Have you heard the jokes around Freemasonry about “the goat”? Have you heard of the Odd Fellows (IOOF)? Well, in this episode of Historical Light our resident historians tackle both topics head-on with a special guest, Ainslie Heilich. To top things off, Ainslie is our first guest on the show […]
Alex Powers
23 posts
Another mason to follow family tradition, John Wayne was raised as a mason in July 1970, at Marion McDaniel Lodge 56 as his father had been before him. He was also very politically active, and at one point was asked to run for office on behalf of the Republican party. […]
The list of politicians who are also freemasons is staggeringly long and the great British Prime Minister was no exception. When he joined the order in 1901, it was all the rage, with the newly-ascended King Edward VII a former Grand Master. Churchill joined the Studholme Lodge, along with other […]
Ever wondered where involvement in freemasonry might take you? Maybe to the moon? That what happened to Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin, who is famous as being the second man on the moon, after Neil Armstrong. A devoted mason, Aldrin took a masonic flag with him on the Apollo 11 craft and […]
Of course, it’s not just modern musicians who were masons. Notable classical composers can also be found among the Freemason ranks, including Bach and Mozart. Mozart joined a lodge in Vienna, called “Zur Wohltätigkeit” in 1784, 7 years before his death. He was an apprentice at first, but swiftly became […]
One measure of just how high up the masons’ influence goes is the number of kings that have been masons. Many modern day British kings appear on the list – from William IV, predeccessor to Queen Victoria, to George VI, father of the present Queen. George ascended to the throne […]
The “King of the Wild Frontier” was a folk hero and politician, but also a freemason. It was while he was serving in Congress in Washington that he became a mason, and when he left to explore Texas he gave his masonic apron to the Weakly Lodge in Tennessee, where […]
Many masons have made it to the top of their industries through masonic connections, but how many of those men live on in the popular imagination? One enduring name is Henry Ford, the man who revolutionized mass production with his Model T Ford. He even gave his name to the […]
On this date in 1813, the Articles of Union of the United Grand Lodge of England were signed This was the agreement that united the two rival Grand Lodges of England in 1813. The articles were signed on 25th November by H.R.H. the Duke of Sussex, Grand Master of “The […]