMolay in the state of Alabama.

Past Masters 1811 to Present Day[edit]

Number No. (Years) Past Master Ref.
1811 Marmaduke Williams Madison Lodge 21, Grand Lodge of Kentucky Dispensation
1 1812 Louis Winston Madison Lodge 21, Grand Lodge of Kentucky Charter
1813-1817 David R. Moore Madison Lodge 21
1-2 1818-1820 William Atwood Alabama Lodge 21, Grand Lodge of Tennessee Charter
1821 Alexander Erskin Grand Lodge of Alabama Formed
1822 W. Thomas Wooldridge Madison Lodge 1
1823 W. J. Grimes Madison Lodge 1
1822-1823 W. A. Hutchinson Bethesda Lodge 2
1824 W. J. Grimes Madison Lodge 1
1824 Issac Williams Bethesda Lodge 2
1 1824 Issac Williams Helion Lodge 1 Consolidation of Madison Lodge #1 and Bethesda Lodge #2
2-3 1825-1826 William Feeny Helion Lodge 1
4-5 1827-1828 John J. Fackler Helion Lodge 1
6 1829 William Feeny Helion Lodge 1
7 1830 John Acklen Helion Lodge 1
8-13 1831-1836 W. A. Hutchinson Helion Lodge 1
14-19 1837-1842 James Penn Helion Lodge 1
20 1843 Ellison Smith Helion Lodge 1
21-22 1844-1845 James Penn ,MWGM Helion Lodge 1
23-24 1846-1847 J. M. Davidson Helion Lodge 1
25 1848 Arch E. Mills Helion Lodge 1
26 1849 J. M. Davidson Helion Lodge 1
27 1850 Fred Gate Helion Lodge 1
28-29 1851-1852 J. J. Sample Helion Lodge 1
30 1853 J. F. Steele Helion Lodge 1
31-39 1854-1862 William Gormley Helion Lodge 1
40-41 1863-1864 J. E. Young Helion Lodge 1
42 1865 E. B. Clapp Helion Lodge 1
43-46 1866-1869 J. J. Dement Helion Lodge 1
47-48 1870-1871 S. J. Mayhew Helion Lodge 1
49 1872 M. C. Baldridge Helion Lodge 1
50 1873 W. S. Reddick Helion Lodge 1
51-52 1874-1875 Bernard F. Ludwig Helion Lodge 1
53-54 1876-1877 M. C. Baldridge Helion Lodge 1
55-57 1878-1880 John L. Rison Helion Lodge 1
58-64 1881-1887 M. C. Baldridge Helion Lodge 1
65 1888 W. C. Weaver Helion Lodge 1
66-68 1889-1891 M. C. Baldridge Helion Lodge 1
69-70 1892-1893 Amos B. Jones Helion Lodge 1
71 1894 Thomas Taylor Helion Lodge 1
72 1895 Joseph Skinner Helion Lodge 1
73 1896 Alred Moore Helion Lodge 1
74-76 1897-1899 W. C. Wheeler Helion Lodge 1
77 1900 L. R. Wellman Helion Lodge 1
78 1901 W. C. Wheeler Helion Lodge 1
79-80 1902-1903 H. C. Pollard Helion Lodge 1
81 1904 Augustus F. Evans Helion Lodge 1
82 1905 Frank Ford Helion Lodge 1
83 1906 F. P. Culver Helion Lodge 1
84-85 1907-1908 Leroy Suggs Helion Lodge 1
86 1909 Robert Coman Brickell Helion Lodge 1
87-88 1910-1911 James Hamilton Ballentine Helion Lodge 1
89 1912 H. C. Pollard Helion Lodge 1
90 1913 J. W. Battle Helion Lodge 1
91-93 1914-1916 J. L. Kendall Helion Lodge 1
94 1917 A. F. Kendall Helion Lodge 1
95 1918 G. H. Heymann Helion Lodge 1
96-97 1919-1920 Alex M. Dunn Helion Lodge 1
98 1921 J. B. McCord Helion Lodge 1
99 1922 W. R. Laxson Helion Lodge 1
100-101 1923-1924 Samuel C. Alexander Helion Lodge 1
102-103 1925-1926 Sam S. Rice Helion Lodge 1
104 1927 Charles. O. Rolfe Helion Lodge 1
105 1928 Robert C. Chase Helion Lodge 1
106 1929 F. J. Shick Helion Lodge 1
107 1930 James D. Rice, Jr. Helion Lodge 1
108-109 1931-1932 John S. McLure Helion Lodge 1
110-111 1933-1934 William B. Allen Helion Lodge 1
112 1935 P. S. McCormick Helion Lodge 1
113 1936 Joe B. Hill Helion Lodge 1
114 1937 Cowan Y. Wilson Helion Lodge 1
115 1938 T. Pickens Gates Helion Lodge 1
116 1939 F. Floyd Broyles Helion Lodge 1
117 1940 John S. McLure Helion Lodge 1
118-119 1941-1942 Henry R. Martin Helion Lodge 1
120-121 1943-1944 Clyde Martz Helion Lodge 1
122 1945 Abe Pizitz Helion Lodge 1
123 1946 Clyde Martz Helion Lodge 1
124 1947 Jasan A. Williams Helion Lodge 1
125 1948 John W. Walker Helion Lodge 1
126 1949 William B. Allen Helion Lodge 1
127 1950 John H. McGaha Helion Lodge 1
128 1951 Louie L. Baucom Helion Lodge 1
129 1952 William B. Jones Helion Lodge 1
130 1953 E. H. Hall Helion Lodge 1
131 1954 William H. Ealy Helion Lodge 1
132 1955 D. Shelby Vaughn Helion Lodge 1
133 1956 Doyle W. Ealy Helion Lodge 1
134 1957 William A. Cobb Helion Lodge 1
135 1958 Dan L. Warden Helion Lodge 1
136 1959 J. D. Harris Helion Lodge 1
137 1960 W. L. Guthrie Helion Lodge 1
138 1961 John Clark Beeler Helion Lodge 1
139 1962 Wendell McKinney Helion Lodge 1
140 1963 Carl Pickens Helion Lodge 1
141 1964 Randolph Rush Helion Lodge 1
142 1965 Robert F. Jean Helion Lodge 1
143 1966 James Walter Bass Helion Lodge 1
144 1967 James G. Williams Helion Lodge 1
145 1968 William W. Byrd Helion Lodge 1
146 1969 Charles D. Rozell Helion Lodge 1
147 1970 Charles Keathley Helion Lodge 1
148 1971 Emory J. Ferguson Helion Lodge 1
149 1972 Marlin Hinkle Helion Lodge 1
150 1973 Hubert Lemaster Helion Lodge 1
151 1974 Hollis L. Sharp Helion Lodge 1
152 1975 R. M. Slaughter Helion Lodge 1
153 1976 Robert J. Cannon Helion Lodge 1
154 1977 Fred Allen Beddingfield Helion Lodge 1
155 1978 Clarence W. Landrum Helion Lodge 1
156 1979 Robert Kachelhofer Helion Lodge 1
157 1980 Ronald W. Thomas Helion Lodge 1
158 1981 B. J. Nelson Helion Lodge 1
159 1982 Alvie Lee Berry Helion Lodge 1
160 1983 David Allen Helion Lodge 1
161 1984 Lee D. Parker Helion Lodge 1
162 1985 Johnie Wilbanks Helion Lodge 1
163 1986 James Garry Smith Helion Lodge 1
164 1987 James Wesley Reach Helion Lodge 1
165 1988 Wayne Dee Jordan Helion Lodge 1
166 1989 Clarence Morrison Albright Helion Lodge 1
167 1990 Donald Douglas Beal Helion Lodge 1
168 1991 David K. Hall Helion Lodge 1
169 1992 Charles R. Kirch Helion Lodge 1
170 1993 James Shelby Aston Helion Lodge 1
171 1994 John W. Herron Helion Lodge 1
172 1995 Danny B. Lamont Helion Lodge 1
173 1996 E. J. Wadsworth Helion Lodge 1
174 1997 Theo Starkey Helion Lodge 1
175 1998 Raymond Charles Dunn Helion Lodge 1
176 1999 James S. Blanteno Helion Lodge 1
177 2000 George Hall Helion Lodge 1
178 2001 John Pavlick Helion Lodge 1
179 2002 David Milam Helion Lodge 1
180 2003 Raymond Tanner Helion Lodge 1
181 2004 James Henley Helion Lodge 1
182 2005 Dennis Peterson Helion Lodge 1
183 2006 Larry Gilliss Helion Lodge 1
184 2007 Andy Thomas Helion Lodge 1
185 2008 Steve McGlocklin Helion Lodge 1
186 2009 Michael Feld Helion Lodge 1
187 2010 Jerry Burpee Helion Lodge 1
188 2011 Ed Kachelhofer Helion Lodge 1
189 2012 Ken Carpenter Helion Lodge 1
190 2013 David Miller Helion Lodge 1
191 2014 Jared Cassidy Helion Lodge 1
192 2015 George Lewis Helion Lodge 1
193 2016 Dean Lilja Helion Lodge 1
194 2017 John Hood Helion Lodge 1
195 2018 Mike Morgan Helion Lodge 1
196 2019 Doug Collinsworth Helion Lodge 1
197 2020 John D. Pennington Helion Lodge 1
198 2021 Thomas Jeffrey Beasley Helion Lodge 1
199 2022 Benjamin James Ledford Helion Lodge 1
200 2023 John Leslie Clay Helion Lodge 1

Honorary Past Masters[edit]

Number Year Honorary Past Master Ref.
Richard Carter Storey Helion Lodge 1
Herschel Leonard Ouzts Helion Lodge 1

Location[edit]

Helion Lodge stands on the original site of Madison Lodge #21 at 409 Lincoln Street in the Twickenham Historic District of Huntsville. The present building is over 100 years old and was designed by a noted architect and Lodge member named Edgar Love. The cornerstone was laid in 1911.[1]

The building was officially named Eunomia Masonic Hall after the Royal Arch Chapter, but is now simply called Helion Lodge. It is home to both Helion Lodge and the Huntsville York Rite bodies, as well as to Twickenham-Milford Order of DeMolay and to White Light Assembly #66, International Order of the Rainbow for Girls. It is the home of the oldest Lodge of Freemasons in the state of Alabama.[2]

Awards[edit]

Helion Lodge received the Masonic Service Association of North America's Mark Twain Award for Masonic Awareness in the lodge and in the community consecutively for the years 2008, 2009, and 2010.[3][4][5] Helion Lodge received the Twain Award again in 2012.[6] Helion Lodge is the only four time recipient of the Twain Award for Masonic Awareness.

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ "Timeline".
  2. ^ "Helion Lodge website". Helion Lodge.
  3. ^ "Mark Twain Masonic Awareness Award - 2008 Winners". Masonic Information Center. Retrieved May 8, 2013.
  4. ^ "Mark Twain Masonic Awareness Award - 2009 Winners". Masonic Information Center. Retrieved May 8, 2013.
  5. ^ "Mark Twain Masonic Awareness Award - 2010 Winners". Masonic Information Center. Retrieved May 8, 2013.
  6. ^ "Mark Twain Masonic Awareness Award - 2012 Winners". Masonic Information Center. Retrieved May 8, 2013.

References[edit]

  • Jackson, Joseph Abram. Masonry in Alabama : a sesquicentennial history, 1821-1971. OCLC 3931387
  • Helion Lodge #1 : Lodge Records, 1811-Current

External links[edit]

34°43′49″N 86°34′53″W / 34.73029°N 86.58127°W / 34.73029; -86.58127

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