JESSE B. ANTHONY
Jesse Barker Anthony, past grand master of the Grand Lodge of the State of New York and superintendent of the Masonic Home at Utica, was born in Troy, N. Y., December 16, 1837, and is of English descent. His ancestors, on coming to America, settled in Rhode Island, whence his grandfather, Jesse Anthony, came with his family to Easton, Washington county, N. Y., and later removed to Troy, where with his sons he established a general wholesale and retail mercantile business and afterward engaged in the foundry line and manufacture of stoves, being among the earliest in Troy to carry on that branch of industry. John Anthony, father of Jesse B., was born in 1816, and was married in Troy to Mary Ann Gibeny, of that city. He was associated with his father in the mercantile and foundry business, and on retiring from those pursuits was engaged for several years in real estate operations in the city, being prominently identified with its business interests and prosperity and for many years a member of the city council. He removed to the State of Delaware in 18(i5 and died there in 1890.
Jesse B. Anthony, received a fair common school education, and when sixteen became a clerk in a wholesale grocery store, where he remained until he reached his majority. In 1859 he formed a copartnership with Charles E. Dusenberry, and under the firm name of Dusenberry & Anthony became the successors of J. M. Bogardus & Co., in the wholesale coffee and spice trade. The firm continued until 1876, carrying on a large, successful, and increasing business. From 1876 to 1879 it was J. B. Anthony & Co. In the latter year H. O. Dusenberry retired and Mr. Anthony continued as sole owner. Mr. Anthony was one of the organizers of the Troy Steam Heating Company, formed with a capital of $75,000 for the purpose of supplying steam for heating from a central point. He was president until 1880, when a new company was organized and he retired. He was also for many years a director of the Union National Bank of Troy. He gave close application to his business affairs, and brought to their management ability and executive energy of a high order. He was characterized for his sterling integrity, his indomitable perseverance, and his public spirit, and during a long mercantile career won both success and respect.
It is in the Masonic fraternity that Mr. Anthony is most widely known. He was made a Mason in King Solomon's Primitive Lodge, No. 91, F. & A. M., Troy, N. Y., February, 23, 1860, and after filling the offices of senior deacon and senior warden was, in 1867, chosen as its worshipful master, occupying the position for three consecutive years. In 1873 he was appointed district deputy grand master of the twelfth Masonic district, holding the office for two years. While serving in this capacity he was elected as the representative of the district in the constitutional convention assembled at Syracuse, N. Y., for the purpose of revising- the constitution of the Grand Lodge of the State of New York. At the annual sessions of the Grand Lodge in June, 1875, he was unanimously elected senior grand warden, in 1879 deputy grand master, and in 1880 grand master. As the head of the craft of the Empire State his administration of the affairs of this vast jurisdiction was one of ability and marked success, and he retired from the office with the good will of all the representatives. It was his privilege, besides officiating in other public ceremonials of a similar nature, to lay the foundation stone of the Egyptian Obelisk in Central Park, New York city, October 9, 1880, delivering the address upon that occasion. During his official term occurred the Centennial of the Grand Lodge of the State of New York in June, 1881, and he delivered the historical address on that occasion at the meeting held at the Academy of Music, New York city; and the facts embodied therein have been widely copied throughout the United States by the various Grand Bodies. He received the capitular degrees in Apollo Chapter, No. 48, R: A. M., Troy, N. Y., in December, 1860, and after serving as captain of the host one term and principal sojourner two terms, was elected in 1872 as its high priest, filling the position for five consecutive years and retiring therefrom at his own request. In the Grand Chapter of Royal Arch Masons of the State of New York he was appointed grand lecturer, holding the office for two terms. He received the Orders of Knighthood in Apollo Commandery, No. 15, Troy, September 2, 1863, and after filling the office of prelate for four consecutive years was elected as its eminent commander, and after two years' service retired in 1876. He received the degrees in the Cryptic Rite in Bloss Council, No. 14, R. & S. M., Troy, March 15, 1861, and after filling various subordinate positions was elected as thrice illustrious master. In the year 1862 he received the grades of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite up to the 14th and subsequently, about 1871, in Albany Sovereign Consistory, Albany, N.Y., was made a 32" Mason. At the institution of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite bodies in the city of Troy he became one of the charter members of Delta Lodge of Perfection, Delta Council of Princes of Jerusalem, and Delta Chapter of Rose Croix of Troy, and was for many years the presiding officer of those bodies. In 1874 the Supreme Council for the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction conferred upon him the 33° and created him an honorary member of that exalted body.
He was also for many years the grand potentate of Oriental Temple Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He is a member of the Provincial Grand Lodge of the Royal Order of Scotland in the United States, having received the degree in May, 1878, at Washington, D. C. He is an honorary member of several Masonic bodies outside of the city of Troy, the same having been conferred not alone as a reward for special labor, but also as a mark of respect and esteem as a man and a Mason. He has been active and prominent in all the Masonic enterprises of the city of Troy, and done much toward the advancement of Masonry in that city. At the erection of the new Masonic Temple in Troy, in 1872, he was one of the most earnest workers in the completion of that enterprise, was selected as the orator on the occasion of the laying of the corner stone August 2, 1871, has been secretary of the Troy Masonic Hall Association since its incorporation in 1871, and also honored with various offices of trust in the Masonic bodies of Troy. He is also chairman of the committee on correspondence for the Grand Lodge and Grand Commandery of the State of New York.
Mr. Anthony was appointed superintendent of the Masonic Home in Utica upon its completion, assumed his duties there in 1893, and is now in charge of that institution. This home has its nucleus in a resolution brought before the Grand Lodge of the State of New York by Greenfield Pote (grand tiler), James Herring (grand secretary), and others. in 1842, when Mr. Pote contributed the first silver dollar for the purpose of "founding an asylum for worthy aged Masons, their widows and orphans." This memorial officially reached the Grand Lodge June 8, i843. More than forty years passed before the affairs of the proposed Home took definite shape. In May, 1888, after several years spent in determining the location, the Utica Driving Park, known as the county and State fair grounds, on the eastern edge of the city of Utica, was selected and purchased, the owner donating $25,000, the city $30,000, and the Grand Lodge $20,000. The tract comprises 160 acres; the West Shore railroad donated a quarter of an acre and five additional acres were purchased for $750. In 1889 the name was changed from "Asylum" to "Masonic Home and School," and in 1890 the original cost of the proposed building was increased from $100,000 to $150,000. In 1890 a contract was let for $134,500, to which $5,000 were subsequently added. On May 21, 1891, the corner stone was laid amidst the greatest demonstrations in the history of the craft, John W. Vrooman, grand master, officiating. The building was formally dedicated October 5, 1892, the addresses being delivered by Past Grand Master William Sherer and Grand Master James Ten Eyck. In June, 1893, the trustees reported that the total cost of the Home and appurtenances to date was $230,685.18, with a balance in the bank of $155,572.55. The first inmates, two in number, were received on May 1st of that year. At the present time (June, 1896,) the Home contains 158 inmates, and a school is being built for the use of the inmate orphans. Under Mr. Anthony's able superintendence the institution has reached the highest aim of its promoters, and is not only a monument to the craft of the Empire State but a substantial memorial to the fraternity of Utica and Oneida county, among whose benevolent objects it will ever hold a foremost place.
Mr. Anthony has also attained a merited eminence in Masonic literature, having contributed much that is valuable to the craft and invaluable to historians. Among his noteworthy publications is a Review of the Transactions of the Grand Lodge of the State of New York from 1872 to 1852. He is also the author of a History of King Solomon's Primitive Lodge, No. 81, F. & A. M., of Troy, from 1842 to 1892, together with a sketch of Free Masonry in the city of Troy from 1796 to 1842. And as a ritualist and worker in the various Masonic bodies he stands high in the estimation of the craft, and his earnestness and fervency impress his hearers with the beauties of the institution. He is active and prominent in all Masonic enterprises, and is one of the most illustrious members of the order.
In 1859 he married Miss Catherine A., daughter of John M. Bogardus, of Troy, N. Y., and their children are M. Alice (Mrs. William McKip Morris), of Groveville, N. J., and Jessie May (Mrs. Knowlton Mixer), of Buffalo, N. Y.
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