{"id":28,"date":"2022-08-31T17:03:20","date_gmt":"2022-08-31T17:03:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.csusm.edu\/freemasonryusa\/?page_id=28"},"modified":"2022-10-05T16:05:16","modified_gmt":"2022-10-05T16:05:16","slug":"freemasonry-in-san-diego","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/wp.csusm.edu\/freemasonryusa\/freemasonry-in-san-diego\/","title":{"rendered":"Freemasonry in San Diego"},"content":{"rendered":"

The genesis story of Freemasonry in San Diego is still unknown to this day but there are primary sources that exist during the formation of the earliest lodges in San Diego. Freemasonry in San Diego corresponds and aligns closely with the history of San Diego. Many of the early pioneers of San Diego\u2019s growth were Freemasons and progenitors of the first lodge in San Diego. \u00a0One lodge historian of San Diego, Orion Zink, informs us that the tradition states that the formation of the first Masonic lodge in San Diego was suggested during a picnic.<\/p>\n

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Square and Compass on Display in Old Town San Diego<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Several of the attendees, unknowingly, came to the realization that a number of Freemasons were present and a sparked curiosity was set in motion towards the formation of a lodge in San Diego. In doing so, the first meeting to create a lodge was held at the Exchange Hotel on June 20th<\/sup>, 1851. At this first meeting, a letter of dispensation to meet was drawn and sent to the Grand Lodge of California for approval. On August 1st<\/sup>, 1851 the petition was granted to the members in San Diego. A majority of the meetings held in what is now deemed \u201cOld Town\u201d San Diego from 1851 to 1870 were in private homes of members. In addition, the small brick courthouse and Railroad Block were utilized as a meeting place.[1]<\/a><\/p>\n

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The lodge was well documented and reported on by the San Diego Herald<\/em> whenever they held festivals or events. For instance, one celebration amongst Masonic lodges is that of the feast of St. John the Baptist. It is a particular day, June 24th<\/sup>, by which Freemasons convene and share in a feast to celebrate in at least one aspect the formation of the first Grand Lodge, which happens to be on June 24th<\/sup> as well.[2]<\/a> An account of the feast is reported on, even though there was little attendance or attention. The reporter makes the claim that the reasoning for so little attendance is because the padre of the church forbid and prohibited the natives to take part or witness the ceremonies.[3]<\/a><\/p>\n

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Interior of Vista Masonic Lodge in San Diego County<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

There appeared to be a sort of animosity towards the lodge by the Catholic Church in town. Articles state that the padre during those early years usually denounced and spoke out against the Freemasons weekly in San Diego. Even when a portion of the adobe wall on the north side of the New Catholic Church fell, due to heavy rains, the padre had a difficult time collecting funds due to his denunciations of not only the protestants in San Diego but the Freemasons as well.[4]<\/a><\/p>\n

Since the Masonic lodge\u2019s formation congruently aligns with that of San Diego\u2019s history, there is a number of Freemasons that are well known to both San Diego and the lodge. Although not a pioneer of the first Masonic lodge in San Diego, Kit Carson was one notable Freemason that was in San Diego during the American take-over in 1846. Richard Henry Dana also lived in San Diego while writing \u201cTwo Years before the Mast.\u201d Commodore Sloat, the famous serviceman who arranged the movement of his U.S. warship to the California coast also enjoyed San Diego as well. Lt. George H. Derby, a U.S. army engineer, and who was famously in charge of diverting the San Diego River into the bay was a Freemason.[5]<\/a><\/p>\n

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These were just a few of the members who were influential in the genesis of San Diego. Since then, the several lodges that inhabit San Diego county have not only flourished but made profound contributions to the county. The traditions brought to California in the earlier years of California migration continue to be taught and espoused to new members today and into the future.<\/p>\n

For more information relative to Freemasonry in California, please visit the Grand Lodge of California’s Website.<\/a> In addition, The Henry W. Coil Library and Museum<\/a> have numerous items in its collection for viewing and further research.<\/p>\n

[1]<\/a> Sean K.T. Shiraishi, “Freemasonry in Old Town San Diego,” Freemasonry in Old Town San Diego, , accessed June 10, 2018, https:\/\/www.parks.ca.gov\/?page_id=25958.<\/p>\n

[2]<\/a> Douglas Knoop,\u00a0Genesis of Freemasonry<\/em>\u00a0(Manchester University Press, 1949) 170.<\/p>\n

[3]<\/a> “Masonic Celebration,”\u00a0The San Diego Herald<\/em>, June 28, 1852, accessed April 22, 2018, https:\/\/www.parks.ca.gov\/pages\/663\/files\/1852–06-28-sdh-masonic celebration.pdf.<\/p>\n

[4]<\/a> “The House of the Lord Has Fallen,”\u00a0The San Diego Herald<\/em>, January 06, 1855, accessed April 22, 2018, https:\/\/www.parks.ca.gov\/pages\/663\/files\/1855–01-06-sdh-the house of the lord has fallen.pdf.<\/strong><\/p>\n

[5]<\/a> Ruth Taunton, “Lodge Has Colorful History of Pioneering, Progress,”\u00a0The San Diego Union<\/em>, April 19, 1942, accessed April 22, 2018, https:\/\/www.parks.ca.gov\/pages\/663\/files\/1942–04-19-sdu-pb1-6 – lodge has colorful history.pdf.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The genesis story of Freemasonry in San Diego is still unknown to this day but there are primary sources that exist during the formation of the earliest lodges in San Diego. Freemasonry in San Diego corresponds and aligns closely with the history of San Diego. Many of the early pioneers…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":4,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-28","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.csusm.edu\/freemasonryusa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/28","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.csusm.edu\/freemasonryusa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.csusm.edu\/freemasonryusa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.csusm.edu\/freemasonryusa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.csusm.edu\/freemasonryusa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wp.csusm.edu\/freemasonryusa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/28\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.csusm.edu\/freemasonryusa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}