allen earl roberts's biography
1917 - 1997
by Wallace McLeod, FPS
 |
Allen Earl Roberts was
born in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, on October 11, 1917, and was raised there.
After his first year in high school, in 1934, he was compelled to withdraw, and
join the work force. It was the height of the depression, his stepfather was
over eighty years of age, his family had no money, and he was the oldest child.
For several years he worked in a bakery. Soon after Pearl Harbor, he joined the
U.S. Navy, as a Baker, and over the next two years he rose to the rank of Chief
Commissary Steward. He served in the European and Pacific Theaters, and won four
battle stars. In 1944, while still in the Navy, he enrolled in a course in
journalism, that was offered by the University of Wisconsin in cooperation with
the Armed Forces Institute. His professor recognized his talents as a writer and
encouraged him. At the War's end, he moved to Richmond, and tried his hand at a number of
jobs over the next six years. Then he became Assistant Director of the
Department of Finance of Henrico County (1951-53), and after that, Office
Manager for Capital City Iron Works (1953-1957). Finally in 1957 he was
appointed as Business Manager to the Virginia State Convict Road Force (later
renamed the Division of Correctional Field Units), and continued there until
1972. |
For over twenty
years he had held various administrative positions in the working world. And so,
in 1971 and 1972 he underwent the five-part examination held by the
Administrative Management Society. This qualified him to receive a diploma as a
Certified Administrative Manager, which was presented to him in Chicago on
September 14, 1972.
In 1969 he founded his own company, Imagination Unlimited, primarily to serve
as a means for making moving pictures. In 1982 Anchor Communications was formed,
to help publish Masonic books. It soon became a subsidiary of Imagination
Unlimited.
Allen was made a Mason in Babcock Lodge, No 322, Highland Springs, Virginia,
on April 1, 1948, and served as Master in 1955. He joined a number of Masonic
bodies and concordant orders. He was Master of Virginia Research Lodge, No 1777,
in 1965-67, and served as Secretary from 1973 to 1996. He was Sovereign Grand
Master of the Allied Masonic Degrees in 1990. He was named a Fellow of the
Philalethes Society in 1963, and was proclaimed a Blue Friar in 1967. He served
as President of the Philalethes Society in 1984-86, and was its Executive
Secretary from 1984 on. In 1962 he was instrumental in forming the Virginia
Craftsmen, a degree team that wore Confederate uniforms. Over the next 32 years
they travelled all over the United States, Canada, and Britain, conferring or
exemplifying some 200 degrees in various locations. Allen was in constant demand
as a speaker, and carried out many lecture tours.
He was best known however for his Masonic writings hundreds of articles, and
dozens of books. As John J. Robinson said (Pilgrim's Path, 5), Allen was "the
most prolific author, perhaps in all of Masonic history." He was certainly the
most effective educator. He saw what American Masons needed, and then went ahead
and gave it to them. A few examples will establish the point. The War Between
the States probably did more to shape the face of America than any other event
in history. Has anyone ever written about the part played in it by Masons, and
the effect of the War on Freemasonry? Not until Allen Roberts did it, in House
Undivided: The Story of Freemasonry and the Civil War (1961)! This was his first
major book, and the same year he was awarded the Philalethes Certificate of
Literature.
Again, the business world has long known about man-management and
leadership-training. Who brought these techniques into Masonry? Brother Roberts,
that's who, with his Key to Freemasonry's Growth (1969)! Isn't it time we had a
good clear up-to-date book on Masonic symbolism, a book that can be safely put
into the hands of a brand new member? Yes, it is, and in fact Allen Roberts gave
it to us in 1974 (The Craft and its Symbols)! Many groups of people, politicians
and film-makers and authors and architects and lawyers, have their own
biographical dictionaries, to tell who is working in the field, why he is
important, and how we can get in touch with him. Shouldn't there be one for
Masons too? Yes, there should, and Al Roberts produced it (Who is Who in
Freemasonry, 1984; 2nd edition, 1986; 3rd edition, 1996).
And the list goes on and on. Some of his other familiar books are G.
Washington: Master Mason (1976), Brother Truman (1985), Freemasonry in American
History (1985), The Search for Leadership (1987), Seekers of Truth (1988), The
Mystic Tie (1991), and Masonic Trivia (and Facts) (1994). He kept working right
up to the end, and in the past year produced or collaborated on House Reunited,
new editions of Who is Who in Freemasonry and of Coil's Masonic Encyclopedia,
the introduction to the facsimile reprint of Webb's Monitor, and the forthcoming
MSA digest on Freemasonry and Democracy: Its Evolution in North America. When
comes such another?
But as well as his writings, he also made a number of fine moving pictures.
First came the four films in the Masonic Leadership Series (based on his book,
Key to Freemasonry's Growth): Growing the Leader in 1970, Breaking Barriers to
Communication in 1971, Planning Unlocks the Door in 1972, and People Make the
Difference in 1973 (they were released on a single video tape in 1989). Then he
produced films for several Grand Lodges: Challenge! (1977) for Virginia,
Precious Heritage (1977) for Ohio; and Living Stones (1984) for Georgia. And he
made others for the concordant orders: The Saga of the Holy Royal Arch of
Freemasonry (1973), Lonely World (1979), which dealt with Royal Arch Research
Assistance Program; and Virtue Will Triumph (1982), for the Scottish Rite,
Southern Jurisdiction (unfortunately this film seems to have disappeared). And
as well he produced two movies for the Masonic Service Association: The
Brotherhood of Man (1975), and Fraternally Yours (1979). At least six of these
productions received Awards at International Film and T.V. Festivals in New York
and Houston.
Allen was consistently in the forefront in urging that Masonry should,
without giving up any of its traditional landmarks, move with the times. Let us
just give three examples. In 1969 he urged the need for a "clearing house" for
Masonic information, which would at least cut down the amount of needless
duplication of effort in different jurisdictions (Key to Freemasonry's Growth,
124-125). The Masonic Information Center in Washington was finally formed in the
Spring of 1993, explicitly to serve as "a `clearing house', processing
information of interest to the Masonic community" (Emessay Notes, February,
1993).
Again, in 1983 he had written, "Is it time to consider a Masonic bulletin
board? ... Or should Freemasonry ignore this tremendous technological
breakthrough as it has so many others?" (The Philalethes, 36.5). It was in 1987
that Hiram's Oasis, one of the earliest Masonic computer bulletin boards, was
founded by Bro. Preston Burner. And in September 1992 a dispensation was granted
for "Computer Cornerstone Chapter" of the Philalethes Society.
In February 1989 Allen gave the keynote address to the Conference of Grand
Masters at Alexandria, Virginia, in which he argued the legitimacy of Prince
Hall Masonry. On October 14, 1989, partly as a result of his address, the Grand
Lodge of Connecticut began to allow intervisitation with the Prince Hall Grand
Lodge of Connecticut the first "Caucasian" Grand Lodge to do so.
Allen did not pretend to be a "scholar"; in fact he was rather proud that he
was not. His particular strengths lay in sifting through vast amounts of
material, recognizing what was important, and then relating it to the real world
around us. He wrote with clarity, in down-to-earth straightforward American
English. America has never had such a productive Masonic author, such a dynamic
Masonic communicator, such an effective Masonic educator, such a clear-sighted
Masonic adviser, as Allen Roberts. So many of his books ought to be in the hands
of every thoughtful Brother! He was a true hero to many of us, all over the free
world. We all owe a tremendous debt to him; he has done so much for the gentle
Craft.
Allen consistently tried to help and encourage those who were concerned with
the dissemination of Masonic knowledge. And on January 1, 1972, he formed the
Masonic Brotherhood of The Blue Forget-Me-Not to recognize "the workers in the
quarries of Freemasonry the educators and writers." On the other hand, he found
it hard to tolerate laziness, stupidity, ignorance, or dishonesty in his
brothers. He had a tendency to speak his mind, and this sometimes brought him
into friction with some of those who held high rank in the Craft. After all, not
all Masonic politicians seem to be devoted to Masonic education. But even so, a
number of Masonic honors, too many to list in full, were bestowed upon him,
particularly in the later years. So, in 1988 he was given the George Washington
Distinguished Service Medal of the Grand Lodge of Virginia. On July 9, 1994, his
Grand Lodge renamed its library and museum in his honor. And in 1995 he was made
a 33o, which is sometimes regarded as the highest Masonic accolade.
For several years his health had been uncertain, but it hardly seemed to slow
him up. He died in the hospital in Richmond, after a brief illness, on March 13,
1997, in his 80th year. He leaves his loving wife Dorothy Grimes (Dottie), a
constant source of encouragement and support; his five children, Allen, Wayne,
Kenneth, Marcia (Weber), and Brian; his five grandchildren, and ten great
grandchildren. To them all we express our profound sympathy.
Nobody, they say, is indispensable. And indeed Allen had a poem to that
effect that he sometimes used. But we shall see. In the meantime, we are
grateful for his life, his devotion, and his lasting contributions.
back to top |
