Albert Pike Museum
|
Albert Pike Museum, House of the Temple, Washington,
D.C.
Photo: Maxwell MacKenzie, Washington,
D.C.
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A Library
project completed in 2003 was to catalog, classify, and
restore the Albert Pike Collection. Who is Pike? Albert
Pike
became a Freemason in 1850 and joined Scottish Rite Freemasonry
on March 20, 1853. In 1854, he was appointed as Deputy
Inspector
General for Arkansas, where he proceeded to introduce Scottish
Rite to his state. His jurisdiction included what was
then known
as "Indian Territory." From 1855-58, Pike lived in New Orleans
and worked to promote Scottish Rite in Louisiana. He was elected
to Grand Commander of the Consistory of Louisiana in 1857.
The following year, Pike was elected to the Supreme Council
and
soon after he was elected Sovereign Grand Commander on January
2, 1859.
As
Grand Commander, Pike was also the founder of our Library.
In
1888, he donated his personal library, numbering over
8,000 books, documents, and artifacts, to the Supreme Council.
His wish was for his books to
remain as one collection. Unfortunately, over time, these books
were spread throughout our Library. We have gathered the
books
to be housed together in the Albert Pike Museum, with other
Pike memorabilia and artifacts. The
Pike Museum also features
his writing desk, smoking pipes, and Masonic regalia.
In
addition to working with the Pike Collection, I, as
the Pike Museum Curator and Public Relations Coordinator, promote
the Library to the general public as well as to Scottish Rite
Masons and their families. One of the ways we currently
advance
the Library is through our Friends program. The Friends of
the Llibrary was established in 1998 to give individuals
a way to
support the Library and receive information regarding the current
state of affairs at the Library, Museum, and Archives. It
is
also a vehicle to raise money to be used towards the restoration
and preservation of the rare and unique books housed in
our
Library. Contributions to the "Friends" are tax deductible,
and if you are interested in joining the Friends, please contact
me by e-mail, phone, or regular mail. Becoming a member of
the Friends of the Library is an excellent way to support
the House
of the Temple Library, a premier Masonic Library.
The
Library publishes a quarterly newsletter, Amicus,
which covers recent
events and happenings at the Library as well as featuring stories
of our historical treasures. Members of the Friends of the
Library
receive this newsletter as a benefit of their membership. If
you would like to be included on the mailing list, please
notify
me with your name and address.
This
fall we will be instituting a monthly e-mail version of
the
newsletter, in addition to the quarterly newsletter. If you
would like to receive this version of the Library, Museum
and
Archive news, please send me your e-mail address, and I will
add you to the list.
Look
for new and exciting events happening at the Library of the
Supreme Council.
Heather
Calloway, M.T.S.
Special Project Coordinator
1733
Sixteenth Street, N.W.
Telephone: 202/232-3579
Fax: 202464-0487
hcalloway@srmason-sj.org
