Presidents, Masons, and National Treasure: Book of Secrets

One of my brothers sent me an interesting article that was recently published in the Washington Post:

Freemasonry, Eager to Step from Cultural Shadows

The informative, well written article relates among other things that the first scene of National Treasure: Book of Secrets was filmed in the grand auditorium of the George Washington Masonic Memorial in Alexandria, Virginia.

Besides George Washington, there is at least one other Masonic president featured in the movie: Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt's profile is featured prominently on Mount Rushmore of course. But, that's not Roosevelt's only connection to the National Park system. It turns out that his administration managed to set aside more than 42 million acres for national forests, parks, and wildlife refuges.

During a recent visit to the Grand Masonic Lodge of New York in Manhattan, one of the janitors showed me the desk where Roosevelt signed at least one of the documents that set aside this land. He said that Roosevelt liked to visit the lodge while in Manhattan to get away from the bustle of the city.

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