St. Patrick's Lodge #4 F&AM

October 11, 2023

Saving a Colonial Lodge

By V∴W∴ Richard L. Pettit, Jr., Master of St. Patrick’s #4 F&AM, 2019-2021

Freemasonry makes frequent reference to history and the origin of the Grand Lodge of the State of New York through its roots in the form of the colonial lodges that form the foundation of the organization in the Empire State.

Those colonial lodges, who trace their foundations to the period previous to the formation of the United States, take enormous pride in their history and heritage and are always eager to showcase their Masonic genealogy to all who wish to explore it, and most especially, to brother Masons who are in search of enlightenment regarding this early period of the Craft in New York State.

These lodges, however, do not simply exist on the value of their provenance. They are not bluebloods, carrying forth in perpetuity on the riches of their forebearers. These historical gems, and sometimes beautiful artifices of architectural purpose, more often than not, struggle to continue on in the face of decreased membership, increasing expenses, and in the case of our magnificent, “Grand Lady”, St. Patrick’s Lodge #4, F&AM, crippling expenses of maintaining a rarity of Masonic assets; an original purpose-built Masonic temple.

Building the Current Temple

In the years preceding the construction, dedication and opening of the existing temple in 1925, the brothers of St. Patrick’s banded together as only Masonic brothers can do to push forward the ambitious plan to construct a new building to replace the aging structure that was doomed to destruction through the vision of urban renewal. It required the purchase of an existing residential home, its destruction, and building of a new structure, designed and formed from the outset to be a Masonic temple that would be a statue of permanence in the community and a reminder of all that Masonry had brought to the local residents.

St. Patrick’s Lodge was founded in 1766 as St. Patrick’s Lodge #8, later #4, after the formation of the United States, and is one of the oldest Masonic Lodges in the State of New York. Since its inception, St. Patrick’s has been the center of a “social neighborhood” as envisioned by the founder and first Master of the Lodge, Sir William Johnson, who also founded our city, Johnstown, New York.

After more than two centuries, St. Patrick’s continues to take good men and help them along a path of self-discovery that forms them into even better members of our community. Using the guiding precepts of “Faith, Hope and Charity”, the brothers of St. Patrick’s Lodge strive to improve themselves and the lives of their fellow citizens in this social neighborhood by staying true to their faith, continuing to see the greater good in all people and working to relieve the strife of those among us who are most in need of assistance.

We are proud of our Masonic Craft, our Lodge, our community and its citizens and we are still standing strong as a pillar of hope and optimism in our community. But our optimism is, predictably, challenged at great length every day. We are faced with issues of upkeep that become more expensive with each incident. The continuity of our lodge becomes more dependent on the supply of money for repair to our temple than the necessity for repair to our community.

The Financial Realities of Maintenance

Neighbors, we are struggling. We have not lost hope. We see both sides of the issue, to be sure. The history is magnificent, but maintaining that history should not be our undoing. The building was designed by architects who were Masons. It was built by a construction company who were Masons. It was financed by the brothers of St. Patrick’s under the management and guidance of the trustees. And the result was a magnificent structure filled with the allegory and symbols of Freemasonry to inspire current and future brother Masons into the future unseen.

But that future has become one with expenses that may close our doors. We look forward with great anticipation to the 100^th anniversary of our temple in 2024. The opening of the time capsule in the cornerstone filled with artifacts of the roaring 20s as well as those historic pieces that were added from the time capsule of the previous temple. Perhaps items were placed there from previous generations, which would gift us with seeing historical items from 250 years ago!

Without significant assistance, however, all this may become moot. As much as we have held fundraisers and petitioned active and retired Masons to provide financial relief, it is not enough to keep us viable in our current temple. We are in need of a monetary infusion that will keep us stable into the future.

The original design for the temple was to have a rental space that could provide income to maintain the building. But time and the realities of regulation and obvious necessities have created a list of needs that is beyond what we can currently address:

• Our plumbing is 100 years old and is rotting and leaking. This is not a good situation for our heating system which is a hot water boiler. A plumbing failure could destroy the building.
• Our roof is coming up on its 30-year anniversary. A leak would cause catastrophic damage.
• Our bathrooms are original from 1924. We do not get good reviews from our renters.
• The kitchen needs to be updated to make is safer and reduce our insurance expense.
• The ceilings in some of the rooms on the main floor are falling down from previous roof leaks.
• Paint and plaster in several rooms need repair and maintenance.
• The air conditioning system no longer works.
• We are not handicapped accessible.
• The driveway is a 4-wheel-drive course.

Our temple is a beautiful, old building. Emphasis on “old” becoming more emphatic than “beautiful” as time progresses. We do not want to lose our building, but we are Masons. We are resilient. But we are not above pleading for financial assistance from our neighbors.

Please help us. We want this grand, colonial lodge to continue to be the center of a social community and be a beacon of faith, hope and charity for the future. I so don’t want it to be about money, but that is where we find ourselves.

If you would like to make a donation to assist us with keeping our temple open, please use Venmo account @StPatricksLodge-4. Thank you.