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Article FREEMASONRY IN JAMAICA. ← Page 2 of 2 Article FREEMASONRY IN JAMAICA. Page 2 of 2
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Freemasonry In Jamaica.
On the 4 th February 1795 , Amity Lodge No . 288 was warranted for Kingston , and continued to work till 1817 . The Athol Masons , finding themselves iu 1806 both numerous and respectable , petitioned their Grand Master , h ' . s Grace the Duke of Athol , for a patent to create Doctor Michael Benignus Claro Provincial Grand Master for Jamaica . So soon as this Provincial Grand
Lod « e was erected very many of the old Lodges , under the original Grand Lodge of England , ceased to work , whilst others accepted provincial numbers under it . The first Lodge that came into existence after the establishment of the Provincial Grand Lodge waa the present Friendly Lodge of Kingston , under warrant from the Duke of Athol , dated 31 st January
1809 , and registered as No . 3-12 ; it was followed by nine others that were soon established in several towns of the Island ; nor were any petitions sent afterwards to the original Grand Lodge for charters till 1812 , when some French refugees in Kingston from Htiyti obtained warrant No . 638 for La Loge les Freres Reunis , which collapsed however after a rather brief existence .
During this long period , from 1739 to 1812 , no Lodge in Jamaica appears to have sought for a warrant from Scotland ; and only one was obtained from Ireland for the Independent Lodge , No . 35 . At the Union of the Grand Lodges of England in 1813 it was discovered that almo t a'l if not every one of the Lodges previously chartered by the original Grand Lodge had fallen into abeyance , so that
they were all struck off the list then prepared , * whilst those that had been warranted by the Ancients were nearly all of them in working order . In 1817 the Grand Orient of France issued charters to the French refugees in Kingston to erect three several Chapters or Consistories tho first was called the Sublime Lodge for conferring tbe so-called
Ineffable Degrees ; the second for a Council of Princes of Jerusalem ; and the tbiid for a Grand Council of 33 Degrees . Sut the members of these bodies soon wearied of those diversions , and becoming desirous of working legitimate Masonry applied in 1818 to the United Grand Lodge of England for a warrant to open the Loge la B 6 nignite ; the result was that the so . called High Degrees rapidly declined , yet , as no
more refugees arrived from Haiti and La Benignite worked always in French , this Lodge lingered out a questionable existence till 1829 , when it finally collapsed . Freemasonry continued , however , more or less prosperous until the 9 th June 1831 , when the Provincial Grand Master , Sir Michael Benignus Clare , sailed for England , from whence he never returned ;
he died about the middle of the following year , and the Provincial Grand Lodge then ceased to exist . The great social and political changes which ensued on the abolition of slavery in this Colony , and the depression of all interests consequent thereon , affected very considerably the progress of Freemasonry . Active members who entertained the opinion that a terrible
financial catastrophe had overtaken both the agricultural and commercial interests of the Country , hastened away to other fields of enterprise and left the Lodges here to languish . Few or no new Lodges were constituted , whilst several old ones , such as the Seville , Concord , St . Elizabeth ' s , Cornwall , and Union , of Falmouth , closed their doors ; nor did any reaction set in until about the end of 1844
when a number of Columbian patriots , who had taken refngein Kingston , opened a Lodge under a Charter from the Grand Lodge of Carthagena , to work Symbolic Masonry in this City . As this proceeding was , however , in violation of Masonic International Law those brethren were informed that they and their initiates wonld not be recognized in tbe Island , and were advised to apply for a warrant
from England to legalize their work . On this advice they acted , and aa they were recommended by the other Lodges in Kingston , a warrant was obtained from the United Grand Lodge for the Union et Concordia Lod ^ e , No . 754 . And now a new era appeared to have dawned for Freemasonry in this Island , as during the year 1845 certain brethren residing in St . Thomas . in-the-Vale became desirous of practising once more the
ancient mysteries , and thereupon applied to the Grand Lnd ^ e of Scotland for a warrant to constitute the Elgin Lodge of that parish . Scarcel y had the application been considered ere certain other brethren in Kingston applied to the same authority for a warrant to establish the Glenlyon Lodge . Brethren in St . Elizabeth sought for
a warrant to establish the Union Lodo-e at B ' ack River ; others at Falmouth for a warrant for the Athol Union of that town , * and St . Andrew for a warrant for its own Kilwinning . Scottish Freemasonry having become thus popular sought now a more prominent position , and petitioned for the erection of a Provincial Grand Lodge for rogul-itiug Masonio work in the Colony .
-ine zeal of the Scottish Masons provoked a laudable spirit of emulation amongst the English Brotherhood , and this new born zeal was first manifested by a desire to work the so-called high degrees , ihe old Royal Lodge began by opening their long-dormant Royal ~ } Chapter , and this was the signal for the other English Lodges in Kingston to do the same , if they possessed charters , and if not , to a Pply for them .
The Columbian Brethren , who founded the Union et Concordia ** odge , now learned that there was then no Masonic Law which prevented the Grand Council of Carthagena from issuing Charters for ^ onncils to work the Sublime Dngrees in this country ; and ns several ^ aglish Brethren expressed a wish to dabble in those mysteries a supreme Grand Chapter was thereupon established in Kingston . Bnt ouiocnren
soon grew weary of those psendn . historical and philosophical inventions , and the English Craft in Kingston now thoroughly aronsed to the fact that the Provincial Grand Lodge of Scotland hail precedence in all Masonic ar .-anurmerits , determined on petitioning r a Frovincial Grand Lodge of their own , naming at the same time T \ — " ""•• vi « " . uu ijuugo oi meir own , naming no una same time
and p Hamilton , a landed proprietor iu affluent circumstances , B ch p * Maat < ' ' ° ^ Sussex Lodge of Kingston , as a competent th \\ l ° - the diatin ^ ai 3 het - office . To this petition tbe brethren on to d ° 8 ' ° f the * sIilud Were i » vited to subscribe , but they declined thfl f ° the S ronnd that their distance from the City would preclude " JTOm attending the Provincial Grand Lodge when established ;
Freemasonry In Jamaica.
so the Patent , when issued on the 5 th November 185 S , constituted Brother Hamilton as Provincial Grand Master for only East Jamaica —permitting tho Lodsros on the North side to continue in direct commnnication with the United Grand Lodge iu London . Soon after tho erection of the Provincial Grand Lodge certain Brethren iu St . Catherine applied for a warrant to open a Lodgo in
Spanish Town and chose , in honour of the Provincial Grand Master , the name of Hamilton for their Lodge . It continued as No . 805 for some years to prosper , but fell afterwards into abeyance , and was revived in 1873 under a new warrant as No . 1410 . In 1861 the Phoenix Lodgo sprang into existence at Port Royal as No . 914 ; the Westmoreland at Savanna-la-Mar as No . 1377 in 1871 , the Jamaica in Kingston as No . 1771 in 1878 ; in 1879 the Collegium
Fabrorum in Kingston as No . 1836 ; and the United Service in 1880 as No . 1873 . Whilst English Freemasonry was so active , Scottish was equally energetic , for in I 860 tho Victoria Lodge , No . 402 , was warranted for Spanish Town , and in 1873 the Seville Lodge , No . 530 , for St . Ann ' s Bay . Brethren at Port Maria in 1874 obtained a warrant for the
Caledonian Lodge , No . 554 , and others in Kingston established the St . John a Lodge in 1878 , under warrant No . 623 . There are at present in Kingston three Grand Lodges , viz ., The Provincial Grand Lodge of East Jamaica ; the Provincial Grand Lodge of Scotland ; and the Provincial Grand M irk Master ' s Lodge of Eng . land . Under the Provincial Grand Lodge of East Jamaica are the
Royal , Friendly , Sussex , Jamaica , Collegium Fabrorum , and United Service Lodges , all in active working order . At Port Royal is the Phoenix ; in Spanish Town the Hamilton ; at Savanna-la-Mar the Westmoreland ; and at Montego Bay the Friendly Lodge , which lastnamed holds , however , direct communication with London . Mark Masters' Lodges are attached to the Royal , Sussex arid
Friendly Lodges ; but to this latter the title of Clifton Mount has been given in compliment to Dr . Hamilton , this being the name of one of his properties in the Island . The Phoenix Lodge , at Port Royal , holds a warrant also for a Mark Masters' Lodge . Royal Arch Chapters are likewise attached to the Royal , Friendly , Sussex and Phoenix Lodges on the South side , and one to the Friendly
Lodge , of Montego Bay , on the North side of the Island . Mark Masters' Lodges are worked also under the Scottish Constitu . tions by the Glenlyon and St . John ' s Lodge in Kingston , the Cdedonian at Port Maria , and the Seville at St . Ann ' s Bay ; but only to the Glenlyon is a Royal Arch Chanter attached . There are two Rose Croix Chapters in Kingston—No . 49 , called the
Jamaica , and No . 80 , called the Kingston , under the Snpreme Council of England ; and there has recently been established another Chapter in Kingston under the authority of the Supreme Council for Scotland . A Conncil for the Royal Ark Mariners' Degree has lately been erected in Kingston , and another at Port Royal ; but at present little can be recorded of their work . On the 16 th September 1880 , certain
brethren opened in Kingston a Preceptory of Knights Templar , bnt their enthusiasm appears to have been consumed in the effort as no further work is on record . English Freemasonry sustained , however , a lamentable loss during last year ( 1880 ) in the death of its Provincial Grand Master , the Hon . Dr . Robert Hamilton , who , after a protracted illness of several months ,
breathed his last at 2 . 30 , p . m . on the 20 th May , at hia residence , Clifton Mount , in St . Andrew's . On the fact of his death becoming known , all the English Lodges were , for six months , put in monrning —a period twice as long as that for whioh they mourned for Sir Michael Benignus Clare , their first Provincial Grand Master ; whilst the Lodges under the Scottish Constitutions adopted black crape for
an entire quarter of the year . The Scottish Lodges are under the government of the Hon . Samuel Constantino Bnrke , Assistant Attorney . General and member of the Legislative Conncil—a Brother whose elevation to the high official positions which he has attained in his native country is a subject of profound gratification to every member of the Craft . As Scottish Provincial Grand Master for Jamaica and Grey Town , he assisted at
the Installation of His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales as Grand Mnster for England in April 1875 ; aud , on his last visit to Edinburgh , in 1876 , was received into the Royal Order of Scotland and created a Sovereign Grand Inspector General . There are no Masonic periodicals in Jamaica , bnt a practice prevails of supplying the local newspapers , whose editors are members of the Craft , with reports of installation meetings and festivities , and the names of Brethren forming every new Administration .
Montreal was enlivened on the evening of the 13 th Jnly be the visit of thirty-six American Knights Templar from Syracuse , who were accompanied by several members of the Order and a number of ladies . The visitors , headed by Mauver ' s band , from Syracuse , marched in full panoply from
the boat to the hotel . Having been regaled to their heart ' s content , they visited the principal places of interest in the city , and then set out on their return home , highly gratified with what they had seen , and well pleased with the hearty reception they had met with .
The ceremony of Install *! ' ion will be rehearsed in the Whittington Lodge of I .-. » truction , No . 862 , held at Bro . Hyde ' s , Red Lion , Poppin ' s-conrt , Fleet-street , on Wednes'day evening , 31 st instant , at 8 o ' clock precisely , by Bro , B . P . Tate W . M . 862 ,
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Freemasonry In Jamaica.
On the 4 th February 1795 , Amity Lodge No . 288 was warranted for Kingston , and continued to work till 1817 . The Athol Masons , finding themselves iu 1806 both numerous and respectable , petitioned their Grand Master , h ' . s Grace the Duke of Athol , for a patent to create Doctor Michael Benignus Claro Provincial Grand Master for Jamaica . So soon as this Provincial Grand
Lod « e was erected very many of the old Lodges , under the original Grand Lodge of England , ceased to work , whilst others accepted provincial numbers under it . The first Lodge that came into existence after the establishment of the Provincial Grand Lodge waa the present Friendly Lodge of Kingston , under warrant from the Duke of Athol , dated 31 st January
1809 , and registered as No . 3-12 ; it was followed by nine others that were soon established in several towns of the Island ; nor were any petitions sent afterwards to the original Grand Lodge for charters till 1812 , when some French refugees in Kingston from Htiyti obtained warrant No . 638 for La Loge les Freres Reunis , which collapsed however after a rather brief existence .
During this long period , from 1739 to 1812 , no Lodge in Jamaica appears to have sought for a warrant from Scotland ; and only one was obtained from Ireland for the Independent Lodge , No . 35 . At the Union of the Grand Lodges of England in 1813 it was discovered that almo t a'l if not every one of the Lodges previously chartered by the original Grand Lodge had fallen into abeyance , so that
they were all struck off the list then prepared , * whilst those that had been warranted by the Ancients were nearly all of them in working order . In 1817 the Grand Orient of France issued charters to the French refugees in Kingston to erect three several Chapters or Consistories tho first was called the Sublime Lodge for conferring tbe so-called
Ineffable Degrees ; the second for a Council of Princes of Jerusalem ; and the tbiid for a Grand Council of 33 Degrees . Sut the members of these bodies soon wearied of those diversions , and becoming desirous of working legitimate Masonry applied in 1818 to the United Grand Lodge of England for a warrant to open the Loge la B 6 nignite ; the result was that the so . called High Degrees rapidly declined , yet , as no
more refugees arrived from Haiti and La Benignite worked always in French , this Lodge lingered out a questionable existence till 1829 , when it finally collapsed . Freemasonry continued , however , more or less prosperous until the 9 th June 1831 , when the Provincial Grand Master , Sir Michael Benignus Clare , sailed for England , from whence he never returned ;
he died about the middle of the following year , and the Provincial Grand Lodge then ceased to exist . The great social and political changes which ensued on the abolition of slavery in this Colony , and the depression of all interests consequent thereon , affected very considerably the progress of Freemasonry . Active members who entertained the opinion that a terrible
financial catastrophe had overtaken both the agricultural and commercial interests of the Country , hastened away to other fields of enterprise and left the Lodges here to languish . Few or no new Lodges were constituted , whilst several old ones , such as the Seville , Concord , St . Elizabeth ' s , Cornwall , and Union , of Falmouth , closed their doors ; nor did any reaction set in until about the end of 1844
when a number of Columbian patriots , who had taken refngein Kingston , opened a Lodge under a Charter from the Grand Lodge of Carthagena , to work Symbolic Masonry in this City . As this proceeding was , however , in violation of Masonic International Law those brethren were informed that they and their initiates wonld not be recognized in tbe Island , and were advised to apply for a warrant
from England to legalize their work . On this advice they acted , and aa they were recommended by the other Lodges in Kingston , a warrant was obtained from the United Grand Lodge for the Union et Concordia Lod ^ e , No . 754 . And now a new era appeared to have dawned for Freemasonry in this Island , as during the year 1845 certain brethren residing in St . Thomas . in-the-Vale became desirous of practising once more the
ancient mysteries , and thereupon applied to the Grand Lnd ^ e of Scotland for a warrant to constitute the Elgin Lodge of that parish . Scarcel y had the application been considered ere certain other brethren in Kingston applied to the same authority for a warrant to establish the Glenlyon Lodge . Brethren in St . Elizabeth sought for
a warrant to establish the Union Lodo-e at B ' ack River ; others at Falmouth for a warrant for the Athol Union of that town , * and St . Andrew for a warrant for its own Kilwinning . Scottish Freemasonry having become thus popular sought now a more prominent position , and petitioned for the erection of a Provincial Grand Lodge for rogul-itiug Masonio work in the Colony .
-ine zeal of the Scottish Masons provoked a laudable spirit of emulation amongst the English Brotherhood , and this new born zeal was first manifested by a desire to work the so-called high degrees , ihe old Royal Lodge began by opening their long-dormant Royal ~ } Chapter , and this was the signal for the other English Lodges in Kingston to do the same , if they possessed charters , and if not , to a Pply for them .
The Columbian Brethren , who founded the Union et Concordia ** odge , now learned that there was then no Masonic Law which prevented the Grand Council of Carthagena from issuing Charters for ^ onncils to work the Sublime Dngrees in this country ; and ns several ^ aglish Brethren expressed a wish to dabble in those mysteries a supreme Grand Chapter was thereupon established in Kingston . Bnt ouiocnren
soon grew weary of those psendn . historical and philosophical inventions , and the English Craft in Kingston now thoroughly aronsed to the fact that the Provincial Grand Lodge of Scotland hail precedence in all Masonic ar .-anurmerits , determined on petitioning r a Frovincial Grand Lodge of their own , naming at the same time T \ — " ""•• vi « " . uu ijuugo oi meir own , naming no una same time
and p Hamilton , a landed proprietor iu affluent circumstances , B ch p * Maat < ' ' ° ^ Sussex Lodge of Kingston , as a competent th \\ l ° - the diatin ^ ai 3 het - office . To this petition tbe brethren on to d ° 8 ' ° f the * sIilud Were i » vited to subscribe , but they declined thfl f ° the S ronnd that their distance from the City would preclude " JTOm attending the Provincial Grand Lodge when established ;
Freemasonry In Jamaica.
so the Patent , when issued on the 5 th November 185 S , constituted Brother Hamilton as Provincial Grand Master for only East Jamaica —permitting tho Lodsros on the North side to continue in direct commnnication with the United Grand Lodge iu London . Soon after tho erection of the Provincial Grand Lodge certain Brethren iu St . Catherine applied for a warrant to open a Lodgo in
Spanish Town and chose , in honour of the Provincial Grand Master , the name of Hamilton for their Lodge . It continued as No . 805 for some years to prosper , but fell afterwards into abeyance , and was revived in 1873 under a new warrant as No . 1410 . In 1861 the Phoenix Lodgo sprang into existence at Port Royal as No . 914 ; the Westmoreland at Savanna-la-Mar as No . 1377 in 1871 , the Jamaica in Kingston as No . 1771 in 1878 ; in 1879 the Collegium
Fabrorum in Kingston as No . 1836 ; and the United Service in 1880 as No . 1873 . Whilst English Freemasonry was so active , Scottish was equally energetic , for in I 860 tho Victoria Lodge , No . 402 , was warranted for Spanish Town , and in 1873 the Seville Lodge , No . 530 , for St . Ann ' s Bay . Brethren at Port Maria in 1874 obtained a warrant for the
Caledonian Lodge , No . 554 , and others in Kingston established the St . John a Lodge in 1878 , under warrant No . 623 . There are at present in Kingston three Grand Lodges , viz ., The Provincial Grand Lodge of East Jamaica ; the Provincial Grand Lodge of Scotland ; and the Provincial Grand M irk Master ' s Lodge of Eng . land . Under the Provincial Grand Lodge of East Jamaica are the
Royal , Friendly , Sussex , Jamaica , Collegium Fabrorum , and United Service Lodges , all in active working order . At Port Royal is the Phoenix ; in Spanish Town the Hamilton ; at Savanna-la-Mar the Westmoreland ; and at Montego Bay the Friendly Lodge , which lastnamed holds , however , direct communication with London . Mark Masters' Lodges are attached to the Royal , Sussex arid
Friendly Lodges ; but to this latter the title of Clifton Mount has been given in compliment to Dr . Hamilton , this being the name of one of his properties in the Island . The Phoenix Lodge , at Port Royal , holds a warrant also for a Mark Masters' Lodge . Royal Arch Chapters are likewise attached to the Royal , Friendly , Sussex and Phoenix Lodges on the South side , and one to the Friendly
Lodge , of Montego Bay , on the North side of the Island . Mark Masters' Lodges are worked also under the Scottish Constitu . tions by the Glenlyon and St . John ' s Lodge in Kingston , the Cdedonian at Port Maria , and the Seville at St . Ann ' s Bay ; but only to the Glenlyon is a Royal Arch Chanter attached . There are two Rose Croix Chapters in Kingston—No . 49 , called the
Jamaica , and No . 80 , called the Kingston , under the Snpreme Council of England ; and there has recently been established another Chapter in Kingston under the authority of the Supreme Council for Scotland . A Conncil for the Royal Ark Mariners' Degree has lately been erected in Kingston , and another at Port Royal ; but at present little can be recorded of their work . On the 16 th September 1880 , certain
brethren opened in Kingston a Preceptory of Knights Templar , bnt their enthusiasm appears to have been consumed in the effort as no further work is on record . English Freemasonry sustained , however , a lamentable loss during last year ( 1880 ) in the death of its Provincial Grand Master , the Hon . Dr . Robert Hamilton , who , after a protracted illness of several months ,
breathed his last at 2 . 30 , p . m . on the 20 th May , at hia residence , Clifton Mount , in St . Andrew's . On the fact of his death becoming known , all the English Lodges were , for six months , put in monrning —a period twice as long as that for whioh they mourned for Sir Michael Benignus Clare , their first Provincial Grand Master ; whilst the Lodges under the Scottish Constitutions adopted black crape for
an entire quarter of the year . The Scottish Lodges are under the government of the Hon . Samuel Constantino Bnrke , Assistant Attorney . General and member of the Legislative Conncil—a Brother whose elevation to the high official positions which he has attained in his native country is a subject of profound gratification to every member of the Craft . As Scottish Provincial Grand Master for Jamaica and Grey Town , he assisted at
the Installation of His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales as Grand Mnster for England in April 1875 ; aud , on his last visit to Edinburgh , in 1876 , was received into the Royal Order of Scotland and created a Sovereign Grand Inspector General . There are no Masonic periodicals in Jamaica , bnt a practice prevails of supplying the local newspapers , whose editors are members of the Craft , with reports of installation meetings and festivities , and the names of Brethren forming every new Administration .
Montreal was enlivened on the evening of the 13 th Jnly be the visit of thirty-six American Knights Templar from Syracuse , who were accompanied by several members of the Order and a number of ladies . The visitors , headed by Mauver ' s band , from Syracuse , marched in full panoply from
the boat to the hotel . Having been regaled to their heart ' s content , they visited the principal places of interest in the city , and then set out on their return home , highly gratified with what they had seen , and well pleased with the hearty reception they had met with .
The ceremony of Install *! ' ion will be rehearsed in the Whittington Lodge of I .-. » truction , No . 862 , held at Bro . Hyde ' s , Red Lion , Poppin ' s-conrt , Fleet-street , on Wednes'day evening , 31 st instant , at 8 o ' clock precisely , by Bro , B . P . Tate W . M . 862 ,