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Verity Lodge No. 3949
A Short History
Verity Lodge was conceived against a backcloth of the First World War, but with its attendant problems, no positive move was made, until the Armistice, however, no time was lost, the first letter from Province attaching the Form of Petition is dated December 7th 1918. The first choice of name submitted, to the Provincial Secretary, was “INTEGRITY” but was rejected on the grounds that the name was already in being in East Lancashire. Others considered were: “ACACIA”, “CORDIALITY” and “BLACKBURN” before “VERITY” was finally decided upon.
In support of the Petition, the reasons put forward by our sponsor, “THE LODGE OF FIDELITY NO 269” was that their membership totalled one hundred and three. The population of Blackburn was one hundred and thirty three thousand and there were only six Lodges in the town. The proposed Founders, eighteen in number, were all members of the Lodge of Fidelity, but seven were struck out of the Petition as not being of three years standing in Masonry. The Founder Master was Major John Higginson, Past Provincial Grand Senior Warden, a solicitor in the town and a former Mayor of Blackburn.
The Senior Warden, Harry Le Moine, Past Master, a great benefactor to the Lodge and the Junior Warden, W.H. Mellor, Past Master, who did progress to the Chair. The Consecrating Officer was Very Worshipful Brother Major John Booth,
Past Grand Treasurer (Eng). The Installing Officer, Worshipful Brother R. Verney Clayton,
Assistant Grand Registrar (Eng). The ceremony took place in the Masonic Hall, Blackburn,
on September 11th 1919.
The first Regular meeting, in October 1919, consisted of a ballot for ten Joining Members, including the seven struck off the Petition, and one Entered Apprentice, Initiated in Bangalore, India, who was then Passed to the Second Degree. A further ballot for eight new Members, two of whom were then Initiated. This agenda, together with a number of items of business made quite a full First Lodge.
The first year saw twenty-one Ceremonies, of which fourteen involved two Candidates plus the Installation. The Lodge has been honoured with two appointments to Grand Rank, Worshipful Brother Tom Walker, who was Senior Warden of the Province, Assistant Grand Director of Ceremonies in Grand Lodge and was later promoted to: Past Junior Grand Deacon (Eng). He was a member of the Lodge for fifty-four years. Worshipful Brother The Honourable Judge Allan Walmesley K.C. Past Assistant Grand Registrar (Eng). He was a member for forty-three years.
The Lodge had a unusual distinction in 1944, our Silver Jubilee year, in providing three Acting Officers to Provincial Grand Lodge, the Senior Warden, a Senior Deacon and a Steward. Many Brethren have given long and devoted service, in various Offices, none more than Bro. A.E. Wilson, Past Provincial Assistant Grand Director of Ceremonies, and Secretary from 1920 to 1950. After more than twenty-one years as Secretary, he was pressed to take the Senior Warden’s Chair, but declined and was later recommended for Provincial Honours after twenty-five years as Secretary and thirty-eight years in the Craft. Also, Brother F. Shorrock, Treasurer (1919-1938) and Worshipful Brother J. Farrell, Past Provincial Deputy Grand Registrar. Assistant Director of Ceremonies and Director of Ceremonies, for twenty-one years, and others whose service may not as been as lengthy in years, but was without doubt just as dedicated.
Verity Lodge is very proud of its Ritual, handed down from our Mother Lodge and differs more than a little, from Emulation and similar workings. It is not available in printed form, each member having to reproduce a copy by his own hand.
The Lodge subscriptions to various outside charities, ranging from the Japanese Disaster Fund, Fleetwood Relief Fund and Gresford Colliery Disaster, to mention a few, suggest that Masonic Charity is not as introvert as is sometimes inferred.
October 1927, saw the one hundredth Lodge Meeting. January 1944, the two hundred and fiftieth Lodge Meeting and January 1974 the five hundredth. The occasion of our Sixtieth Anniversary, will be the five hundred and fortieth meeting, during which time a hundred and sixty five Candidates have been Initiated.
March 1974, was a milestone in our History, when our first Daughter Lodge, (Huncoat) was Consecrated in Blackburn, by Very Worshipful Brother F.W. Towns Past Grand Sword Bearer (Eng), the Deputy Provincial Grand Master. The first Master of Huncoat Lodge was Worshipful Brother T.F. Ellel Past Provincial Grand Chaplain Worshipful Master of Verity Lodge in 1972 and Provincial Chaplain in the same year.
The established traditions of the Lodge, which are now so well consolidated, will be without doubt, be maintained in the future, and all concerned with Verity Lodge can look back with pride and forward with confidence.
Stan Hartley PM July 1979
The following introductory letter to this short history was written by Stanley Hartley who was WM in 1974
The attached “Short History” was written at the request of the WM in 1979, to be printed along with an updated list of members. The facts and figures quoted are a very small part of the full history of the first sixty-years from where they are selected. The book details every meeting (numbered) Candidates, presentations to the Lodge, Provincial appointments and news of the day, and contains a number of artefacts, from Silent Temple, Fidelity and Verity, The book was deposited in the library at Bridge Street. This is the only copy, but I feel sure that it can be retrieved or borrowed from Province, if the present Officers consider it to be of interest and may be the subject of some future meeting.