Freemasonry In Derbyshire

In Derbyshire, Freemasonry was first established as early as 1732, about 15 years after the formation of The United Grand Lodge of England and around 86 years after the first ever recorded lodge in England. It is interesting that very early lodges were often named after the building where the meetings took place, which not surprisingly would have been an Inn or Tavern. Masons were as fond of their food and beverages as others, but as roving craftsmen required a suitable hostelry to lodge (note the phrase), for what might have been extended periods during the construction of a building. 

It would be easy to imagine that after a hard days toil, a 'gang' of craftsmen would return to a preferred Inn - where working Masons would be warmly greeted, (if you look closely, you may just be able to recognize the square and compass symbols on the dark Inn sign against the bright sky, the sign of welcoming Inn keeper), have a hearty meal, a drink and a yarn until retiring for the evening. As with any group of skilled craftsmen, 'tricks of the trade' & 'trade secrets' would be discussed and exchanged, and the locations of good jobs with well paying masters, or potential new building sites would be described; but only amongst those 'in the know', i.e. those of the same rank of craftsmen, who closely guarded their skills and secrets.... could this be why Masonry acquired its reputation of being a mysterious organisation?

Lodges were formed, Lodges were disbanded, but the oldest surviving Lodge in Derbyshire is Tyrian (number 253), being established in 1785 with Masons from afar as Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Loughborough, Mansfield and Southwell often attending the meetings. Clearly, Masonry has evolved from its roots where a lodge represented a tightly bound team of skilled craftsmen meeting out of necessity, to that of a 'social club' based on the comradeship and convictions of Masons in the early Lodges. It should be noted that these references to Masonry are somewhat generic as little information is available about the other aspects of Masonic membership in related orders (satellite groups).

As some Masons had to travel great distances for their gatherings (interestingly one of our Lodges, Pioneer 9065 was a peripatetic lodge until settling in Belper, relatively recently), it would have seemed very logical to open new (daughter) Lodges where a concentration of Masons resided in the far reaches of the county, and in the years 1793 to 1817 Lodges were formed in Buxton, Chesterfield and Repton. Just prior to this period, the Province of Derbyshire was designated, largely observing the County boundary in 1789, with the Provincial Grand Master of Nottinghamshire (Rt Hon. Thomas Boothby Parkyns) being given the same role for Derbyshire. This might seem a very onerous endorsement, being responsible for two provinces, but his appointment was more of a figure-head than a truly executive station; with the task of running the Province being delegated to deputies. Tyrian provided the lodge (and probably the majority of the officers) in which the 'business' was conducted. So Tyrian predated the Province by a few years, which may account for some of the unique ways of our oldest Lodge. It was not until 1826 that officers were selected from across the Province, when one may say a truly provincial team was appointed.

Derbyshire Freemasonry was to say the least sporadic and as late as the first third of the nineteenth century only about a hundred Derbyshire Freemasons attended the four existing Lodges. However, the number of subscribing members quadrupled in the following thirty years. In 1876, the Province received its first Banner from the Marquis of Hartington and the first Masonic Directory and Calendar was published, detailing the meetings of the Lodges. In the next 35 years or so Derbyshire Masonry steadily grew with 29 Lodges being formed, having in excess of 1,600 members (a very healthy 50-60 members per Lodge). In the years that immediately followed the First World War, membership almost doubled and the number of Lodges rose to over 40. Similarly, post Second World War saw another swell in Masonic popularity, with some 4,000 subscribing members in 50 Lodges by 1950. Today the Province has 79 Lodges with just over 3,000 members.

This huge growth in numbers saw the need for proper management committees to be established and amongst the foremost of these was a Provincial Charity Committee, ‘Charity’ being a core element of Masonic belief and activity from its earliest days.  It is interesting to note that in 1926 a Provincial Charity ‘Festival’ raised the magnificent sum of £25,000. Today our current ‘Festival’ in aid of the Masonic Samaritan Fund is hoping to raise £2,000,000 or more, by its target date of 2014. To achieve that Target we have a very enthusiastic team of dedicated and skilled masons working throughout the Province who are raising funds from within the membership by personal ‘giving’ or by staging special events. 

All this Masonic growth and activity necessitated the purchase of new headquarters in Derby at the ‘The Grange’, Littleover  in 1972, which has provided a wonderful setting for many Masonic occasions (additional to the hosting of 38 assorted orders) and a magnificent location for many non-Masonic events as well (click on the image for more information).

The last thirty years or so has seen some interesting changes within the Province; although membership has fallen from its peak in the 1950’s, the number of Lodges has increased. Clearly the average membership per Lodge has decreased, but that requires more of the members to have an active role! It is also quite exciting that certain Lodges attract members with a common interest (but do not exclude others of course): Pioneer (9065) with background in scouting, Sure And Stedfast (9130) the boys brigade, Round Table Lodge of Derbyshire (8725) - guess what? Flyfishers' (9347) - another tough call! Crawshay Jones Golfers' (9476) - can't quite work that one out either!  Here in Derbyshire we are fortunate to have a wealth of diverse Lodges, and an abundance of dedicated and hard working members, competently lead by the Provincial team:

Still, it doesn't stop there, beyond the 78 Craft Lodges in Derbyshire, there are (click on the underlined text for more information):

 
Evidently we are fortunate to be part of a very buoyant and active Province. What we all have in common is a bond of Masonic friendship, which exists where ever we travel both within, and beyond the Province, where a welcome awaits every Derbyshire Mason. Most importantly, every Mason who comes to Derbyshire knows he will be received with tremendous warmth and hospitality

As Freemasons, with "charity and benevolence being ornaments that we like to maintain in their fullest splendour", why not visit this link  'Merchandising'  and have a look at our wonderful gifts.  Funds raised from the sale of these items will go to support the Festival. Or simply sign up via the Downloadable Documents page to make a donation towards our charitable efforts.

The website for the Provincial Grand Lodge of Derbyshire will tell you all about Freemasonry in the Province of Derbyshire, and a lot of this information was sourced there.  It can be found  by clicking the Provincial logo on the left. Where you will informed about our history, an overall profile of the Province, meetings, general news, how to find a specific venue, and of course much, much more about the central province in British Freemasonry and the heart of England.