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not be acknowledged by other Masons , which , besides the general prejudice against their skin , debarred them from access to the Lodges of the white Brethren . The coloured Masons , however , contend that the African Lodge in Boston received a dispensation . No . 459 , from the Grand Lodge in England ; and that all other coloured Lodges in
North America received their grants of constitution from her . The Grand Lodge of England had founded already St . John ' s Grand Lodge of Massachusetts , in the year 1733 , at a time when the socalled ancient Masons were not an organised party . The Grand Lodge of Scotland gave a patent of constitution to the St . Andrew ' s Lodge , No . 82 , in 1756 , and substituted herself a Grand Lodge , in 1769 , of
ancient Masons , under the Grand Master , Joseph Warren , and amalgamated in 1792 with St . John ' s Grand Lodge . It is not probable that the Grand Lodges of England and Scotland have founded a special provincial Lodge for coloured people , because they granted the initiation to people of every creed and colour in their own Lodges . Besides , the No . 459 , as the designation of such a coloured
Lodge in 1784 , is actually found as early as the year 1773 , at which time the registers of the said Grand Lodges do not show an African Lodge as a sister Lodge . On the 18 th of June , 1827 , the African Lodge published an article in the Boston papers , in which they declared that the African Lodge 459 was in " possession of an unlimited dispensation of the 29 th of September , 1784 , by Thomas Howard , Earl of Effingham , under the authority of Henry Frederick ,
Duke of Cumberland , Grand Master , who was in possession of the Seal of the Grand Lodge in London ; and that the dispensation was given at the request of the Brethren , Prince Hall , Boston Smith , Thomas Sanderson , and others . The dispensation appeared to be exclusively destined for Africans , that is , coloured people ; that after the decease of the above-named Brethren , the activity of the Lodge had declined ; but that now the work had recommenced with renewed
vigour , that a message had been sent to the Grand Lodge m England , to come again and conclude an union with them , but that no answer had been receivedfrom them ; therefore , they had determined from this time to be free and independent , and not subject to any Lodge except out of their midst . They would take as a guide all the rules and regulations of similar fraternities , and they would bring the precepts and doctrines of the Craft in all their purity down to their descendants .
In this manner it appears that in 1827 , at a period when Freemasonry was exposed to the greatest persecutions in New England , a Grand Lodge was formed , under the title of Prince Hall Grand Lodge of free and accepted coloured Masons . A request of the Grand Secretary Moore in Boston , to inspect the dispensation of the
African Lodge in 1845 , was not granted by the "Worshipful Master of this Lodge . They declared that they desired to be quite independent of all white Lodges , that they wanted no favour of them , nor would they admit a white man as a visitor . It is the opinion of the said Grand Secretary , who had seen a dispensation of the African Lodge in 1825 , that it was not genuine .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Untitled Article
not be acknowledged by other Masons , which , besides the general prejudice against their skin , debarred them from access to the Lodges of the white Brethren . The coloured Masons , however , contend that the African Lodge in Boston received a dispensation . No . 459 , from the Grand Lodge in England ; and that all other coloured Lodges in
North America received their grants of constitution from her . The Grand Lodge of England had founded already St . John ' s Grand Lodge of Massachusetts , in the year 1733 , at a time when the socalled ancient Masons were not an organised party . The Grand Lodge of Scotland gave a patent of constitution to the St . Andrew ' s Lodge , No . 82 , in 1756 , and substituted herself a Grand Lodge , in 1769 , of
ancient Masons , under the Grand Master , Joseph Warren , and amalgamated in 1792 with St . John ' s Grand Lodge . It is not probable that the Grand Lodges of England and Scotland have founded a special provincial Lodge for coloured people , because they granted the initiation to people of every creed and colour in their own Lodges . Besides , the No . 459 , as the designation of such a coloured
Lodge in 1784 , is actually found as early as the year 1773 , at which time the registers of the said Grand Lodges do not show an African Lodge as a sister Lodge . On the 18 th of June , 1827 , the African Lodge published an article in the Boston papers , in which they declared that the African Lodge 459 was in " possession of an unlimited dispensation of the 29 th of September , 1784 , by Thomas Howard , Earl of Effingham , under the authority of Henry Frederick ,
Duke of Cumberland , Grand Master , who was in possession of the Seal of the Grand Lodge in London ; and that the dispensation was given at the request of the Brethren , Prince Hall , Boston Smith , Thomas Sanderson , and others . The dispensation appeared to be exclusively destined for Africans , that is , coloured people ; that after the decease of the above-named Brethren , the activity of the Lodge had declined ; but that now the work had recommenced with renewed
vigour , that a message had been sent to the Grand Lodge m England , to come again and conclude an union with them , but that no answer had been receivedfrom them ; therefore , they had determined from this time to be free and independent , and not subject to any Lodge except out of their midst . They would take as a guide all the rules and regulations of similar fraternities , and they would bring the precepts and doctrines of the Craft in all their purity down to their descendants .
In this manner it appears that in 1827 , at a period when Freemasonry was exposed to the greatest persecutions in New England , a Grand Lodge was formed , under the title of Prince Hall Grand Lodge of free and accepted coloured Masons . A request of the Grand Secretary Moore in Boston , to inspect the dispensation of the
African Lodge in 1845 , was not granted by the "Worshipful Master of this Lodge . They declared that they desired to be quite independent of all white Lodges , that they wanted no favour of them , nor would they admit a white man as a visitor . It is the opinion of the said Grand Secretary , who had seen a dispensation of the African Lodge in 1825 , that it was not genuine .