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The George
Washington Masonic National Memorial
The George Washington Masonic National Memorial
stands on a 36 acre tract of ground high above the Potomac River in Alexandria, Virginia,
overlooking the nation's capitol. The Memorial stands in memory of George
Washington: Patriot, Farmer, General of the Continental Armies, Surveyor, Founding Father,
First President, Freemasonry's most illustrious member and truly the Father of our
Country.
The Memorial is located on Shooters Hill in the
tidewater region of Virginia. The building is 168 feet wide, 248 feet long and 333
feet high. It is but six miles from the nation's capitol, Washington, D.C.
The cornerstone for the building was laid November 1, 1923 at a special communication of
the Grand Lodge of Virginia. More than 25,000 persons participated in the procession
to the Memorial where the cornerstone was laid using the same trowel employed by
Washington in laying the cornerstone of the United States Capitol. Assisting in the
ceremonies were President Calvin Coolidge, Chief Justice William H. Taft and the Grand
Masters of all the Grand Jurisdictions in the nation. In 1932, the Washington
bi-centennial year, the building was officially dedicated. President Herbert Hoover
assisted in the dedication ceremonies.
As visitors enter the Memorial, they
are confronted with two large murals of George Washington. One depicting
the laying of the cornerstone of the United States Capitol in September of 1793
with President Washington officiating at the ceremony and the other showing
General Washington attending a religious service on St. John's Day in 1788 in
Christ Church, Philadelphia, PA.
There is also a large
bronze statue of President Washington measuring 17 feet 3 inches high and
weighing nearly 8 tons. President Harry S Truman, who was a Past Grand
Master of Missouri, assisted in the unveiling ceremonies of the statue.
The Memorial features
displays of other Masonic Bodies. They include the George Washington
Museum, a gift of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry; the
Memorial Library, provided by the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania; the Grotto
Archives Room; and the six beautiful stained glass windows as seen below:
Benjamin Franklin
George Washington
Mordecai Gist
Robert R. Livingston
Dr. Elisha Cullen
Dick
Lafayette
the Royal Arch Room
which displays the Masonic Ark of
the Covenent: The Ark of the Covenant... or of the Testimony, was a sacred
chest, constructed by Moses at God’s Command. (see Exodus 25:10) Onto its lid
were placed 2 cherubim (angels) representing God's
glory.
In the Cryptic Room Hiram Abif bows
before two angels
According to Masonic tradition,
Hiram Abiff was the chief architect and engineer in constructing the Temple of
Jehovah (Solomon's Temple). Hiram Abiff was also a teacher of Geometry.
And Hiram king of Tyre sent a letter to Solomon, saying: Because the Lord hath
loved his people, therefore he hath made thee king over them. And he added,
saying: Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel, who made heaven and earth, who
hath given to king David a wise and knowing son, endued with understanding and
prudence, to build a house to the Lord, and a palace for himself. I therefore
have sent thee my father Hiram, a wise and most skillful man, The son of a woman
of the daughters of Dan, whose father was a Tyrian, who knoweth how to work in
gold, and in silver, in brass, and in iron, and in marble, and in timber, in
purple also, and violet, and silk and scarlet: and who knoweth to grave all sort
of graving, and to devise ingeniously all that there may be need of in the work
with thy artificers, and with the artificers of my lord David thy father.
the Cryptic Room
The 9th level of
the Memorial houses a scale model of the throne and the interior of King
Solomon's Temple. This room is sponsored by The Tall Cedars of Lebanon.
King Solomon is said to have imported the fabled cedar wood from Lebanon in
biblical times to be used in the building of the temple in Jerusalem. In
Scriptural symbolism, the cedar-tree, is an emblem of eternity. Cedrus Libani
has been known to survive for over 3000 years and some of the existing Cedars of
Lebanon are over 2000 years old. In Masonic symbolism the cedar tree
represents the human need for fun, frolic, and fellowship.
The Grotto Room
The Knight Templar
Chapel
the
Knights Templar Chapel; the Replica Lodge Room;
and the Alexandria - Washington Lodge Room. The George Washington Museum which
contains the most outstanding Washington memorabilia to be displayed to the public was
dedicated in 1966. Its central item is the Washington Family Bible donated to the
Memorial by collateral descendants in 1965. Indeed, the George Washington Masonic
National Memorial stands as an inspiring reminder of the wisdom, strength and beauty given
the United States in its infancy by the Father of our Country and a fitting tribute to the
man who said, "A good moral character is the first essential in a man. It
is, therefore, highly important to endeavor not only to be learned but to be
virtuous."
The Cornerstone at the northeast corner of the
George Washington Masonic National Memorial laid November 1, 1923 at a special
communication of the Grand Lodge of Virginia.
This is the view looking down at the front of
the Memorial from the catwalk or observation deck. The giant Square and Compasses
emblem is 60 feet wide and 70 feet long, rests at a 33-degree angle, and is visible from
the streets of Alexandria and from the air.
FREE ADMISSION - OPEN TO THE PUBLIC DAILY (except
New Years Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas) Guided Tours Daily from 9:00 a.m. to
4 :00 p.m.
HANDICAP ACCESSIBLE
To get books related to Freemasonry and the Ancient Mysteries.
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