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Up to 1872, there had been no Provincial Grand Mark Lodge for the Province
of Cheshire.
The consecration of the Stamford Mark
Lodge No.148 in March 1872, now meeting at Sale, brought the number of
Mark
Lodges in Cheshire at the time, to four,
the other three being Ashton District at Dukinfield, Benevolent No.67 (now
Benevolent TI) at Stockport, and Fidelity Mark No.31 at Birkenhead. With
the addition of North Wales, it was deemed desirable by several eminent
Mark Master Masons, that a Provincial Grand Lodge should be established
for the area of Cheshire and North Wales.
In 1873 the Provincial Grand Lodge of Mark Master Masons of Cheshire and
North Wales was Constituted and Consecrated under the command of the first
Provincial Grand Master, R.W. Bro. The Hon. Wilbraham Egerton (later Earl
Egerton of Tatton).
The combined Province separated in 1880 and the Province of Cheshire as we
know it today, was born.
The Provincial Grand Mark Lodge of Cheshire is the 8th largest outside
London, having 44 Mark and 23 Royal Ark Mariner Lodges under its authority
with 1200 subscribing Mark Masons and 520 subscribing Royal Ark Mariner
Masons proudly practicing the Degrees.
The “Advancement” is a
beautiful and interesting ceremony depicting an incident at the building
of King Solomon’s Temple, and the use of a stone mason’s selected
Mark. The formation of the Mark Master Masons Lodge consists of the
Master, Wardens and Deacons, as in the Craft, but with the addition of
three other offices, namely Master, Senior and Junior Overseer.
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