06/16/2024
We continue to look back on this day with an appreciation for our past. Now, a Brief History of Amwell Lodge No. 13:
Amwell Lodge No. 13 was mysteriously changed to Amwell Lodge No. 12 after only eleven meetings. There is no mention in the minutes as to why the number was changed. Why was Amwell Lodge renumbered? To answer that question, first we must explore the brief history of Amwell Lodge No. 13.
On February 6th, 1837, the Pennsylvania Grand Lodge closed Orange Lodge No. 94, a Masonic lodge established in 1802 on the banks of the Delaware River in New Hope, Pennsylvania. Over ten years later, in June of 1847, seven brother masons, Ancel St. John, William Wilson, Thomas Sterrett, John Runk, Thomas Thomson, Edward Badger, and McKenzie Hall, some of whom were members of Orange Lodge, petitioned the Grand Lodge of New Jersey to establish a Masonic lodge in Lambertville, New Jersey. On June 13, 1847, Most Worshipful Grand Master, Ira Merchant signed a dispensation to form Amwell Lodge No. 13 in Lambertville, New Jersey, a neighboring river community connected to New Hope by a wooden covered bridge.
Then on the evening of June 16, 1847, the Grand Lodge officers instituted Amwell Lodge No. 13, Ancient Free & Accepted Masons (A. F. & A. M.) by installing its first line of officers. The installation took place in Oddfellows Hall, a stone house on Bridge Street in Lambertville, owned by the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, a popular fraternity at the time. The first officers of Amwell Lodge were Ancel St. John, Worshipful Master, William Wilson, Senior Warden, Thomas Sterrett, Junior Warden, McKenzie Hall, Treasurer, Thomas Thomson, Secretary. When the installation concluded, Amwell Lodge No. 13 conducted its first meeting, which consisted only of a ceremonial opening and closing.
Two days later on June 18th, Amwell Lodge elected its first member, Brother Samuel Lilly. It is unknown as to which lodge he was a member of previously. Brother Thomas Thomson resigned as Secretary to become Senior Deacon. Brother Lilly was then elected and installed as Secretary. Brother Lilly would go on to serve as Worshipful Master in 1851 and Deputy Grand Secretary in 1870. Samuel Lilly, a physician by trade, was serving as Lambertville’s first Mayor when he joined Amwell Lodge. Brother Lilly was instrumental in the creation of Amwell’s Masonic building that stands today.
The first Brother to be raised to Master Mason by Amwell Lodge was Moses G. Quick on November 17, 1847. The second and last to be raised in 1847 was William Lilly. He was granted a dispensation by Most Worshipful Grand Master Ira Merchant to receive all three degrees in one sitting. Brother William Lilly was initiated to Entered Apprentice, passed to Fellow Craft and raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason on December 28, 1847. Two other Brother masons were made Fellow Craft masons by Amwell in 1847. G. B. Holcombe and Reuben P. Ely received their degrees on December 15, 1847.
At the time Amwell Lodge received a dispensation to operate, there were only eight to twelve operating lodges. At the 1842 New Jersey Grand Lodge Annual Communication on November 8, 1842, a total of 49 lodges were recognized as having previously surrendered their warrants or were stricken from the rolls. Most notably, Union No. 12 and Passaic No. 13 were stricken from the rolls. This led to a major renumbering of the remaining eight working lodges. The numbers one through eight were distributed, and it appears that Grand Lodge reserved numbers nine through twelve for lodges that may return in the future, leading to Amwell Lodge being designated as No. 13 when the dispensation was signed in 1847. However, on January 12, 1848, the Grand Lodge granted a charter to Amwell Lodge designating it as No. 12 at the Grand Lodge Annual Communication in Trenton, New Jersey. This is thought to have occurred because the Grand Lodge had determined between 1847 and 1848 that Union Lodge No. 12 was not likely to return. In 1849, Warren Lodge No. 52 at Belvidere was resuscitated as Warren Lodge No. 13.
