The Founding of East Fork Lodge
East Fork Lodge #460 was chartered on November 9th, 1874 by Grand Master James W. Richardson of the Grand Lodge of Tennessee. From its earliest days, the lodge has stood as a place of brotherhood and moral instruction, drawing men from the surrounding community who sought to improve themselves and serve their neighbors.
The first elected officers of East Fork Lodge No. 460 were:
Albert J. Burum, Worshipful Master
J. W. Legg, Senior Warden
David Houstin Gallaher, Junior Warden
James B. Gallaher, Secretary.
There were fourteen charter members in addition to the four elected officers who were:
J. W. Johnson
Thomas H. Russell
R. K. Smith
D. N. Gallaher
W.R. Bradley
J. B. Long
A. J. Davis
J.B. Carps
John B. Jones
Peter Jones
George Jones
J.M. Morgan
J.W. Russell
Thomas J. Russell
From the Beginning
In the early 1800's, it was customary to settle close to a stream of water, to be used to power gristmills, for feeding live stock, feeding people, and many other uses.
Thus begins the story of East Fork, Tennessee, and of the Lodge that would eventually be formed with the same name.
On March 26th 1801, Thomas Gallaher bought 300 acres from Andrew Jackson whom he had known at Jonesboro Tennessee. This was before Jackson was elected Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Tennessee, and before he was elected President of the United States of America. Andrew Jackson often stopped at the home of Thomas Gallaher in East Fork when traveling from Nashville to Knoxville or Greenville Tennessee.
Soon after buying the farm Mr. Gallaher built a gristmill near the mouth of East Fork Creek where it empties into Poplar Creek near what is now called Blair Road. He operated the mill for many years until he moved his family to Illinois. It continued to be operated by other residents of East Fork, but still retained the name of Gallaher Mill.
By 1873 there was a post office in the gristmill building called Gallaher Mill Post Office, which was customary at this time as the mill was a place all the farmers came to frequently to get their corn and wheat ground to have corn bread and biscuits. in August of 1873, the community organized a Cumberland Presbyterian Church, called Russell's Chapel. This community was located in East Fork Valley, Roane County, so named for the east fork of Poplar Creek that flowed through the valley.
(Today, the East Fork Creek rises in what is now known as Y-12 . . . a part of the government complex originally part of the Manhattan Project. The stream flows through the plant east, then through a gap in Pine Ridge, along South Illinois Avenue, flows through a part of Oak Ridge on both sides of Oak Ridge Turnpike, continuing south west through East Fork Valley emptying into Poplar Creek near Blair Road where Blair Road crosses the rail road near the new power station.)
On July 4th 1874, at a community picnic at Russell's Chapel, a group of Masons in attendance discussed and decided to petition the Grand Lodge of Tennessee to establish a lodge in this area. The reason for the discussion and petition? Well, the nearest Lodge was many miles away . . . such as Union Lodge No. 38 Kingston, Alpha Lodge No. 376 Clinton, or Beaver Ridge No. 366 . . . and their travel was by horse back or horse and buggy if sharing a ride with a brother. To travel 10 or 12 miles to a Lodge meeting, they had to leave home in the early afternoon, taking their evening meal with them to eat on the way or after reaching the lodge hall.
Most lodges were called Moon Lodges at that time, because their meetings were set a certain day after a full moon so they could see the road on their way back home. On July 18th 1874, Grand Master James W. Richardson of the Grand Lodge of Tennessee, granted a dispensation for the lodge and appointed Albert J. Burum as Worshipful Master, J. W. Legg Senior Warden and David Houstin Gallaher Junior Warden. These men were already leaders in the community. Brother Albert J. Burum later served as Secretary of the Board of Trustees for Poplar Creek Seminary, and was a member of the Board of Trustees of Roane College in Wheat. He was also a teacher in the four-year college. David Houstin Gallaher was an ordained Elder in the Russell Chapel Church, he and Brother Burum were Trustees in Poplar Creek Seminary and the Roane College.
On November 9th 1874, Grand Master Richardson granted a charter for East Fork Lodge No. 460, with Union Lodge No. 38 in Kingston as the Parent Lodge. Union Lodge No. 38 Chartered October 6th 1821, with John Brown as Worshipful Master. Brother Brown was the Sheriff of Roane County for 23 years.
The first elected officers of East Fork Lodge No. 460 were; Albert J. Burum, Worshipful Master; J. W. Legg from Meigs Lodge No. 213 as Senior Warden; David Houstin Gallaher from Union Lodge No. 38 as Junior Warden; James B. Gallaher from Union Lodge No. 38 as Secretary. There were fourteen charter members in addition to the four elected officers who were: four from Union Lodge No. 38 J. W. Johnson, Thomas H. Russell, R. K. Smith, D. N. Gallaher. There were also four from Alpha No. 376, W.R. Bradley, J. B. Long, A. J. Davis, and J. B: Carps. Three from Beaver Ridge No 366, John B. Jones, Peter Jones and George Jones. Two from Chato No. 253, J.M. Morgan and J. W. Russell. One from Meigs No. 213 Thomas J. Russell.
In 1881 a Post Office was established at a place called Bald Hill, "because the trees had been cut from the land to make lumber to build buildings" by a man by the name of Henry Franklin Wheat. He was the first postmaster and the community was renamed Wheat instead of Bald Hill. The Post Office at Gallaher's Mill was discontinued and moved father up East Fork Valley.
The Gallaher School was soon moved to Wheat and made a part of Poplar Creek Seminary, which was founded at Bald Hill in 1877, and was established, on two hundred and three acres of land donated to it. The school building was located close to the present George Jones Memorial Church.
On November 12th 1885, six trustees of Poplar Creek Seminary made application to the State of Tennessee for a charter to incorporate a four year accredited College by the name of Roane College. All of the land and property was transferred from Poplar Creek Seminary to Roane College May 12, 1887 for the price of one dollar. In 1908 the Roane County Board of Education assumed the responsibility of the educational institution at Wheat and a building was attached to Roane College to establish a Wheat High School. Roane College was phased out and replaced by the high school.
Then as now, Masons were leaders in the community supporting worthy endeavors. Members of East Fork Lodge were instrumental in obtaining funds necessary for the building of a new three story brick consolidated high school at Wheat in 1916 and assisted in the laying of the cornerstone for the building, placing a Holy Bible, news paper and Masonic Literature in the stone.
The First Move of East Fork Lodge
East Fork Lodge was moved in 1921, from Gallaher's Mill to Wheat, over a general store operated by Charles and Mollie McKinney. The store was across the road opposite the new Wheat High School. The store was later operated by Chester C. Watson, a Past Master of East Fork Lodge. Brother Watson was still in the store in 1942 when the entire area between Black Oak Ridge and the Clinch River was taken by the United States Government to establish the Manhattan Project.
The Second Move of East Fork Lodge
To keep the charter East Fork Lodge had to move again. They chose to move to Dyllis, a distance of about four miles. During World War II gas was rationed and it was necessary to use horse and wagon to move the lodge furniture. The first meeting was held in the new location on December 26th 1942, with J.M. Letsinger acting as Worshipful Master. Brother Letsinger owned and operated a grocery store across the road and opposite the lodge hall at Dyllis.
Star of Bethlehem No 15, Daughters of American Revolution owned the lodge hall at Dyllis, which they shared with the Junior Order, another patriotic order. They also agreed to share the hall with East Fork No. 460. These Orders were on the decline in Dyllis and decided to combine with the lodges at Harriman, so they sold the building and property to East Fork Lodge in December 1944.
The Third Move of East Fork Lodge
The school at Dyllis was a three room, wooden structure, and when the students that went to Wheat were transferred to Dyllis, the school needed to expand. Also, at the same time, people were moving into the same community to work at Oak Ridge. To expand, the school needed the property where the lodge hall was located. On January 26th 1956, East Fork Lodge entered into a land trade with Roane County Board of Education to exchange the property east of the Dyllis School for property west of the school building where it would build its new lodge building.
On May 24th 1956, the brothers started digging the foundation for the new building. One year later, on May 25th 1957, the structure was up, but all the finishing work inside was still ahead. The lodge moved into the new building before it was completely finished inside, because the school needed to remove the old building and get started on their school expansion.
After the lodge hall was completely finished, Worshipful Master Cardell Gann called a special meeting for November 7th 1959, for the purpose of dedicating the building
Grand Master E. Guy Frezzell along with his Grand Officers, Oda Ray, Sr. Grand Warden, Bill Ashley, Jr. Grand Warden, and 0. L. Baruff, Deputy Grand Master, were present to officiate at the dedication. There was a capacity crowd, masons and family. The lodge served dinner at the Dyllis school building. There was about two hundred and fifty to eat. After the meal approximately one hundred and fifty masons retired to the lodge hall. This included fifteen Past Masters. The ceremony was very impressive. The lodge has had many special and impressive meetings in the last one hundred and thirty years. One such meeting was in 1951, more then one hundred masons from lodges in this area were present Saturday night at a meeting of historical East Fork Lodge in the spacious Dyllis school gym, when the cornerstone of the old Wheat High School was formally unsealed. The East Fork Lodge originally laid the cornerstone when the building was constructed in 1916.
There were six of the masons present who were at the laying ceremonies in 1916. Brother Henry Stinscipher, the only one of the six whom was an officer at the laying ceremonies, was given the privilege of removing the contents from the stone, which were a yellow copy of the Knoxville Journal, and Tribune of October 27th 1916, as well as several school and county board reports relating to the building of the school. A copy of the Bible was the first article taken from the stone. Masonic literature was also among the contents. The opening ceremonies were conducted by a member, Brother Paul Herton of Clinton, who introduced several of the organization's old timers, Dr, J.M. Cox of Lake City, Hugh Stokes Lake City, Sam and Jim Crass of Dyllis. They made comments on the history of both the lodge and the present Oak Ridge controlled area prior to the time when the Federal Government took over. Also introduced were several Oak Ridge officials, R. J. Dunbar, who with Col. K. 0. Nichols, were the first to visit the area in connection with the Atomic Project. Worshipful Master Jack Rose read a history of the seventy seven-year-old lodge, which was prepared by E.W. McKinney. It was organized at Russell Chapel in 1874 later moved to Wheat, and now has found its present home at Dyllis in 1942 after being uprooted by the coming of the project in Oak Ridge. Brother Rose also read the lodge minutes covering laying of the cornerstone in 1916, which disclosed that the first Tennessee Confederate Solder wounded in the Civil was a member of the East Fork Lodge, by the name of Browder.
Another special meeting was in 1969. A busload of Scottish Rite Masons form Knoxville visited our lodge and conferred the Master Mason degree, in full costume, for one of our candidates.
The next big event was our One Hundred Anniversary celebration, which always starts for masons with a big meal. Brother Mike P. Crews was the Worshipful Master; Brother Ben F. Butler was the Secretary, who read a brief history of the lodge. The lodge had seven fifty year Masons at that time who were: S.S. Crass Jr., George Elmer Butler, W. Ernest Gallaher, Chester C. Watson, Edgar W. Arnold, Luke M. Clark, and William W. Williams. Each brother attending the meeting received a miniature white leather apron, stating the 100th Anniversary of East Fork Lodge, 1874 to 1974.
On April 27th 1982, East Fork Lodge was pleased to welcome the Eastern Star Chapter, Dyllis No. 498, with its 42 charter members. The charter was granted by the Worthy Grand Matron of Tennessee, Sister Annie Holder and Worthy Grand Patron W. C. Lane.