HAND AND HEART LODGE 4109 — ARCHIVES

1920-1939

The consecration meeting was held at Stretford Conservative Club, Stretford, on October 22nd, 1920 and was attended by 84 visitors and provincial officers and with the following founders:

W/Bro. Herbert Harrison Prov JGW PM1730

W/Bro Arthur Robert Harrison Prov.JGW PM3471

W/Bro George H. Gordon P Prov GW PM 2231

W/Bro Isaac Hinchcliffe P ProvGD PM 2982

W/Bro William Swire PM 3471

W/Bro Harry E. Dickinson PM 3024

Together with

Bros Richard Jarvis, Stanley Chas Whitefield, Percy G. Gough,

William A. Anslow, Charles E. Rigby, William Machin, John Fred Gordon,

James E. Howarth, William Williams, Bernard Wilkes, William Stott,

Leonard Bradbury and George B. Scott.

The first officers for that year were;

W.M. W/Bro Herbert Harrison

I.P.M. W/Bro Isaac Hinchcliffe

S.W. W/Bro George H. Gordon

J.W. Bro Richard Jarvis

Treasurer Bro Stanley Charles Whitfield

Secretary Bro Percy G. Gough

Asst Secretary John Fred Goodwin

D.C. W/Bro Arthur Roberts

Almoner W/Bro Harry E Dickinson

S.D. Bro William A. Anslow

J.D. Charles E. Rigby

STEWARDS; Bros John E Howarth, William Williams, Bernard Wilkes

William Stott, Leonard Bradbury, & George B. Scott.

Photograph of Inaugural Treasurer, Bro Stanley Charles Whitfield.

On that evening, 12 candidates were proposed for initiation and 5 joining members were proposed and the ceremony was followed by a banquet at the Grand Hotel, Aytoun Street, Manchester.

A page from the register for the Inaugural Meeting on 22nd October 1920

The lodge owes its name to a friend of W/Bro HERBERT HARRISON, the late W/Bro Thomas Hand P Prov Grand Treasurer, 2nd Preceptor of the LETCHWORTH LODGE OF INSTRUCTION. It was arranged that the Emulation Ritual was to be used in his memory with the name intended to be “Hand and Harrison Lodge” however, the powers that be would not permit this name and “Hand and Heart Lodge” was alternatively suggested.

During the first year, the lodge initiated 19 candidates but also mourned the “Melancholy Death” of W/Bro Harry E Dickinson, one of our founders who was interred after a Masonic Service.

In April 1923 The W/M Bro Richard Jarvis informed the brethren that he had attended United Grand Lodge and received at the hand of the Pro Grand Master - (by virtue of THE HAND AND HEART LODGE 4109 qualifying as a HALL STONE LODGE) the Million Memorial Jewel to be worn by succeeding Masters of the Lodge. H.M. King George V was present at that ceremony and on that lodge night the charity box raised 49/1—who placed the odd penny

In April 1928, the Master and Wardens were asked to sign a recommendation to Grand Lodge to grant a warrant to hold a new lodge, to be called “Exemplar” and in May that year a motion was passed that “Hand and Heart Lodge should sponsor Exemplar”.

It was common in the early days for more than one ceremony to be conducted in an evening, i.e., an initiation then a passing or a passing and a raising. To cope with the demand of initiates it was commonplace to have regular meetings supplemented by emergency meetings in order to perform the ceremonies. In December 1929 the lodge had 7 Stewards and 24 brothers awaiting advancement. To give an example, Bro T.H. Pepperdine was Initiated in November 1927 and it was not until 1933 that he attained the Stewards bench.

At a meeting in Feb.1930, It was proposed that the lodge should contribute towards the cost of two Stained Glass windows at the Masonic Temple and in December it was voted to contribute “Not exceeding £15.00” for this.

In January 1931 “In connection with Lodges Holding in SOUTH MANCHESTER FREEMASONS HALL, shares 101-200 value £100-00 were handed to Bro Parker, S.W., appointed trustee of the Lodges Holding in South Manchester Freemasons Hall.

In April 1931, one of the founders, W/Bro Herbert Harrison P G D (ENG) APGM occupied the chair of King Solomon to invest W/Bro Augustus G Wilson with the collar and jewel of PPJGD. The meeting continued with the Initiation of Bro Walter Hargreaves and the Raising of Bro Guthrie.

The Church Hall was quite unsuitable, it was cold with no central heating. In fact, the only heating came from a large open fire in the anti-room, therefore the only members who remained warm were the Tyler and any candidates awaiting initiation etc. On one occasion a member retired to the anti-room and put on a long Winter Coat and placed his regalia on the outside of his coat. In addition, the food had to be brought from Manchester to Stretford by horse and if there was heavy traffic or it was foggy, which was common in the winter in those days, the members would go home hungry. Therefore, a decision was made to move to the new Freemasons Hall in Chorlton.

The final meeting at the Church Hall was held in May 1931 and Bros Wilson and Hargreaves were passed to the 2nd degree with Bro Arthur Appleton also being raised to the 3rd degree hence bidding farewell with a grand gesture! Also, on that evening, the W.M. gave notice of a motion as follows;

“That the Hand and Heart Lodge remove from its present Headquarters, The Church Hall, Stretford to henceforth meet at the South Manchester Freemasons Hall, Edge Lane, Chorlton for the next Lodge Meeting in September and that Bye Law no 1 be altered accordingly.”

The first meeting at Chorlton was held on September 11, 1931 under WM Bro D.A. Strutt and included the raising of Bro Fincham which was the first ceremony to be conducted in our new home. Bro William Rowland Parker was the first W.M. to be installed at Chorlton and Bro Bertie Jackson was the first initiate in September 1932.

Also, in September of that year, the Lodge sponsored “SOUTH MANCHESTER LODGE” and purchased a £100-00 debenture in the new hall.

In Feb 1935, the lodge honoured the passing of King George V, “a Grievous loss” and the lodge was placed in mourning until April of that year.

In July 1936 in an Emergency Meeting we voted on a resolution “That the consent of the lodge be given to a petition for a Royal Arch Chapter to be attached to the lodge” which was carried unanimously and thus Hand and Heart Chapter No 4109 came into being.

In September 1936, following the lamentable death of our PROVINCIAL Grand Master, Lord Amphill, the lodge went into mourning for 6 months. This entailed the wearing of 3 black rosettes on the badge and 1 on the collar whilst Master masons wore 3 Rosettes f/c and EA 2 Black rosettes

In March 1937 a motion was passed as follows; “Initiation fees be raised to £15.15.0, joining fees to £3.3.0 and Annual Subscriptions raised to £3.10.0 all of which meant that in October that year, our bank account stood at £559.17.1. New members became less frequent, but it remained protocol to ballot and initiate on the same night.

At our May 1939 meeting, the lodge presented W/Bro Herbert Harrison with a Silver Fruit Bowl to mark his contribution to the lodge.

In the early years the Lodge possessed many “characters”, some of whom would stand up without any notice and soon have the company helpless with laughter. We have had those who in a quieter way, have helped considerably to maintain the character and uphold the traditions of the lodge and we are still blessed with that tradition today.

WAR YEARS 1939-45

The September 1939 meeting was cancelled by order of United Grand Lodge and in October1940, the Worshipful Master declared that “In the event of an Air Raid, the lodge would continue and “Only in the event of Explosions and Machine Gun Fire would we evacuate to the Air Raid Shelters”. Throughout the War Years the lodge was well attended which is remarkable when considering blackouts, the risk of being caught in an air raid and fuel rationing. In 1940 it was decided that we should “call off” for meals to enable waitresses to get home in the blackouts and It was deemed permissible that members could wear their Uniforms or Morning Dress.

We had three Brothers who served in the forces; Bros G.B Faulkner initiated in January 1927 and made Steward in 1935, SW in 1943 who served in the Royal Navy and had to withdraw from the WM ballot in 1943 due to Military Service. He later re-joined after the War and became WM in 1947 and in 1948 combined the roles of IPM and secretary, a job he held until October 1976. He died in November 1978. J Mallileu, there is little known about him but he was called up in 1942 re-joined the lodge after the war but resigned due to business commitments in 1952 and finally C.P. Rigby, son of one of our founders who served in the Royal Artillery, did re-join but subsequently resigned in 1949.

In September 1940, members were asked to donate their Jewels to the War Effort and that meals should be of a simple nature. In October of that year Provincial grand Lodge instructed that “meetings should be held in accordance with the By-Laws regardless of the present War Conditions unless some emergency rendered meetings impossible”.

February 1942 the Lodge was in mourning for Past Grand Master Field Marshall HRH Duke of Connaught, but in view of war conditions, Masonic Mourning was not to be worn

In September 1942 the Grand Master HRH Duke of Kent was killed in an air crash and the Lodge once more entered a period of mourning. He was succeeded by the Earl of Harwood.

In May 1943 the Image of the Hall Stone Jewel was shown on the summons for the first time. Dinner was served before the Lodge meeting and prayers of thanksgiving were offered for “The successful issue of the North Africa campaign” and in May 1945 Prayers were offered in thanks for the Cessation of hostilities in Europe.

1945 ONWARDS

In May 1947 the lodge was placed in mourning for six months following the death of the Grand Master, The Earl of Harwood and his successor, His Grace, the Duke of Devonshire was installed as Grand Master by H.M. King George VI in May 1948.

In May 1948 the United Grand Lodge advised that the Royal Masonic Hospital would not be taken over by the “new” NHS.

During the early post war years, the lodge continued to grow in numbers and lodge meetings were well attended. In December 1948 it had 82 members, not only local but also hailing from Blackpool, North Wales, Birkenhead, Liverpool, Southport and London!

In 1950 the Death was announced of W/Bro Marshall Scholes whom in a moving tribute, was described as ‘a brother, whose walk of life was to create happiness and friendship in a dreary world’.

In November 1950 the death of the Grand Master was marked by the lodge being placed in morning for six months and his successor, the Earl of Scarborough was appointed as his successor.

April 1951 saw the death of one its founder members, W/Bro C.E. Rigby and in the following January the lodge was placed in mourning for six months following the death of King George VI and in May 1953 marked the death of W/Bro W Harvey and in September that year the death of a further founder member, W/Bro G.F. Gordon.

During this period the Lodge continued to enjoy regular candidates and remained well attended and in 1955, our membership still stood at 82 with a further three candidates proposed and initiated in December of that year.

IN 1956, a motion was passed to donate £100 guineas to West Lancashire Alpas Benevolent fund for the 1956 festival in recognition of “SERVICES RENDERED TO FREEMASONARY” over 50 years by W/Bro Herbert Harrison PAPGM First Master and founder member of our lodge whom sadly died in January the following year. In December of that year a further two candidates were balloted for and subsequently initiated.

October 1959 saw subscriptions increased to £6 pa and Bro Hendrik Jas of KLM and a member of Kennemerland 127 Lodge of the Dutch Constitution became a joining member of the lodge. However, in November our membership numbers had dropped to 66 and our subscriptions were raised once more, to £6.6.0. pa.

In 1960-61, attendances started to decline from an average of 42 in 1955 to 35 in 1960 and we only had one initiate that year.

In 1962, membership remained at 66 but was 20 fewer than in 1955, we did however have two new initiates that year.

In January 1964, W/Bro J.E Butterworth P Prov GW presented the lodge with two Ashlars, one rough and one smooth, for use as corner stones. They were presented in memory of his brother “Who had for so long graced the lodge with his presence”. In October of that year he also presented the Lodge with a set of Square and Compasses from W/Bro Frank Butlers family. In March that year W/Bro A.B. Edge presented the lodge with a Ballot Box, suitably engraved, in memory of his father, who had been a member of the Lodge for Many Years.

September 1969 marked the death of the Grand Master the Earl of Scarborough and the lodge was in placed mourning until December. He was then succeeded by HRH The Duke of Kent, our current Grand Master.

October 1970 marked the Golden Jubilee of the Lodge and a five-course banquet was held followed by entertainment.

In September 1971, W/Bro Ernest Heaton, a member for 50 years, was granted honorary membership. He was the first initiate of the lodge to receive Grand Lodge Honours! Also, in that month it was agreed to increase subscriptions to £11.00 pa.

During 1973, attendance remained in the upper 20s and an initiate was on the Stewards bench within a year of being raised.

In April 1975 it was announced that, due to increased financial difficulties, The Royal Masonic Hospital would admit up to 60 non-Masonic patients as a Private Hospital.

In October that year Bro William Augustine John Stanton, initiated into the Mashonaland Lodge 621, Rhodesia, became a joining member and later that year Subscriptions were raised to £20-00

The lodge celebrated its 500th meeting in September 1976 in the next few years we enjoyed a regular flow of initiates but by 1982 subscriptions had climbed to £70.00 with £30.00 for country members.

October 1981 saw W/Bro Frank Morley elected as Tyler and he remained with us till 2016, In 2006, on March 8th, he was presented with a Masonic Half Hunter Masonic Watch to mark 25 years as our Tyler. Additionally, during those years he was called on to perform Initiation and Raising Ceremonies, he sadly died in 2017.

In September 1984 Membership had declined to 21 members but subscriptions were retained at £70-00 pa for full and £30.00 pa for Country Members

In September 1986 it was announced that W/Bro G.C. Pendergast would be invested with the Acting Rank of Provincial Grand Steward, the first promotion to Acting Rank for the lodge for over 30 years and in February 1988 he was further promoted to Acting Provincial Deputy G.D.C.

During March 1989, Bro Steve Masters was responsible for a donation of £500 to Martin House (a charity looking after the needs of children with terminal illness) with money he had collected from his colleagues at Kelloggs, a sum which was augmented by £150-00 from Lodge Funds.

In May 1991 W/ Bro G.C. Pendergast received new craft honours of P Prov. J.G.W and Royal Arch Chapter Acting Honour of Prov. Deputy G.D.C. He was subsequently appointed to the rank of Past Assistant Grand Director of Ceremonies in the United Lodge of England in March 1993.

April 1993 saw W/Bro Ken Thompson P.Prov.G.W. celebrate 50 years in freemasonry and our membership stood at 26 with 2 new initiates but it was then a further 3 years before we had a new initiate.

In November 1994 W/ Bro L.C. Pendergast retired as Lodge Secretary, having held the post since 1976, He was granted Honorary Membership in October of that year but sadly died in April 1999. W/Bro R Colburn was appointed in his place.

In 1995/96 Subscriptions were increased to £150 for full and £77.00 for Country Members and in February Bro D.R. Wiles was initiated, our first candidate for 3 years.

In 1998 Subscriptions still stood at £150.00 Full £77.00 Country and Dinning Fee £9.50 and in September the W/M, Bro P.A. Stockton congratulated W/Bro Thompson P Prov JGW on his 90th Birthday and for his services to the lodge over the past 55 years. He sadly died in January 1999.

A Lodge Group Photograph taken in 1999 with WM Frank Amos.

In January 2000, our first initiate of the new Millennium was John Anthony Howarth who was initiated by W/Bro Frank Amos with the ceremony attended by 19 Members, the initiate and 11 visitors.

In May 2000 our membership stood at 24 and the W/m, Bro G Deary presented W/Bro Bryan Rowe-Willcocks with an Illuminated Plate to mark his 40 years in freemasonry.

In September 2000, it was proposed that subscriptions be increased to £170-00 pa for full members and £ 90-00 for visitors.

In November 2001, W/Bro Arthur Deary presented a gift of 3 Gavels and Blocks to be used on the Pedestals. They were dedicated by W/Bro Rev. Sharples.

March 2003-It was announced that Mrs Evelyn Jackson, a lodge widow had bequeathed some items of Jewellery to the lodge to be sold for charitable purposes. They raised, at auction, the sum of £415.00 and W/Bro Rowe Willcocks gave tribute to both W/Bro and Mrs Jackson.

For the year 2003/4 Membership stood at 20 and subscriptions were £185.00 full and £100.00 Country membership.

March 2004 saw our first initiate for 2 years, John Angelo Politsos, but attendances in the ensuing years had dropped to mid-teens and on one occasion only 8 brethren were in attendance and it was not uncommon for visitors to be asked to take office.

In February 2005, it was proposed that the May meeting be discontinued, a proposal which was passed in March of that year.

April 2005 marked a sad occasion, as that was the last meeting Hand and Heart held at Chorlton Masonic Hall, our home of 74 years. The move to Chorlton had been made possible by a Building Fund set up by members and surety provided by one of the past members together with support given by Stretford Lodge.

September 2005 marked our first meeting at Urmston and included a lecture on Freemasonry in Sport given by W/Bro Mike Addams.

Our first Worshipful Master at Urmston was Bro John Anthony Howarth, who had the distinction of being our first candidate of the new millennium.

January 2008 Marked the death of W/Bro Brian Rowe-Willcocks, just 2 years short of his 50th anniversary and his close friend W/Bro Don Evans gave a eulogy in his honour.

Lodge membership in 2008 stood at 16, but that marked a low point and membership has steadily increased bucking the trend of masonry in general in which membership is steadily declining.

October 2009 marked the death of W/Bro Roy Colburn, a key figure in the Lodge who had held the office of Secretary from 1994 to 2007 and was given Honorary Membership in March 2008. W/Bro Frank Amos proposed that £100-00 be donated in his memory to Cancer Research.

January 2010 marked a unique occasion in the Lodges history as the meeting was abandoned due to adverse weather and heavy snow, not even Hitler managed to achieve that!

A Lodge Group Photograph Taken in October 2010 with WM Steve Masters.

September 2013 W/Bros Ezra McGowan and John Howarth were awarded Provincial Honours and the death was announced of W/Bro Ron Astles. A tribute to him and his contribution to the lodge was given by W/Bro Frank Amos.

June 2014 W/Bro Sidney Risley died after a long illness and W/Bro Peter Stockton delivered a tribute to him as a loyal and much respected member of the lodge.

In March 2017, Mrs Sue Hayes, widow of W/Bro Steve Hayes presented W/Bro Ezra McGowan with a cheque for £1000 in favour of his charity the Forget-Me-Not Trust which he set up to help the homeless, in memory of her husband, a long serving member of the South Eastern Group and a close friend of many of the members of Hand and Heart.

The December 2017 Meeting included a eulogy by W/Bro Peter Stockton for W/Bro Don Evans P Pr AGDC who had died after a long illness. A very influential member since 1975, Don had performed many roles within the Lodge including DC for a number of years and WM in 1983. Don was instrumental in bringing a considerable number of members into H&H including some of the longest standing.

During our December 2018 meeting W/Bro Brian Warrington gave an interesting talk on his 40 years as a member of Hand and Heart and movingly, requested the honour of carrying out one last ceremony before his memory failed him and he could no longer manage.

January 2019 marked the death of W/Bro Allan Culley who had served the lodge well over a number of years and the Lodge was opened ‘In Memorium’ in honour of his memory before going on to initiate Bro Malcolm Whittle into the lodge. Also, in that meeting, W/Bro Tim Burns of Flixton Lodge and W/Bro Ezra McGowan both donated Hall Stone Jewels engraved with the lodge name back to the Lodge.

In February 2019, the lodge made a presentation to W/Bro Bill Eaton of Radio Millennium Lodge, a regular and loyal visitor to Hand and Heart, to mark his 50 years as a Freemason. Bill as well as visiting us has, when needed, taken up office when we were short of members and needless to say, he has performed those duties in an exemplary manner.

April 2019 marked the Initiation of Bro Wayne Devlin and the lodge was treated to W/Bro Brian Warrington performing the ceremony he had requested to be allowed to carry out for Hand and Heart which he executed with distinction.

The lodge membership is now rising, bucking the national trend, currently standing at 25 including country and honorary members and, although the subscriptions now stand at £340.00, a considerable increase over the earlier mentioned £23-8-0, there are more to come. Thus, as the Lodge is growing in strength and unity of purpose once more, we are eagerly looking forward to our Centenary Meeting and also the next one hundred years of Hand and Heart Lodge No 4109!

The Installation of Father of the Lodge Steve Masters as WM for the Centenary Year 2019/20 with APGM Barry Jameson, SE Group Chairman Gareth Jones, Grand

Officer Mike Adams and IPM Eddie Wilkinson

November 2019 marked the Installation on W/Bro Steve Masters, father of the lodge, into the Chair for our Centenary year and also the attainment of Vice Patron Status for the 2021 Festival. We welcomed two initiates, Bros Adam Walker and Michael Beresford. It was to be a busy year with our Centenary Ladies Evening was held at the Glendower Hotel, St Anne’s, the Passing of Bros Whittle and Devlin, the Raising of the same and our Centenary Masonic Meeting, to be held at Swinton Masonic Hall on the 22nd of October. Additionally, Bro Devlin also made a charitable contribution of £100 to the Lodge earned from sales of his recording of ‘What colour the wind?

WM Steve Masters receiving the 2021 Festival Vice Patron Certificate from Group Charity Steward and fellow member of the Lodge, W Bro Darren Gregory.

Our Ladies have done sterling work for us over the years contributing considerable sums to the charity accounts and they were to be honoured with a celebration lunch at Davyhulme Golf Course before the years end however, just after the Ladies Evening the world was turned upside down with the advent of a particularly nasty strain of Coronavirus named Covid 19. This disease literally swept the planet causing illness and death wherever it passed. The country was placed in ‘lockdown’ with the Government forced to declare that everyone should stay at home only venturing out for vital supplies and working from home where possible. In the end Covid 19 managed what Hitler could not prompting the Grand Master to declare all meetings from April 2020 to be cancelled for the foreseeable future and has even forced us to reschedule the date of our Centenary Meeting, now to be held on 12th May 2021! At time of writing none of our Lodge members have been taken to the Grand Lodge above but nor do we know when we will be able to meet and shake hands again but we will not be subjugated and will carry on from strength to strength. So mote it be!