History of Stewart Lodge No. 92

     Roderick R. Stewart, in whose honor Stewart Lodge received its name, was not only a charter member of the lodge but was one of the charter members of the Geneseo Colony, coming here from New York; the city of Geneseo was so named by Mr. Stewart because he came here from Geneseo, New York. Of the three men , Cromwell K. Bartlett, John C. Ward and Roderick R. Stewart, who entered the land from the United States upon which Geneseo is located, Mr. Stewart was the only one who died in Geneseo, having died in the year 1860. There are now living in Geneseo descendants of Roderick R. Stewart.

     In 1849, Mr. Stewart assisted in organizing Stewart Lodge No. 92 and was its first Senior Warden. Stewart Lodge waited until October 20, 1951, to celebrate their 100th Anniversary because construction was being done to the new lodge building. Much of the cost of the building was defrayed by monetary donations and volunteer labor from the members. The rest of the cost was financed by the sale of bonds to the membership. The bonds were in $250.oo, $500.00, and $1,000.00 denominations and paid 2% interest per year. Each year at the annual Past Masters night the interest on the bonds was paid with most of the money donated back to the lodge. Any surplus funds that were left were used to pay off the bonds. All the names of the membership that held bonds were put in a hat, names were drawn out and those bonds retired until the funds that were available were used up. Many of the members, when their names were drawn out, donated the money back to the Lodge. The last of the bonds were retired in 1966 and the Lodge became debt free.

     The Order of the Easter Star contributed to the financing of the Lodge building by sponsoring and serving meals in the dining room. Through the effort of WB Wilbert Gunnison, the Lodge formed the Fellowship Club, whose primary function was to take care of the custodial and repair work of the Lodge along with some fundraising. WB Gunnison was President of the Fellowship Club and did most of the repair and maintenance for many years.

     In the 1950’s, an Oder of DeMolay was formed and was active for many years. Also an Order of Rainbow for Girls was formed and was active until the 1990’s. In an effort to make the lodge more usable in the summer, it was decided to install air conditioning in the Lodge meeting room. Through the efforts of WB John Jenson and WB Robert Verheye, the air conditioning was installed in 1973. The flag pole that was erected in front of the lodge and proudly flies the flag of the United States was erected in memory of WB Nelson who served as Worshipful Master of the Lodge in 1965.

     In 1979, WB L.E. “Pete” Ross and WB Robert Verheye came up with an idea to honor the citizens in the community who were alone and in need. They supplied a sit-down turkey dinner with all the trimmings. Since its inception, a dinner has been served every year, usually just before Thanksgiving.

     The sound system in the Lodge room was donated and installed by WB John Jenson and continues to be upgraded. In 1987, WB John Laue suggested that we have a consignment sale at the Lodge. Proceeds from this annual event are used to provide scholarships for area high school students. Local auctioneers graciously donate their time and commissions to make the sale possible. After the passing of WB Laue, the official name has become “The John Laue Memorial Scholarship Consignment Sale”.