He then disappears for a time, emerging again as Worshipful Master of the British Army Lodge No. John's (First) Lodge in Boston on 26 December, 1750. Freemasonry was also an important part of his lifé. His immediate superior was Colonel Henry and the dates of his service were from 1 February, 1777 to 15 October, 1778 when he received an honourable discharge from General John Sullivan. He appears on the « List of men subscribing to regulations for formation of an independent company to be raised in Boston.* The officers of this company were commissioned in council on 7 December, 1776, with John Hancock named as Major General and Colonel of the Regiment. This was a simple but effective defense and consisted of barrels filled with stones and earth rolled down on the attacking units. Military life must have fascinated him as well, for it was he who proposed the «Barrel Defense » used at the battle of Bunker Hill on 17 June, 1775. William Davis was very active in local politics, and from May to November 1776, he was a member of the « Committee on Correspondence » in charge of inspection and saféty in the area. He had one son, Benjamin Davis, born 20 March 1765, who eventually became a Major in the local Massachusetts Militia. He was married three times, and his third wifé, Sarah (Winchester ?), outlived him. He must have been an educated man, as he owned an Apothecary shop on Prince Street near the Charles River Bridge in Boston. He had a sister, Hannah born on 17 February, 1723. Who was William Davis, and what was his background ? How did he happen to be in the right place at the right time to become the First Knight Templar created in America? He was born on 13 June 1724 the son of William and Mary Davis in Boston, Massachusetts and baptized in the Episcopal Church on 19 July, 1724. Andrew's Lodge or members of British Army Lodge n° 322. The test of the members present were members of St. Andrew's Lodge, also Senior Warden of Glittering Star Lodge N° 322 and n° 38 on the same list of Brethren. Next we have Charles Chambers listed as Senior Warden of St. He was Master of Glittering Star Lodge n° 322 and listed as N° 48 on the list of Brethren, Grand Registry of Ireland. Who then were the Officers of Saint Andrew's Lodge who performed the work that day ? Looking at the list we find James Brown listed as Royal Arch Master. We may conclude that there was an existing Royal Arch Lodge or at the very least a group of Royal Arch masons previous to the arrival of the British Army Lodges on 30 September 1768. However in the records of Saint Andrew's Lodge there is a copy of a letter dated 29 October 1762, sent to the Grand Lodge of Scotland requesting a Charter for a Royal Arch Lodge. Originally it was believed that the British Army Lodges working in Boston (Glittering Star n° 322 organized under the Grand Lodge of Ireland and British Army Lodge n° 58 organized under the Grand Lodge of England) brought Royal Arch Masonry with them. Andrew's Royal Arch Chapter must have been formed befère this date, but very little documentation exists. (called a Royal Arch lodge at that time.) On 28 August, 1769, William Davis was « Accepted and Accordingly made by receiving the four steps - That of Excellent, Super Excellent, Royal Arch, and Knight Templar. The earliest written record available in America mentioning the Knights Templar is to be found in the records of St. #Find the first records of the knights astellia seriesNo-one is absolutely certain as to the exact dates involved, but in America the series of events are easier to follow. They seem to have formed after a speech made by Michael Ramsay of Scotland in France purporting that the Knighthood of the Crusades had masonic influence. The earliest recorded masonic Knights Templar organizations were in Scotland and Ireland in the mid 1700s. A careful look must be taken at the known history of the growth and development of the Chivalric Orders of masonic knighthood if any sense is to be made of the connection between the Templars and Freemasonry.
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