​General John Pershing was born in 1860 in Missouri. He graduated from West Point in 1886 and went on to serve in the Indian Wars, the Spanish American War, the Philippines, and in pursuit of Pancho Villa into Mexico. He led US military forces in WWI, and was chief of staff of the Army from 1921-24. He is one of less than 20 officers in US history to attain a 5-star rank, which he did in 1919 after his service in WWI. Brother Pershing is accompanied in this honor with his Brethren: Gen. George Washington, Gen. George C. Marshall, Adm. Ernest King, Gen. Douglas McArthur, Gen. Hap Arnold, and Gen. Omar Bradley. Brother Pershing was raised on December 22, 1888 in Lincoln Lodge No. 19, Lincoln, Nebraska. He received his 50 year award in 1939; was a York Rite Mason, exalted in Lincoln Chapter and knighted in Mt. Moriah Commandery in 1894; a Scottish Rite Mason, coroneted with the 33rd degree in January 1930; and a Shriner. Brother Pershing was made an honorary member of the Grand Lodge of Missouri, Stansbury Lodge of Washington, DC, and William R. Singleton Lodge of Washington, DC. A moment of silence was held for Brother Pershing at Singleton Lodge the day that he passed to the celestial lodge, July 15, 1948.

​Charles Sumner Heinline, PM, was born in Philadelphia on November 17, 1871. Brother Heinline moved to Washington, DC at 6, went to public school in the city, and graduated from Spencerian Business College. He worked first as a clerk, then trained as a printer with the Government Printing Office, eventually moving to its State Department branch. He was initiated, passed, and raised in Lebanon Lodge #7 on: February 18, 1898; April 15, 1898; and August 4, 1899, respectively. He was exalted in Eureka Chapter #4, a member of Martha Chapter #4, OES, and an active member of Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church. Illness caused him to move, around 1910, to Roseburg, Oregon. Our Brethren described him as an “earnest and conscientious Mason and was never as happy as when engaged in work for the lodge”.

In October 1929 Bro. Lieutenant Walter Hinton addressed Barristers’ Lodge on his experiences as an early naval aviator. Our minutes read, “Bro. Hinton was the pilot of the NC 4 on the first Trans-Atlantic air flight and the first aviator to use the plane in exploration work, having been connected with the Hamilton Rice Expedition to the Amazon Valley”. Bro. Hinton was born on November 10, 1888, in Van Wert, Ohio, about 100 miles from Dayton, Ohio, home of the Wright Brothers. He grew up hearing of the Wright Brothers’ success, and, inspired, decided to enlist in the Navy. He became a pilot, flew in the first aerial crossing of the Atlantic, taught his lifelong friend, and fellow famed aviator, Bro. Richard E. Byrd how to fly, and was part of the first aerial mapping of the Amazon. For more information about Bro. Hinton’s life see the book, The Flying Firsts of Walter Hinton.

​September 17, 1932, a special communication of Barristers’ Lodge was held for the purpose of participating in a reenactment ceremony of the laying of the cornerstone of the US Capitol. The year 1932 marked the 200th anniversary of George Washington’s Birth, and a year-long celebration was held in his honor. Bro. Rep. Sol Bloom of Pacific Lodge No. 233 of New York, associate director of the Washington Bicentennial Commission, was the principal speaker at this event, and MWB Reuben A. Bogley, Grand Master of Masons of DC, presided over the ceremony. Among many other Brethren who participated, WM Aubrey Marrs, of Barristers’ Lodge No. 48, was part of the Grand Lodge Bicentennial Committee. Over 10,000 people participated in the ceremony, and our minutes say “It was undoubtedly the greatest showing ever made by the Blue Lodges of this jurisdiction”.

​Bro. Sec. Amb. Gen. Patrick J. Hurley was elected for dual membership in Barristers’ Lodge No. 48 in May 1945, while serving as US Ambassador to China. Bro. Hurley was born in 1883 in present day Oklahoma, where he began practicing law in 1908. He served as a colonel in WWI, and later became active in the Republican Party. President Hoover appointed him as Secretary of War, and he served Bro. President Franklin D. Roosevelt in various high level diplomatic posts during WWII, including Ambassador to China. As Ambassador, Bro. Hurley’s mission was to reconcile the Nationalists, under Chiang Kai-Shek, and Communists, under Mao Zedong. His mission was ultimately a failure, and he resigned his post in November 1945. Subsequently, he addressed Barristers’ Lodge as a guest speaker, and life member, in January 1946, May 1949, and February 1954. Bro. Hurley was also a member of Olive Branch Lodge #114 in Leesburg, Virginia. He passed away at the age of 80 in July 1963 in Santa Fe, NM.

​Brother Rev. John W. Hamilton, 33°, Chancellor of American University from 1916-1922, was born in March 1845. He visited and presented to Singleton Lodge #30 in 1921 a proposal for an AU Lectureship on Freemasonry. A motion was passed for the Master to confer with Brother Hamilton and the Grand Master for the consummation of this proposal. Upon further discussion the motion was amended to include three more members and to thank Bro. Hamilton for the honor of Singleton Lodge #30 to father the proposal. Bro. Hamilton became a Methodist Bishop in 1900, and was pastor of congregations in Ohio and Massachusetts, before succeeding his brother, Rev. Franklin Elmer Ellsworth Hamilton, as Chancellor of AU. Bro. Hamilton is included in 10,000 Famous Freemasons.

​Bro. Col. Victor C. Swearingen passed to the Celestial Lodge on January 15, 1968. Bro. Swearingen was initiated, passed, and raised in Mt. Gilead Lodge #255 in Science Hill, Kentucky and affiliated with William R. Singleton Lodge #30 on May 5, 1960. MWB President Harry S. Truman appointed Bro. Swearingen, who previously served as Special Assistant to the Attorney General, as alternative judge to the Military Tribunal. In this capacity, Bro. Swearingen served on the bench during The Doctor’s Trial, where 23 defendants were accused of participating in Nazi human experimentation. 7 defendants were acquitted, 7 were sentenced to death, and the remainder received 10 years to life imprisonment. Singleton Lodge stood for a moment of silent prayer in honor of Bro. Swearingen.