Masonry gave men like George
Washington the stamp of approval they
did not have by birth.
“Freemasonry provided that
endorsement that had previously been
available only to the highest levels,” said
Bullock. “Masonry provided a sense of
honor and a means of displaying that
honor. Men not of noble birth who
joined the Masons learned how to be
gentlemen, to act in a proper sort of way.
Masonry proffered a kind of exclusivity
that allowed men to develop authority
and commitment.”
A new social order
Indeed, Bullock, Harland-Jacobs, and
presenter Matthew Crow, who teaches
the UCLA class “Freemasonry, Civil
Society, and American Democracy,”
described how Masons straddled the
line between being an exclusive society
based on important values and an
inclusive organization that helped men
of humble birth rise in society.
“The question that’s true of Masonry
in general but also specifically during
this time, is ‘Does Masonry attract
good people or does Masonry make
good people?’” said Bullock. “The
answer seems to be both. That’s why it’s
an organization that has endured for
hundreds of years.”
But Freemasonry wasn’t universally
endorsed in the new republic. In his
presentation, Crow described how
Thomas Jefferson – a man who had none
of Washington’s insecurity over rank
and class, having been born of the noble,
slave-owning class – felt deep skepticism
toward fraternal groups like the Masons.
web extra
Read the research papers presented at the
10th Annual California Masonic Symposium.
Meet the presenters
Kenneth G. Nagel
•;Grand Master, Masons of California
Dr. John L. Cooper III
•;Past Grand Secretary, Masons of California
Dr. Steven C. Bullock, Henry W. Coil lecturer
•;Professor of U.S. history at Worcester Polytechnic
Institute in Massachusetts
•;Author of “Revolutionary Brotherhood: Freemasonry
and the Transformation of the American Social Order,
1730-1840”
Dr. Jessica L. Harland-Jacobs
•;Associate professor of history, Britain and British
Empire, at the University of Florida
•;Author of “Builders of Empire: Freemasonry and
British Imperialism, 1717-1927”
Matthew Crow
•;University of California, Los Angeles graduate student
•;Codeveloper of the UCLA class “Freemasonry, Civil
Society, and American Democracy”
