Notes
on
A Very Incomplete
Lodge History
© 2006-2019 Ben
Truwe, truwe[at]mind.net. All rights reserved.
Last revised November 3, 2019
On
June 13, 2006, as part of my background research for the Fred
Alton Haight diary, I visited Knights of Pythias Talisman
Lodge #31 at its
current home at
If anyone should be interested in pursuing research into members of Talisman Lodge, Bruce let me know that these volumes will eventually revert to the state organization.
Following are my notes.
April 7, 1892 Medford Mail
Talisman
Lodge
Locations:
September 1895: Sharing the Masonic Lodge in Sam Rosenthal's Rialto Block, north side of east main just off central. (Medford Mail, September 20, 1895, page 1)
May 1901: Move to Johnson-Childers Building, 318 E. Main (Medford Mail, May 17, 1901, page 7)
Circa 1904: J-C Building sold to J. C. Smith (Medford Mail, August 23, 1907, page 1)pre-1906: Smith's Hall on North Grape--see 3/16/1906 reference below.
pre-1906: Main: "Smith & Molony have leased their former quarters in the old K. of P. building on Seventh Street to French & Co., of Portland, who will soon establish a grocery and feed store there." (MM6/22/1906p5)1906 city directory: “south 7th near A” (Johnson-Childers building at 318 E. Main, marked “lodge rooms” on 1907 Sanborn Fire Insurance map). J-C building reportedly sold to KofP in 1901.
1911-1916
A sheet of letterhead pasted into the
1920 minutes gives the lodge address as 125 West
On April 18, 1921 the lodge voted 106 to 27 to build a lodge at 6th and Holly (over three other possible locations). The lodge may not have been built at this location.
On July 12, 1927, the Medford Mail Tribune reported that the lodge has sold the 6th and Holly lot and the previous evening accepted a plan "submitted by Knight Carl Fichtner to build a second story of 75x100 feet on his business building at Sixth and Fir streets now housing the Medford Vulcanizing Works and Fichtner's Garage."
The 1927 Sanborn Fire Insurance map shows the Knights of Pythias hall upstairs at 117-127 West Main (near the southeast corner of Main and Grape), above an auto showroom.
The August 3, 1930 Medford Mail Tribune (page 3) reports the purchase of the Woodmen of the World hall by the Knights of Pythias.A March 15, 1940 Medford News article (page 1) announces a dial telephone demonstration at the Knights of Pythias hall, "at Fifth and Grape streets."
The 1950 Sanborn Fire Insurance map shows the Knights of Pythias hall at 145 North Grape (northwest corner of Fifth and Grape).Notes from the Newspapers and Minutes
Medford Mail, November 17, 1893, page 3:Minutes
Dec. 31, 1917:
“After some music by brothers Haight and Rader, lodge
adjourned with the understanding that we meet Wednesday evening, Jan.
2nd,
1918. . . .”
Minutes
Oct. 8 , 1917:
“Brother B. J. Trowbridge reports an opportunity to rent the
rooms commonly known as the Armory for $30.00 per month for two years
with the
privilege of 3 years more at $40.00. Motion was properly made and
unanimously carried
that we rent the quarters and B. J. Trowbridge was appointed a
committee of one
to close the deal and fix the lease papers.”
Minutes
Jan. 14, 1918:
“In a few well chosen words P. G. C. Brother Wortman, on
behalf of Talisman lodge presented brother Haight an official lapel
button in
token of the esteem and appreciation of this lodge for his services and
ability
on our behalf.”
Minutes
April. 22, 1918:
“M. A. Rader tenders his resignation as K. R. S. as he is to
move from
Minutes
April 29, 1918:
Paid to “Pottenger & Amy Hall Rent 3 mo to July 1st
1918 $90.00”
Minutes
Jan. 13, 1919:
“Under Good of the Order Brother Haight favored us with
several very fine Instrumental Selections.”
Minutes,
Aug 18, 1919:
“Our committee on entertainment surprised us with a musical
treat of rare Excellence consisting of Instrumental Solos by Miss
Elizabeth
Gore & Vocal Solos by Mrs Scudder.”
Minutes,
Feb. 23, 1920:
“Brother A. J. Vance gave us a two hour talk on his
observations & experiences in the Service of his Country
& after the
Armistice was Signed. Covering travel through
Minutes,
March 22, 1920:
“Short talks on Good of the Order. Some choice musical
Selections & the Eats occupied the time till the small hours of
the
morning. All expressed themselves as having been well entertained
& voiced
the hope that they might be permitted to attend many Roll Call meetings
of
Talisman Lodge.”
Minutes,
March 29, 1920:
“This Meeting was the Occasion of a visit by Grand
Chancellor Julian A. Hurley also an Open Meeting about 250 Knights
& Wives
Sisters Daughters & Sweethearts. Grand Chancellor Hurley made
the talk of
the evening. The Programme consisted of
Fred Alton
Haight’s
Membership Notes
From the Roster of Knighthood:
F. A. Haight, occupation: Musician
Ranks conferred: Page 2/22/1915, Esquire 5/10/1915, Knight
7/19/1915
From 2/22/1915 minutes: (handwritten
into preprinted form)
“By special dispensation application recd. & rank
given [to Haight] same
date." This was unusual. The only other candidate afforded this honor
during these years was architect Frank Clark.
1916 Lodge Roster
[Team
One] |
[Team
Two] |
“ELECT E. E. GORE COMMANDER OF K. OF P. LODGE“There was a very large attendance at the regular meeting of Talisman Lodge Knights of Pythias Monday night, it being the occasion of the election of officers for the ensuing term. E. E. Gore, one of Medford’s most popular business men was unanimously elected chancellor commander as a fitting tribute and recognition of his loyalty and untiring efforts in the cause of Pythianism. The other officers elected were: W. R. Gaylord, vice chancellor; J. T. Perry, prelate; Ben J. Trowbridge, master of exchequer; C. W. Harrison, master of finance; E. F. Robinson, keeper of records and seals; Carl Fichtner, master of arms; C. B. Watkins, inner guard; L. L. Damon, outer guard, and George Gould, trustee.
“After the election of officers the following candidates were found in waiting and were duly introduced and initiated into the mysteries of the rank of page: George Gates, George W. Laidley, Glenn Laidley, A. W. Lewis, and George W. Maddox.
“In keeping with the principles of the lodge to put sunshine and gladness into the hearts of men, and in order that the children of this community might be the recipients of a practical exemplification of that principle, the lodge has decided to hold a public reception with a Christmas tree for the children of Medford at its Castle hall on December 24th at 2 p.m.
“In view of the fact that the lodge membership is increasing very rapidly, it was decided to hold a membership contest by dividing the present membership in two teams, and the losing team to treat the winning team to a banquet the latter part of January. Ben J. Trowbridge and John Palmer were elected as captains of the opposing teams. The proceedings of the evening were concluded by a short recital by the efficient kitchen patrol consisting of Messrs. Cooper, Perry and Reed.” [Medford Mail Tribune, December 8, 1920, p. 1]
Reconstructed
Talisman
Lodge 1920 Roster
I compiled a list of all lodge
members mentioned in the "Roll
of Officers" and minutes for Jan. 7, 1918 through July 25,
1921—the dates
covered by the Haight diary. A comparison with the 1916 list confirms
my suspicion that many names are misspelled.
This is not a complete membership roll, and many of the names below are applicants or transfers, a few of which may have been rejected or withdrawn.
Albright, Melvin Jackson
Anderson, Karl E.
Anderton, D.
Angle, O. E.
Arnspiger, Olen
Baker,
Baker, R. Chester
Barber, W. E.
Barkdull, J. E.
Barney, Clarence O.
Barr, Orville E.
Barrows, Walter E.
Barton, Harold E.
Beach, R. G.
Bedingfield, J. A.
Beeson, Elton E.
Benedict, Fred R.
Blasing, Walter E.
Blore, Frank S.
Bodenhamer, Lester
Bodenhammer, F. E.
Bodenheimer, Lester
Bonar, D. A.
Bonney, George M.
Borden,
Bowman, Carl D.
Boyd, C. R.
Bradley, William
Brewster, Delbert O.
Bross, Frank W.
Brown, E. J.
Brown, E. O.
Brown, Edward E.
Brown, Harry B.
Brown, Hugh E.
Brown, John O.
Brown, Louis
Brown, Ray
Brown, Thomas R.
Brown, Wesley
Brownlee, Jess
Bryant, Harry
Burkland, Dr. A.
Campbell, Charles
Canaday, Hamil A.
Cate, Claude C.
Chaney, Charles
Chaney, Ira
Childers, G. A.
Childs, Harry W.
Clark, Frank L.
Clark, Herbert B.
Clark, W. J.
Clark, W. J. H.
Clemens, Cecil A.
Close, R. V.
Clough, C. A.
Coiman, Nick A.
Cole, C. S.
Collins, George H.
Combes, S. E.
Cones, James C.
Conrad, J. T.
Corman, Nick A.
Cormany, George O.
Corwin, W. H.
Craig, Thomas B.
Cross, G. W.
Crowson, W. F.
Crowson, W. J.
Crowson, W. W.
Cunningham, W. B.
Currie, John A.
Daley, Victor H.
Damon, Lloyd L.
Darby, John H.
Darneille, Everett G.
Davenport, William
Davis, Dana M.
Dawson, Harry M.
Dean, Lee
DeArmond, H. L.
Denzer, L. A.
Devore, C.
Dickey, Walter
Dodge, J. M.
Dodge, John
Douglass, George W.
Duff,
Dunaway, J. H.
Edsall, Thomas L.
Egan, Thomas S.
Elwood, L. R.
Erickson, O. F.
Erskine, W. M.
Farmer, R. F.
Fehl, Earl H.
Fichtner, Carl
Fields, W. C.
Fifer, B. F.
Fifer, R. D.
Finley, Clemma
Finley, Everett
Finley, J. A.
Fisk, George N.
Flaherty, R. D.
Flynn, D. L.
Flynn, Diamond
Flynn, Tom
Forgey, Albert P.
Foster, C. W.
Fredericks, Delmer O.
Frey, O. E.
Frideger, Fred
Fullerton, H. L.
Ganettson, A. R.
Gardner, G. A.
Garnettson, A. R.
Garrett, W. O.
Gates, George E.
Gaylord, W. R.
Gentry, Will G.
Giem, Harry L.
Gilbert, Van R.
Gillespie, Robert
Gillman, George
Gillmore, Charles W.
Gilmore, Charles M.
Glasgow, C. W.
Gleeson, Walter G.
Goble, Dean
Godlove, J. C.
Goold, G. G.
Gore, E. E.
Gore, Jay I.
Gore, W. H.
Gould, George
Gray, Merle C.
Griffin, Charles C.
Grover, H. G.
Haney, B. E.
Hansen, J. P.
Harmon, R. W.
Harrell, Joe
Harrison, C. W.
Harrison, P. B.
Harrison, Renard R.
Harrison, Robert M.
Haswell, H. T.
Haswell, Harry
Haswell, Henry
Hauser, James P.
Haymond, Benjamin
Heimroch, C. R.
Heine, Bliss
Heine, T. G.
Hemstreet, J. W.
Henderson, L. W.
Hendrickson, J. L.
Henry, R. J.
Henselman, Charles F.
Herring, J. C.
Hicks, E.
Hicks, J. E.
Hinman, L. E.
Hodgeman, K. E.
Hogg, F. W.
Holibaugh, F. C.
Howard, George L.
Hubbard, B. F.
Hubers, F. J.
Hulsie, Roscoe
Isaacs, W. F.
Jacobs, Edward F.
Jaqua, E. W.
Johnson, George Edgar
Johnson, M. S.
Johnston, J. F.
Jones, Capriel
Jones, John H.
Joy, B. F.
Judy, John W.
Judy, Torrence T.
Keizur, Clarence A.
Keizur, Walter
Kinz, Dr. George J.
Kirkpatrick, J. W.
Klein, E. J.
Klocker, A. J.
Kunzman, George J.
Laidley, Glenn
Laidley, George W.
Laidley, W. G.
Laison, William C.
Lamb,
Lamb, W. R.
Langwill, Frank
Larned, Walter C.
Launspach, Herbert G.
Lednicky, Thomas
Lenney, J. A.
Leonard, Morris B.
Leonard, Paul M.
Lewis, A. W.
Lindas, Benjamin F.
Lindley, G. F.
Locke, William H.
Loder, Frank
Longwill, Frank
Loomis, Gailord M.
Low, J. D.
Lowe, D. M.
Lowe, L. D.
Lozier, John W.
Luman, Charles Wesley
Luman, Will A.
Lundberg, Ed
Maddox, George E.
Madson, James
Maloney, J. P.
Mansfield, George A.
Matney, John M.
Maule, John W.
Maust, O. C.
McCorkle, J. A.
McCredie, Clatous
McDannel, Dennis M.
McDonald, Paul B.
McGraw, N. S.
McIntyre, William B. M.
McKee, F. E.
McKeown, Robert Bruce
McLaughlin, Charlie M.
McMahan, A. T.
McMann, W. S.
McMurtrie,
McNeff, Fred L.
McReynolds, C. B.
Mee, Charles
Menell, Norman J.
Merrick, E. P.
Miller, Charles H.
Mittelstaedt, A. C.
Mochel, Charles F.
Moffatt, Thomas
Moore, Rawles
Moran, T. L.
Mulkey, B. F.
Murray, Floyd
Myers, O. V.
Neilson, George W.
Noe, C. T.
Nordwick, Arthur R.
Nordwick, Harry F.
Norris, T. C.
O’Brien, J. A.
Offenbacher, Fred
Offenbacher, Leon
Olson, Hans
Palmer, J. B.
Palmer, John
Perry, H. J.
Perry, Jesse T.
Petty, J. T.
Petty, R. A.
Phipps, W. E.
Piche, Albert
Pierce, William G.
Pierson, Carl
Pierson, W. E.
Pollnitz, R. W.
Puhl, Louis
Purl, Henry B.
Pursel, George Henry
Pursell, Charles W.
Pursell, Charles W. Jr.
Rader, M. A.
Rasmussen, H. C.
Ray, Dr. C. R.
Reed, H. J.
Reed, Homer J.
Renard, Charles
Renshaw, Eustace
Rice, E. C.
Richardson, E. J.
Rinabarger, Harry
Robinson, E. F.
Robinson, James C.
Robison, E. F.
Rohrer, W. W.
Root, Edward C.
Rouse, Fred L.
Rouse, T. G.
Ryan, Fred
Salter, R. E.
Sasnett, J. Randolph
Saunders, J. B.
Schell, C. D.
Schmidt, E. F.
Schulz, William H.
Schwartz, Herman
Scutte, C. E.
Seaman, Lloyd E.
Sears, William
Sebreau, F. W.
Sheldon, Ben C.
Shelley, C. W.
Silts, Dave S.
Simonds, Malcolm H.
Sitts, Dave S.
Smith, Aubrey G.
Smith, Roland
Smith, Winfried L.
Snider, E. W.
Snidley, Frank
Snyder, O. S.
Sollar, Levi Oscar
Sowe, D. M.
Springer, D. S.
Sprinkle, L. G.
Sprinkler, L. L.
Stamper, H. G.
Steel, Will G.
Stephenson, R. O.
Stewart, James
Stolz, Harry C.
Stripp, Fred S.
Styles, R. V.
Sullivan, Bert M.
Sunderland, L. K.
Sweeney, Charles T.
Swem, T. M.
Talbert, L. Ray
Talent, Charles P.
Tedrick, Clarence C.
Temple, Thomas T.
Tengwald, Carl Y.
Thomas, C. M.
Thomas, Fern W.
Trautfether, Arthur
Triautaples, Harry
Trowbridge, B. J.
Trowbridge, Ed
Trowbridge, Everett
Trowbridge, Ray
Trowbridge, Ronald
Truax, W. W.
Tuautaples, Harry
Tunnell, E. L.
Turner, A. B.
Turner, Fred G.
Turner, Fred J.
Vance, A. J.
Vance, Borden A. J.
Vance, Winston C.
Verback, Robert
Vilas, Edward Platt
Vilas, J. S.
Vilm, E. N.
Voorhies, Gordon Jr.
Wait, F. Wilson
Wakefield, E. W.
Wakefield, J. W.
Wakefield, Ray
Walker, A. W.
Walker, Clark J.
Walker, Clay E.
Walker, Cleveland F.
Walter, George
Washburn, Howard H.
Watkins, C. B.
Watson, F. J.
Webber, C. K.
Webber, E. L.
Webber, E. S.
Welch, William M.
Wendt,
Wendt, George W.
Westerlund, J. A.
Wheeler, Sidney A.
Whillock, C. W.
Whisenant, W. K.
White, Andrew E.
White, Ed M.
Whiting, Louis W.
Williams, H. H.
Williams, Lloyd A.
Willits, Merle M.
Winningham, John
Witcher, Brennon
Woodford, J. R.
Woods, Wallace
Wortman, H. G.
Wortman, Harry G. Jr.
York, Earl H.
York, Fred
Yost, Ray C.
Yothers, W. A.
Young, Paul A.
“K.P. COMMANDER GORE ANNOUNCES 1921 COMMITTEES“The following committees are announced by Chancellor Commander E. E. Gore for the coming six months term in Talisman lodge, Knights of Pythias:
“Entertainment—Bliss Heine, F. A. Haight, H. H. Williams.
“Banquet committee—Homer Reed, E. C. Rice, Jess Brownlee.
“Reception committee—R. G. Beach, W. G. Laidley, Jr., J. B. Palmer.
“Relief committee—Aside from standing committee, Earl Webber, J. W. Wakefield, B. J. Trowbridge.
“Publicity committee—N. W. Borden, Jas. Stewart, W. R. Gaylord.
“Members are especially reminded of the lecture next Monday evening by Frank Grant of Portland, in connection with the initiation of the class of seventy-five new men into the first rank.” [Medford Mail Tribune, January 8, 1921, p. 6]