Livingston Masonic Library |
The Empire State Mason Magazine |
The following article appeared in The Empire State Mason Magazine, an official publication of The Grand Lodge of the State of New York. To subscribe to the magazine, or to read more articles of Masonic interest, visit the ESM web site.
The Empire State Mason - Fall 2006 (p. 12)
by RW Richard A. Vang, Trustee
As New York State Masons, we are all extremely proud of our Masonic Care Campus in Utica. I swell with pride when I describe to non-Masons the facilities we operate there. Many of us have friends or relatives who are residents of the Home or Acacia Village. As Masons and as loving, caring human beings, we travel to Utica to visit with them and make their lives more comfortable. Conversations with them give us a connection to our past, and their wise counsel informs us for the future. But did you know that you have many, many other friends and relatives residing and being cared for at the Utica campus?
I am referring, of course, to the Utica branch of the Livingston Masonic Library. You might think that it is just an irrelevant collection of old Masonic paintings, jewels, aprons and certificates, but if you are a New York State Mason, these artifacts truly are your Masonic friends and relatives.
There have been libraries and reading rooms at the Masonic Home as long as there has been a Masonic Home. Some were used for formal study by the children, others for recreational use by the elderly residents. Over the years, a small collection of Masonic artifacts and books began to accumulate, and the first Masonic library and museum was set up in the Administration building. When that space was needed for offices and computers, the collection was moved to the current Library building.
The building was a dormitory first for boys, then girls, until 1983. It sat vacant for a year until the Masonic collection was moved into it. RW Charlie Haskin, 2nd Vice President of the Board of Trustees and Library Committee, and other dedicated Brothers assembled the collection into a coherent display, and the Utica branch of the Livingston Library was born. When the Manhattan branch was moved into its new location, selected items sent up for storage were added to the Utica collection. And, like many great libraries, a major part of the holdings derived from a single donation. In this case, the collection of Ill. and RW Herbert W. Greenland came to the Utica branch when the Syracuse Temple closed. Included in the Greenland Collection were aprons, pins, jewels, swords, and other paraphernalia, as well as much-needed storage cabinets.
Staffed exclusively by a team of dedicated Trustees and volunteers headed by RW Brother Haskin, the Utica branch is a wonderful museum. Today, the branch has approximately 2,800 volumes in the library, catalogued in accordance with the classification system used in Manhattan. The books were catalogued by a volunteer, Dr. Hermine Williams, who also used the collection of the papers of Brother Jean Sibelius to write her book on the composer. Many of the items hold particular significance to the history of Freemasonry in Upstate New York. Currently visitors can view beautiful displays of Masonic jewels, antique aprons, glassware and ceramics, handcrafted art pieces, furniture, and more.
In addition to the displays on the first floor, there are individual rooms on the second floor that contain special displays. Of particular importance is the York Rite Room, which highlights the important history of Royal Arch Masonry in New York State, as well as Council and Commandery. Another room displays the history of the Masonic Home. Included are photos of the aforementioned libraries, residence halls, dining rooms, gymnasia, playgrounds, hospital facilities, and the faces of those who lived there and called it their "home."
Over the past 20 years, many items have arrived at the Utica branch as lodges closed or consolidated, or because they could no longer be properly cared for by their home lodge. Using the skills and resources provided to them, RW Haskin and the others have cared for these “orphans” with love and respect, which is plainly evident. Still--just like the other facilities on the Masonic Care Campus--the Livingston Library houses many residents who are sick or dying. For example, several items arrived at the Library this summer from a lodge that had to sell its building. The lodge was able to rent the building and stay put for a while. Eventually they had no choice but to send their artifacts to us, because the new owners of the building allowed the Masonic artwork to be smashed in a frenzy of anti-Masonic fervor.
However, the Library Trustees have been working hard to create a suitable home for these important historical items. Recent work days have been conducted to complete larger tasks standing in the way of progress. In October of 2005 several brothers from various Districts (and a few non-Masons as well) assisted the Trustees by removing many artifacts from the basement of Tompkins Chapel, which had been boxed for temporary storage. Three more “work days” were implemented to remove most of the remaining items to the second floor of the Library building. About 40 Grand Master portraits are, at the time of this writing, to be relocated to a new storage facility at the Masonic Hall in Manhattan. In addition to artwork and artifacts, the minute books of defunct lodges have been stored there, and all were in danger of mold, damage, theft or possible flooding from the pipes.
One item of importance recently found in "the rubble of the Temple" was a silk printing of the "Celebration of the Cap-Stone", from the Erie Canal dedication in Lockport, 1825. Had we known of this item before, it could have been used during the recent dedication re-enactments conducted by the Royal Arch Masons. Now that items like this have been removed to the Library, they need to be cleaned, catalogued, and properly displayed or stored. With advanced training from Library Curator Catherine Walter and archival supplies and materials donated by St. George’s Lodge No. 6, the Trustees and volunteers are better equipped to continue caring for these “residents.”
But even with the removal of these items to the Library building, their longevity is somewhat tenuous because the building is just that--a building. While great care is taken to ensure the long-term survival of the artifacts, the building is not yet equipped with state-of-the-art conservation facilities that modern museum practices require. The Library Trustees are currently investigating funding sources to accomplish the long-term conservation goals. It is a dream for some Brothers to see such a facility at Utica--an equal of the Manhattan branch in all respects--which would serve not only as a home for Blue Lodge artifacts and minute books, but for those of the Concordant Bodies as well.
The Utica branch of the Livingston Masonic Library is a place for old and orphaned Masonic artifacts, books and documents to live and be cared for. Like the human residents of the Masonic Care Campus, they sometimes get lonely if no one visits them. So why not visit your other friends and relatives in Utica? We guarantee you’ll have an enriching and informative conversation.
While I have never seen it, I have been told that there used to be on display a book that depicted the orphans who came to live at the Home. One child in particular stood out to everyone who has seen this book. A photo of this young boy shows him as he entered the Home--dirty, disheveled, and emaciated. A later photograph shows him happy, healthy, and robust--a testament to the care he received at Utica. This, my Brothers, is the goal of the Library Trustees—to receive the widows and orphans of your Masonic heritage, to care for them and restore them to good health. Your donation to the Library’s Endowment Fund through the Masonic Brotherhood Foundation can help achieve that goal.
If you would like to help the Livingston Library, please contact VW Tom Savini at (212) 337-6620, or through the web site at www.nymasoniclibrary.org. As always, remember that your donation to the Livingston Masonic Library is tax deductible.
©2006, The Empire State Mason Magazine.