Council
History
Orient Council No. 5 now has the distinction of
being in existence
for seventy-five years.
Minutes of a meeting dated November 8, 1933, are
as follows:
A number of Royal Arch Masons in this district,
being desirous of
receiving further light in Masonry, applied to the Most Puissant Gran
Master of Cryptic Rite Masonry of the Eastern Jurisdiction, for a
Dispensation to form a Council of Royal and Select Masters at
Guysborough, N.S., to be known as Orient Council. There not being a
constitutional number of Royal Arch Masons to form a Council, the
Most Puissant Grand Master by warrant appointed Companion S.D.
Burrill, Past Deputy Grand Master for Nova Scotia, as his special
representative, to proceed to Guysborough and confer degrees on
enough additional candidates to form a Council. Rt. Illustrious
Companion Burrill, accompanied by Comp. H. S. Teason, Recorder of
Chebucto Council No. 4, also Companions Charles Bellamy, John C.
Dunning, and Herbert D. Cunningham of Chebucto Council but living in
this area, conferred the degrees on Royal Arch Masons George C.
Horton, Leslie R. Croucher, Harold MacLaughlin, Cecil D. Boyd, Harvey
H. Rattary and Rev. J. Earl Sheeby.
The name having been chosen and a constitutional
number of Royal
and Select Masters being present, Rt. Illustrious Companion Burrill
proceeded to open Orient Council, Under Dispensation, with the
following Officers:
Trice
Illustrious Master
J. C.
Dunning
Ill.
Deputy Master
H. D. Cunningham
Principal
Conductor of the Work C.
Bellamy
Recorder L. R. Croucher
The following Officers having been chosen, they
were duly
installed by Rt. Illustrious Companion Burrill, assisted by Companion
Teakson as presenting Officer:
Trice
Illustrious Master
John C.
Dunning
Ill. Deputy Master
Herbert D. Cunningham
Principal
Conductor of the Work Charles
Bellamy
Treasurer
Harold
MacLaughlin
Recorder
L. R. Croucher
A dispensation was issued to Orient Council dated
February 12th,
1934, which was to remain in force until the formal warrant would be
executed and delivered; and until the new Council would be
constituted and its Officers installed.
At the December 5th, 1933
Assembly of Orient Council,
the Most Puissant Grand Master, Most Illustrious Companion Hoyt made
an Official Visit. He read the inscription on the Charter and then
presented the Charter to the Illustrious Council of Orient Council
No. 16. He then declared the dispensation under which the Council had
been working Null and Void.
The last Assembly of Orient Council to be held at
Guysborough was
on July 12th, 1935.
A Dispensation was received to hold an Emergent
Assembly of Orient
Council No. 16 at the Town of Canso on September 25th,
1936.
As eight members of this council resided in Canso
and only three
members resided in Guysborough, it was decided to seek permission to
re-locate from Guysborough to Canso.
Permission was granted to re-locate the Assemblies
for Orient
Council to Canso. Regular Assemblies were held at Canso until
November 25th, 1938.
On June 4th, 1941, an
Emergent Assembly of Orient
Council No. 16 was held at New Glasgow, N.S. At this Assembly,
applications for membership were read from eight Royal Arch Masons
and from three members of other Councils for Affiliation.
When Orient Council re-located from Canso to New
Glasgow, the
membership increased and a new sense of interest was experienced.
This was mainly by new members from the area, some of whom were very
prominent Masons and served in high office in other bodies of
Masonry. Those same Masons went on devoting their interest to Orient
Council.
Earle C. MacDonald
Historian
January 27th, 2010
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