George Roskruge & S. Barry Casey Masonic Library & Museum

10/07/2026

IN MEMORY OF OUR PAST GRAND MASTERS |
Rickmer Nickels Fredericks, 13th Grand Master (1894)

Remembered on the 99th anniversary of his passing, October 5, 1927.

Did you know? Fredericks served as Grand Treasurer of the Grand Lodge of Arizona for 23 years.

Rickmer Fredericks was born on Heligoland, a small North Sea island then under British rule, the son of a fisherman. After school in Hamburg, he went to sea. He sailed twice to South America's west coast, ran railroad crews at a saltpeter mine in Iquique, and served as a quartermaster for the Pacific Steam Navigation Company between Panama and Chile.
Then he came "ashore" in Prescott, Arizona, where he rose to president of the Prescott National Bank. His 1902–1903 home is now on the National Register of Historic Places. Arizona Masons trusted him with their funds, too. A member of Aztlan Lodge No. 1, he was Grand Master in 1894 and served as Grand Treasurer for 23 years.
In 1921 he became the first Grand Master of the newly organized Grand Council of Royal and Select Masters of Arizona.
He crossed oceans, then stayed long enough to earn nearly a quarter century of trust.

TRUST IS BUILT YEAR BY YEAR. Faithful service, renewed again and again, becomes a legacy.

About Rickmer Nickels Fredericks:
Born March 13, 1855, on Heligoland. Died October 5, 1927, at his home in Pasadena, California, at 72.

Sources: Proceedings of the Grand Lodge of F. & A.M. of Arizona, 1928; The Pasadena Post and Arizona Daily Star, October 1927; National Register of Historic Places.

Research by
The Grand Historian and the George Roskruge & S. Barry Casey Masonic Memorial Library & Museum Foundation.

Lodge #1

10/04/2026

A Bit of History (from the Morris Goldwater History)

1913

• January: Flagstaff Lodge No. 7 by Past Grand Master A. A. Johns presented the Lodge with a handsome ivory gavel. (Ed Note: look at our display cases for the gavel.)

• February: P. G. M. Goldwater, as installing officer, assisted by P. G. M. Fredericks as Marshal, installed Brother J. Rockwood Jenkins as Grand Chaplain and Brother Frank Goldwin Brown as Junior Grand Steward. They had been appointed by the Grand Master but not having been present for installation at the last session of the Grand Lodge.

• March: Brother Goldwater was appointed to write this history.

• $75 were voted for the relief of sufferers from floods, fires, and cyclones in Ohio and Indiana.

• April 23: The Lodge was convened to bury P. M. J. N. Rodenburg.

• December 27: The officers elected and appointed were installed. The ceremony was open to Master Masons only and was followed by the usual elaborate banquet and speeches.

Did you know

The Master's Hat - We all know that while Lodge is open the Master's head is covered. And there are quite a few references directing the Master to uncover and then recover. However nowhere in our ritual or constitution have we found a specific direction that requires the Master to wear a hat or cover, only that he uncover and recover? The closest we come is in the Entered Apprentice education materials that asks the question “Why does the Master wear a hat in Lodge”?

And answers

“The Worshipful Master alone is privileged to wear a hat in lodge, a contemporary relic of the ancient custom whereby the king remained covered, while his subjects were obliged to uncover in his presence”.

In Our Cemetery

Charles Lieb, “Doc” - Born 1826, died January 11, 1865. Served in the Union Army in the Civil War. Came to Arizona Territory with the governor's party as a surgeon for the troops who established Fort Whipple. He was one of the first burials in Citizen Cemetery, later removed to the Masonic Cemetery and buried beside his wife, Mary Catherine Brooks. (Ed Note: the reburial of Doc Lieb was arranged by W.B. Hezekiah Brooks (Mary Catherine's second husband)

10/04/2026

10/04/2026

IN MEMORY OF OUR PAST GRAND MASTERS |
Herbert Guy Greer, 90th Grand Master (1971)

Remembered on the 37th anniversary of his passing, October 4, 1989.

Did you know? In 1930 Greer was senior class president of Tolleson Union High School's second graduating class and was chosen to give the salutatory address.
In the Salt River Valley, water decides what grows. For decades, Herbert Greer helped decide where it went.
Born in Arkansas, he came to Arizona with his family in 1924. After graduating from Tolleson in 1930, he joined the Salt River Project around 1934 and rose to Superintendent of Irrigation Operations.
He came to Masonry at 43, initiated in January 1955 in Thunderbird Lodge No. 48, now Chandler Thunderbird Lodge No. 15. Four years later he was its Master, and in 1963 he led Arizona Research Lodge No. 1. In 1964 he was appointed Grand Marshal, his first step in the Grand Lodge line, and in May 1971 Arizona Masons elected him Grand Master.
Off the job, he hunted, fished, tied flies, golfed, and held a private pilot's license.
Water and the Craft both need someone steady at the gate.

TEND THE CHANNEL. Faithful, steady work is what carries the water, and the Craft, to those downstream.

About Herbert Guy Greer:
Born February 19, 1911, in Hartley, Arkansas. Died October 4, 1989, at 78, a resident of Tempe.

Sources: Proceedings of the Grand Lodge of F. & A.M. of Arizona, 1964, 1971, and 1972; Arizona Republic, 1930, 1933, 1934, and 1989.

Research by the Grand Historian & the George Roskruge & S. Barry Casey Masonic Memorial Library & Museum Foundation.

09/11/2026

It seems appropriate that Freemasonry should honor and remember the tragedy of 9/11. Our lessons teach us that true friendship can exist among men of every country, sect and opinion. Each day, we work to teach and remember that lesson. As our Grand Master MW Roger Biede said in his message today "Be a little kinder. Practice civility. Help a neighbor. Thank a first responder. Reach out to a Brother. Find an opportunity to serve. Because Brotherhood, Tradition, and Community aren't just words. They are choices we make every day." In an effort to help spread that message, the Grand Lodge Library has sponsored a cobblestone at the 9/11 Memorial on behalf of The Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of Arizona. This sponsorship was made 100% possible by brothers who donated to this cause. In Honor of Love over Hate, Wisdom over ignorance, Truth over Fear. If you visit the 9/11 memorial, you can view the virtual location of the cobblestone using the this link https://names.911memorial.org/ =en_US&page=cobblestone&id=1451866

09/07/2026

Thank you brother Noel for your collection of Masonic memoriblia that belonged to you and your father.

09/03/2026

We did it - we reached our goal! Thank you to everyone who contributed in helping us support the 9/11 memorial.

9/11 Glade Paver Sponsor, Grand Lodge of Arizona

08/25/2026

The Final Roll call has gone unanswered and Brother Jim Wild has laid down his working tools. Hear first hand what it was like to be part of the team that raised the Duke.

Many people don't know that John Wayne was a Mason. But one day, when "The Duke" was filming a movie in southern Arizona near Tucson - John Wayne entered masonry at Marion McDaniel Lodge.