Masons honor early settler

l Participants gather around the grave marker of the late Benjamin Bartlett Cannon at Cedar Hill Cemetery. They attended a special Masonic ceremony honoring Mr. Cannon at 6 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 16. Mr. Cannon served as the most puissant grand master of the grand council in 1859.

Members of the Grand Council of Royal and Select Masters of Texas, Rusk Council No. 4, and women from several area Eastern Star chapters met at 6 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 16, at Cedar Hill Cemetery. They conducted a brief ceremony honoring Benjamin Bartlett Cannon, who served as the most puissant grand master of the grand council in 1859.

Participating in the special ceremony included Wayne Davis, principal conductor of the work; Robert Sutton, KYCH, grand captain of the guard; C. Louis Hopkins, most illustrious grand master; Earnest Keels, sentinel; Burl Boggs, thrice illustrious master; Orville Graham, deputy master; Jack Guy, recorder; Wayne Miles, captain of the guard; and Cliff Cameron, D.D., KYCH, grand council historian. Eastern Star members attending were Joyce Boggs of the Troup chapter; Evileen Keels and Dorothy Graham of the Rusk chapter; and Kathie Davis and Linda Guy of the Jacksonville chapter.

B.B. Cannon

The ceremony was part of the centennial celebration of the Grand Council of Royal and Select Masters of Texas, which is part of the York Rite of Freemasonry. The grand council was originally formed in 1856 at Huntsville and lasted until 1864, when it merged with the Grand Royal Arch Chapter of Texas. The grand council was rehabilitated in 1907 as a separate body within the York Rite for Freemasonry.

As a part of the centennial year celebration graves of grand masters serving in the first embodiment of the grand council have been marked.

The work is through the efforts of the most illustrious grand master of the grand council, C. Louis Hopkins, in conjunction with the grand historian and chairman on the history committee, the Rev. Dr. Cliff Cameron, KYCH.

The grave of B.B. Cannon was already marked, but no formal recognition had been given to Mr. Cannon who died in 1859 while serving as grand master.

Historical marker near Ben Cannon Ferry on the Neches River

Mr. Cannon was a Tennessee native and early settler of Cherokee County. He was a charter member of Euclid Masonic Lodge No. 45. He was one of Euclid Lodge's early worshipful masters, as well as a charter member of Rusk Council No. 4, and a long time thrice illustrious master.

While serving as a grand council officer he set to work the B.B. Cannon Council No. 17 in San Augustine. The council was named in his honor according to the grand council proceedings. Mr. Cannon died in San Augustine while visiting as grand master in September of 1859.

In addition to operating a law office in Rusk, he also operated the Ben Cannon Ferry in 1848.

The ferry has a Texas historical marker near its location at the Neches River on U.S. Highway 84, six miles west of Maydelle.