WALTER E. HOUGHTON SR.
Past High Priest 1930, 1944, 1945
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HOUGHTON, Walter Elsworth Sr. was born June 5, 1899 in La Crosse, La Crosse County, Wisconsin the son of Elmer Elsworth Houghton and Jane Erickson. His father Elmer was also a member of Euclid Lodge. He attended the public schools in La Crosse and graduated from the La Crosse High School in 1917. Following graduation he was employed for a short time as a driver for the Pasteurized Milk Company in La Crosse, Wisconsin. He was drafted into the Army when World War I broke out and trained as an aircraft mechanic at Camp Grant on the southern outskirts of Rockford, Illinois. After the war he went to work as a tool and die maker for the Stamping & Tool Company in La Crosse. About 1924 he went into partnership with Durward H. Lewis and they operated an automobile repair shop in La Crosse under the name Houghton & Lewis. He married Esther V. Gilmore about 1923 and they were the parents of a son, Walter Elsworth Jr. who was born in 1924.  Esther was a nurse who cared for Tuberculosis patients and she died September 3, 1925 after contracting the disease. Walter moved to Naperville about 1926, following Esther’s death, leaving Walter Jr. in the care of his grandparents, Elmer and Jane, in La Crosse. Walter was reunited with his son when Elmer and Jane Houghton moved to Naperville in 1931. From the time Walter moved to Naperville and he was reunited with his son, he would drive up to La Crosse every other weekend to visit him. He took a course in Drafting through the International Correspondence School and was employed in Naperville at the Kroehler Furniture Manufacturing Company first as a designer, and later as Supervisor of Drafting. Peter Kroehler, the founder of The Kroehler Furniture Manufacturing Company sent Walter to the Art Institute in Chicago to learn about furniture design. Walter was the supervisor of all draftsmen in the company when he retired after 39 years with Kroehlers. He married Mabel Irene Rau August 21, 1951 in Oak Park, Illinois, with his son Walter Jr. and Walter’s wife Rosalie (nee Moore) as witnesses. He was raised a Master Mason November 30, 1926 and served as Master of the Lodge in 1933 and 1934. His name is engraved in the back of the Oriental Chair that is situated in the East, a testament to the esteem he was held in by his employer at the time, Delmar Leroy Kroehler (also a member of the Lodge). He served as Junior Steward in 1927, Junior Deacon in 1928, Senior Deacon in 1929, Junior Warden in 1930 and Senior Warden in 1931 and 1932. He served as Treasurer of the Lodge for 40 years from 1935 thru 1974. In all, 48 years as an officer of the Lodge.  He was also a member of Euclid Chapter No. 13, Royal Arch Masons and served as High Priest in 1931. He was a member of the Naperville Masonic Temple Association board and was responsible for the installation of the first chair lift. He would often pick up and take home members of the Lodge who could no longer drive, so that they could continue to attend meetings. He died August 20, 1984 in Naperville, DuPage County, Illinois and was buried in the Oak Grove Cemetery, La Crosse, La Crosse County, Wisconsin.