Copper Penny Masonic Lodge

On March 7, 1980 a meeting of 36 Masons, who either lived or worked in the Township, was held to discuss the possibility of forming a local lodge. The men were from six different area lodges and agreed that their Masonry would mean more to them if they met with their neighbors.

The Copper Penny Lodge was granted a dispensation by the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of Ohio on October 17, 1981, and received its charter on October 16, 1982. Glen Wireman was elected as Copper Penny's first Worshipful Master.

The group originally met at the William Farr Lodge in Girard until they found a permanent meeting place in Vienna. The men chipped in about $30 in pennies as a start for a lodge in Vienna. The Vienna Grange building (formerly Vienna School Number 1) on the Vienna Township Green was secured as a lodge site. The building was purchased from the Vienna Grange for $1.

The land underneath the structure was leased from the Vienna Presbyterian Church.

The old Grange Hall was completely refurbished and was officially referred to as the Copper Penny Lodge #778 Free and Accepted Masons of Ohio, due to the original donation of 3,000 copper penny coins. The structure was lifted so that a basement could be constructed. The lodge room, decorated with blue carpet and wallpaper, was located on the second floor. New woodwork and window shutters were added to the second floor windows. The fellowship hall was on the main floor. The rocks from the old foundation of the building served as landscaping.

An open house was held on January 23, 1983 at the Lodge after the extensive remodeling. The Vienna Township Trustees declared January 23rd Copper Penny Lodge Day. [1] The address for the Lodge was 4275 Warren-Sharon Road.

A new wooden cupola was constructed by Patrick Arnal for the top of the building. Four stained glass panels featuring well-known Masonic symbols of the square and compass were designed for the project. The panels featured Masonic blue and yellow glass. Each of the panels contained a real copper penny in the design with the "head" of the penny facing outward. The year on each penny placed in the glass was from 1985.

To fulfill their philanthropic mission, a scholarship in memory of charter member Howard F. Everett was established. The scholarship, dating back to the mid 1990s, was awarded to deserving Mathews High School senior(s) each spring at the Annual Mathews High School Awards Ceremony.

Members of the lodge eventually organized an annual car show in 2008 called the Howard F. Everett Copper Penny Car Show, to raise money for the scholarship. The show was held in the parking lot near the Vienna Township Green, adjacent to the Copper Penny Lodge.  The show was was held each year, except in 2020 due to the COVD-19 pandemic, but resumed in 2021 with record high attendance. 2021 was the final year the car show was held.

An additional scholarship was established circa 2014 in memory of charter member William Haynie and awarded to a deserving Mathews High School senior each spring.

Due to dwindling membership, the tough decision was made in the spring of 2022 by members to move towards closure of the chapter. Since the building was historic, Lodge members thought that it would be fitting for the Vienna Historical Society to take ownership of the building. In May of 2022, Copper Penny Lodge Secretary William Saylor contacted Vienna Historical Society President Christine Novicky to discuss this possibility. The Vienna Historical Society's Board of Directors had lengthy discussions and several meetings about the potential acquisition and, at the August 11, 2022 Board meeting, voted unanimously to purchase the building.

The Lodge was officially closed on January 10, 2023. The building was officially sold to the Vienna Historical Society for $1 on February 11, 2023; President Christine Novicky presented the payment of 100 pennies to Lodge Secretary, William Saylor.

After the dissolution of the Lodge in Vienna, many of the Copper Penny Masons joined the Cortland Masonic Lodge #529 in Cortland, Ohio. The Howard F. Everett Scholarship was continued by the Cortland Lodge in 2023.