Revolutionary brotherhood : Freemasonry and the transformation of the American social order, 1730-1840 / Steven C. Bullock.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 321-405) and index.

"In the first comprehensive history of the fraternity known to outsiders primarily for its secrecy and rituals. Steven Bullocks traces Freemasonry through its first century in America. He follows the order from its origins in Britain and its introduction into North America in the 1730s to its near-destruction by a massive anti-Masonic movement almost a century later and its subsequent reconfiguration into the brotherhood we know today. With a membership that included Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, Paul Revere, and Andrew Jackson. Freemasonry is fascinating in its own right, but Bullock also places it at the center of the transformation of American society and culture from the colonial era to the rise of Jacksonian democracy." "Using lodge records, members' reminiscences and correspondence, and local and Masonic histories. Bullock links Freemasonry with the changing ideals of early American society."--Jacket

Print version record.

Acknowledgments; List of Illustrations; List of Tables; Introduction. Understanding Salem Town's Fraternity; Part One. Colonial Masonry; Chapter One: Newton and Necromancy: The Creation of the Masonic Fraternity; I. The Remains of the Mysterys of the Ancients; II. The Augustan Style; III. An Honour Much Courted of Late; Chapter Two: The Appearance of So Many Gentlemen: Masonry and Colonial Elites, 1730-1776; I. The United Party for Virtue; II. The Greatest Order and Regularity; III. A Very Harmless Sort of People; Part Two. The Revolutionary Transformation.

Chapter Three: Where Is Honour? The Rise of Ancient Masonry, 1752-1792I. The Good Old Way; II. The Mason's Arms; III. The Country People; Chapter Four: According to Their Rank: Masonry and the Revolution, 1775-1792; I. Great Trubles amonge Masons; II. Free and Independent; III. The Cares and Fatigues of the Soldier's Life; Part Three. Republican Masonry; Chapter Five: A New Order for the Ages: Public Values, 1790-1826; I. Temples of Virtue; II. The Great Instrument of Civilization; III. Around the Enlightened World; Chapter Six: An Appearance of Sanctity: Religion, 1790-1826.

I. Neutral GroundII. Dedicated to the Worship of God; III. Spiritual Masonry; IV. Cavils, Objections, and Calumnies; Chapter Seven: Preference in Many Particulars: Charity and Commerce, 1790-1826; I. The Most Charitable and Benevolent of the Human Race; II. Bound to Regard You as a Mason; Chapter Eight: In Almost Every Place Where Power Is of Importance: Politics, 1790-1826; I. The Most Influential and Respectable Men; II. We Have Nothing to Do with Politics; III. Men of All Parts of the Union Mingling Together; Chapter Nine: Into the Secret Place: Organization and Sacrilization, 1790-1826.

I. The Lodge of InstructionII. The Rugged Road; III. The Thick Veil; Part Four. Masonry and Democracy; Chapter Ten: The Lion and the Crows: Antimasonry, 1826-1840; I. The Concentration of Great Numbers on a Single Point; II. A Stupendous Mirror; III. These Desperate Fanatics; Epilogue. Losing the Right to Reverence: Masonry's Decline and Revival; A Note on Masonic Sources; Notes; Index; A; B; C; D; E; F; G; H; I; J; K; L; M; N; O; P; Q; R; S; T; U; V; W; Y; Z.

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