Our Grand Lodge building celebrates 100 years!
Posted on 4th July 2024 at 14:00
In 2024 the Order celebrates one hundred years of ownership of our beautiful headquarters building at 27, Pembridge Gardens – a building that members of the Order of Women Freemasons call ‘home’
In the early years of the Order meetings were held at the premises of the Baptist Union in Southampton Row, near Holborn, but it became increasingly obvious that we needed a home of our own. In June 1923 a meeting of the whole Order was called to discuss possible future premises and a sub-committee formed to investigate finding a permanent home.
A large freehold premises was needed with either a room suitable for a large Temple or sufficient adjoining land onwhich to build one and Bro Florence Turner, a member of Lodge Unity No.3, offered to purchase a suitable building, if found. The search was long and difficult, if the building was good the situation was not but finally, at the meeting of Lodge Unity No. 3 on 10 March 1924 The Grand Master, MostWorshipful Bro Marion Lindsay Halsey, announced that a deposit had been paid on a house in Notting Hill Gate – this was 27 Pembridge Gardens, one of a number of large domestic dwellings built in the mid-1850s by the Radford family. Originally leasehold, the freehold was bought by William Radford in 1860 and then subsequently sold to a Mr Herbert Pott, gentleman of Wimbledon, in 1914. The last tenant of the property, Mrs M J Paterson, having died in or around 1924, the house was, conveniently for the Order, put on the open market.
The foundation stone for the Temple was laid on 2 July 1924 by Most Worshipful Bro Marion Halsey using a silver trowel now displayed in the library at No. 27. The work was completed quickly and by the end of 1924 the new Temple was finished. It was duly Consecrated on 20 January 1925 in a ceremony incorporating prayers specifically written for the occasion and much of the ceremonial one would see in the Consecration of a new Lodge.
Since 1924, the building has undergone many alterations and improvements – in all, between commencement in 1924 and various additions and improvements up to 1937 some £7,600 was spent, with much, much more since.
The original decoration of the Temple was dark wood panelling from floor to ceiling and an altar stood in the middle of the chequered carpet. The banners of the few lodges then in existence were displayed around the walls. Many of the original furnishings for the Temple were gifted by Lodge members, in particular the ornate Grand Master’s Chair we still use today was presented by Bro Annie Harrison of Lodge of Unity No. 3 and the pedestal was the gift of Lodge Golden Rule No. 1. Over the years the Temple has been redecorated several times with a more radical change made during the years of Most Worshipful Bro Frances Hall to include the blue colours we see today.
As our present Grand Master, Most Worshipful Bro Zuzanka Penn, says there are many challenges in maintaining this listed building to an appropriate standard and the costs of doing so are high but with the support of members throughout the United Kingdom and overseas, Grand Lodge continues to be the home of women’s freemasonry for 3000 members of the Order of Women Freemasons.
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