M.W. Alvan Pinney Hyde 1862-1863

Alvan Pinney Hyde

Brother Ensign's successor was also young when he reached the high office. Alvan Pinney Hyde was born in Stafford, March 10, 1825. Graduating from Munson Academy, he entered Yale and graduated there in 1845, with honor. He studied law in the office of the Honorable Loren P. Waldo, was admitted to the bar and commenced practice in Stafford. Marrying the daughter of Brother Waldo in 1849, he removed to Tolland. Here he remained until 1864 when he removed to Hartford and established connections with a law firm which has endured under changing names to the present day and with an enviable high record.

As a staunch Democrat he represented Tolland in the General Assembly in 1854, 1858, and 1862. Three times he was the unsuccessful candidate for Congressional honors. His loyalty to his college impelled him to found and foster the Hartford Yale Alumni Association.

Entering Masonry in Uriel Lodge, No. 24, August 26, 1858, he was elected Senior Warden the next meeting after being made a Master Mason. For two years, 1860 and 1861, he served his lodge as Master. In the Grand Lodge his career was as remarkable. Being appointed Grand Junior Deacon May 9, 1861, he was elected Grand Master at the next session May 15, 1862. The Grand Lodge was under his direction for two years. A petition for an army lodge was refused by him. He foresaw the financial distress that was to follow the Civil War as it frequently has in the case of other wars. In 1865 he dimitted from Uriel Lodge. He died at his home in Hartford February 5, 1894.

Masonic gatherings in his later years seldom saw him and when he passed it was said of him that "his record in all its phases was an honorable and manly one, distinguished for high-minded integrity, sagacity and generosity."