Last month we were treated to fine renditions of selected DeMolay and Job's Daughters' ceremonies at our first stated communication. At our second stated communication Kurt Muse recounted a gripping tale of seizure and rescue as Panama recaptured democracy from the hands of tyranny. His story represented the best America has to offer, as a few civilians risked their lives to win freedom for the many, and as soldiers risked theirs to save those civilians who became symbols for a nation. Also, we passed a brother to the Degree of Fellowcraft at the request of Crewe Lodge in southern Virginia. This was a unique opportunity for your Master as well as the candidate, as both wore the uniform of the US Air Force, having been called to duty as Reservists last year.

At our first stated communication for June, we will be treated to the National Sojourner's ceremony titled "Building the Flag," which traces the creation of our nation's standard from before the Revolution to the present. At this meeting I intend to staff the Lodge Committee on Scholarships and Educational Activities, which was established by Resolution No. 9, adopted on 9 Dec 1993. In part, the enabling resolution reads "upon establishment of the Committee, three members shall be elected, one for a term of one year from the beginning of the year following the election, one for a term of two years, and one for a term of three years. Commencing with the expiration of the term of the first committee member, one member shall be elected annually at the time of the election of Officers for a term of three years. In the event of a vacancy before the expiration of a Committee member's term, the Master shall order an election to fill such vacancy." As Master, I hereby declare a vacancy in all three elected seats on this Committee, and therefore order an election to fill such vacancies at the stated communication to be held on Thursday, June 13th. I will nominate brothers who have expressed an interest in these offices, but nominations will be accepted from the floor.

On Saturday, June 15th, we will revive the tradition of a Blood Drive and Breakfast at the Memorial. From 7:30 to 11:30 AM, INOVA Blood Services will be in one end of the dining room while a pancake breakfast is served at the other. Each donor, even if deferred, will receive a commemorative t-shirt. Since the professionals at INOVA will expend considerable effort to service this event, let's show them that we are dedicated to the cause of saving lives by turning out in record numbers. We must assign donation times, so please contact me to reserve your appointment. Friends and relatives are welcome to participate.

Please note that our second stated communication in June will be on Wednesday the 26th, instead of Thursday the 27th,to accommodate our traditional celebration of Saint John the Baptist with a table lodge at Gadsby's Tavern and a religious service at Christ Church. Our guest speaker will be Most Worshipful Edgar N. Peppler, Past Grand Master of Masons in New Jersey and Past President of the George Washington Masonic National Memorial Association. The Mayor of the City of Alexandria will be in attendance at Christ Church. The dinner at Gadsby's will be catered for a cost of $20 per person. Since seating in the American Legion Hall is limited, contact an officer as soon as possible to obtain a ticket.

Brethren, our visit Liberty Lodge in Beverly, Massachusetts, from August 2nd to the 4th is fast approaching. Bus transportation makes the trip easier and more enjoyable for most, but we must have enough to justify and share the expense. Our friends there will host us in their homes, or arrange hotel reservations, if preferred. The Master plans a picnic on Friday, a Master Mason's Degree, historic tours, and shopping on Saturday, and theater on Saturday evening. Contact me as soon as possible to express your desire to come.

Sincerely and fraternally,

Worshipful Master

• August 2 (Fri) - DEPART FOR VISIT TO LIBERTY LODGE: Beverly, Massachusetts
• August 4 (Sun) - DEPART FOR REID JAMES SIMMONS SCHOOL: Fork Union Academy

STATED COMMUNICATIONS - The stated communications of this Lodge shall be held at the George Washington Masonic National Memorial (GWMNM), Alexandria, Virginia on the second and fourth Thursday of each month, except on the fourth Thursday of November and December, on December 27th (the anniversary of Saint John the Evangelist) for installation of officers, at 7:30 pm, and at 4:00 pm on the day observed by governmental regulations or the GWMNM in celebration of George Washington's birthday. When such dates fall on a Sunday, the stated communication shall be held on the Saturday before or the Monday following.

CALLED COMMUNICATIONS - Usually on Mondays as announced herein.

YOUTH MEETINGS AT GWMNM - Alexandria-Washington Chapter, International Order of DeMolay, meets the first and third Sundays at 2 pm in the North Lodge Room. Bethel No. 22, International Order Jobs Daughters, meets the first and third Sundays at 6 pm in the North Lodge Room.

On June 1st, Alexandria-Washington Lodge makes its annual fraternal visit to William Elkins Lodge No. 271, Philadelphia, PA, to participate in their Ladies' Night. On October 19th, William Elkins Lodge will make their annual fraternal visit to participate in our Ladies' Night.

This special relationship between our two lodges started in some form about 1907, one year after William Elkins Lodge was chartered. According to Charles Entrekin, Past Master of William Elkins Lodge, their Past Master Mardeross S. Gooloyan was so well received during a visit to our lodge around 1907 that he thought it would be a good idea to start exchanging fraternal visits with us. These periodic visits started shortly thereafter. For many years both lodges made the trip by train.

In 1916 Brother Gooloyan became Worshipful Master of William Elkins Lodge. In that year, or shortly thereafter, he donated a sum of money to each lodge to help pay for the expense of making these visits. Alexandria-Washington Lodge established an endowment fund with this gift and supplements the fund each year with a percentage of the profits from the gift shop. Each year, the Worshipful Master invites the line officers, their wives, and other members of the lodge to make these visits.

Brother Entrekin believes that one of the high points of this fraternal relationship occurred about 1980 when William Elkins Lodge was invited to lay a wreath at George Washington's tomb during our wreath laying ceremonies in December and February. William Elkins Lodge has continued this practice ever since, and considers it an honor to do so.

In 1749, Charles Mason was among the first to purchase a plot of land in the new town of Alexandria. To give the community a good start, deeds required landowners to erect a house on their property measuring a minimum of 20 feet by 20 feet within two years. By the mid-1750s, Charles Mason and his wife Anne were operating a tailoring business and an ordinary out of their structure in lot 45, on the corner of Cameron and North Royal Streets. Upon Anne Mason's death in 1761, the property was advertised for sale by Mason's executor, John Carlyle, but not actually sold until 1776 to his partner, John Dalton. In the meantime, Carlyle may have attempted to improve the site by constructing a larger more impressive tavern building next door to Mason's ordinary about 1770. By 1774, this new building was being run by Mary Hawkins. Diary accounts exist from two of Mrs. Hawkins' customers: a young Englishman named Nicholas Cresswell and a local gentleman, George Washington. Washington's townhouse on Cameron Street was just around the corner, but was not provided with its own kitchen. Consequently, his diary reveals that he was a frequent customer in a number of local taverns, including the one run by Mary Hawkins.

In 1778, merchant Edward Owens purchased part of Lot 45 from the estate of John Dalton. There is no record to indicate who was running the tavern on Royal Street after 1777, since Mary Hawkins died in that year. In 1782 Owens sold the tavern operation to John Wise, a successful businessman and experienced tavern keeper who has been described as the "Tavern King of Alexandria." The lodging business in Alexandria must have been quite good by the early 1790s, for by the end of 1792, Wise had an entirely new tavern building under construction next door to his original location. Much larger than the circa 1770 structure on its south side, the new building boasted a bar, two large dining rooms, an elegant Georgian style ballroom complete with musician's gallery, and fourteen sleeping rooms. When the building opened to the public in January, 1793, under the "Sign of the bunch of grapes," Wise advertised its spaciousness and "stock of good old liquors" as well as the proximity of the tavern to the city's market. John Wise may have overseen the operation of his new tavern for the first few years, but by the end of 1796 he had leased the new building to a young man named John Gadsby. Very few facts are known about Gadsby's origins except that he was probably from London and was the proprietor of a tavern on Union Street just prior to leasing Wise's tavern. Running along the Potomac River in the late 18th century, Union Street must have been the location of many taverns and ordinaries that catered to a tough crowd of sailors and dockhands along Alexandria's busy waterfront. By contrast, the Sign of the Bunch of Grapes was located in the center of town near the market and court house and was an impressive new building. John Gadsby was very successful in the hotel business, and surviving period accounts indicate that Gadsby's Tavern was one of the most fashionable places in town, even if the prices were a bit high. Gadsby's Tavern and City Hotel was the setting for many fine social events during this period, including dancing assemblies, meetings of various community groups and societies, honorary dinners and the last two birthnight balls actually attended by George Washington. In 1802, Gadsby renewed his lease with JohnWise and operated the establishment until 1808.

Today, Gadsby's Tavern Museum consists of two buildings, the 1770 tavern and the 1792 City Hotel. Mr. Gadsby's establishment was a center of political, business, and social life in early Alexandria. The tavern was the setting for dancing assemblies, theatrical and musical performances, and meetings of local organizations. George Washington enjoyed the hospitality provided by tavern keepers and twice attended the annual Birthnight Ball held in his honor. Other prominent patrons included John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and the Marquis de Lafayette.

Christ Church has a continuous history as a house of worship going back before the founding of the United States of America. Although the building was begun in 1767, its roots go back much further. The Church of England was the established church of Virginia, part of and protected by the government. The colony was divided into defined geographical areas of church administration known as parishes. All residents were members of the parish and required to pay taxes for its support. In return, the parish provided religious services and the colonial equivalent of modern social and welfare services. The City of Alexandria was founded in 1749 and a chapel-of-ease, or branch church for the ease of parishioners distant from the main parish church, was located here by 1753. A vestry of 12 men was elected in each parish to conduct its civil and religious business. By 1765, the growth of the local population led the Virginia legislature to divide the parish which included Alexandria in two. A new parish was created out of the northern end of the Truro parish and named Fairfax. The vestry of Fairfax parish decided that the main church at Falls Church and the chapel-of-ease at Alexandria were inadequate and would be replaced. Two similar churches, one in Falls Church and one in Alexandria, were built from one set of plans. The church built in Alexandria is known as Christ Church.

The American War for Independence, which commenced shortly after the completion of the church, required the organization of the American Episcopal Church, an autonomous province of the Anglican communion. In Virginia this change meant the end of government support and protection for the Church. Unlike many Virginia parishes, Christ Church survived and grew through the support of local residents like George Washington and the clerical leadership of David Griffith and Bryan Fairfax. The church was vigorous enough to add a gallery by 1787 and to accommodate a division which resulted in the establishment of St. Paul's, Alexandria, in 1809.

As the Episcopal Church in Virginia regained its strength in the first decades of the nineteenth century, Christ Church remained a strong parish. William Meade, rector from 1811 to 1813, was later the Bishop of Virginia and Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church of the Confederate States. His successor, Oliver Norris, saw the church's official consecration as Christ Church by Bishop Thomas Claggett of Maryland on January 9, 1814. Virginia Theological Seminary was founded in Alexandria in 1823 by Meade and his associates. Throughout the remainder of the antebellum era, Christ Church ministered to prominent Alexandrian families, including the Washingtons, the Lees, the Masons, and the Ramsays. Life at Christ Church was abruptly altered by the Civil War. When Alexandria was occupied in 1861, many churches were seized for use as hospitals or stables. Apparently, Christ Church's reputation as George Washington's place of worship preserved it as a church, where U.S. Army Chaplains conducted services. A U.S. Army oriented congregation grew around the chaplaincy, while the original parishioners remaining in the area generally worshipped with Confederate States sympathizers elsewhere.

In 1866, negotiations by Bishop John Johns of Virginia resulted in the uniting of these two divergent congregations under one priest at Christ Church. When the war ended, Christ Church was returned to its parishioners with its interior intact, and the parish resumed its life, calling its own clergy. Ironically, the post-war years saw more changes to the interior of Christ Church than did the war years. During this period, the Rev. Randolph H. McKim "modernized" the interior to Victorian tastes. In the 1890s, it was restored to the original colonial style. The present interior design dates from that restoration.