History of Sunnyside Lodge #163
According to the history of Sunnyside Lodge #163, AF & AM, the genesis of this chapter is true to the Mason’s credo of enriching ones community. A number of Master Masons living in the Southeastern quadrant of the city of Portland sought to form a Lodge where the influence could be reflected in the neighborhood in which they lived. As a gathering place, it would be convenient for meetings and social events with family and friends. Therefore, per Masonic policy, at the regular meeting on April 28, 1914, a petition signed by twenty-seven Master Masons requested dispensation “to open and hold a Lodge.”
On May 8, 1914, by decree of the Grand Master of Masons in Oregon, Sunnyside Masonic Lodge officially came into being, “placing it under dispensation and setting it to work.” As reported by W. B. Shellenbarger in a report to the Grand Master, “This Lodge is composed of many zealous and enthusiastic Masons and situated as it is, I feel hopeful of the good that may result to our beloved order.” The Lodge started in old “Dawleys Hall,” at the Southeast corner of what was then simply E. 34th and E. Yamhill Streets, in the Sunnyside District. In reviewing the 1909 Sanborn map, it appears there stood a two story building at that corner, the first floor listed as “Hay & Grain” while the second is listed as “Hall.” Adjacent to the building to the South is a one-story “Livery,” likely related to the “Hay & Grain” and also to comments about “Dawley” made later by the written history. Two notable events occurred for the Lodge during 1914, beyond its creation. At the 64th Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge of Oregon on June 10, 1914 in Portland, due to some irregularities in the status of the principal officers, the Worshipful Master of Sunnyside Lodge asked for and was granted continued status under dispensation for yet another year. As for membership, 14 were added to the Sunnyside role and 8 affiliated, thus increasing membership from 27 to 49.
At the 65th Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge of Oregon on June 16th, 1915, M.W. (Most Worshipful) Grand Master William C. Bristol and the Grand Lodge granted Sunnyside Lodge #163 AF & AM (Ancient Free & Accepted Masons) its charter. At the first meeting of the newly chartered Lodge, a lively discussion ensued around finding a new location and building a new Lodge. “Dawley Hall,” where the Mason’s met, had a horse stable below them. According to the Sanborn map, it may have been adjacent, but apparently the result was just the same. Reportedly, even on the coolest evenings the aromatic livery scented the Lodge room in a fashion that only augmented the feverish pitch of a heavily debated issue.
Accordingly, on July 5th, 1915, W. M. Albert Brown appointed a committee to investigate the matter of procuring land and building a temple upon it, just one year after the formation of the Lodge. Membership continued to grow during the year, adding 18 and 3 new affiliations, against 3 departed, putting the total figure at 67. By 1916, membership continued to climb. The conditions at “Dawley Hall” were becoming overcrowded, not just odoriferous. Obtaining a larger temple had now become a matter of necessity rather than merely comfort. Reportedly, the majority of the business of the Lodge zeroed in on ideas and suggestions for the new building. Among the ideas generated, one included building the Lodge over a garage, the implication being the era of the automobile was at hand. The Lodge would charge a parking fee in order to pay for the new temple. This idea received much debate, ultimately drawing discord from members who felt the smell of the auto would be as bad the horse. And so, the search and debate continued.
By year end, 21 new members had joined the fellowship, with 3 affiliated, and 2 departed, bringing the new total to 89. Finally, toward the end of 1917, the committee charged with finding a new site reported to the Lodge that a site at the corner of SE 39th Avenue and Hawthorne Boulevard could be procured for the sum of $4,250. The finance package noted a down payment of $802.75 and a mortgage balance at 6% interest. On October 25th, a momentous day for the membership, the Lodge Trustees authorized the committee to purchase the title and work on plans for a new building. By November 7th, the Trustees presented a plan to raise the required funds, namely by issuing building bonds in units of $50 at 4% interest. The bonds would be sold to the membership and other interested parties. Per the letter of the issue, the bonds obligated the Lodge to pay the interest and redeem the bonds “when funds became available.”
Membership grew a record number in 1917, adding 33 members, 7 affiliates with only one departed, amounting to 128 members. Through the winter of 1917 into 1918, a pandemic flu swept the nation, which led to a ban on all public meetings. However, the Lodge conducted periodic meetings to conduct “important business.” On February 14th, for example, the Master of the Lodge appointed a new 15 member Temple Building Committee. Meanwhile, word came that the Grand Lodge of Oregon had not approved the building bond issuance, after the bonds had been issued. It felt that with a membership of less than 200, this procedure proved too risky. If Sunnyside had to default on the bonds, the liability would naturally fall to the Grand Lodge. Therefore new bonds were printed to specifically alleviate the Grand Lodge of financial liability.
November 11, 1918, signified the end of the Great War begun four years earlier, and one in which Sunnyside Lodge contributed 36 members, one of whom was killed. With the war’s end, and the new temple was inevitable, membership jumped to 197, with 62 new members, 10 affiliates, and 3 departed. As Masonic temples across the country were strong war-time contributors and advocates, membership grew dramatically following the Armistice nationwide. Lynn Dumenil, author of Freemasonry and American Culture, observed a subtle change in Freemasonry’s behavior following the war. Previous to the war, the organization focused primarily on social ceremony and ritual as a means of strengthening the bonds and encouraging moral improvement. Following World War I, the movement shifted its focus from matters of moral improvement (i.e., temperance) toward community and charitable endeavors. While Sunnyside did not quite have the pre-war lineage which might support Dumenil’s observation, it did perform strongly in the categories of charitable and community oriented events, whereas the moral coaching never took the spotlight at Sunnyside in the late 19th and early part of the 20th century.
According to the first printing of the Sunnyside Bulletin in August 1919, a pocket-sized venue for Lodge news, there were funds enough to start construction. The enthusiasm for the building is palpable through the historical records. At one meeting, a breath-taking 57 petitions were read for the Degrees in Masonry. By March 1919, the Lodge paid the mortgage in full and received full and clear title to lots #4 and #5 in Block #2 of the Oberst Addition, a total of 9,250 square feet. Two months later, on May 22nd, 1919 the membership held a symbolic burning of the mortgage. The Temple Building Committee reported to the membership that a suitable building could be constructed for roughly $25,000, roughly 50-feet by 90-feet. The members voted that it be started at once. The committee was thus discharged and a permanent building committee appointed by the Master, namely H.L. Day, A.J. Franly, J.H. Panlin, J.O. Pitt, C.C. Stout and R.L. Stout.
On April 18, 1918, architect Olaf F. Sunde (1879-1955) had been initiated as a member of Sunnyside Lodge. Just one year later, the committee retained Olaf as supervising architect charged with preparing the plans for the new temple. Olaf presented his plans on June 2nd, which were ultimately approved with minor changes, and orders were given to start building. The contracts were let for the construction as follows: brickwork for $6,116, plumbing for $768, millwork for $3,930, heating for $1,239, electrical for $282 and plastering for $2,700. On July 15, 1919, groundbreaking ceremonies were held, and on August 5th, the whole of the membership convened again to place the red granite cornerstone, which contains a copper box with various items related to the Masonic tradition. However, actual work started July 7, 1919, as the first bulletin records: “under the efficient supervision of architect, the most satisfactory results have been obtained, and with the present rate of progress continued the building will be under roof long before the Winter rains start.”
Raising money for the Temple, however, did not come easily. Bulletin No. 1 indicated in bold, “More Subscriptions Necessary.” Strong words were used, including “The Building Committee has faith in the men of Sunnyside Lodge…that the members are back of them to the last man.” Nearly every entry, in fact, in the first Bulletin reflect the building progress and finances, including the last entry, “The New Temple,” which proclaimed in true Masonic tone, also infusing some of the American spirit relative to the Great War, “The Eyes of the Masonic world are upon us…. Get behind the proposition and put it over the top in the good old American way.” By September 1919, the Bulletin had full enthusiasm for the nearing completion, as it’s great bold, capital letters read, “THE NEW TEMPLE.” “Our Temple, under the able supervision of Bro. O. F. Sunde, is progressing to such an extent that we may expect its final completion in November.”
The Lodge dominated the balance of the news, at least in parts, noting how degree raising leads to more income for the new temple, or the creation of a new chapter for women, and how they are being of service in furnishing the new lodge. In the October 1919 issue of the Bulletin, “News of Sunnyside Lodge” included another direction for furnishings donations, as the last two had done. It also reported, “The building has been progressing rapidly under the direction of contractor Sunde. The roof has been on for some time; the building is wired for lights; is piped for gas and water; the lathing is about finished and nearly plastered. This building, when completed, will represent the handiwork of a thorough workman and a finished artist, and will furnish many happy surprises as to conveniences, beauty and stability.” Work progressed rapidly enough for the membership to use the Temple for its meetings in early December, a mere four months after the laying of the cornerstone. In fact, by December 10th, the Temple, with the exception of a heating system, was substantially complete and the Lodge moved in. As would happen, the bitterly cold winter of 1919-20 led to the necessity of overcoats at every meeting.
On December 19th, the Grand Master MWB (Most Worshipful Brother) Earl C. Bronaugh dedicated the new temple. A new record of 122 Masons initiated during the year, with 29 affiliated and 7 departed. The Lodge now maintained 341 members. Furnishing the new Sunnyside Temple with furniture, fixtures, plumbing and heating continued through the early part of 1920. As recorded in the Bulletin for August 1919, “several…members expressed a desire to contribute to the furnishings of our new home, which is truly commendable, and we suggest that these members confer with the Interior Arrangement Committee, in order that there may be no duplication and that a harmony of design may be maintained.”
Dominating it’s corner location at SE 39th and Hawthorne, as the newest temple in Portland, the Sunnyside Lodge continued to draw new members to the Order, reported in a speech at that time to be “recognized as one of the foremost lodges in the City of Portland with 432 members and exerting a positive and constructive power for good in the community.” The resultant increase surpassed all previous, and in order to the receive this influx of petitioners, it became necessary to call special additional meetings two, sometimes three times a week and on Saturdays to accommodate the new Master Masons. Membership reached 562, with 199 Masons raised, 29 affiliated and 7 departed.
Brother Sunde, the architect, who had indicated, according to the November 1919 bulletin, “has a beautiful and appropriate donation which he will add, with his characteristic modesty, in due time,” graced the temple with its finishing touch: exterior lighting. “Have you noticed the two beautiful ‘brazen pillars’ which have been just recently set up in a ‘conspicuous place’ in front of the temple?” reads the bulletin from April 1920. “These pillars – ‘splendid specimens of architecture’ – were donated by Brother Sunde. Thank you, Brother Sunde.” These classical bronze light fixtures, reflecting not only the Masonic ideas of pillars and light, but also in design complimented the base and column design of the columns behind them, stood in front of the temple for well over 76 years and were believed to have been removed with the transfer of ownership in 1996.
During 1921, the Lodge library took form with donated books by members on Masonic history and ideals, so named the room the “Carl P. Jensen Library.” While one historical account notes that the library room was an afterthought, a review of the original drawings reflects its inclusion from the outset. Nationally, Masonic Lodges were growing rapidly. Detroit had recently broken ground for what would become the largest Masonic Temple in the world, with over 1000 rooms for 28 different Rites and Orders, it was one of the most complex buildings ever built at that time. Meanwhile, Sunnyside, despite having built itself a new temple, already cited problems containing its membership for special events and activities. According to record, the members debated enlarging the hall, or finding a larger hall nearby.
Fortunately, the membership had an adjacent expansion opportunity and opted to build an “annex” on the South side of the building. The “Annex” drawings are signed “Olaf Sunde” but undated, but the City of Portland inspector stamp on the back is dated “Nov 7 1921.” A “Report of Inspection” card on file at the City of Portland’s Development Services dated “Nov 7 1921”, lists the “1 Story Class VII Grade 1 Lodge room, Cost $5000.” This card is for permit no. 103750. The first entry after the card had been issued for approval began on November 28, 1921: “11 (AM) Framework about finished. Roof not completed. Roof girders not fitted into brick wall. The floor girders were 4” to 6” from ground. Blueprints show it that way. This building will not remain more than 5 years.” The reference numbers did not, unfortunately, connect to notes on the original plans; however, the drawings are entitled “Plans for Temporary Building.” It is clear that the Mason’s intended to create a more formal Annex or addition in the future.
In short order, just over a month, by December 31, 1921, for a New Year’s Party, the annex was completed and ready for use. As to be expected, membership grew though for the first time less than the previous year, by 181, namely 165 Masons raised, 31 affiliated and 15 departed, to bring the total to 743. Subsequent entries from September 5, 1922 indicated “Apparently finished. The building was locked up.” Indeed, finished almost a year prior. On January 15, 1923, the return visit provided a similar result, “Secure Condition. E.A.D.” On February 17, 1923, the note suggests “Complete” and “O.K. E.A. Dawley.” These cards provide valuable insight into the construction process and intent of the annex, though are less reliable for dates of construction as evident here. Concurrent with this effort, permit number 104773 from March 7, 1923, notes that “Kendall Heating Co.” installed “One cast iron steam boiler” at a cost of $1500. However the process began in December 1921, as noted in permit no. 104773 for the cost of $75 Kendall excavated a pit for the boiler.” The lengthy records discuss the approval of the retaining wall, the constant effort to connect to C. C. Stout, a member of the permanent building committee and apparently the Masonic contact for the Building Inspector.
While the building matter achieved a rare year of dormancy (1922), the recent formation of a DeMolay Chapter for boys attracted such an interest that an induction ceremony had to occur in the Civic Auditorium in downtown Portland, ceremoniously honoring over 500 young men, and a record crowd of Master Masons on March 11, 1922. Only eight years prior, on May 8, 1914, 12 men comprised the entirety of the Sunnyside Lodge. Now, 761 Master Masons had been “raised” to the Sublime Degree of a Master Mason. Including the 175 affiliated Masons since that same date, setting the membership number as high as 948. Dues had also kept pace, from $6 in 1914, to $75, and soon to be $100 in 1924. While 62 members had departed in that time, those were due to death, as opposed to demits or NPDs (Not Paying Dues).
The card on February 17, 1923 noted the “new boiler installed. Enclosure has concrete walls, cement floor, but wood lath and plaster ceiling.” Later on in September 9, 1923, the ceiling situation was remedied: “galvanized iron was nailed on the ceiling. Wooden door covered with metal – nail heads exposed. Chain closing on door broken – all of these items were fixed by janitor Benard while on job site.” These cards offer great detail as to what repairs were done, roughly when, and the process of approval. The only other effort beyond the boiler and its pit and the Annex which were recorded in that early period is permit number 122018, “Repair Lodge Hall” on March 14, 1923. The best reading of this, including the cost of “$250”, is simply a “repair.”
Between the years of 1923 and 1927, the membership reached it’s zenith, one that it would likely never achieve again. Meetings tapered in frequency given the fewer number of degrees needing to be conferred, and with increasing mobility fraternal visits to other Lodges became the norm, and the property became incorporated into a non-profit organization, called the Sunnyside Temple Association, fixing the value at $75,000. By the end of 1927, the membership had peaked at 1,227. Over the course of the next decade, the numbers would drop slowly and surely. Single digit increases against double-digit losses, often due to a failure to pay dues. No doubt a direct result of the economic hardship brought on by the Great Depression, fraternal organizations nationally were experiencing the same.
Activities were limited to comedies and skits at home to brighten the membership, while travel to the Lodges had been nearly suspended. By 1935, the membership had dipped below 1,000, in 1937, only two trips were made by the Degree Team all year, and in 1939, the 25th anniversary of the Lodge, the membership had now slipped to 767. With World War II, and the end of a decade long slump in the economy, came a new purpose and hope. So, too, came the membership. In 1943, the membership increased by 33 members, to 757. It did again in 1944 and 1945, to 845 and 903 respectively. In fact, in 1945 there had to be limitations on the number of degrees conferred due to the overwhelming popularity of the Masonic order. The years 1946 and 1947 carried the same momentum, as membership climbed to 953, and then broke the 1,000 mark again with 1,007. During the next ten years, the membership fluctuated very little, and the Lodge carried out business as usual. After ten years of relative stability in membership and programs, the Craftsman Club decided to take on the task of remodeling the outmoded kitchen.
The Craftsman Club organized itself out of club members in 1923 with “its sole purpose…to be of assistance to the Master and help in any of the Lodge activities.” The Club raised $4,685 of the $13,426.11 bill by means of Sunday breakfasts and “white elephant sales.” The Temple Association covered the balance. Through the 1960s activities continued within and without the Lodge walls, degrees conferred, many Masons from abroad dotted the record books, and yet membership, slowly dwindled to 592 by 1972, almost half of where it stood a decade earlier. The decline in membership had less to do with a failure to pay dues, as had been the factor in years past, but rather the loss of life. For the month of January 1972 alone, 32 members were lost. While age is never recorded in the annual bulletin, citing the multitude of “50 year membership pins” handed out and the newly minted policy of sending poinsettias to the wives of recently passed Lodge members imply that a generation of devoted members, many of whom formed the bulk of the membership, were dying. Meanwhile, the advent of young, nationalistic members eager to participate in a service-oriented cohort that had once formed the core of the Masons was increasingly less common during the turbulent ‘70s.
Rooted in customs, morals and dogma, the Masonic tradition did not appeal to a new generation that sought to question the establishment, tradition and perceived exclusivity. Due to lack of membership, in 1974, Westgate Lodge #186, formed out of Sunnyside in 1924, petitioned to merge back with Sunnyside. Sunnyside voted to accept this request, and the two Lodges became one again, and by 1975 the total membership reached 653. The written history gets increasingly dense with events being recorded nearly first-hand by the Lodge historian. Ultimately, the membership numbers fade from being recorded, and by 1990, the 75th anniversary of the Lodge (rather than the building), the written history comes to a close.
The event had served as a catalyst to bring the history up-to-date, and since then a summary of these events was written and included the most recent, major change with respect to the Lodge. On September 23, 1996, the membership sold the Sunnyside Temple Building and moved to Washington Masonic Hall at 3612 SE 52nd Avenue, where the membership still meets today.
The Masonic Lodges, at the zenith of their influence, ranked among the prominent buildings of many cities, rivaling the dimensions and splendor of the finest civic and commercial buildings of a given community. At that time, by definition, “a lodge is an assemblage of Freemasons and duly congregated having the sacred square and compass, and a character or warrant of constitution authorizing them to work. The room or place in which they meet representing some part of King Solomon’s Temple, is also called the lodge; and it is that we are now considering.” Previous to the first structure familiarly known as the Masonic Temple, the meetings of the Order had been held in Alehouses in England and in the taverns or inns of Colonial America.
With the expansion of the Craft, the necessity for permanent and exclusive headquarters developed, and built according to the financial status of the membership. The usual policy of the lodges historically has been to erect and maintain their buildings with their own wealth. Occasionally a temple is found built in cooperation with some public or commercial institution, the rent of which would more than defray the expense of up-keep of the entire structure. The Rialto Theater in the Rialto Building in Chicago and the Stewart Warner Theater in Cincinnati were examples of such.
However, the downsides are clear with the advent of scheduling, and the loss of privacy, dignity and exclusiveness. However, Sunnyside Lodge did explore this possibility in an early Lodge rendering, perhaps that of a competing design, which ultimately did not pass with the Building Committee. It included retail space on the ground floor, with access to the Masonic meetings on the second floor. Considering the Masons had been using the second floor for meetings previously, this idea may not have been that far-fetched, and given the cost of the Lodge, it may have appealed to their pocket-books. But the dignity, and perhaps the noise or nuisance, as the memory of the smell of horses below their meeting room, possibly convinced the Masons to forge ahead with the design for an entirely Masonic Temple.
According to one writer, selecting an architect for Masonic buildings competitions are the exception. “In the past it had been the custom to appoint an architect outright.” It was said that “This Temple is but the outward manifestation of the working power of those principles on the human soul – it represents the results of co-operative effort directed for the uplift of humanity, an expression of good will in the community. To the untutored eye perhaps it is but a mass of brick and mortar in which the trowel has played an important part, but to the Master Mason in addition to being the home of Sunnyside Lodge it is a work of art so fashioned that it is a beauty to behold and replete with symbolic meaning.”
The modern, early 20th century temple experienced a comparatively rapid evolution to the establishment of urban communities and lodges containing a multiplicity of lodge rooms, enormous auditoriums, banquet halls, spacious lobbies, rooms for the Commandery, game rooms, parlors and lounges and refined dining halls. “The Masons of a modern city attend a lodge meeting high above the din of speeding traffic, surrounded with all conveniences and in a setting appropriate to the dramatic ritual of the Order. The fundamental parts of the Temple, regardless of size, would include: a lodge room of adequate size for the membership, one or more offices for administration, a vault, a suitable lobby, a banquet hall capable of accommodating their maximum assemblies, a small library, one or more committee rooms, the necessary anterooms, property rooms, a locker room, kitchen service, coat and toilet facilities.
Generally speaking, the lodge is taken to be a rectangular building, in part dictated by the site and lot: “Where the plot of ground is a rectangular corner lot…the main façade is to be on the longer side. By and large, Sunnyside Lodge fulfills these basic criteria. Furthermore, exclusive of the service and necessary facilities, circulation and ample space for assembly just outside the lodge rooms are important factors in the plan. The circulation should be open, but still retain an element of semi-secrecy, reserving the esoteric appearance more for the exterior in the proportion of mass to fenestration and detail. “The lodge rooms should be secure but avoid the aspect of a place of confinement. In order to save space, the banquet hall may be arranged to suit requirements for social gatherings, small entertainments, and certain phases of degree work requiring a stage.”
On May 8, 1914, by decree of the Grand Master of Masons in Oregon, Sunnyside Masonic Lodge officially came into being, “placing it under dispensation and setting it to work.” As reported by W. B. Shellenbarger in a report to the Grand Master, “This Lodge is composed of many zealous and enthusiastic Masons and situated as it is, I feel hopeful of the good that may result to our beloved order.” The Lodge started in old “Dawleys Hall,” at the Southeast corner of what was then simply E. 34th and E. Yamhill Streets, in the Sunnyside District. In reviewing the 1909 Sanborn map, it appears there stood a two story building at that corner, the first floor listed as “Hay & Grain” while the second is listed as “Hall.” Adjacent to the building to the South is a one-story “Livery,” likely related to the “Hay & Grain” and also to comments about “Dawley” made later by the written history. Two notable events occurred for the Lodge during 1914, beyond its creation. At the 64th Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge of Oregon on June 10, 1914 in Portland, due to some irregularities in the status of the principal officers, the Worshipful Master of Sunnyside Lodge asked for and was granted continued status under dispensation for yet another year. As for membership, 14 were added to the Sunnyside role and 8 affiliated, thus increasing membership from 27 to 49.
At the 65th Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge of Oregon on June 16th, 1915, M.W. (Most Worshipful) Grand Master William C. Bristol and the Grand Lodge granted Sunnyside Lodge #163 AF & AM (Ancient Free & Accepted Masons) its charter. At the first meeting of the newly chartered Lodge, a lively discussion ensued around finding a new location and building a new Lodge. “Dawley Hall,” where the Mason’s met, had a horse stable below them. According to the Sanborn map, it may have been adjacent, but apparently the result was just the same. Reportedly, even on the coolest evenings the aromatic livery scented the Lodge room in a fashion that only augmented the feverish pitch of a heavily debated issue.
Accordingly, on July 5th, 1915, W. M. Albert Brown appointed a committee to investigate the matter of procuring land and building a temple upon it, just one year after the formation of the Lodge. Membership continued to grow during the year, adding 18 and 3 new affiliations, against 3 departed, putting the total figure at 67. By 1916, membership continued to climb. The conditions at “Dawley Hall” were becoming overcrowded, not just odoriferous. Obtaining a larger temple had now become a matter of necessity rather than merely comfort. Reportedly, the majority of the business of the Lodge zeroed in on ideas and suggestions for the new building. Among the ideas generated, one included building the Lodge over a garage, the implication being the era of the automobile was at hand. The Lodge would charge a parking fee in order to pay for the new temple. This idea received much debate, ultimately drawing discord from members who felt the smell of the auto would be as bad the horse. And so, the search and debate continued.
By year end, 21 new members had joined the fellowship, with 3 affiliated, and 2 departed, bringing the new total to 89. Finally, toward the end of 1917, the committee charged with finding a new site reported to the Lodge that a site at the corner of SE 39th Avenue and Hawthorne Boulevard could be procured for the sum of $4,250. The finance package noted a down payment of $802.75 and a mortgage balance at 6% interest. On October 25th, a momentous day for the membership, the Lodge Trustees authorized the committee to purchase the title and work on plans for a new building. By November 7th, the Trustees presented a plan to raise the required funds, namely by issuing building bonds in units of $50 at 4% interest. The bonds would be sold to the membership and other interested parties. Per the letter of the issue, the bonds obligated the Lodge to pay the interest and redeem the bonds “when funds became available.”
Membership grew a record number in 1917, adding 33 members, 7 affiliates with only one departed, amounting to 128 members. Through the winter of 1917 into 1918, a pandemic flu swept the nation, which led to a ban on all public meetings. However, the Lodge conducted periodic meetings to conduct “important business.” On February 14th, for example, the Master of the Lodge appointed a new 15 member Temple Building Committee. Meanwhile, word came that the Grand Lodge of Oregon had not approved the building bond issuance, after the bonds had been issued. It felt that with a membership of less than 200, this procedure proved too risky. If Sunnyside had to default on the bonds, the liability would naturally fall to the Grand Lodge. Therefore new bonds were printed to specifically alleviate the Grand Lodge of financial liability.
November 11, 1918, signified the end of the Great War begun four years earlier, and one in which Sunnyside Lodge contributed 36 members, one of whom was killed. With the war’s end, and the new temple was inevitable, membership jumped to 197, with 62 new members, 10 affiliates, and 3 departed. As Masonic temples across the country were strong war-time contributors and advocates, membership grew dramatically following the Armistice nationwide. Lynn Dumenil, author of Freemasonry and American Culture, observed a subtle change in Freemasonry’s behavior following the war. Previous to the war, the organization focused primarily on social ceremony and ritual as a means of strengthening the bonds and encouraging moral improvement. Following World War I, the movement shifted its focus from matters of moral improvement (i.e., temperance) toward community and charitable endeavors. While Sunnyside did not quite have the pre-war lineage which might support Dumenil’s observation, it did perform strongly in the categories of charitable and community oriented events, whereas the moral coaching never took the spotlight at Sunnyside in the late 19th and early part of the 20th century.
According to the first printing of the Sunnyside Bulletin in August 1919, a pocket-sized venue for Lodge news, there were funds enough to start construction. The enthusiasm for the building is palpable through the historical records. At one meeting, a breath-taking 57 petitions were read for the Degrees in Masonry. By March 1919, the Lodge paid the mortgage in full and received full and clear title to lots #4 and #5 in Block #2 of the Oberst Addition, a total of 9,250 square feet. Two months later, on May 22nd, 1919 the membership held a symbolic burning of the mortgage. The Temple Building Committee reported to the membership that a suitable building could be constructed for roughly $25,000, roughly 50-feet by 90-feet. The members voted that it be started at once. The committee was thus discharged and a permanent building committee appointed by the Master, namely H.L. Day, A.J. Franly, J.H. Panlin, J.O. Pitt, C.C. Stout and R.L. Stout.
On April 18, 1918, architect Olaf F. Sunde (1879-1955) had been initiated as a member of Sunnyside Lodge. Just one year later, the committee retained Olaf as supervising architect charged with preparing the plans for the new temple. Olaf presented his plans on June 2nd, which were ultimately approved with minor changes, and orders were given to start building. The contracts were let for the construction as follows: brickwork for $6,116, plumbing for $768, millwork for $3,930, heating for $1,239, electrical for $282 and plastering for $2,700. On July 15, 1919, groundbreaking ceremonies were held, and on August 5th, the whole of the membership convened again to place the red granite cornerstone, which contains a copper box with various items related to the Masonic tradition. However, actual work started July 7, 1919, as the first bulletin records: “under the efficient supervision of architect, the most satisfactory results have been obtained, and with the present rate of progress continued the building will be under roof long before the Winter rains start.”
Raising money for the Temple, however, did not come easily. Bulletin No. 1 indicated in bold, “More Subscriptions Necessary.” Strong words were used, including “The Building Committee has faith in the men of Sunnyside Lodge…that the members are back of them to the last man.” Nearly every entry, in fact, in the first Bulletin reflect the building progress and finances, including the last entry, “The New Temple,” which proclaimed in true Masonic tone, also infusing some of the American spirit relative to the Great War, “The Eyes of the Masonic world are upon us…. Get behind the proposition and put it over the top in the good old American way.” By September 1919, the Bulletin had full enthusiasm for the nearing completion, as it’s great bold, capital letters read, “THE NEW TEMPLE.” “Our Temple, under the able supervision of Bro. O. F. Sunde, is progressing to such an extent that we may expect its final completion in November.”
The Lodge dominated the balance of the news, at least in parts, noting how degree raising leads to more income for the new temple, or the creation of a new chapter for women, and how they are being of service in furnishing the new lodge. In the October 1919 issue of the Bulletin, “News of Sunnyside Lodge” included another direction for furnishings donations, as the last two had done. It also reported, “The building has been progressing rapidly under the direction of contractor Sunde. The roof has been on for some time; the building is wired for lights; is piped for gas and water; the lathing is about finished and nearly plastered. This building, when completed, will represent the handiwork of a thorough workman and a finished artist, and will furnish many happy surprises as to conveniences, beauty and stability.” Work progressed rapidly enough for the membership to use the Temple for its meetings in early December, a mere four months after the laying of the cornerstone. In fact, by December 10th, the Temple, with the exception of a heating system, was substantially complete and the Lodge moved in. As would happen, the bitterly cold winter of 1919-20 led to the necessity of overcoats at every meeting.
On December 19th, the Grand Master MWB (Most Worshipful Brother) Earl C. Bronaugh dedicated the new temple. A new record of 122 Masons initiated during the year, with 29 affiliated and 7 departed. The Lodge now maintained 341 members. Furnishing the new Sunnyside Temple with furniture, fixtures, plumbing and heating continued through the early part of 1920. As recorded in the Bulletin for August 1919, “several…members expressed a desire to contribute to the furnishings of our new home, which is truly commendable, and we suggest that these members confer with the Interior Arrangement Committee, in order that there may be no duplication and that a harmony of design may be maintained.”
Dominating it’s corner location at SE 39th and Hawthorne, as the newest temple in Portland, the Sunnyside Lodge continued to draw new members to the Order, reported in a speech at that time to be “recognized as one of the foremost lodges in the City of Portland with 432 members and exerting a positive and constructive power for good in the community.” The resultant increase surpassed all previous, and in order to the receive this influx of petitioners, it became necessary to call special additional meetings two, sometimes three times a week and on Saturdays to accommodate the new Master Masons. Membership reached 562, with 199 Masons raised, 29 affiliated and 7 departed.
Brother Sunde, the architect, who had indicated, according to the November 1919 bulletin, “has a beautiful and appropriate donation which he will add, with his characteristic modesty, in due time,” graced the temple with its finishing touch: exterior lighting. “Have you noticed the two beautiful ‘brazen pillars’ which have been just recently set up in a ‘conspicuous place’ in front of the temple?” reads the bulletin from April 1920. “These pillars – ‘splendid specimens of architecture’ – were donated by Brother Sunde. Thank you, Brother Sunde.” These classical bronze light fixtures, reflecting not only the Masonic ideas of pillars and light, but also in design complimented the base and column design of the columns behind them, stood in front of the temple for well over 76 years and were believed to have been removed with the transfer of ownership in 1996.
During 1921, the Lodge library took form with donated books by members on Masonic history and ideals, so named the room the “Carl P. Jensen Library.” While one historical account notes that the library room was an afterthought, a review of the original drawings reflects its inclusion from the outset. Nationally, Masonic Lodges were growing rapidly. Detroit had recently broken ground for what would become the largest Masonic Temple in the world, with over 1000 rooms for 28 different Rites and Orders, it was one of the most complex buildings ever built at that time. Meanwhile, Sunnyside, despite having built itself a new temple, already cited problems containing its membership for special events and activities. According to record, the members debated enlarging the hall, or finding a larger hall nearby.
Fortunately, the membership had an adjacent expansion opportunity and opted to build an “annex” on the South side of the building. The “Annex” drawings are signed “Olaf Sunde” but undated, but the City of Portland inspector stamp on the back is dated “Nov 7 1921.” A “Report of Inspection” card on file at the City of Portland’s Development Services dated “Nov 7 1921”, lists the “1 Story Class VII Grade 1 Lodge room, Cost $5000.” This card is for permit no. 103750. The first entry after the card had been issued for approval began on November 28, 1921: “11 (AM) Framework about finished. Roof not completed. Roof girders not fitted into brick wall. The floor girders were 4” to 6” from ground. Blueprints show it that way. This building will not remain more than 5 years.” The reference numbers did not, unfortunately, connect to notes on the original plans; however, the drawings are entitled “Plans for Temporary Building.” It is clear that the Mason’s intended to create a more formal Annex or addition in the future.
In short order, just over a month, by December 31, 1921, for a New Year’s Party, the annex was completed and ready for use. As to be expected, membership grew though for the first time less than the previous year, by 181, namely 165 Masons raised, 31 affiliated and 15 departed, to bring the total to 743. Subsequent entries from September 5, 1922 indicated “Apparently finished. The building was locked up.” Indeed, finished almost a year prior. On January 15, 1923, the return visit provided a similar result, “Secure Condition. E.A.D.” On February 17, 1923, the note suggests “Complete” and “O.K. E.A. Dawley.” These cards provide valuable insight into the construction process and intent of the annex, though are less reliable for dates of construction as evident here. Concurrent with this effort, permit number 104773 from March 7, 1923, notes that “Kendall Heating Co.” installed “One cast iron steam boiler” at a cost of $1500. However the process began in December 1921, as noted in permit no. 104773 for the cost of $75 Kendall excavated a pit for the boiler.” The lengthy records discuss the approval of the retaining wall, the constant effort to connect to C. C. Stout, a member of the permanent building committee and apparently the Masonic contact for the Building Inspector.
While the building matter achieved a rare year of dormancy (1922), the recent formation of a DeMolay Chapter for boys attracted such an interest that an induction ceremony had to occur in the Civic Auditorium in downtown Portland, ceremoniously honoring over 500 young men, and a record crowd of Master Masons on March 11, 1922. Only eight years prior, on May 8, 1914, 12 men comprised the entirety of the Sunnyside Lodge. Now, 761 Master Masons had been “raised” to the Sublime Degree of a Master Mason. Including the 175 affiliated Masons since that same date, setting the membership number as high as 948. Dues had also kept pace, from $6 in 1914, to $75, and soon to be $100 in 1924. While 62 members had departed in that time, those were due to death, as opposed to demits or NPDs (Not Paying Dues).
The card on February 17, 1923 noted the “new boiler installed. Enclosure has concrete walls, cement floor, but wood lath and plaster ceiling.” Later on in September 9, 1923, the ceiling situation was remedied: “galvanized iron was nailed on the ceiling. Wooden door covered with metal – nail heads exposed. Chain closing on door broken – all of these items were fixed by janitor Benard while on job site.” These cards offer great detail as to what repairs were done, roughly when, and the process of approval. The only other effort beyond the boiler and its pit and the Annex which were recorded in that early period is permit number 122018, “Repair Lodge Hall” on March 14, 1923. The best reading of this, including the cost of “$250”, is simply a “repair.”
Between the years of 1923 and 1927, the membership reached it’s zenith, one that it would likely never achieve again. Meetings tapered in frequency given the fewer number of degrees needing to be conferred, and with increasing mobility fraternal visits to other Lodges became the norm, and the property became incorporated into a non-profit organization, called the Sunnyside Temple Association, fixing the value at $75,000. By the end of 1927, the membership had peaked at 1,227. Over the course of the next decade, the numbers would drop slowly and surely. Single digit increases against double-digit losses, often due to a failure to pay dues. No doubt a direct result of the economic hardship brought on by the Great Depression, fraternal organizations nationally were experiencing the same.
Activities were limited to comedies and skits at home to brighten the membership, while travel to the Lodges had been nearly suspended. By 1935, the membership had dipped below 1,000, in 1937, only two trips were made by the Degree Team all year, and in 1939, the 25th anniversary of the Lodge, the membership had now slipped to 767. With World War II, and the end of a decade long slump in the economy, came a new purpose and hope. So, too, came the membership. In 1943, the membership increased by 33 members, to 757. It did again in 1944 and 1945, to 845 and 903 respectively. In fact, in 1945 there had to be limitations on the number of degrees conferred due to the overwhelming popularity of the Masonic order. The years 1946 and 1947 carried the same momentum, as membership climbed to 953, and then broke the 1,000 mark again with 1,007. During the next ten years, the membership fluctuated very little, and the Lodge carried out business as usual. After ten years of relative stability in membership and programs, the Craftsman Club decided to take on the task of remodeling the outmoded kitchen.
The Craftsman Club organized itself out of club members in 1923 with “its sole purpose…to be of assistance to the Master and help in any of the Lodge activities.” The Club raised $4,685 of the $13,426.11 bill by means of Sunday breakfasts and “white elephant sales.” The Temple Association covered the balance. Through the 1960s activities continued within and without the Lodge walls, degrees conferred, many Masons from abroad dotted the record books, and yet membership, slowly dwindled to 592 by 1972, almost half of where it stood a decade earlier. The decline in membership had less to do with a failure to pay dues, as had been the factor in years past, but rather the loss of life. For the month of January 1972 alone, 32 members were lost. While age is never recorded in the annual bulletin, citing the multitude of “50 year membership pins” handed out and the newly minted policy of sending poinsettias to the wives of recently passed Lodge members imply that a generation of devoted members, many of whom formed the bulk of the membership, were dying. Meanwhile, the advent of young, nationalistic members eager to participate in a service-oriented cohort that had once formed the core of the Masons was increasingly less common during the turbulent ‘70s.
Rooted in customs, morals and dogma, the Masonic tradition did not appeal to a new generation that sought to question the establishment, tradition and perceived exclusivity. Due to lack of membership, in 1974, Westgate Lodge #186, formed out of Sunnyside in 1924, petitioned to merge back with Sunnyside. Sunnyside voted to accept this request, and the two Lodges became one again, and by 1975 the total membership reached 653. The written history gets increasingly dense with events being recorded nearly first-hand by the Lodge historian. Ultimately, the membership numbers fade from being recorded, and by 1990, the 75th anniversary of the Lodge (rather than the building), the written history comes to a close.
The event had served as a catalyst to bring the history up-to-date, and since then a summary of these events was written and included the most recent, major change with respect to the Lodge. On September 23, 1996, the membership sold the Sunnyside Temple Building and moved to Washington Masonic Hall at 3612 SE 52nd Avenue, where the membership still meets today.
The Masonic Lodges, at the zenith of their influence, ranked among the prominent buildings of many cities, rivaling the dimensions and splendor of the finest civic and commercial buildings of a given community. At that time, by definition, “a lodge is an assemblage of Freemasons and duly congregated having the sacred square and compass, and a character or warrant of constitution authorizing them to work. The room or place in which they meet representing some part of King Solomon’s Temple, is also called the lodge; and it is that we are now considering.” Previous to the first structure familiarly known as the Masonic Temple, the meetings of the Order had been held in Alehouses in England and in the taverns or inns of Colonial America.
With the expansion of the Craft, the necessity for permanent and exclusive headquarters developed, and built according to the financial status of the membership. The usual policy of the lodges historically has been to erect and maintain their buildings with their own wealth. Occasionally a temple is found built in cooperation with some public or commercial institution, the rent of which would more than defray the expense of up-keep of the entire structure. The Rialto Theater in the Rialto Building in Chicago and the Stewart Warner Theater in Cincinnati were examples of such.
However, the downsides are clear with the advent of scheduling, and the loss of privacy, dignity and exclusiveness. However, Sunnyside Lodge did explore this possibility in an early Lodge rendering, perhaps that of a competing design, which ultimately did not pass with the Building Committee. It included retail space on the ground floor, with access to the Masonic meetings on the second floor. Considering the Masons had been using the second floor for meetings previously, this idea may not have been that far-fetched, and given the cost of the Lodge, it may have appealed to their pocket-books. But the dignity, and perhaps the noise or nuisance, as the memory of the smell of horses below their meeting room, possibly convinced the Masons to forge ahead with the design for an entirely Masonic Temple.
According to one writer, selecting an architect for Masonic buildings competitions are the exception. “In the past it had been the custom to appoint an architect outright.” It was said that “This Temple is but the outward manifestation of the working power of those principles on the human soul – it represents the results of co-operative effort directed for the uplift of humanity, an expression of good will in the community. To the untutored eye perhaps it is but a mass of brick and mortar in which the trowel has played an important part, but to the Master Mason in addition to being the home of Sunnyside Lodge it is a work of art so fashioned that it is a beauty to behold and replete with symbolic meaning.”
The modern, early 20th century temple experienced a comparatively rapid evolution to the establishment of urban communities and lodges containing a multiplicity of lodge rooms, enormous auditoriums, banquet halls, spacious lobbies, rooms for the Commandery, game rooms, parlors and lounges and refined dining halls. “The Masons of a modern city attend a lodge meeting high above the din of speeding traffic, surrounded with all conveniences and in a setting appropriate to the dramatic ritual of the Order. The fundamental parts of the Temple, regardless of size, would include: a lodge room of adequate size for the membership, one or more offices for administration, a vault, a suitable lobby, a banquet hall capable of accommodating their maximum assemblies, a small library, one or more committee rooms, the necessary anterooms, property rooms, a locker room, kitchen service, coat and toilet facilities.
Generally speaking, the lodge is taken to be a rectangular building, in part dictated by the site and lot: “Where the plot of ground is a rectangular corner lot…the main façade is to be on the longer side. By and large, Sunnyside Lodge fulfills these basic criteria. Furthermore, exclusive of the service and necessary facilities, circulation and ample space for assembly just outside the lodge rooms are important factors in the plan. The circulation should be open, but still retain an element of semi-secrecy, reserving the esoteric appearance more for the exterior in the proportion of mass to fenestration and detail. “The lodge rooms should be secure but avoid the aspect of a place of confinement. In order to save space, the banquet hall may be arranged to suit requirements for social gatherings, small entertainments, and certain phases of degree work requiring a stage.”