Take the stairs (or elevator) again to the third floor, where you'll enter the large foyer decorated with photos, plaques, Masonic memorabilia and long benches, lit by indirect cove lighting. Through the doorway to the right is the wonderful Trophy room.
The Trophy Room is furnished with antique chairs, a handcrafted tiled table and a Grandfather's clock embellished with all the working tools of Masonry, framed portraits and photos and plaques. In the two glass-fronted trophy cases are special Masonic, Royal Arch and Shrine memorabilia including aprons, china, jewels and photos earned, collected or donated by Hoffman Lodge members.
Hoffman Lodge boasts something quite unusual in its Trophy Room - a mummified Lion's Paw!
In 1860, Joshua Draper was the third Master of Hoffman No. 412. He had a hat factory called "Wilcox & Draper" on the corner of Railroad Avenue and Grove Street in Middletown (no longer standing.) During the financial panic of the 1870's, Draper went west, where a son had already moved, but he continued his Hoffman Lodge membership. Times were such that he was not able to pay his dues; instead, he offered the skeleton of a California lion's paw, which the lodge gracefully accepted and still has among its keepsakes.
The inscription reads: The Lion's Paw
Fore Paw of an American Mountain Lion
Killed a mile from the home of Past Master Dr. Joshua Draper near Prescott, Arizona, by a Hualipai (Wallapi) Indian. This animal measured 8 feet from nose to tip of tail and 5 1/2 feet from one forefoot to the other over the shoulders.
Presented to Hoffman Lodge No. 412 F & A M by Dr. Joshua Draper, September 1887
At last we reach the Lodge Room itself, with its heavy oak furnishings and expansive proportions. Surrounding the room are three levels of cushioned benches and the appropriate Masonic stations. In the East, the Master's Platform is accented by beautiful woodwork, draperies and a lighted crystal insignia. Incidently, the exterior North Street wall is not exactly North/South, therefore the inner East wall has been separately framed so the wall faces exactly East. Around the room, high up on the walls, are framed and backlit stained glass windows depicting the Blue Lodge, Royal Arch, Commandery and Eastern Star chapters. Hanging from huge plaster medallions on the 25 foot ceiling are five ornate brass chandeliers. On the North wall is a marvelous Moeller Pipe Organ, and behind the large grill high on the West wall is the pipe room. The accoustics in the room are also noteworthy.
Though this is the end of our online Hoffman Lodge tour, it only scratches the surface of all the wonderful details of the Temple. There are nooks and crannies, antiques and collectibles, closets of Masonic equipment and paraphernalia, storage for healthcare equipment available to needy members and families, the archives, the Master's Parlour and Secretary's Room, and even more storage on the fourth floor. We thank the Brothers who put such care into the building of this handsome, spacious Temple seventy-seven years ago.
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