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Montross man elected leader of Masons in Virginia Date published: 11/27/2006
By FRANK DELANO George Bernard Dungan Jr. of Montross has a new Cadillac and a new top hat to go along with his new title of most worshipful grand master. Dungan, 71, was elected earlier this month as the leader of about 40,000 Masons in Virginia. He'll wear the top hat at meetings of the Grand Lodge, Ancient Free & Accepted Masons, in Richmond. "I'm still sort of getting used to the new car. It's the first time I ever had a Cadillac, but I'll travel many miles in it," he said. "As grand master, I have to visit each of the 57 Masonic districts in Virginia. I've already received numerous invitations to attend functions at various lodges in Virginia and out of state. The traveling will take up my whole term." Dungan is the 162nd grand master of the Virginia lodge. It was founded in 1778, when nine Masonic lodges, including those at Fredericksburg and Port Royal, agreed to form a statewide organization. The Masons are an ancient fraternal society whose members believe in God and work to improve themselves and their communities. George Washington and 14 other presidents were Masons, as were Nat King Cole, William "Count" Basie, W.C. Fields, Eddie Murphy and many more celebrities. But Masonic membership in the United States dropped from a peak of about 4.1 million in 1959 to about 1.6 million in 2005, according to the Masonic Service Association. Dungan's own Lodge No. 212 in Kinsale had 150 members when he joined in 1965. Now it has 85, he said. Those members honored him this week with a homecoming supper. "Young men today find themselves in family situations much different than 20 or 30 years ago," he said. "Now husbands and wives both work, and the husband is taking on more duties at home. Young men are not the joiners like they were some years ago. "But, recently, I've seen quite a bit of interest in Freemasonry among younger men and older, retired men, too. Before they retired, they felt like they didn't have time for it." Dungan is a Northumberland County native who retired in 2001 after a career in trucking.
Date published: 11/27/2006
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