Charter members and past members of Geba Lodge No. 954, the Jackson Heights and Elmhurst lodge now part of the lineage of Advance Service Mizpah Lodge No. 586.
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Geba Lodge No. 954 was chartered by the Grand Lodge of New York on May 7, 1919, on the proposal of Mizpah Lodge.
It first met in rented rooms in Jackson Heights and then in the Mizpah Masonic Temple in Elmhurst.
In 1982 Geba consolidated with Service City Lodge to form Service City Geba Lodge No. 1009. In 2018 that lodge joined Advance Island City Mizpah Lodge to form Advance Service Mizpah Lodge No. 586.
This directory lists Geba’s charter members and past members, with links to individual member articles as they are published. It covers historical members, not current members.
For the lodge’s history, see Geba Lodge No. 954 and the Making of Modern Queens.
Charter Members of Geba Lodge No. 954
The lodge’s own account counts twenty-one charter members.
- Samuel A. Lando, first Master
- Bernard H. Mindling
- Eli Green
- Leo Propper
- Joseph Weinstock
- Louis S. Greenberg
- David A. Davis
- Adolph Samuels
- Jesse R.Jacobs
- Max Handsburg
- Morris J. Roth
- Dudley D. Shoenfeld
- Benjamin N. Rosenthol
- Charles Lando
- Samuel M. Greene
- Philip Sheel
- James S. Hurwitz
- Charles Michaels
- Daniel Sheer
- Samuel Sheer, Jr.
- Simon R. Gotlieb
Past Members of Geba Lodge No. 954
Entries include roles, membership dates, and membership numbers where supplied in the lodge’s accounts. Individual profile links will be added as their destinations are confirmed.
- Samuel Perlo, listed as the twenty-fifth member, raised February 25, 1919
- David Wechsler - listed as the twenty-seventh member, raised April 8, 1919
- Edward A. Mandel, listed as the thirty-seventh member, raised in October 1919
- Herbert E. Rosenberg, listed with a Belle Harbor address
- Bernard Berkley - Fairy Lamd Amusement Park
- Don Rickles - Comedian
More members will be added as articles are published.
Sources and Notes
The lodge’s own account supplies the stated total of twenty-one charter members. Membership details above follow the lodge records and accounts described in the supplied directory draft.
The companion Geba Lodge history discusses the sources and limitations of the member material in greater detail.
[Before publication: identify the specific lodge records or published accounts used for the charter-member total and each membership entry.]
Note 1: Membership Records and Dates
The charter-member list is incomplete. The stated total of twenty-one follows the lodge’s account and is not presented as a newly verified count from the original charter.
The membership numbers, raising dates, and address details follow the lodge’s records as reported in the working material. They have not been independently checked for this directory.
The February and April 1919 raising dates precede the May 7 charter date. Geba had been working under dispensation since October 1918, so the charter date does not mark the beginning of all lodge activity.
The charter date follows Grand Lodge of New York records. The 1982 consolidation is given by year only, following the series convention.
Other Member Directories
- Advance Service Mizpah Lodge No. 586 Members Directory
- City Lodge No. 408 Members Directory
- Island City Lodge No. 586 Members Directory
- Advance Lodge No. 635 Members Directory
- Mizpah Lodge No. 738 Members Directory
- Service Lodge No. 1009 Members Directory
Start Here · Series Hub · Timeline · Previous Article: To Be Assigned · Next Article: To Be Assigned · Related Directory: Master Members Directory · Related Member Profiles: To Be Assigned
