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Article FREEMASONRY AND ARCHITECTUEE. ← Page 2 of 5 →
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Freemasonry And Architectuee.
been seen with concern by some zealous brethren , and by means of the Freemasons' Magazine t \ iey to put matters on a better footing . The Freemasons ' Magazine has succeededthe old -Quarterly ; and besides articles in relation to Masonic andother subjects , showing great
learning and research , and evincing a high order of talent , it contains a valuable record of Masonic proceedings . Advantage has been taken of the influence of the Freemasons Magazine to imti & te & Regular agitation on the architectural relations of the Order ; and this is now beginning to show its fruits , for a strong commotion has been made in the Masonic world which is likely to spread to architectural circles .
r We must mention that one of the officers of the Grand Lodge of England is the Grand Superintendent of Works , which office has always been held by an architect of some eminence in his day , and among the incumbents we may mention Soane and Hardwicke—the former a liberal contributor to the charities of the Order ^ and who in 1832 gave 50 GZ . to the Fund for General Purposes . The Superintendent has especial charge of the works of the
Freemasons' Hall , of the tavern , hotel , and other property attached , and by these functionaries the Hall has been constructed and improved . In 1774 , Kos . 60 and 61 , Great Queen Street , were bought by the Order ; in 1815 , Nos . 62 and 63 ; in 1848 , Nos . 64 and 65 ; and in 1856 , No . 59 and five small houses in the rear . Upon these extensive freeholds the central temple and offices of the Order in England are built , the first stone having been laid in 1775 , in which year 5 , COOL were raised by tontine towards the
expenses ; but large sums have since been disbursed , and now a still grander hall is in preparation ; In 1776 the hall was dedicated . Besides these buildings in connexion with the Grand Lodge of England , there are the Asylum for Aged Masons , the Boys School , and the Girls School . Thus the architectural duties of the Grand Superintendent are not unworthy of the attention of a man of good standing ; and in the Order the office he holds is farther rewarded with a very high rank .
in each of the forty -one provinces among which the Lodges of England are distributed , there is a Provincial Grand Superintendent of Works attached to the Provincial Grand Lodge , with rank corresponding to that of the Grand Superintendent of England . Many of the provinces have provincial or Lodge buildings , under the charge of the Grand Superintendent ; but with the great progress of Masonry of late years the number of buildings is increasing , new Masonic halls and temples are being erected , and the construction of these is frequently confided to the Grand Superintendent , In the usual course an architect is entrusted with the functions of Grand
Superintendent ; but in many of the provinces the Grand Superintendent has nothing to do , or manages to do nothing , and the office becomes a sinecure , but endowed with high provincial rank and ensigns of dignity , which are coveted ; and the consequence is , that in some provinces men of inferior professional standing have been appointed to the office , and in
others men having no knowledge of architecture and no connexion with it have been appointed ; for the dignity has been a great temptation to zealous provincials tor whom no other office was to he found , and whose services in Lodges or in connexion with the general or provincial charities it was desired to reward .
While the Masonic provinces were few in number , it was easy to find architects of good standing to place in the office , but when the provinces were subdivided , it occasionally happened that the new province had not within it an architect of adequate professional standing and possessing the requisite Masonic qualifications , and the office was temporarily filled with a non-professional incumbent- This state of affairs the Freemasons'' Magazine .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Freemasonry And Architectuee.
been seen with concern by some zealous brethren , and by means of the Freemasons' Magazine t \ iey to put matters on a better footing . The Freemasons ' Magazine has succeededthe old -Quarterly ; and besides articles in relation to Masonic andother subjects , showing great
learning and research , and evincing a high order of talent , it contains a valuable record of Masonic proceedings . Advantage has been taken of the influence of the Freemasons Magazine to imti & te & Regular agitation on the architectural relations of the Order ; and this is now beginning to show its fruits , for a strong commotion has been made in the Masonic world which is likely to spread to architectural circles .
r We must mention that one of the officers of the Grand Lodge of England is the Grand Superintendent of Works , which office has always been held by an architect of some eminence in his day , and among the incumbents we may mention Soane and Hardwicke—the former a liberal contributor to the charities of the Order ^ and who in 1832 gave 50 GZ . to the Fund for General Purposes . The Superintendent has especial charge of the works of the
Freemasons' Hall , of the tavern , hotel , and other property attached , and by these functionaries the Hall has been constructed and improved . In 1774 , Kos . 60 and 61 , Great Queen Street , were bought by the Order ; in 1815 , Nos . 62 and 63 ; in 1848 , Nos . 64 and 65 ; and in 1856 , No . 59 and five small houses in the rear . Upon these extensive freeholds the central temple and offices of the Order in England are built , the first stone having been laid in 1775 , in which year 5 , COOL were raised by tontine towards the
expenses ; but large sums have since been disbursed , and now a still grander hall is in preparation ; In 1776 the hall was dedicated . Besides these buildings in connexion with the Grand Lodge of England , there are the Asylum for Aged Masons , the Boys School , and the Girls School . Thus the architectural duties of the Grand Superintendent are not unworthy of the attention of a man of good standing ; and in the Order the office he holds is farther rewarded with a very high rank .
in each of the forty -one provinces among which the Lodges of England are distributed , there is a Provincial Grand Superintendent of Works attached to the Provincial Grand Lodge , with rank corresponding to that of the Grand Superintendent of England . Many of the provinces have provincial or Lodge buildings , under the charge of the Grand Superintendent ; but with the great progress of Masonry of late years the number of buildings is increasing , new Masonic halls and temples are being erected , and the construction of these is frequently confided to the Grand Superintendent , In the usual course an architect is entrusted with the functions of Grand
Superintendent ; but in many of the provinces the Grand Superintendent has nothing to do , or manages to do nothing , and the office becomes a sinecure , but endowed with high provincial rank and ensigns of dignity , which are coveted ; and the consequence is , that in some provinces men of inferior professional standing have been appointed to the office , and in
others men having no knowledge of architecture and no connexion with it have been appointed ; for the dignity has been a great temptation to zealous provincials tor whom no other office was to he found , and whose services in Lodges or in connexion with the general or provincial charities it was desired to reward .
While the Masonic provinces were few in number , it was easy to find architects of good standing to place in the office , but when the provinces were subdivided , it occasionally happened that the new province had not within it an architect of adequate professional standing and possessing the requisite Masonic qualifications , and the office was temporarily filled with a non-professional incumbent- This state of affairs the Freemasons'' Magazine .