| Summary: | These are newspaper accounts of a trial involving members of the Florence African American Masonic lodge.(1) Florence historian Lee Freeman notes: "Report of the first in a series of two August and September, 1905 court cases involving officers of Centennial Lodge, in this instance over the secretary's books, which the lodge's secretary, Florence mortician Henry MO Terry (1878-1936), elected in May, refused to hand over to the new secretary, elected in June."(2) Florence historian Lee Freeman notes: "Report of the second of two 1905 court cases involving officers of Centennial Lodge No. 19. This case involved a suit to compel Worshipful Master, Florence cobbler and grocer Jacob Wytch (1848-1927) to install John Nelson as Worshipful Master, which Wytch refused to do on the grounds that Nelson was ineligible for that position as he had not not "taken the past master degree," causing the balance of newly-elected officers of Centennial Lodge to refuse their installation based upon this "misunderstanding." Florence attorney and future AL governor (1911-1915) Emmett O'Neal (1853-1922) and future Pulitzer Prize-winning author TS Stribling (1881-1965) represented Wytch with attorney RE Simpson representing Nelson. Judge Almon would eventually rule in Wytch's favor."(3) Judge Almon rules in favor of Jacob Wytch
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