The
NORTH
CAROLINA
MASON
Official Publication of The Grand Lodge of Ancient, Free & Accepted Masons of North Carolina
VOL. XCVII, No. 8
Oxford, North Carolina 27565, August 1972
ONE DOLLAR A YEAR
New Temple is Dedicated
At Swansboro by GM Kahn
Swansboro—During an emergent communi
cation of the Grand Lodge held here on July
29 Grand Master Berl M. Kahn dedicated the
new building of Seaside Lodge No. 429. Other
Grand Lodge Officers
and officials present
were Grand Treas
urer James W. Brew
er (PGM), Gr. Sec
retary Ghas. A. Har
ris (PGM), Gr. Stew
ard William B. Bel-
lois, Gr. Tyler Fred
F. Harding, Assistant
to the Grand Secre
tary Robert P. Dud
ley, Orphanage Supt.
A. D. Leon Gray, and
Home Supt. Troy G
Robbins.
Basil B. Hurst, Mas- Local Masons par-
ter of Seaside 429, wel- ticipating in the ded-
comes Masons and icatory ceremonies in-
guests to dedication eluded David Holland
ceremonies on July 29. as Deputy Gr. Mas
ter, A. D. Hatsell as
Senior Grand Warden, Clarence Cunningham
(Continued on Page Six)
Nelson B. Banks New Head
Of Recorders Association
Dallas, Tex.—On July 17, during the 52nd
annual meeting of the Imperial Shrine of
North America, the Shrine Recorders Associ
ation of North America elected Nelson B.
; ’ --i Banks of New Bern to
serve as its president
for the ensuing year.
Banks has been Re
corder of Sudan Tem
ple since 1960 and an
officer in the Associa
tion since 1969.
Well-known in
North Carolina Ma
sonry, Nelson Banks
became a Mason in
Orr Lodge No. 104 at
Washington in 1950
and served that lodge as Master in 1956. He
(Continued on Page Seven)
Northwest Districts Host
Three Mid-July Meetings
York Rite Masons Recover
Deposit Aged Thirty-Five
Waynesville—On Monday, July 10, York
Rite Masons and friends went up to the Ma
sonic Marker (inset) at Black Camp Gap on
the Blue Ridge Parkway and dug up a box of
memorapilia which
had lain buried at the
base of the marker
since 1937. On the fol
lowing day the group
went back to the
marker and interred
another box which
will not be exhumed
until the year 2022.
The Annual York
Rite Summer Assem
bly got underway here
on Sunday, July 9,
with registration and
church services. It
closed Tuesday night,
July 11, with a ban
quet at the Junior
High School. G. Wil
bur Bell, Grand Mas
ter of Knights Temp
lar of the U.S.A., was
the banquet speaker.
Grand Master Berl M. Kahn delivered the
welcome and keynote address during the Mon
day morning session. The Grand Master spoke
on the theme of Masonic Unity, which he said
can bring all Masons of every Masonic body
together to fully achieve Masonic goals. He
cited Biblical leaders and this nation’s founders
as some who overcame great problems and said
we could not be where we are today had we not
faced problems which caused us to use our God-
given powers to overcome them. He spoke of
Masonry as an individual responsibility and
cautioned that no Mason should underestimate
the power of the individual influence. The
Grand Master said Masonry is a way of life
and a philosophy for living.
On July 11, 12, and 13 Grand Master Berl
M. Kahn and his team traveled to Champion,
Stony Point and Casar for meetings of the 50th,
51st and 56th Districts. The first two, consid
ering the lopsided rectangle in which North
Carolina is shaped, might be said to be in the
northwest. Host lodges were Mount Pleasant
573, Stony Point 593 and Casar 579, in that
order.
As now planned our September issue will
carry coverage of District Meetings in the cen
tral area, October will feature the southwest,
and November will wind up with a report of
northeastern meetings. It is, of course, not pos
sible to carry coverage of every meeting, but
each general area of our jurisdiction will re
ceive some coverage.
Assisting the Grand Master in the three
above-named districts were Orphanage and
Home Superindentents Leon Gray and Troy
Robbins, and Assistant to the Grand Secretary
Robert P. Dudley.
Each meeting began with the evening meal
(Continued on Page Five)
MASONIC MARKER
Making the District Meeting rounds with
Grand Master Berl M. Kahn (right above)
on July 11, 12, and 13 were (left to right)
Orphanage Superintendent Leon Gray, Home
Superintendent Troy Robbins, and Pete Dud
ley, Assistant to the Grand Secretary.