1947   Harry Learn Buckalew  (1902  - 1978)  (148620378)  Brother Buckalew received all of his Degrees within 20 days by being initiated on June 28, 1923, passed on July 12, 1923 and raised on July 19, 1923 in Henry Morse Stephens Lodge No. 541 in Berkeley, California.  He affiliated with Las Palmas Lodge in 1930.    

He was a principal of Muir, Einstein, Fremont, Jackson, Lowell and Jefferson Elementary schools in Fresno during his 41 year tenure with Fresno Unified School District.  He was an avid wildflower photographer and had a file of more than 5,000 color film photos of which 67 were reproduced in major publications.  He was a founding director of the Sierra Hospital in Fresno. 

Brother Buckalew was the forty-third Master of Las Palmas Lodge and was our officer’s coach for many years.   He was a real stickler for our ritual being said correctly. During his year as Master, Brother Buckalew raised 66 Master Masons and had 8 Masons affiliate with Las Palmas Lodge.

He was Master of the Central California Research Lodge in 1974.  Brother Buckalew was also very enthusiastic with High Twelve; having served as the Fresno Club President, State High Twelve Clubs President and National President.  Brother Harry could always be counted on for being at Lodge as he never missed a meeting and was also active in Eastern Star.

1948   Edgar Christian Smith  (1884 – 1968)  (23184081)  Brother Smith was born in Omaha, Nebraska.  He graduated as a civil engineer from Stanford in 1907.  After working in Pocatello, Idaho, he moved to Fresno in 1909.  He worked for the County of Fresno in the engineering department and the surveyor’s office for 28 years.  In 1938 he was elected County Surveyor and was reelected in 1942.  In 1944 this elected office was discontinued.  He designed more than 2,000 bridges in the County and laid out the Toll House grade at a time when roads were built with mule teams and scrapers.  He helped name many of our streets. 

Brother Smith petitioned Las Palmas Lodge for his degrees in 1914 and was raised on June 4^th of that year.  He served as our forty-forth Master.

During his year as Master, Brother Smith raised 61 Master Masons and had 1 Mason affiliate with Las Palmas Lodge.

1949   George C. Holstein  (1903 – 1992)  (68591626)  Brother Holstein was born in Endicott, Washington where he graduated from high school in 1922.  He received his A.B. in history and education from Fresno State College in 1930 and a M.A. from The University of Southern California in 1941.

His teaching career started as a physical education instructor at Washington Union High School (1930 – 1935), thence to Visalia High School for the 1935 to 1937 school years.  He was initiated in Visalia Lodge No. 128 on November 19, 1936, passed on January 21, 1937 and raised on February 25, 1937.

From 1937 to 1943 he was a teacher at Fresno High school and from 1943 to 1948 he was their vice-principal.  From 1948 until 1955 he was the school principal.  In 1955 he was instrumental in using the Fresno High School auditorium for the 50^th anniversary celebration of Las Palmas Lodge.  From 1955 until his retirement in 1966 he was Dean of Admissions for Fresno City College.

1950   James Avenell Hopper  (1916 – 1996)  (103686441)  Brother Hopper was born in Fresno County.  From 1934 to 1940 he was a mortician.  In 1940 he became a real estate and insurance salesman.  In his later years he became a real estate appraiser.  He petitioned Las Palmas Lodge in January of 1943 and received all of his degrees that year.

Brother Hopper raised 39 new Masons in his year and had 3 Master Masons affiliate with Las Palmas Lodge. 

His son Larry became our Master in 1984 and his son Richard, who was raised in Las Palmas Lodge and was Master of Visalia Lodge, became Grand Master in 2008.

1951   Norman Sanford Foley, Sr.  (1908 - 1974)  (148659786)  Brother Foley owned and operated a tire business and service station in downtown Fresno.  He was also elected to the Fresno County Board of Supervisors in 1953 and served until 1964. 

During his year as Master, Brother Foley raised 49 Master Masons and had 5 Masons affiliate with Las Palmas Lodge.

In later years he was in the real estate business.  Brother Foley was our Lodge Secretary from 1969 to 1973.

1952   Walter Price Robinson  (1901-1969)  (11117743)  Brother Robinson was born in New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada and moved to the United States in 1904 and to Fresno County in 1917.   He graduated from Fresno High School in 1919 and while attending Fresno State College played on their first football team in 1922.  He then transferred to Stanford where he received his bachelor’s degree in 1924.  While at Stanford, he was the Heavyweight Pacific Coast Collegiate Boxing Champion for two years.  After teaching for several years in the Valley, he started a 21 year teaching career at Fresno High school where he was an instructor in journalism and math. 

He received his degrees of Masonry in 1936 in Selma Lodge No. 277 where in 1938 he was their Senior Deacon and in 1939 he served as Jr. Warden. He affiliated with Las Palmas Lodge in 1941.  In 1952 he served as our forty-eighth Master.  In December of 1954 he was appointed Assistant Secretary to cover for the ailing Willard Tanzer.  Brother Price then served as Lodge Secretary until his death in 1969.  During his year as Master, Brother Robinson raised 45 Master Masons and had 5 Masons affiliate with Las Palmas Lodge.

1953   Arch Rombough Addington  (1894 – 1972)  (143464092)  Arch Addington was born near Winchester, Indiana.  His mother, a school teacher, died within a week of his birth and his father, a farmer and carpenter, died before Arch was 2 years old.  As an only child, he was raised by his grandparents.  Brother Addington started his teaching career in 1913 with eight grades in a one-room country school near Lynn, Randolph County, Indiana.  Between 1923 and 1928 he was enrolled in the graduate study of geology while also teaching the subject.  In 1925 he received his M.A. degree from Indiana University.  In 1927 a professor of geology at Indiana University took a teaching position at Fresno State College.  In 1928 that professor convinced Brother Addington to move to Fresno and teach geology and geography at Fresno State.  He retired from Fresno State College in 1960 and was named professor emeritus.  He also founded the local chapter of the American Association of University Professors.

Brother Addington received his degrees of Masonry in Las Palmas Lodge in 1944 and was our Master in 1953.  During his year as Master he raised 33 new Master Masons and had 3 Masons affiliate with Las Palmas Lodge.

1954   Richard Dale Hargrave  (1902 – 1973)  (148661765)  Brother Hargrave was born in Danville, Illinois.  He was raised in Las Palmas Lodge on October 5, 1944 and ten years later was our Master.  He was a mortgage loan broker and owned Hargrave Mortgage company since 1937. 

During his year as Master, Brother Hargrave raised 34 Master Masons and had 4 Masons affiliate with Las Palmas Lodge.

If you have additional information about him, please contact the Lodge Secretary.

1955   Tom Edwin Dispennette  (1901 – 1959)  (148662220)  Brother Dispenette was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan.  He was initiated in Las Palmas Lodge on May 23, 1946, passed on September 26^th and raised on May 8, 1947.

During his year as Master, Brother Dispennette raised 27 Master Masons and had 2 Masons affiliate with Las Palmas Lodge.

He was a shoe salesman for Harry Coffee’s in downtown Fresno. 

Additional research is being conducted on the history of Brother Dispennette.  If you have information about him, please contact the Lodge Secretary.

1956   Wayne Wilbur Hearn  (1910 – 1986)  (148662862)  Brother Hearn was born in Gladstone, Illinois. His father, who was a telegraph operator for the railroad, heeded the call  to “go west” and in 1912 moved the family to Los Angeles.  His home was close to several movie studios so he and his school mates often tried to appear in pictures that were being filmed on the local streets.  He then lived in Salt Lake City for three years and one year in Tennessee before moving to Fresno.  It was here that his ability to focus on Art and drawing, and graphics and lettering developed.  Following an apprenticeship, he worked for nine years at Foster & Kleiser, an outdoor advertising company.  He was skilled in calligraphy and gold leaf application.  He applied the gold leaf to the sunburst that is on the wall above the Master in our Lodge room.  After a serious injury in 1949, Brother Hearn entered the less strenuous field of real estate and insurance.

“My first contacts with Masonry came during the employment with Foster & Kleiser Co., where Oscar C. Olsen P.M. was office manager.”  Several co-workers “were members of Las Palmas Lodge 366.  At that time, I had no knowledge that my father was a Past Master in Albert Pike Lodge #14 in Milford, Utah.  Serving in 1930.  Becoming active in lodge work was very easy and I was appointed an alternate member of the third degree team along with George Holstein, ‘Bud’ Fine & ‘Cliff’ Richter.  Budo’s activities kept him elsewhere so I got on steady.”

During his year as Master, Brother Hearn raised 22 Master Masons and had 2 Masons affiliate with Las Palmas Lodge.  After his term as Master, Brother Wayne remained very active in Lodge activities. 

About a year after his wife passed away, Brother Hearn suffered an untimely death at the hand of his handyman-gardener.

1957   Walter Dean Randall  (1911 – 1987)  (77231918)  Brother Randall was a native of Fresno. 

He received all of his degrees of Masonry in Las Palmas Lodge in 1942.  Thirteen years later he became our fifty-third Master.  During his year as Master, Brother Randall raised 26 Master Masons and had 4 Masons affiliate with Las Palmas Lodge.

Brother Randall was a Vice-President and General Manager of a dental supply company.

1958   Marshall Berton Barker  (1903 - 1962)  (148704938)  Brother Barker was born in Little Cedar, Iowa.  He received his degrees of Masonry in Long Beach Lodge No. 327 in 1926.

He moved to Fresno in the 1930's and affiliated with Las Palmas Lodge on March 18, 1948.  He taught physics and science at Roosevelt Hi School.  Brother Barker made and presented to our Lodge the columns that sit on the podiums of the Junior and Senior Warden and indicate whether Lodge is at labor or at refreshment. 

During his year as Master, Brother Barker raised 23 Master Masons.

Additional research is being conducted on the history of Brother Barker.  If you have information about him, please contact the Lodge Secretary.

1959   Robert Walker Reynolds  (1912 – 1986)  (148705416)  Brother Reynolds was born in Hamburg, Iowa.  Right out of school, he became employed as a mechanic and service manager for National Cash Register Company.  His employment moved him from various places in Iowa to Montreal, Canada and in 1939 to Fresno. 

He received his Degrees of Masonry in Las Palmas Lodge in 1942. 

In addition to raising 21 Master Masons, he was very active with Brother Moyer in the construction of our temple building.  He was coroneted a 33º Scottish Rite mason in 1977  His son, John R. Reynolds was Master in 1977. 

1960   Charles Darrel Dart  (1902 - 1970)  (61984355)  Brother Dart petitioned Las Palmas Lodge in January of 1945.  He was initiated on March 1, passed on March 31 and raised on June 14 of that same year. 

He had been a field engineer for the Federal Works Agency in Fresno from 1934 to 1939.  From 1939 to 1943 he was a building inspector for Kern County and in 1943 he became an executive for the Lumber Trade Association in Fresno.  He eventually owned K-Y Lumber Company located at McKinley and Blackstone in Fresno.  He supplied the wood and some of the equipment used in the building of our Temple building. 

During his year as Master, Brother Dart raised 26 Master Masons and had 3 Masons affiliate with Las Palmas Lodge.

1961   Hambleton Frederick Leas  (1913 – 1999)  (40208947)  Brother Leas was born in Fresno.  When WWII broke out, he volunteered for the U.S. Army where he was a 1^st Lieutenant in the 17^th Airborne Infantry.  He made the jump across the Rhine River into Germany on March 24, 1945.  He was wounded and spent his 32^nd birthday in a hospital in Brussels.  He was then sent to the South Pacific when news arrived that the war had ended and his ship was redirected back to the United States. 

1962   George B. Posson  (1915 – 2004)  (33459890)  Brother Posson was born in Sanger, California.  During WWII he served in the U.S. Army from March of 1943 to February of 1946.  In October of 1946 he petitioned Las Palmas Lodge where he received his degrees.  His top line signer was Ralph Vianello, (PM 1920) his father-in-law. 

During his year as Master, Brother Posson raised 23 Master Masons and had 6 Masons affiliate with Las Palmas Lodge.

1963   Allard Derby Dadmun  (1915 – 1982)  (148711151)  Brother Al was born in Boscawen, New Hampshire.  While serving in the US Army he was stationed in San Juan, Puerto Rico.  Here he petitioned St. John the Baptist Lodge No. 12 F & A M for his degrees. In May of 1943 he was initiated and in June of 1943 he was passed.  Just a few days before he was to receive his third degree, the Army relocated him overseas, never having been able to be raised.  In January of 1949 Brother Dadmun petitioned Las Palmas as a fellowcraft Mason. He was raised in Las Palmas Lodge on June 30, 1949.

When Brother Al first came to Fresno in 1945 he was employed by the U.S. Department of Internal Revenue, Alcohol and Firearms Bureau.  He then became a lineman for Pacific Telephone Company for over 20 years.

1964   Martin Edward Allred  (1926 – 1987)  (148711826)  Ed was born in Wiggins, Colorado and after serving in the US Army in WW II moved to Fresno.  He petitioned Las Palmas Lodge in November of 1954 and was raised on September 8, 1955. 

He served as a Grand Lodge Homes Endowment Representative, was Associate Guardian of Bethel 243 of the International Order of Job’s Daughters, a member of Fresno Scottish Rite and the Fresno York Rite Bodies.  During his year as Master, Brother Allred raised 30 Master Masons and had 15 Masons affiliate with Las Palmas Lodge.

Brother Allred worked for The City of Fresno as a surveyor and later for The County of Fresno in the Building Permit department.  After his retirement, he worked for the corporate office of a restaurant chain in the acquisition of property for new restaurants. 

Return to Past Master Index Page

Last revised July 5, 2015