Manchester Masonic Lodge open house & Rededication Ceremony

Are you curious about the third floor of the Comerica building on Main Street? Are you fascinated by local history and historic events? Are you interested in  a rare opportunity to be present at a Manchester Free and Accepted Masons ceremony?

On August 11th, Manchester Lodge #148 of the Free and Accepted Masons of Michigan will hold an open house from 4 to 6pm. At 6pm the Grand Lodge of Michigan, with all the Grand Lodge officers, led by the Most Worshipful Grand Masters will perform a rededication ceremony. Current Lodge treasurer, Barry Allen explained that it is "quite and impressive line up for Masons." As part of the ceremony, they will use the working tools of the Masonic Lodge, the square, plumb and level, to test the structure of the lodge and confirm it meets the requirements to conduct Masonic business. It will last approximately half an hour, followed by light snacks, cake & ice cream.

On January 14, 2014 the lodge celebrated it's 150th year, having been chartered in 1864. Allen was the Worshipful Master that year. In the recent years leading up to the 150th anniversary, the Lodge invested thousands of dollars to renovate the lodge room back to it's 1930's luster. Allen described the Lodge: "It is one of the more impressive lodges in our area so we get a lot of Masonic visitors to our meetings. As the story goes, when they had workers on Emanuel Church, they needed a place to stay, so the lodge allowed them to use their spaces on the 3rd floor of the bank building. In return for their lodging, they painted the inside of the lodge room to represent a temple, including a celestial ceiling."

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by Sara Swanson

Sara Swanson is an editor, writer and founder of the Manchester Mirror.