Terre Haute Lodge No. 19, F&AM (Chartered September 13, 1821) is a lodge of Freemasons in Terre Haute, Indiana. It is the oldest existing organization in the city and in Vigo County, with the exception of Vigo County Government.Gilbert, Edward. Ninety Years of Masonry: The Story of Terre Haute Lodge No. 19 (Moore-Langden, 1911) pg. viiSmith, Dwight L. Goodly Heritage (Grand Lodge F. & A.M. of Indiana, 1968) pg. 397Beckwith, H.W. History of Vigo and Parke Counties, Together with Historic Notes on the Wabash Valley (Hill and Iddings, 1880) pg. 151.
History
On March 10, 1819, thirteen Freemasons residing in the village of Terre Haute petitioned the recently formed Grand Lodge of Indiana for dispensation to establish a lodge, which was received on July 12, 1819. The officers were installed by Elihu Stout of Vincennes Lodge No. 1, with Peter B. Allen as its first Master, and the Lodge began its labors.Gilbert pg. 12-17 It continued working under this dispensation, until a charter was issued by Grand Lodge on September 13, 1821.
The Lodge predates the incorporation of Terre Haute as a town (1832) and as a city (1853).Oakley, C.C. Greater Terre Haute and Vigo County: Closing the First Century's History of the City and County (Lewis Publishing Co., 1908) pg. 106-114 The oldest existing church did not organize until 1828,Hughes, Frances E. (1979, September 8) Central Presbyterian celebrates its 150th anniversary. The Spectator pg. 10 the first newspaper was not printed until 1823, and the oldest bank was not chartered until 1834.Condit, Blackford. The History of Early Terre Haute from 1816 to 1840 (A.S. Barnes, 1900) pg. 131, 158
Terre Haute Lodge No. 19 worked with several other Masonic bodies to create the Terre Haute Masonic Temple Association in 1911. This body erected the Terre Haute Masonic Temple in 1917, which has been the Lodge's permanent home since.
In 1912, Lodge No. 19 participated in the centennial celebrations of the Siege of Fort Harrison, it being the only surviving organization which existed when there was a Fort Harrison.Smith pg. 397
In 1919, the Lodge observed the 100th anniversary of its first meeting with a county-wide celebration.An Invitation (1919, July 8) The Saturday Spectator pg. 41
At its peak in the early 1950s, Terre Haute Lodge No. 19's membership totaled over 1,600.Masonic Directory: Terre Haute, Indiana Terre Haute Masonic Temple Association, 1952
Notable members
Over its nearly 200-year history, Terre Haute Lodge No. 19 has had a number of notable members, including Thomas, Alexander, et al. Membership of Terre Haute Lodge No. 19, 1819-1949. Private Collection.
Peter Buell Allen (Nov. 12, 1775 – June 13, 1833) - Born in the northern portion of the New York Colony, Allen grew up during the American Revolution and served as a Colonel during the War of 1812. He was appointed a Brevet Brigadier General in the New York State Militia in 1815. Politically, he served as a New York State Assemblyman in 1816 and as an Indiana State Representative in 1819. He was also recorded as the General Contractor for the first Vigo County Courthouse. Samuel McQuilkin (June 5, 1775 – Mar. 3, 1849) - McQuilkin served in the Ohio Militia during the War of 1812 and moved to Indiana by 1818. He acquired a tavern license in May 1819 and established his “Light Horse Tavern” soon after. He operated his tavern and other business ventures in Terre Haute proper before turning his attentions to the west side of the Wabash River. After purchasing a considerable about of property in Sugar Creek Township, he laid out McQuilkinsville on November 22, 1836. McQuilkinsville eventually became Macksville (or Maxville) and officially became West Terre Haute in 1894. Demas Deming, Sr. (Mar. 22, 1787 – Mar. 3, 1865) - Deming was born in Connecticut. During the War of 1812, he entered service in the U.S. Army with the rank of 2nd Lieutenant. He arrived in Terre Haute in 1818. Deming served in the Indiana House of Representatives in 1828–29; as one of the first judges in Vigo Co.; and as the first president of the Second State Bank of Indiana at Terre Haute in 1834 (now First Financial Bank and Indiana's oldest national bank). With Chauncey Warren, he established the Terre Haute Brewing Company in 1837. In 1921, a portion of his estate was sold to the City of Terre Haute and became the public park that bears his family name. Elijah Tillotson (Sep. 22, 1791 – Mar. 31, 1857) - Originally from New York, Tillotson was an accomplished silversmith, jeweler, and watchmaker and was the first to ply this trade in Terre Haute when he arrived in 1824. Politically, he was elected as the first Mayor of Terre Haute (before incorporation) in 1838 and served for some time as an Associate Judge. Tillotson was one of the saviors of Terre Haute Lodge No. 19; during the anti-Masonic period from 1834 to 1845, the charter, jewels, and furniture of the Lodge were preserved in the safe at his jewelry store. Amory Kinney (Apr. 13, 1792 – Nov. 20, 1859) – Born in Vermont, Kinney studied law in New York before moving west and settling in Indiana. He was an ardent abolitionist and was responsible, with John Osborn, for the Indiana Supreme Court case of Polly v. Lasselle, which resulted in all slaves held within Indiana being freed. Politically, he served as a Justice of the Peace in 1827; he served in the Indiana House of Representatives 1830-31 and 1847–48, the Terre Haute Town Council in 1838–39, and as judge of the Common Pleas court from 1852 to 1856. Thomas H. Blake (June 14, 1792 – Nov. 28, 1849) – A Maryland native, Thomas Blake served in the D.C. Militia during the War of 1812. Blake was one of the earliest lawyers to reside in Terre Haute and served as U.S. Attorney for the District of Indiana in 1817–18. He was commissioned by Gov. Jonathan Jennings as the first President Judge of the first court in Vigo Co. in 1818. Blake served in the Indiana House in 1818–19, 1822–25, and 1829–30 and as a State Senator in 1820–21. In 1827 he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Indiana's First District. He was appointed as the Commissioner of the General Land Trust Office by President John Tyler in 1842. Thomas Blake famously dueled with Alexander Buckner in July, 1818; Buckner was then the first Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Indiana. Lucius H. Scott (Mar. 29, 1794 – Apr. 22, 1875) - A native of Pennsylvania, Scott arrived in Terre Haute in 1817. He began his career on the frontier as one of the first schoolteachers in the area and an early merchant. Politically, he was the first elected sheriff of Vigo County in 1818, and was elected to the Indiana House of Representatives in 1822. In 1847, he and his family returned to Pennsylvania where he served as Grand Master in 1865–1866. James S. Freeman (1800-1855) - Freeman had acquired property in Greene County before 1840, and was elected to the Indiana House of Representatives, serving from 1840 to 1841. He relocated to Terre Haute by early 1842 and for several years ran a produce and provisions store along the National Road. He served as a local Justice of the Peace for a few years and was instrumental in the revival of the Lodge after the anti-Masonic movement. He also served a few years as a Grand Warden in the Grand Lodge before his death. Albert Lange (Dec. 16, 1801 – July 25, 1869) – Born in Germany, Lange was convicted of treason against the German Empire in 1824 for advocating a constitutional government. He was pardoned in 1829 and immigrated to the United States. Politically, he was appointed by President Zachary Taylor as U.S. Consul to the Port of Amsterdam from 1849 to 1850; he served as Vigo County Auditor from 1851 to 1859 and Indiana State Auditor from 1861 to 1863; and he served as Mayor of Terre Haute from 1863 to 1867. Thomas Dowling Dec. 21, 1806 – Dec. 6, 1876) – Born in Ireland, Dowling arrived in the U.S. in 1814 and moved to Terre Haute in 1832. He established The Wabash Courier newspaper the year he arrived and The Wabash Express some years later. In 1849 he assumed the position of resident Trustee of the Wabash & Erie Canal. Politically, Dowling was elected to the Indiana House of Representatives 1836–38, 1840–41, 1843–44, 1845–46, and 1848–49. He served as a Vigo County Commissioner in 1873 and was a member of the Terre Haute City Council at the time of his death. Richard W. Thompson (June 9, 1809 – Feb. 9, 1900) – A Virginia native, Thompson was admitted to the Indiana Bar in 1834. Politically, he served in the Indiana House of Representatives from 1834 to 1836, as a State Senator from 1837 to 1838 (where he was chosen President Pro Tem and was briefly acting Lieutenant Governor), and as a U.S. Representative from Indiana in 1841-43 and 1847–49. During the Civil War, he received a commission as a Colonel and was commander of Camp Vigo in Terre Haute. In 1864, President Abraham Lincoln appointed him as Collector of Internal Revenue for the Seventh Indiana District, and from 1867 to 1869 he was the judge of the fifth circuit court. He was the 27th U.S. Secretary of the Navy from 1877 to 1880 under President Rutherford B. Hayes. William K. Edwards (Dec. 26, 1820 – Sep. 26, 1878) – Edwards was born in Kentucky and moved to Terre Haute in 1843 to practice law. Politically, he was first elected to the General Assembly in 1845, serving 3 terms, and was selected as Speaker of the Indiana House of Representatives in 1872–77. He was elected as the First Mayor of Terre Haute (after incorporation) serving from 1853 to 1855. He was secretary of the first board of managers for the Terre Haute School of Industrial Sciences (later Rose Polytechnic Institute/Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology) and was a trustee of Indiana University from 1855 to 1859 and 1861-78 (serving as president of the board 1855–57). He took a demit from Old Nineteen in 1849 to become a charter member of Social Lodge No. 86. Edwards also served as Grand Master of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows Grand Lodge of Indiana in 1853. Charles Cruft (Jan. 12, 1826 – Mar. 23, 1883) – Born in Terre Haute, Cruft graduated from Wabash College at the age of 17. Before being admitted to the Indiana Bar in 1848, he worked as an educator and bookkeeper. When the Civil War began in 1861, he received a commission as Colonel and mustered the 31st Indiana Volunteer Infantry. Engaging in multiple battles – including Fort Donelson, Shiloh, Stones River, and Chickamauga – he was brevetted to the rank of Major General by Abraham Lincoln in March 1865. He returned home to practice law and run The Terre Haute Express newspaper and served on the original board of managers for the Terre Haute School of Industrial Sciences (later Rose Polytechnic Institute/Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology). Thomas B. Long (Oct. 25, 1836 – July 2, 1900) - Born in Ohio, Long arrived in Terre Haute as a youth and began studying law under Richard Thompson in 1854. After receiving a law degree from Cincinnati College in 1856, he returned to Terre Haute and set up his own practice. He was prosecuting attorney of the Vigo Common Pleas Court from 1857 to 1858 and served as school superintendent 1868–69. In 1870 he was elected judge of the Vigo Criminal Circuit Court, and served twelve years, ending in 1882. He was an accomplished poet and lyricist, with many of his works published between 1860 and his death. Long served in many state and national Masonic offices and served as Grand Master of Indiana, 1889–1890.