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Page 15 text:
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Seventy-fifth Anniversary Of The Oxford Orphanage • In commemorating the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Oxford Orphanage, it might be of interest to the many readers to refer to the establishment of St. John ' s College. As early as the year 1838 the Grand Lodge of Masons of North Carolina -was con- sidering the establishment of a Masonic Seminary . The year 1850 found the Grand Lodge in position to take definite action as to the location of the school. After delibera- tion, Oxford, N. C. was chosen. A committee, consisting of John Gray Bynum, John A. Lilli ' ngton, and P. H. Winston, was appointed to prepare and publish an address ex- plaining the course of instruction and system of education proposed. The committee urged that something of astronomy, natural philosophy, chemistry, geology, electricity, and galvanism should be taught, but that a larger emphasis should be placed upon architecture, the power of steam and its application to machinery, var- ious processes of manufactures, metallurgy, natural history, and engineering. At a time when there were only sixty-five lodges in the state, an agent was ap- pointed to solicit funds for the establishment of the college. St John ' s College was decided as the name for the new institution. In 1853 E. H. Hicks deeded to the Trustees of St. John ' s College a tract of land containing 109 acres near the corporate limits of the town of Oxford, the purchase price being $4,480. In 1855 the Trustees awarded to John Berry, of Orange County, the contract for the brick work on the building at $11,106, and to J. N. Holt, of Warren County, the contract for the wood-work at $11,394, at total cost of $22,500. On June 24, 1855, the anniversary of the birth of Saint John the Baptist, the corner stone of the structure was laid with appropriate ceremonies by the Grand Lodge. Report was made by the Trustees of the College to the Grand Lodge in December 1857, that the building had been completed at a cost of $23,000 and that $13,000 of this amount was still unpaid. The doors of the College were opened July 13, 1858, with Prof. Ashbel G. Brown, a distinguished educa tor, in charge, and Mr. James Campbell, assistant. The institution was for male students only. An arrangement was made with Professor Brown which promised mutual advantage. The management of the institution was changed several times without result and the troubles of the college never came to an end. In 1860 it was suggested that St. John ' s College at this time be made a military school, and again, as the war broke out, this was renewed with an effort to offer it to the State for this purpose, but such was never done, and St. John ' s College went the way of the rest; suspended its operations as the war came on. At the close of the war, Mr. John H. Mills, who was conducting a female school in Oxford, made arrangements to move into the building and had contemplated purchasing the same. He abandoned the idea, and in 1868 the property was sold under a mortgage held by Capt. John Berry and was bought by the Grand Lodge of Masons for the sum of $7,000. An effort was made at the close of the school in 1871 to arrange for re-open- ing or to lease the property. These failed and a caretaker moved into the building un- til further disposition could be made. Thus the story of St. John ' s College closed in a record of failure, but not until the Masons of the State had placed themselves in the ranks of the pioneers of education in North Carolina. Page Eleven
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Page 16 text:
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In 1872 there was a tie in the casting of votes to sell the building and Grand Mas- ter John Nichols gave the deciding vote against the sale. The question, What shall we do with it? , then arose but remained undecided. Mr. John H. Mills, who may be called, the Father of the Orphanage , intro duced a resolution to convert St. John ' s College, now called the Main Building, into an orphanage, and in ten minutes the resolution was carried by a unanimous vote and Mr. Mills was placed in charge of the work. He soon received the most earnest support of the whole Masonic Fraternity and the work was so successfully done that the State, contrary to all precedents, appropriated $5,000 per year to the orphanage as no difference was made between Masonic and non-Masonic orphans. During the first year of the orphanage ' s existence, eighty-four children were ad- mitted. In the eleven years Mr. Mills was Superintendent, he built a home for the children, but there were many days when the bottom of the flour barrel had to be scraped and many times the last stick of wood was put into the little stove to keep the children as comfortable as possible while the cold wind whistled around the building. The Grand Lodge annually re-elected Mr. Mills, but he declined re-election in 1884, as the labor was immense and his health was failing. When Mr. Mills retired. Rev. B. F. Dixon was chosen by the newly created Board of Directors. Mr. Dixon during his administration, was able to enlarge the orphan- age by the erection of what is now the Walker Building, the gift of Mrs. Letitia M. Walker, in memory of her son, John Morehead Walker. This building was used as a residence by the Superintendent until 1904 when it was converted into a hospital. Sev- eral acres of land were bought in 1884 from R. O. Gregory and L. C. Taylor. During these days the industrial departments of the Orphanage were greatly increased as Dr. Dixon was quite enthusiastic along this line. In 1886 and 1887 the Shoe Shop, Printing Office, etc., were added and buildings arranged for these purpo ses. Dr. Dixon resigned in 1890 and Rev. J. T. Harris, of Durham, was elected. Hardly had Mr. Harris entered upon his work, when in November of that same year, he died. Dr. Dixon managed affairs of the institution until a successor could be appointed. In January, 1891, Dr. W. S. Black of Raleigh, was made Superintendent. He made many changes, and carried forward the interest in the industrial features of the or- phanage. In 1894, a few months after the death of his wife. Dr. Black gave up the work and returned to the ministry of the Methodist Church. He was succeeded by Mr. N. M. Lawrence, of Tarboro, and early in his administra- tion the institution was incorporated as The Oxford, North Carolina, Orphan Asylum . One of the outstanding pieces of work done by Mr. Lawrence was the change from the old congregate system of the orphanage to the separate building or cottage system. Mr. Lawrence and others were able to interest Mr. B. N. Duke in the affairs of the orphanage to a greater extent than ever and he offered to contribute half of the funds required for such buildings as were needed and planned by Mr. Lawrence. As a re- sult four cottages for boys and a central dining room building was started, and a little later four cottages fcr girls were completed, the first in 1897, the last in 1899. Thus the gift of Mr. Duke, coming at the time when it did, guaranteed, for the the Oxford Orphanage increased possibility and evidenced its effectiveness and permanency. Mr. Lawrence retired from the management of the Orphanage July, 1898, and was succeeded by Col. W. J. Hicks, of Raleigh. During his administration the work of the orphanage school was greatly emphasized and improved, and there was a reorgani- Page Twelve
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