Dennis, of course the Lodges got involved with helping widows and orphans....that is what we do. Last figures I read shows that today about $4 Millon dollars EACH DAY is spent by all of the Masonic organizations in this country toward charity.

And the word 'politics' that I used should have been 'partisan politics', meaning the state of affairs of the day may have been discussed but not as 'one party -vs- the other party'. But even that would have been discussed during 'refreshment' downstairs, not during the official meeting.

There are many stories, some real and some embellished, showing Masonic charity during the war. The Gettysburg story posted here is a good example.

My position is this, the Masonic Lodges did not play a big role in the War but played as always in the problems caused by the war. By the way, Military Lodges were very popular in the Revolutionary War and many such Lodges exist today at military bases around the world.