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Kaw Valley

Valley of Kaw Scottish Rite Website

Kaw Valley Scottish Rite

A Tradition of Scottish Rite Masonry

Two Historic Valleys. One New Beginning.

The Kaw Valley Scottish Rite represents something truly remarkable in the history of Scottish Rite Masonry. It was not created simply by consolidating two existing Valleys or changing the name of an established organization. Kaw Valley was created by bringing together two separate, historic Scottish Rite Valleys—the Valley of Lawrence and the Valley of Topeka—and creating something entirely new.

This makes Kaw Valley a landmark in Scottish Rite history: the first Valley ever created through the merger of two distinct Scottish Rite Valleys into a new Valley. Rather than simply preserving what had existed before, the members of both historic Valleys chose to honor their shared past while building a new future together.

The result is more than a merger. It is a new era of Scottish Rite Masonry in Kansas.

The name Kaw Valley is especially fitting. The Kansas River—known historically as the Kaw—has long connected the communities of eastern Kansas, flowing between Lawrence and Topeka and providing a natural geographic link between the two historic Valleys. Today, that same connection represents a bond of fraternity: two traditions, two histories, and generations of Scottish Rite Masons coming together to strengthen the future of the Rite.

A Legacy Worth Carrying Forward

The new Kaw Valley Valley does not leave its history behind. It carries forward the traditions, accomplishments, friendships, and memories of both the Valley of Lawrence and the Valley of Topeka.

Lawrence brought with it a remarkable Scottish Rite legacy dating to the nineteenth century and culminating in the magnificent 1911 Scottish Rite Temple on Massachusetts Street. Topeka likewise developed into one of Kansas’s great centers of Scottish Rite Masonry, with elaborate degree productions and some of the largest reunions in the state’s early Scottish Rite history.

Those histories are now part of something bigger.

Kaw Valley represents the idea that tradition is not simply something to preserve—it is something to build upon.

A New Chapter in an Old Story

For more than a century, Scottish Rite Masons in Lawrence and Topeka gathered separately to pursue the same ideals of brotherhood, knowledge, morality, service, and personal growth. Today, those traditions have come together under one banner.

The creation of Kaw Valley offers an opportunity that few Scottish Rite Valleys have ever experienced: to begin again without beginning from scratch.

The foundations are historic.
The traditions are proven.
The brotherhood is enduring.

But the future is new.

Welcome to Kaw Valley Scottish Rite—the beginning of a new chapter in the long history of Scottish Rite Masonry in Kansas.

A Valley With a Future

Kaw Valley carries that history forward while looking toward the future. Members gather not simply to preserve a tradition, but to explore the philosophical lessons of Scottish Rite Masonry, strengthen brotherhood, serve their communities, and help make good men better.

The Valley is also part of a much larger Kansas Scottish Rite family. The Orient of Kansas currently encompasses six Valleys and bodies across the state, united by a common commitment to fellowship, education, service, and personal growth.

Fun fact: The Knights of St. Andrew, an organization focused on service and participation within Scottish Rite Masonry, established a chapter at Kaw Valley in 2021.

Valley of Lawrence

Remembering a Historic Kansas Valley

The name Valley of Lawrence belongs to an important chapter in the history of Scottish Rite Masonry in Kansas.

Lawrence was home to Scottish Rite bodies as early as the nineteenth century, including William de la More Council of Kadosh, established in 1883. By the early 1900s, Lawrence had become one of seven Kansas cities with an established Scottish Rite Valley.

The Lawrence Valley reached a high point during the great Scottish Rite building era of the early twentieth century. The 1911 Scottish Rite Temple on Massachusetts Street represented the optimism and growth of the period. The building contained an elaborate theater specifically suited to the presentation of Scottish Rite degrees, with scenery, stage machinery, and theatrical effects designed to immerse candidates in the lessons of the degrees.

At its height, the Valley was large enough to conduct multiple reunions each year. The 1919 winter reunion alone included 119 candidates—a remarkable illustration of the popularity and vitality of Scottish Rite Masonry in Lawrence at the time.

Although the historic temple is no longer owned by the Scottish Rite, its story remains an important part of the heritage of the Lawrence Valley. The current Kaw Valley Scottish Rite continues that legacy in Lawrence, preserving the spirit of brotherhood, education, service, and philosophical Masonry that characterized the Valley throughout its history.

A piece of Lawrence history worth remembering: For nearly a century, Scottish Rite degree work took place in one of downtown Lawrence’s most distinctive buildings. Its theater was used for Scottish Rite productions for approximately 94 years.

Valley of Topeka

Where Kansas Scottish Rite History Took Center Stage

The history of the Valley of Topeka is closely intertwined with the development of Scottish Rite Masonry in Kansas.

Scottish Rite bodies were established in Topeka during the nineteenth century. Unity Chapter of Rose Croix was established in 1881, and the Topeka Consistory was chartered in 1892. These bodies helped establish Topeka as one of the principal centers of Scottish Rite Masonry in the state.

The Valley entered an especially memorable era in the early 1900s. By 1906, Topeka had developed an elaborate Scottish Rite stage capable of presenting the degrees in full theatrical form. Scenic artist Thomas G. Moses and the firm of Sosman & Landis were involved in creating scenery and stage equipment for the Topeka Scottish Rite.

The scale of the undertaking was extraordinary for its time. Approximately $15,000 worth of scenery was installed for the Valley’s 1906 degree work. That year’s spring reunion included 200 candidates—the largest Scottish Rite class ever assembled in Kansas at that time.

The Topeka stage became famous throughout Scottish Rite Masonry. Its elaborate scenery and theatrical effects reflected an era when Scottish Rite degree presentations combined Masonic philosophy with the grandeur of live theater. Contemporary descriptions emphasized sophisticated electrical effects and elaborate stage machinery.

The Valley’s influence extended well beyond Topeka. Members from communities throughout Kansas participated in its reunions, and the Valley became an important gathering place for Scottish Rite Masons from across the state.

Today, the Valley of Topeka continues that tradition of fellowship and degree work as the Kaw Valley Scottish Rite. Its historic importance is also preserved through collections held by the Kansas Historical Society, which includes Topeka Scottish Rite materials in its Topeka History Collection.

A remarkable fact: In 1906, the Topeka Scottish Rite was capable of presenting degree work on a stage elaborate enough to be described as a showcase of Scottish Rite theatrical production. The Valley’s 200-candidate reunion demonstrates just how large and vibrant Scottish Rite Masonry had become in Kansas at the beginning of the twentieth century.