TWELFTH STREET LOOKING WEST FROM BROADWAY (1884)
The Masonic Temple at 12th and Washington Streets and the First Congregational Church at 12th and Clay Streets
The following members were present: Edwin A. Sherman, 32°; Amasa W. Bishop, 18°; Charles E. Gillett, 32°; Josiah W. Dodge, 32°; Daniel W. Gelwicks, 32°; Anthony Chabot, 32°; James L. Gerrish, 32°; Robert A. Hughes, 33°; William F. Southard, 14º, and Charles F. Burnham, 32°. Edwin A. Sherman, 32°, temporary chairman, called the meeting to order at eight o’clock. The brethren unanimously elected Amasa W. Bishop, 18°, permanent chairman, and Charles E. Gillett, 32°, Secretary.
At this meeting, Sherman advised the members about applying for charters for the three Bodies instead of a Lodge of Perfection. He cited the fate of the lodges in some mining towns, such as Placerville and Nevada City, which depended solely on the mining industry. Others, such as Vallejo, Petaluma, Marysville, and Stockton, lacked enthusiasm for the project. The municipalities with only a Lodge of Perfection finally had to surrender their charters because the lodges had become dormant. It was necessary to have the Rose Croix Chapter and Council of Kadosh for encouragement and advancement.
Brother Sherman also called attention to Pythagoras Lodge of Perfection No. 11 in San Francisco, which Albert Pike set up to work in the German language, and gave it little hope for survival; also, to Myrtle Lodge No. 10 in Eureka with only twenty-seven members and Pacific Lodge in Marysville with eighteen members, which were just struggling along. He pointed out that the population of Oakland was about forty thousand, and people were moving in every day; that there were eight Craft lodges in the East Bay with a membership of about six hundred thirty-six, and in the State of California, there were about thirteen thousand Masons — an excellent potential for the Scottish Rite. Sherman’s remarks were well received, and everyone was convinced that the right action was to apply for the three Bodies. The brethren accepted Edwin Sherman’s offer to draft a petition for the three charters. A notice was mailed to all Scottish Rite Masons in the East Bay announcing the next meeting on Thursday, October 4, at eight o’clock in the evening. The mail carriers used a horse and cart, and the mail service was slow. The routes were long, and homes were few and far apart, but the mail went through. The news of the meetings was now spreading, and it was only a matter of days before the brethren would hear the clarion call to join Amasa Bishop and his inspired brethren in their determination to establish the Scottish Rite in Oakland.