New York Masonic Lodges

About Freemasonry in New York

A deep look at Masonic history, the oldest lodges, the admission process, and notable Freemasons connected to New York.

History of Freemasonry in New York

New York Masonry has one of the longest paper trails in the country, and that's not an exaggeration. The first documented lodge in the colony was St. John's Lodge, which began meeting in New York City in 1757 under a deputation from Lord Aberdour, Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Scotland. Within a generation, lodges were active in Albany, Schenectady, Manhattan, and along the Hudson Valley.

By the time the colonies broke away from Britain, New York's lodges had to make a tough choice: stay loyal to the original 'Moderns' Grand Lodge of England, or affiliate with the Atholl 'Antients' faction, which is what most American military and frontier lodges did. The Grand Lodge of New York, Free and Accepted Masons, was officially constituted in September 1781 in New York City, while the Revolutionary War was still going on. Robert R. Livingston, who later helped draft the Declaration of Independence and administered the oath of office to George Washington at Federal Hall in 1789, served as the first Grand Master from 1784 to 1801.

The early 19th century brought explosive growth, but it also brought the Morgan Affair of 1826, which started in upstate New York and nearly destroyed American Masonry. William Morgan, a disgruntled Mason from Batavia, threatened to publish exposes of Masonic ritual, then disappeared. The resulting public uproar fed an entire anti-Masonic political party and slashed New York membership from over 20,000 to barely 3,000 in less than a decade. Things slowly recovered, and by the late 1800s New York had become the largest Grand Lodge in the world by membership.

The Grand Lodge headquarters at 71 West 23rd Street in Manhattan, known as Masonic Hall, is one of the most architecturally significant Masonic buildings on the planet. It opened in 1875, was rebuilt in 1909, and houses the Livingston Masonic Library, an extraordinary research collection. New York Masonry has had its peaks and valleys, but the institution itself has been continuous for nearly two and a half centuries.

Oldest and Most Historic Lodges in New York

St. John's Lodge No. 1, A.Y.M., chartered in New York City in 1757, is the oldest Masonic lodge in the state and one of the oldest in North America. It's the lodge on whose Bible George Washington was sworn in as president on April 30, 1789, at Federal Hall in lower Manhattan.

That Bible, the so-called Washington Inaugural Bible, is still owned by the lodge and used at presidential inaugurations when requested. Holland Lodge No. 8, founded in 1787, is another historically significant New York City lodge with deep ties to the early Republic and the Dutch-American community. Mount Vernon Lodge No.

3 in Albany dates to the late 18th century and counted DeWitt Clinton among its members. Independent Royal Arch Lodge No. 2, chartered in 1760, is one of the oldest continuously working lodges and has occupied multiple Manhattan locations over the centuries. Mariners Lodge No.

67, originally a seafaring fraternity, gathered ship captains and merchants in lower Manhattan throughout the 19th century. Western Star Lodge No. 15 in Bridgehampton on Long Island traces its origins to 1797. Up in the Hudson Valley, Solomon's Lodge No.

196 in Poughkeepsie has a long history dating to the early 1800s. Onondaga Lodge No. 7 in Syracuse and Genesee Lodge in western New York both played central roles in the 19th-century settlement of central and western New York. These lodges, taken together, sketch out the migration patterns of New York itself, from Manhattan and Albany outward along the Hudson, the Mohawk, and eventually to Buffalo and the Niagara frontier.

New York Masonic Lodges by the Numbers

The Grand Lodge of New York oversees roughly 540 active constituent lodges, organized into approximately 50 districts. Membership currently sits in the neighborhood of 35,000 to 40,000 Master Masons, down considerably from the post-WWII peak of around 300,000 but still placing New York among the larger Grand Lodges in the United States. Lodge density is highest in the New York City area and on Long Island, with significant clusters in the Hudson Valley, the Capital District around Albany, the Finger Lakes, and the Buffalo metro. The Grand Lodge meets annually each May at Masonic Hall in Manhattan.

The Grand Lodge runs the Masonic Care Community at Utica, a major retirement and assisted-living facility, along with the Masonic Medical Research Institute and several scholarship programs. The Livingston Masonic Library at Masonic Hall is open to researchers by appointment. Current lodge directories, district maps, and event calendars are published at nymasons.org.

How to Become a Freemason in New York

To join Masonry in New York, you start by reaching out to a lodge in your area, which you can find through the lodge locator at nymasons.org. New York is a 2B1ASK1 state like every U.S. jurisdiction, meaning you need to ask to join rather than wait to be invited. After expressing interest, you'll typically meet with members for a few informal dinners or open events to get a sense of the lodge.

When you're ready, you'll fill out a petition for the degrees of Masonry. New York requires that two current Master Masons in good standing sign your petition as recommenders, and they should know you well enough to vouch for your character. The petition is read at a stated communication, and an investigating committee of three members is appointed to interview you, often in your home with your spouse or family present. They report back at the next meeting, and the lodge votes by secret ballot.

Initiation fees in New York range widely depending on the lodge, typically between $250 and $600 for the three degrees. Annual dues usually fall between $100 and $250. After acceptance, you'll receive the Entered Apprentice degree, then progress through Fellow Craft and Master Mason, generally over a few months. New York requires proficiency exams between degrees where you demonstrate memorization of catechism material.

Most lodges hold their stated meetings monthly, and you should plan to attend regularly to stay involved.

Notable New York Freemasons in History

DeWitt Clinton, the longtime Governor of New York and the political force behind the Erie Canal, was one of the most influential American Masons of his era. He served as Grand Master of New York from 1806 to 1819 and as General Grand High Priest of the General Grand Chapter of Royal Arch Masons. The Erie Canal, which transformed New York's economy and arguably American commerce, was very much a Clinton project, and Masonic ceremonies marked its groundbreaking. Robert R.

Livingston, the first Grand Master of New York Masons, was Chancellor of New York, helped draft the Declaration of Independence, and administered the presidential oath of office to George Washington in 1789. Theodore Roosevelt was raised in Matinecock Lodge No. 806 in Oyster Bay in 1901, just a few months before he became president. He was famously approachable as a Mason and made a point of visiting lodges throughout his presidency and afterward.

Franklin D. Roosevelt was raised in Holland Lodge No. 8 in New York City in 1911 and remained an active Mason throughout his life, including raising his son Franklin Jr. as a Master Mason.

Other notable New York Masons include J. Edgar Hoover (raised in DC but with New York affiliations), bandleader Count Basie (Wisdom Lodge No. 102, Prince Hall), abolitionist Thurlow Weed, and businessman John Jacob Astor.

Prince Hall Freemasonry in New York

Prince Hall Masonry has very deep roots in New York. African Lodge No. 459, the original lodge chartered to Prince Hall himself in Boston in 1784, expanded into New York in 1812 with the formation of Boyer Lodge No. 1 in Manhattan, named for Haitian president Jean-Pierre Boyer.

The Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of New York was constituted in 1845, making it one of the older Prince Hall Grand Lodges in the country. Its historical headquarters has long been in Harlem, and it currently oversees more than 70 subordinate lodges across the state, with membership concentrated in New York City, Long Island, Westchester, and the upstate cities of Albany, Buffalo, Rochester, and Syracuse. New York was one of the earlier mainstream Grand Lodges to extend recognition to Prince Hall. Mainstream-Prince Hall recognition was formalized between the Grand Lodge of New York and the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of New York in 1989, which permits inter-visitation and mutual recognition of degrees.

Notable New York Prince Hall Masons include musician Count Basie, civil rights leader Adam Clayton Powell Sr., and many of Harlem's prominent ministers, businessmen, and political figures across the 20th century. The Prince Hall Grand Lodge of New York has been particularly active in scholarship programs, youth leadership initiatives through the Order of the Eastern Star and the Knights of Pythagoras, and community service work across the boroughs.

Frequently Asked Questions about Masonic Lodges in New York

Sources & Further Reading

• https://nymasons.org
• https://www.nymasoniclibrary.org
• https://www.mwphglny.org
• https://www.masonichall.nyc