I am the 5th documented generation of Freemason in my family. This is known as being a "Lewis" Freemason. On a Lewis Jewel, the date a Mason receives his Entered Apprentice Degree is inscribed, along with his first and middle names, along with that of his father. In my family, under the family name of Blaisdell, this would be:
Thomas John - November 15, 1863, Grand Lodge of Michigan - my g-g-grandfather, who joined after returning wounded from the Civil War. He was with the 22nd Michigan. Lodge now defunct.
Frank Thomas - June 14, 1892, Grand Lodge of Michigan - my g-grandfather, who later withdrew his membership, since he became a Roman Catholic. Lodge now defunct.
Elmer John - December 12, 1922, Eureka Lodge No. 509, Grand Lodge of Michigan - my grandfather, and the last President of Benzol Gasoline Corporation. Lodge has merged to be known as Eureka-North Warren No. 594.
Howard Richard - November 11, 1947, Highland Park Lodge No. 468, Grand Lodge of Michigan. My father, who became a 50-year member of the Craft in 1998. Lodge has merged, now known as Troy-Highland Lodge No. 468
Ronald Brian - October 20, 1979, Solomon's Lodge No. 121, Grand Lodge of Maryland. Having just celebrated my 25th anniversary of joining the Craft.
(It is said that there are two additional members of my direct family preceding my g-g-grandfather who were also Freemasons. But I have not been able to document their membership in the Grand Lodge of New York thus far.)
THE LEWIS
Question:
What is a Lewis?
What part does it play in Masonry?
What is a Lewis?
It is an instrument in Operative
Masonry. It is an Iron Cramp, which is inserted into a cavity
prepared for that purpose so that large stones may be raised to
any height, by rope and pulley. The stone is then placed in it's
proper position. This implement was known to the Romans and several
were taken from old ruins and are now in the Vatican. In the ruins
of Whitby Abbey in England which was founded by "Oswy"
King of Northumberland in 658, large stones were discovered
with the necessary excavation for the insertion of a Lewis.
Where did the word come from?
Probably from the old French word "LÉWIS" meaning "any contrivance for lifting". In the English system of Masonry, the "LEWIS" is found on the Tracing-board of the Entered Apprentice, where it is used as a symbol of "STRENGTH", (English Constitution) because by it's assistance the heaviest of stones can be lifted with comparatively little exertion. The son of a Mason in England is called a "Lewis", because it is his duty to support the sinking power and aid the failing strength of his father.
Or as Dr. Oliver has put it
"To bare the burden in the heat of the day that his Parents
may rest in their old age, thus rendering the evening of their
lives peaceful and happy."
In Browns "Master Key" which is supposed to represent the Prestonian Lecture we find the following:
Question What do we call the son of a Freemason ?
Answer A Lewis
Question What does that denote?
Answer Strength
Question How is a Lewis depicted in a Masonic Lodge?
Answer As a cramp of metal, by which, when fixed into a stone, great and ponderous weights are raised to a certain height, fixed on their proper bases, without which Operative Masons could not so conveniently do.
Question What is the duty of a Lewis to his aged parents?
Answer To be made a Mason before any other
person, however dignified by birth, rank or riches, unless he
by complaisance waives this privilege.
The term occurs in this sense in the constitutions of 1735 at the end of the Deputy Grand Masters song, in allusion to the expected birth of George III son of Frederick Prince of Wales.
"May a Lewis be born whom the whole may admire;
Serene as his mother,
august of his sire."
It is sometime stated that a Lewis may be initiated before he is twenty one (21). Not so under the English Constitution, Scottish Constitution, however, will allow a Lewis to be made (a Mason - ed.) at 18 years. This is not practiced in North America.