Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, May 9, 1995 TAG: 9505090088
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-4 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WILLIAMSBURG LENGTH: Medium
But the tradition, begun in 1921 when Warren Harding visited, might have died had Will Molineux not set out to write a story for William and Mary Magazine about presidential visits to the college.
Molineux, editorial page editor of the Daily Press, was a William and Mary freshman when Dwight Eisenhower came to speak in the spring of 1953. He remembered Eisenhower sitting in the chair, and when he began his research, he discovered that Harding had, too.
``That kind of confirmed that the first of the modern presidents to visit the college and the most recent sat on the same chair,'' Molineux said.
In the 32 years between the Harding and Eisenhower visits, presidents Coolidge, Franklin Roosevelt and Truman also sat in the 230-year-old chair, borrowed from Williamsburg's Masonic Lodge. Eisenhower was the last president to attend a William and Mary academic ceremony.
After Molineux learned about the tradition, he shared his findings with college officials.
``This was a new tradition to me,'' said Sam Sadler, vice president for student affairs. ``I certainly wouldn't have known about it.''
The chair was made in a cabinetmaker's shop in Williamsburg in the 1760s. Carved from mahogany, it was created for the master of Williamsburg Lodge No. 6 of the Ancient and Loyal Society of Free and Accepted Masons. The high back of the chair is carved in Masonic imagery, including the coat of arms from the Grand Masonic Lodge of London.
Colonial Williamsburg has had the chair since 1991, when it struck a deal with the Masonic lodge to borrow it for 20 years. The lodge retained the right to borrow the chair for special ceremonies and occasions - like former President Bush's visit for next week's William and Mary commencement.
by CNB