North Bend’s Unity Masonic Lodge celebrated a century of service to the Valley on Saturday, August 17, with a moment of renewal.

The lodge had been deconsecrated and darkened before the Grand Master of Washington, Bruce E. Vesper, ceremonially rededicated it for another 100 years of activity with a symbolic presentation of oil, grain and wine.

Unity members struck a special coin for the occasion, and the official claymore of the Grand Lodge of Washington, used in important ceremonies, was brought to North Bend for the re-dedication.

The fraternity first met as a Lodge in North Bend in 1912, and was granted an official constitution from the Grand Lodge in 1913.

The Unity Lodge struck a commemorative coin to mark the centennial.

Little did they know, those few good Masons who gathered together in the North Bend railway depot in January of 1912, that they were making history. But nearly 100 years later, their dream of creating a permanent Masonic Lodge in North Bend continues.

Eleven men personally pledged $1,000 to the construction and furnishing of an appropriate Lodge building; that equates to nearly $23,000 in today’s currency. The building has since been historically landmarked as one of the oldest buildings in North Bend.

While Freemasons have been a fraternal organization since the 16th century, their roots go back to 13th century Scotland. The working tools of those medieval masons, the compass, square and level, have been used as metaphorical lessons for the members of the organization since then, and have continued to be used as such by Masonic Lodges throughout the modern world. Famous Freemasons include George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Meriwether Lewis, Mark Twain, Davy Crockett, John Wayne, astronauts John Glenn and Buzz Aldrin and Presidents Harry Truman and Gerald R. Ford.

Learn more about Unity Masons at unity198.org.

Masons gather to celebrate 100 years in North Bend. From left are, front row, Matthew Roalkvam, Ernie Jenner, Steven DeSpain, Grand Master Bruce E. Vesper, Mark Goodwin, Jonathan Seaton, Chris Collins,  Randall Kenneth Rauschmier, Daniel Eugene Sater, back row, Kenneth Gordon Hearing, Dennis Wilkins,  Donald Ellsworth Trombley, Glen Erwin Simons, Kenneth Cason.

Ken Hearing and Vesper clink ‘redneck wine glasses’ presented, jokingly, by North Bend officials.

The official claymore of the Grand Lodge of Washington, used by the grand swordbearer in all ceremonies, is brought to North Bend for the re-dedication. Freemasonry originated in Scotland 500 years ago.