Brethren,

As the newly appointed Historian for the Scottish Rite Orient of Oregon, I have been given the opportunity to provide you with some of the history of our great organization. These are the stories of the men and incidents which helped establish and grow the Scottish Rite in Oregon. There are many places where this project could be started, but as this biography was the most recent put together we will begin here. Let me introduce you to Ill. Bro. Richard Martin, Jr. the architect of the magnificent edifice which is home to the Portland Valley Scottish Rite. Brother Martin designed and oversaw the construction of the Scottish Rite Cathedral found on 15^th and Morrison St. in Portland. This was the first Scottish Rite Temple built in the United States solely for Scottish Rite functions and purposes and in its day was the largest of it sort. (Special thanks to Bro. Nate Neff 32° KSA, for inspiring the search and locating some of the key information relating to Bro. Martin’s work as an architect, which led to this biography.)

50^th Inspector General

Richard Henry Martin Jr. was born in Penzance, Cornwall, England on July 23, 1858 and was the first of six known children born to Richard Martin, Sr. and his wife Hannah Rogers. Richard Sr. was born August 17, 1834 in Liverpool, England and Hannah Rogers was born in England on June 24, 1835. The couple married March 13, 1858 in Cornwall. Richard Jr. was technically Richard IV, his father, grandfather and great-grandfather all having been named Richard. His father, Richard Martin Sr. was a builder and stonemason. On May 15, 1874, when he was yet 15 years of age, Richard Jr. left Penzance with his family and immigrated to America. They set sail from Liverpool on the S.S. Baltic[1] arriving in Portland, Oregon on June 10, 1874, as noted in a diary he wrote of the trip. By 1880 the family was living at 425 West Park in Portland; Richard Sr. was listed as a Stonemason, and his 21 year old son Richard Jr. as an Architect.[2] Richard Martin Jr. was made a Naturalized citizen of the United States, in Portland, Oregon on December 7, 1891. Richard applied for a Passport on March 28, 1912 and was described as being 5 ft. 8 in. tall, with light hair and blue eyes.

Richard Martin, Jr. married in 1896 to Hattie L. Houghton, who was born in 1873. Her father was Canadian and her mother was born in England. The couple had a son Richard H. Martin (V) born in 1899. In 1910 they lived at 455 Hassalo St. in Portland, on the east side of the river, and had a live in servant, a 19 year old Swedish girl named Ellen Erickson.[3]

“McCaw, Martin & White was a prominent architectural firm active in Portland at the end of the nineteenth century. It was responsible for some of the most substantial Romanesque-style buildings in Oregon, some of which are still extant.”

“Martin worked as a draughtsman in the office of Warren H. Williams until Williams’ death in 1888. From 1888 until his association with McCaw, Martin worked in partnership with Alexander M. Milwain. In 1888, he designed the Pacific Northwest Industrial Exposition Building. This exhibition hall, the largest such structure on the West Coast when it was built, burned in 1910. 

In late 1888 or early 1889, the McCaw & Martin professional partnership was formed. Frederick Manson White joined the firm in 1889 as a draftsman, and from July 1891 to June 1892 he was a full partner in McCaw, Martin & White. Among their early works, the University of Portland’s West Hall (now Waldschmidt Hall) of 1891 shows Richardson’s influence; it has strong similarities with Richardson’s Sever Hall at Harvard University (1878). Other distinctive works include the First Regiment Armory Annex (1891) in Portland, now called the Gerding Theater, an award-winning example of sustainable adaptive redesign.

Completed in 1892, the Portland home of Dr. Kenneth A.J. Mackenzie—a founder and dean of the University of Oregon’s Medical School (now Oregon Health Sciences University)—demonstrates the firm’s expertise in residential design. Perhaps their masterwork is the Dekum Building of 1892, a Portland landmark distinguished by distinctive stonework, elaborate carvings, and colorful masonry.

In 1897, McCaw moved to San Francisco, where he joined prominent architect William Curlett to form Curlett & McCaw, a firm that lasted until 1901. Meanwhile, Martin continued to practice in Portland, where he designed several significant buildings, including the Scottish Rite Center (1902), the Masonic Temple (1907), and the home of philanthropist Dr. Henry Waldo Coe (1906, destroyed). He also designed the Albert Sholes House in Cornelius, Oregon (1909).”[4] He passed to the Celestial Lodge November 6, 1950.“[5]

Masonic Service

Blue Lodge:

Richard Martin, Jr. was Initiated, Passed and Raised in Harmony Lodge between May 1889 and May 1890, being a MM by the time of the 1890 Communication. He most likely went through the degrees between June and Dec. 1889. Bro. Martin was Senior Warden in 1892 and Worshipful Master in 1893.[6]

Scottish Rite:

“He joined the Scottish Rite in 1892, was made a K.C.C.H. in 1905 and coroneted a 33°, I.G.H. January 17, 1920. He was Senior Warden of Ainsworth Chapter of Rose Croix 40 years.[7]

He was a Mason for 61 years and died at the age of 92. At the time of his death he was the oldest living Scottish Rite Mason in Oregon. He was buried in the Camellia Corridor Mausoleum at Lincoln Memorial Park, alongside his wife Hattie who died in 1942.[8]

[1] U.S. Passport applications for Richard Martin Jr. 1912

[2] U.S. Federal Census 1880, Portland Oregon

[3] U.S. Federal Census 1910, Portland, Multnomah, Oregon, Ward 9, Precinct 69, District 0212.

[4] The Oregon Encyclopedia, a project of the Oregon Historical Society http://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/mccaw_martin_white_architects/#.vpptqvnf-sp

[5] History of the Scottish Rite in Oregon 1992

[6] Oregon Grand Lodge Proceedings 1888-1904

[7] He was found in the position by 1904.

[8] Find a Grave

About the author of this essay:

Michael D. Robinson 32° KSA, was the second Master Mason Raised in Esoterika Lodge #227, and the first member Raised in that Lodge to serve as Worshipful Master. He was elected Master in 2013 and 2014, and currently serves as Chaplin for that Lodge. Brother Robinson was appointed Historian for the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite Orient of Oregon in December of 2014, and Secretary of the Eugene Valley in March of 2015. He also serves as Historian for Research Lodge #198 and Eugene Lodge #11. He is the recipient of the “Novus Astorum” from the Scottish Rite in 2010, and the Hiram Award from Esoterika Lodge in 2012.

Brother Robinson has a degree in History from Colorado State University, class of 1982, and is a Historian, Genealogist, Certified Vertebrologist, Artist, Craftsman and Bishop Emeritus of the Essene Church.