Yuba County CA Archives History - Books .....Chapter 16 Fraternal, Social And Literary Organizations 1924
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Book Title: History Of Yuba And Sutter Counties

CHAPTER XVI 
FRATERNAL, SOCIAL, AND LITERARY ORGANIZATIONS 

    In the palmy and prosperous days of Marysville, the secret and benevolent
orders flourished, and their influence was felt among all classes of citizens.
The stranger arriving sick, moneyless, and friendless, found among the members
of his old order hands and hearts ready to alleviate his sufferings and to
relieve his destitution. Multitudes of instances of this kind occurred in the
early days, and it is no wonder that now, in more quiet times, the old pioneer
regards his order with almost the reverence and devotion due to a parent. In
later years new organizations have sprung up, and with wonderful rapidity are
gaining in membership and importance. 

The Masons 

    A Masonic lodge was established in Marysville several months prior to the
formation of the Grand Lodge of California, under the following circumstances:
Dr. J. R. Crandall of Peoria, Ill., upon deciding to come to California in 1849,
applied to Most Worshipful Grand Master Lavalle of Springfield, Ill., for a
dispensation by which, as Deputy Grand Master, he could work in his journeyings
as a traveling lodge, wherever Masons enough could be gathered together; he was
finally to locate a lodge at some locality that, in his judgment, was able to
support it. The dispensation was granted in March, 1849, and Crandall proceeded
on his journey to the far West. In the spring of 1850, being then in Marysville,
Crandall was desirous of locating a lodge here under the Illinois dispensation,
and issued a general notice to all Master Masons who were in town, stating his
intentions. Pursuant to this notice, about thirty Master Masons assembled and
organized a lodge, constituting J. R. Crandall Worshipful Master; A. O. Garrett,
Senior Warden, and W. Moffett, Junior Warden. 

Marysville Lodge, No. 9, F. & A. M. 

    On May 1, a short time after the formation of the lodge, Crandall removed to
Trinity River, leaving the lodge in the care of the Senior Warden. When the
Grand Lodge of California was organized, the lodge in Marysville reported its
proceedings under the Illinois dispensation, and petitioned for a charter, which
was granted them on November 27, 1850, under the title of Marysville Lodge, No.
9, F. & A. M. Subsequently to this, the lodge reported its work under the
dispensation to the Grand Lodge of Illinois, and transmitted the proper dues.
The lodge was held for some time in a tent, near the corner of Fourth and E
Streets. 

    Dr. J. R. Crandall, the father of Masonry in Yuba County, received the
degrees in 1836 in Pekin Lodge, No. 27, A. F. & A. M., of Illinois. In 1842 he
was a charter member of Temple Lodge, No. 47, Peoria, 111. In 1850 he
established Marysville Lodge, No. 9; and in 1851 he was a member of Lafayette
Lodge, No. 13, of Nevada City, Cal. 

    On December 13, 1864, the following were installed as officers of Marysville
Lodge, No. 9, F. & A. M.. E. T. Wilkins, W. M.; George I. Bourne, S. W.; P. W.
Winkley, J. W.; George A. Foulk, treasurer; M. W. Peyser, secretary; H. H.
Rhees, S. D.; W. L. Williams, J. D.; and Charles Raish, tyler. 

Marysville Masonic Hall 

    The Masonic Hall Association of Marysville was organized on September 18,
1863, with a capital stock of $25,000, divided into 500 shares of $50 each. The
affairs of the association were managed by a board of trustees elected by the
stockholders. The first board of trustees was composed of the following: H. H.
Rhees, T. W. McCready, Peter Decker, C. G. Bockius, D. E. Knight, W. H.
Hartwell, and W. L. Williams. 

    The contract for the present Masonic Building was let October 30, 1863, to
W. C. Swain, $21,500 being the contract price; and on December 26, 1864, the
trustees took possession of the structure. The hall ever since has been on the
third floor, and is used by the Masonic societies as a lodge room. The second
floor is now used for offices and living apartments, and the ground floor is
rented for stores. 

    It was on New Year's Day, 1864, that the laying of the corner-stone took
place. The ceremony was of a most imposing and interesting character and drew a
large audience of interested parties outside of the fraternity membership. The
program announced by the committee as the order of the day was executed to the
letter, and everything passed off smoothly. The parade was in charge of Grand
Marshal E. Hamilton, assisted by Aids L. B. Ayer and James Moore. Marysville
Commandery, No. 7, Knights Templar, marshaled by Charles Raish, formed the
escort, followed by the Marysville Brass Band. The Blue Lodge was next in line,
followed by the Chapter, and finally by members of the Grand Lodge. 

    At the site, Charles G. Bockius, president of the Marysville Masonic Hall
Association, invited the Grand Master, Judge William C. Belcher, to proceed with
the ceremony. The Grand Master then delivered an address on behalf of the Grand
Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons, following which the stone was laid:
Assistants in the ceremony were: Charles E. Filkins, Deputy Grand Master;
Ebenezer Lane, Senior Grand Warden; Dr. S. J. S. Rogers, Junior Grand Warden; E.
Hamilton, Grand Marshal; and Ben E. I. Ely, orator of the day. In the evening,
beginning at 9:30 o'clock, a grand ball was held in the Marysville theater,
which was attended by the best people in the community. The dedication of the
building took place December 27, 1864. 

The DeLong Collection 

    A relic of which the Masons of Marysville are proud is an American flag
brought to this country from Japan by Charles Egbert DeLong, who in 1869 was
appointed minister to Japan by President U. S. Grant. The flag is the banner
which was carried by DeLong's embassy during his travels into the interior of
Japan, and is the first foreign flag ever carried in that country. 

    A full coat of mail, used in the wars of Japan over 700 years before, is
also in the collection which DeLong presented to the Marysville Masonic
fraternity, together with several bronze candlesticks. 

    DeLong was born in Beekmanville, Dutchess County, N. Y., on August 13, 1826.
He served in the California legislature in 1857 and 1858, and again in 1860 and
1862. 

Corinthian Lodge, No. 9, F. & A. M. 

    In addition to Marysville Lodge, No. 9, two other subordinate lodges were
formed — Yuba Lodge, No. 39, and Corinthian Lodge, No. 69. All are now merged in
Corinthian Lodge, which has preserved the first number given a Marysville lodge
— No. 9. 

    The present officers of Corinthian Lodge, No. 9, are: D. D. Johnston, W. M.;
H. T. Hosford. S. W.; H. R. Hastings, J. W.; P. T. Smith, treasurer; 
L. B. Wilcoxon, secretary; E. J. McCready, chaplain; W. F. Roberts, S. D.; 
Chester O. Gates, J. D.; J. R. Murray, marshal; M. N. Jacobson. S. S.; William
Simmons, J. S.; and J. R. Oates, tyler. 

    The lodge recently proposed a new asylum on the site of the old one, but the
movement has not as yet taken definite shape. 

Independent Order of Odd Fellows 

    The first lodge in Marysville to inculcate among her citizens the principles
of Odd Fellowship was established in the early fifties. A meeting of Odd Fellows
was called on Saturday evening, January 24, 1852, at the recorder's office,
corner of Second and D Streets, for the purpose of forming a lodge. 

    The order grew apace, and the Odd Fellows Hall Association was organized on
March 24, 1860, by Levi Hite, Charles L. Thomas, A. J. Mason, Charles Bockius,
William K. Hudson, E. Hamilton, J. AY Winter, George Blust, J. M. Matthews, and
George Merritt. The first board of directors consisted of four members: Levi
Hite, president; J. M. Matthews, vice-president; A. J. Mason, treasurer; and
Charles L. Thomas, secretary. The building at present standing at Third and D
Streets was erected in 1860 at an expense of $32,000. 

    The lodge library was inaugurated on a small scale about 1858, by
contributions of books from members of two lodges, the first donation being made
by George Merritt. In 1864 the lodge determined to make it a valuable library,
and to that end purchased 500 volumes of standard works of history, science and
fiction. The books were selected with great care. 

    In recent years the Odd Fellows Building has undergone various alterations,
among the most important of which are an enlarged banquet-room and an addition
on the east side. 

Independent Order of B'nai B'rith 

    Mirriam Lodge, No. 56, Independent Order of B'nai B'rith, was organized on
the 5th of May, 1864, with the following charter members: S. Rosenthal, M.
Marcuse, H. Brown, A. Shreyer, S. Levy, J. S. Borman, A. Suss, B. Rosenberg, L.
Meininger, Louis Goldman, A. Englander, G. Cohn, H. Wagner, M. W. Peyser, A.
Joseph, R. Katz, M. Shreyer, H. Shreyer, S. Hochstadter, and A. Hochstadter. The
highest number of members at any time was sixty-two. The lodge met at the corner
of Third and High Streets twice every month. 

Ancient Order of Hibernians 

    The objects of this order are fraternity and benevolence. The order has been
very strong in the United States, and its membership has been confined largely
to citizens of Hibernian descent. The lodge in Marysville was organized in May,
1869, with the following members: Dan Donohoe, Patrick Corr, Miles Flynn, Daniel
Farrell, Thomas Farrell, Michael Fitzgerald, James Clark, John Walsh, Thomas C.
Martin, Peter Muldoon, J. Coen, John Burns, M. Lavelle, Owen Loftus, Michael
O'Connor, John T. Lydon, John Donovan, John McGuire. and John Colford. The first
officers were: M. Fitzgerald, president; John Colford, vice-president; John
Walsh, corresponding secretary; Dan Donohoe, financial secretary; and Patrick
Corr, treasurer. 

    The local society at one time had 125 members. Marysville no longer
maintains a branch of this order. 

Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks 

    Marysville Lodge, No. 783, B. P. O. E., is another fraternal organization of
Marysville owning its own home. The lodge was instituted on June 21, 1902, with
a charter roll of thirty-six members, and for nine years held its meetings in
Jeffersonian Hall, corner High and Third Streets, on the third floor of the J.
R. Garrett Company building. 

    The organization ceremonies were conducted by Grass Valley Lodge, No. 583,
and Nevada City Lodge, No. 518, a few residents of Marysville then being members
of these lodges. The first officers were: Exalted Ruler, Dr. J. H. Barr;
Esteemed Leading Knight, R. E. Whitney; Esteemed Loyal Knight, Robert F. Watson;
Lecturing Knight, M. T. Brittan; secretary, W. M. Strief; treasurer, Dr. J. L.
Sullivan; tyler, Herman E. Berg; Esquire, J. H. Marcuse; Inner Guard, Espie A.
White; chaplain, Wallace Dinsmore; organist, D. L. Sharp; trustees, Chris C.
Rubel; A. C. Irwin, and G. W. Harney. The jurisdiction of this lodge covers
Colusa, Arbuckle, Williams, Hammonton, Lincoln, Gridley, and part of Biggs. Its
membership now (1923) numbers 650. 

The Elks' Home 

    It was on Saturday evening, March 4, 1911, that the Elks' Home of Marysville
was dedicated. In the neighborhood of 1000 visitors flocked to the city to
attend the ceremonies, which were conducted by Dr. J. S. J. Conlin of San
Francisco Lodge, assisted by the officers of Chico Lodge. 

    Four years before, the home was conceived by the lodge. The first step taken
toward its realization was the purchase of the lot, 40 by 160 feet, from Frank
Atkins, for $10,000. In a little over a year the lodge had paid the debt; and at
a meeting held March 26, 1910, in less than an hour the money was subscribed by
the members to insure the building. The Marysville Elks' Home, a corporation,
was formed, with the following directors: J. K. Kelly, W. T. Ellis, Jr., Richard
Belcher, G. W. Hall, C. C. Hampton, M. N. Sheldon, Herman E. Berg, R. E. Bevan,
Thomas F. Giblin, Henry Berg, Charles Mathews, Frank Atkins, George E. Wapple,
A. W. Lewis, Matt Arnoldy, and Floyd Seawell. Richard Belcher was made president
of the board, and W. E. Langdon was made secretary. 

    The plans submitted by Parker & Kenyon were adopted, and the contract was
awarded to C. F. Palm, a Marysville contractor of those days. The building has
practically four stories, with a roof garden. The lower floor is leased for
stores, and the remainder of the building is retained for the exclusive use of
the Elks. The second floor is fitted up in an elaborate manner, containing a
lounging room, a reading room, a lodge room and a banquet room. The third floor
is devoted entirely to club features, there being a splendidly equipped billiard
room and cafe, with a dainty grill room, all furnished with the same degree of
elegance displayed in the rooms of the second floor. The roof garden is very
popular with the members during the summer months. Each floor is served with an
electric elevator, while the entire building is heated by steam. A modern
kitchen, with all the necessary equipment, is installed for use of the grill
room and banquet quarters. On Saturday evening, February 28, 1911, the building'
was formally turned over to the lodge by the contractor. 

Foresters of America 

    On Wednesday, May 7, 1913, during a session of the Grand Court of
California, Court Pride of Yuba, No. 34, Foresters of America, became the fourth
lodge organization in Marysville to own its own building, which stands on E
Street, east side, between Third and Fourth Streets, adjacent to the rear of the
Masonic Asylum. Theretofore the lodge held its meetings in the hall in the
Empire Block, corner Second and Oak Streets. Like the Elks, the Foresters formed
a corporation for hall purposes. 

    The corner-stone of this building was laid by the grand officers of
California, following a parade and the planting of a tree in Napoleon Square, a
public park of the city. That night there was a grand ball in Armory Hall, a
block away. Armory Hall, which has since been razed, stood on the lots now used
by the Sacramento Northern Railroad for a freight yard. 

Knights of Columbus 

    Marysville Council, No. 1869, Knights of Columbus, was organized on Sunday,
April 22, 1917. Owing to the death, a week previously, of Rev. Matthew Coleman,
the pastor of St. Joseph's Church, who had been active in bringing about the
organization of the Council, there was no outward show, though many members of
the order from a distance were visitors. 

    The first officers of the Council were: Grand Knight, Matt Arnoldy; Deputy
Grand Knight, James Kenney; Chancellor, Leo A. Smith; recorder, Louis F.
Albrecht; financial secretary, Gus T. Arnoldy; treasurer, Raymond J. Flannery;
Warden, Leo Willett; Inside Guard, Hugh Grant; Outside Guard, James Barrett;
trustees, Frank M. Booth, J. A. Queenan, and Thomas Mathews; chaplain, Rev.
William Coen. 

    In the first year the Council had three class initiations. Each year since,
there has been an average of one class initiation. The membership now exceeds
200, notwithstanding the organization of a Council at Colusa reduced the roll by
forty. The present Grand Knight is Dr. R. F. Gilbride. 

Other Fraternal Orders 

    The German residents of Marysville supported for many years a Turnverein
Society and the Liederkranz. The Turnverein owned their own hall, which was
situated on the lots now occupied by the Foresters' Hall. 

    Other fraternal orders which have branches in Marysville at the present time
are: The Native Sons of the Golden West, the Native Daughters of the Golden
West, Companions of the Forest, Red Men, Maccabees, Moose, Independent Order of
Foresters, Woodmen of the World, Rebekahs, Eastern Star, Catholic Women of
America, and Sciots. 

SOCIETIES AND CLUBS 
Marysville Pioneer Society 

    Marysville's Society of Pioneers was established in 1869. Thirty-three old
residents assembled at the City Hall on February 20, 1869, and organized a
society by adopting a constitution and by-laws, and electing the following
officers: G. N. Swezy, president; James T. Dickey and James G. Dowell,
vice-presidents; J. B. Leaman, recording secretary; William G. Murphy,
corresponding secretary; William H. Hartwell, treasurer; Dr. S. M. Miles, Dr.
Eli Teegarden, James Williamson, J. C. Smith, John Keller, A. W. Cutts, and J.
A. Murray, directors. The society was composed of native Californians,
foreigners and citizens of the United States resident in California prior to the
9th of September, 1850, and their male descendants eighteen years of age or
over, who were entitled to all the privileges and benefits of the society. The
society was called the Marysville Pioneer Society; and its objects were to
cultivate the social virtues of its members, to collect and preserve information
connected with the early settlement of the country, and to perpetuate the memory
of those early pioneers whose sagacity, enterprise and love of independence
induced them to settle in the wilderness and become the germ of a new State. 

    Preserved in the archives of the Packard Free Library are the photographs of
many of these brave Argonauts who builded up Marysville and the surrounding
country. The writer recognizes in the collection the faces of the men who trod
Marysville's streets when he was a boy, and made it the busy mart it then was.
Here are the names: A. W. Oakley, A. W. Cutts, James T. Dickey, Henry F. Hyde,
Francis Hamlin, Thomas Dean, Joseph Lask, Tartan Smith, G. W. Nickleson, J. E.
Brown, J. V. McMurtry, E. C. Ross, W. A. McLaughlin, Jackson Arndt, Dr. C. C.
Harrington, W. H. Perdue, Phil W. Keyser, William T. Blivens. C. Cockrill, G. P.
Russell, E. Hamilton, A. J. Lucas, Dr. S. J. S. Rogers, Joseph H. Kern, C. T.
Covillaud, A. G. Turner, William M. Bell, T. C. Chase, Herndon Barrett, A. S.
Noyes, Henry Heitman, Lyman Ackley, O. P. Stidger, J. D. Dow, A. P. Willey, L.
T. Crane, C. G. Clark, W. K. McClintock, H. R. D. Townsend, Edward Hooper, Dr.
C. E. Stone, C. Darmstadt, W. G. Murphy, L. B. Leaman, J. C. Smith, A. J.
Batchelder, E. H. Thurston, Stephen Eaton, G. N. Swezy, John Keller, J. G.
Briggs, Charles Covillaud, Sr., E. W. Mull, A. J. Cumberson, Benjamin Bigelow,
L. H. Babb, Eli Teegarden, George Merritt, L. R. Sellon, S. S. Brewster, J. W.
Moore, W. H. Hartwell, William Rackerby, D. P. Newbert, J. C. Cornell, J. W.
Hunter, C. P. Hunt, W. K. Hudson, Dr. S. M. Miles, and G. Katzenstein. 

    The society at one time had a membership of 135. Today it is no longer in
existence, all the members having either passed on or removed from this community. 

Marysville Art Club 

    The Marysville Art Club, a section of the Bi-County Federation of Women's
Clubs, is now past ten years of age. Mrs. Charles McConnaughy, the first
president of the organization, once wrote of the society as follows: 

    "It causes a smile when one thinks of the first meeting of the Marysville
Art Club and its mushroom growth, a quick development from a group of women
studying art, into a federated club with its various sections. 

    "Why did we organize? Marysville was ready for just such a club, but it
needed the report of the guns before it mobilized. The report came when a group
of pictures by Rosa Bonheur was being exhibited through the State. If Marysville
had such an organized club, it would be an easy matter to bring the exhibit, as
well as others, to our town. We were most fortunate in not having to search for
a leader. We had with us a most efficient, experienced and willing one. All we
had to do was to get together. We did so. 

    "A committee called a public meeting of all those interested in the study of
art, to be held in the Packard Library, January 4, 1913. We expected at the most
about a dozen who would be interested in this work; but to our delight thirty
members were enrolled, and within three months our membership increased to 135.
This immediately changed the nature of the anticipated study club into the
formal club that it now is. 

    "We were too late to have the Rosa Bonheur exhibit; but we did get something
infinitely greater and better — a most enthusiastic, ambitious and growing club." 

    The Art Club brings to Marysville some of the best talent attainable in the
dramatic line, as also speakers of note and musicians of wide repute. 

The Shakespeare Club 

    The oldest literary organization in Yuba County is now the Shakespeare Club
of Marysville. This honor at one time belonged to the Jeffersonian Lyceum, which
disbanded several years ago. The club is now nearing its thirtieth anniversary. 

    The forming of the Shakespeare Club originated with Mrs. Martin Sullivan,
who now has a country home near Yuba City, Sutter County. During the first year
of its existence, the club was under the direction of Prof. Herbert Miller, then
principal of the Marysville High School. Under his direction a foundation was
laid and further work was carefully planned. 

    At first the club accepted the hospitality of each member in turn, as many
of the local clubs continue to do: but later Mrs. David Powell graciously
invited the membership to meet with her. Thereafter, until Mrs. Powell
discontinued her residence in Marysville, her heart and home were open to the
members for the regular Tuesday evening meetings. Friendship and loyalty are the
only dues in this organization. The club is made up of congenial friends whose
literary talents are devoted to the earnest study of the plays and poems of the
peerless Bard of Avon, from whom the club takes its name. 


Additional Comments:

Extracted from:

HISTORY OF YUBA and SUTTER COUNTIES 
CALIFORNIA 
WITH 
Biographical Sketches OF 
The Leading Men and Women of the Counties Who Have Been Identified with Their
Growth and Development from the Early Days to the Present 

HISTORY BY 
PETER J. DELAY 

ILLUSTRATED 
COMPLETE IN ONE VOLUME 

HISTORIC RECORD COMPANY 
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA
1924



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