MANCHESTER ASSOCIATION FOR MASONIC RESEARCH
For the cultivation and exploration of Freemasonry
Events for 2023
JANUARY 4, 2023
Our Speaker Secretary is pleased to announce:
January 24th 2023. Manchester Hall, Bridge Street, Manchester 5.45pm. Joint meeting with Lodge of Silent Temple. Inaugural paper given by the new President, WBro Peter Hudson Robinson.
March 31st 2023. Freemasons’ Hall, Crewe Street Shrewsbury 7.00 pm. “The early years of Shropshire Freemasonry. How a clergyman who kept 365 pairs of shoes and whose dogs were dressed for dinner became a Provincial Grand Master.” A paper given by Roger Pemberton.
May 19th and 20th 2023. A delightful weekend in Bath. For the gentlemen a visit to the famous Bath Masonic rooms in the 18th century Theatre Royal and a talk about Freemasonry in Bath when the Spa was at its most popular. This will be given by a local Masonic historian. For the ladies, the Roman Baths and their modern equivalent, the Thermae Spa. Early booking essential. Details of hotel will be sent early in 2023.
September 27th 2023. Carlisle Masonic Rooms. 7.00pm. A talk by Most Excellent Companion Dr Joseph Morrow CBE, KC, LLD, FRSE Lord Lyon King of Arms of Scotland and First Grand Principal of the Royal Arch in Scotland.
November 29th 2023. Cheshire View, Christleton. 7.00pm. A talk by Dr John Wade PM of Quatuor Coronati Lodge. A subject of his choice.
Details of our November 2022 Meeting
OCTOBER 13, 2022
email :wbrowebmaster@gmail.com to book in
Top Hat But No Tails
OCTOBER 13, 2022
The January meeting of The Lodge of Silent Temple saw a change of master and president for 2020. Allan Shields was vacating the chair and presidency at the end of what had been a sad year following the passing of stalwart member , John Acaster.
Allan opened the lodge and a eulogy for John was read by Robert Mitchell after which the brethren stood in peace for a moment or two.
He then handed the next part of the proceedings to Peter Robinson, a very good friend of the incoming master and President Right Worshipful Brother Roger Pemberton, Provincial Grand Master of the province of Shropshire.
Roger Pemberton (centre) with IPM Allan Shields (right) and installing master Peter Robinson
Peter installed Roger in fine style, following which the lodge officers for the year were invested. It’s a busy night for the incoming master and Roger then presented his paper ‘Angelo Soliman, Noble Moor and Mason’
Sold as a slave in Marseille, Angelo became a friend of Mozart, master of the most prestigious lodge in Vienna. This proved a most interesting tale of how a humble slave sold during one of the most controversial parts of African history became a freemason. It was well received with Roger receiving a warm round of applause from his audience.
John Acaster was very much missed at this meeting, but he always advocated that the master of such an old lodge should, in keeping with how things were done at the time Silent Temple was consecrated, wear a top hat.
Lodge treasurer, Peter Nicholson had discovered that John had indeed purchased a top hat for this very purpose and had great joy in presenting it to Roger.
Now a Provincial Grand Master would of course wear his ‘tails’ at an installation meeting. However the lodge tends to go for a less formal approach but he did look very much the part with the top hat on!
Roger finally closed the lodge and the brethren retired to dine during which he was installed as the President of the association.
Roger sporting the top hat