The Grand Lodge of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of Canada in the Province of Ontario is a

Grand Lodge A Grand Lodge (or Grand Orient or other similar title) is the overarching governing body of a fraternal or other similarly organized group in a given area, usually a city, state, or country. In Freemasonry A Grand Lodge or Grand Orient is the us ...

with jurisdiction over 571

masonic Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

lodges located in the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

with around 46,000 members. The Grand Lodge is in full amity and recognition with the

United Grand Lodge of England The United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE) is the governing Masonic lodge for the majority of freemasons in England, Wales and the Commonwealth of Nations. Claiming descent from the Masonic grand lodge formed 24 June 1717 at the Goose & Gridiron ...

. The Grand Lodge publishes an annual magazine Ontario Mason.

History

Provincial Grand Lodge

The Provincial Grand Lodge of

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada (french: link=no, province du Haut-Canada) was a part of British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of th ...

was formed at the request of Alexander Wilson by the

Grand Lodge of England The United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE) is the governing Masonic lodge for the majority of freemasons in England, Wales and the Commonwealth of Nations. Claiming descent from the Masonic grand lodge formed 24 June 1717 at the Goose & Gridiron ...

in 1792. Its first Provincial Grand Master was William Jarvis. However, unlike Prince Edward, the Provincial Grand Master for the Provincial Grand Lodge of

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada (french: province du Bas-Canada) was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence (1791–1841). It covered the southern portion of the current Province of Quebec an ...

, William Jarvis was not endowed by the Grand Lodge of England with the power to grant warrants for new lodges.

Formation

Growing dissatisfaction within the members of the Provincial Grand Lodge of Upper Canada with the slow responses of the Grand Lodge of England in forwarding warrants, certificates and the like led to the question of whether it was time to create an independent grand lodge in Canada. After a Provincial Grand Lodge meeting in which the idea was ruled out of order by the Deputy Grand Master, the officers met and formed the Grand Lodge of Canada on 10 October 1855. Its officers were elected the next day, with William Mercer Wilson being elected the first Grand Master of the newly created Grand Lodge, and installed on 2 November.

Growth, split and name change

Over the next few years the Grand Lodge went about petitioning the lodges of

Canada West The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report on the ...

to come under the fold of their newly created Grand Lodge. Within a few years, not only were almost all the masonic lodges of Canada West under the jurisdiction of the GLC, but, since 1859, so were most of the lodges of Canada East. However, in 1869, sixteen of the lodges in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

(formerly Canada East) formed their own Grand Lodge, and in 1874 the Grand Lodge of Canada completely withdrew from the province of Québec, and twenty-four more lodges moved from the Grand Lodge of Canada to the Grand Lodge of Quebec. In 1887 the name of the Grand Lodge was changed to the Grand Lodge of Canada in the Province of Ontario, a compromise name which reflects both the Ontario-only jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge as well as its history of being the first Grand Lodge in

Organization

Grand Lodge is ruled and governed by the Grand Master with the assistance of Deputy Grand Master. Both are elected by the brethren for a two-year term. The craft lodges under the jurisdiction are organised into 38 districts each headed by a District Deputy Grand Master. The entire operation is overseen by the Board consisting of elected and appointed brethren.

Recognition

According to the document published by the Grand Lodge, as July 2012 it officially recognises the Grand Lodges listed below.Grand Lodge A.F. & A.M. of Canada in the Province of Ontario, Recognition of Grand Lodges, July 24, 2012 A member hailing from a lodge under warrant from any of these Grand Lodges may be received as a visitor, if he can prove himself to be a member in good standing. Members of other Grand Lodges cannot be recognized or received.

References

External links

* {{Official website, https://grandlodge.on.ca/
The 150 year history of the Grand Lodge of Canada in the Province of Ontario
Freemasonry in Canada

Masonic buildings in Canada Organizations based in Hamilton, Ontario