CHAPTER IV
THE SECOND PROVINCIAL GRAND LODGE
1784 - 1800

The Warrant of 1784 was one of the most important documents to be issued by the Grand Lodge of England, Ancients, to the lodges overseas during the sixty-two years of its existence. It was signed by the Grand Master, the Earl of Antrim, and by the Deputy Grand Master, the former well known Secretary, Lawrence Dermott. In form it was similar to its predecessor, the Warrant of 1757, which it was intended to revive. It is too lengthy to be quoted in full, but the essential points may be given. It gave authority to "our trusty and well beloved Brethren to congregate, form and hold a Provincial Grand Lodge independent of any former Warrant or Constitution granted by us or any of our predecessors, and to grant Dispensations, Warrants and Constitutions" according to Ancient Customs "for congregating and making Freemasons, and forming and holding Lodges within the Jurisdiction aforesaid, and to hear, adjust, and determine all and singular matters of Complaints, Controversies or debates relative to the Craft." Authority was also given to nominate, choose, and install their successors whom they were empowered to invest with their Masonic honours, powers and dignities"1

From the wording of the Warrant, it would appear that it was intended to confer virtual independence on the Provincial Grand Lodge of Nova Scotia, and it was in this manner that the Brethren of the Province chose to regard it. For the next forty-five years, or until the union of the Ancients with the Moderns caused a change of policy, more than fifty new lodges were chartered, and much local business was transacted, with only casual references to the Grand Lodge overseas.

With the long sought Warrant actually granted, the Brethren of the Quarterly Communication were delighted when it was put to work. The date chosen was September 24, 1784, which thus became the birthday of our second Provincial Grand Lodge. On that day, a session of the Grand Lodge of England, Ancients, pro tempore, was opened in the Golden Ball Tavern with a Loyalist Mason, Thomas Alexander, acting as Grand Master under a Deputation from Deputy Grand Master Dermott dated June 10, 1784. He was assisted by the Worshipful Master of St. Andrew's, William Hogg, as Deputy Grand Master, and William Matthews, John Cody, Joseph Peters, John Lewis and William Stewart as Senior Grand Warden, Junior Grand Warden, Grand Secretary, Grand Pursuivant, and Grand Tyler, respectively.2 Most of these brethren were, or had been, members of St. Andrew's. Some had become members of the younger lodge, St. John's. Also present were representatives of the two lodges under dispensation, Union and Virgin, and from a Military Lodge, No. 90.

The session opened with prayer by a well known Loyalist minister and Mason, Rev. Joshua Wingate Weeks. The Deputation to Alexander, and the new Provincial Warrant were then read, after which Alexander proceeded to install the officers of the Provincial Grand Lodge as follows: Grand Master, John George Pyke, Senior Grand Warden, Jonathan Snelling; Junior Grand Warden, Daniel Wood; Grand Secretary, Joseph Peters; Grand Treasurer, John Fillies; Grand Chaplain, Rev. Joshua W. Weeks; and D. Grand Secretary, William Hall. After the installation, this session of Grand Lodge was duly closed. Immediately, John George Pyke, convened a session of the new Provincial Grand Lodge, during which he thanked the Brethren for the high honour they had bestowed upon him, and pledged himself to do his best to "promote the safety, honour, and interest of the Royal Craft". He denied that: "Universal Charity and Benevolence" might so dominate the activities of the Craft, that many persons of high standing who were not members might be led to seek admission:

"Right Worshipful and Worthy Brethren it affords me the highest satisfaction to see so great a number of worthy brethren assembled together on an event which for a considerable time has been the object of our most ardent wishes, that of establishing a Grand Lodge in this Province, which is at all times highly necessary, but more especially at the present crisis, when such vast numbers of inhabitants, and among them many worthy brethren Freemasons, have of late integrated into it. I think myself highly honoured in being appointed your first Grand Master upon the renewal of the Provincial Grand Warrant, an honour which I shall ever place at the head of your most singular favours, and you may be assured that I shall exert my utmost endeavours to promote the safety, honour and interest of the Royal Craft, not doubting but I shall at all times receive that aid and support which I have reason to expect from so many worthy brethren by whose unanimous suffrage I am placed in this high and important office. May the Great Architect of the Universe pour down His continual blessing upon all our lawful undertakings, and that this event may be the means of cementing us in the bonds of peace and brotherly love. That our universal charity and benevolence may be so conspicuous that it may induce others to follow our example, that there may be a large increase of the Royal Craft to the latest fraternity, and that after we have finished the work which our blessed Master has allotted to us here below, we may meet in that heavenly lodge above, where faith and hope will be swallowed up in fruition, and almighty love be our eternal song."3

Following the address, and the usual toasts and refreshments, this historic session was closed in ample form.

The first Provincial Grand Master, under the new dispensation, was a loyal and dedicated member of the Craft. Born in England in 1745, he came with his parents to the new world at the age of six. The family settled in the Halifax-Dartmouth area. When the father, John Pyke, was killed in the Indian attach of 1751, the lad was left to make his own way. By imitative and had work, he became a successful merchant.

Soon after he reached the age of twenty-one, Pyke joined the First Lodge, but later became a member of No. 2 Ancients, and in 1769 served as its Worshipful Master. The following year this lodge joined the Moderns, and Pyke seems to have remained with it until 1780. Meanwhile in 1779 he was elected to the House of Assembly, and continued as a member for the next forty years. His entry into politics may have affected his Masonic affiliations. In any case, he rejoined the Ancients and helped to found the new and aggressive St. John's Lodge, of which he was the first Master. A leader in the Quarterly Communication, and a diligent worker for the revival of the Provincial Grand Lodge, he seemed the logical person to head the new body.

The first Deputy Grand Master under Pyke was William Campbell, who took office in September 1784. Campbell was born in Scotland in 1742, but as a young man emigrated to colonial Massachusetts where he established himself as a merchant. When the Revolution began, he became a Loyalist, and fought with the British Forces until the end of the war. With the peace of 1783, he came to Halifax at the age of 41, and soon after affiliated with St. John's Lodge No. 211. He held his Grand Lodge office for only two years, for in 1786, he moved to New Brunswick. Here be became an active member of St. John's Lodge in Saint John, and a useful advisor to the Provincial Grand Lodge in Halifax on matters concerning the lodges of the new Province.

One of the first official acts of the new Provincial Grand Lodge was to issue charters to Union and Virgin Lodges. The latter changed its name to Artillery Lodge. Soon after, four new lodges were organized, three of them in Shelburne and the fourth in another Loyalist settlement, Digby.4 Six other lodges followed in quick succession, all inspired by the newly-settled Loyalists, Temple in Chedabucto, later Guysborough, Hiram at Sheet Harbour, and Chester in Lunenburg County, all in 1784; and St. George's in Cornwallis, Hiram at Shelburne, and Concord in Cumberland during 1785. Of these, only St. George's, now of Wolfville, is still in existence, and it had twenty-five years of inactivity, 1832-58. These were active years for Freemasonry in Nova Scotia, and the new Provincial Grand Lodge found itself with a growing list of lodges under its jurisdiction.

As has been indicated, when the Quarterly Communication began its work, the acting Governor was Mr., later Sir, Andrew Snape Hamond. When the second Provincial Grand Lodge was finally established a new Governor, John Parr, had been in office for two years. Parr was a soldier who had come to the Province in the hope of finding a peaceful retirement and a comfortable living. The close of the American Revolution and the arrival of the Loyalists disturbed his plans, and for two years, 1783-85, he was occupied with finding new homes for the unfortunate refugees.

Parr was a member of the Craft, and as he travelled throughout the Province he met many Loyalist Freemasons. Soon these, and others, began to express the wish that His Excellency might be elected Grand Master, that the prestige of Government House might again be extended to the Craft, as it had been in the days of Governors Edward Cornwallis and Charles Lawrence. John George Pyke soon became aware of this feeling, and promptly indicated his "desire of resigning his high office" and nominated Governor Parr as his successor. The Governor was duly elected and installed, St. John the Evangelist Day, December 27, 1785.

John Parr was born in Ireland in 1725. He entered the army as a youth and fought in such well known battles as Fontenoy, 1745; Culloden, 1746; and Minden, 1759. During part of this time he had the comradeship of the later hero of Quebec, James Wolfe. After he came to Nova Scotia, he was so enamoured with its quiet beauty that he had no desire to leave it. He died in office. Two settlements were named for him, Parrsboro in Nova Scotia, and Parrtown, later Saint John in New Brunswick. At least one lodge sought to honour him, Parr Lodge in Shelburne. Unfortunately with the great migration from Shelburne to the Saint John Valley, the Lodge ceased to function.

Governor Parr was Provincial Grand Master of Masons in Nova Scotia for six years,1785-91. In that time, six lodges were chartered, four in Nova Scotia and two in New Brunswick, which continued Masonically under the Provincial Grand Lodge of Nova Scotia. The Nova Scotia lodges were the Royal Navy and Cornwallis in Halifax, Sydney in Cape Breton, and Union at Sissiboo in the present County of Digby. These lodges, like those established under Pyke, were composed chiefly of Loyalists.

As an example of some of those who served as Worshipful Masters in this age, the intrepid soldier and scout, Lieutenant James Moody, may be cited. Described as a happy farmer before the American Revolution, he remained loyal to King George III, endured danger and privation as a Loyalist volunteer, and went into exile at the end of the war. In Nova Scotia, he sat in the Legislature from 1793 to 1799, and served his adopted Province with fidelity and zeal. He was founder and first Master of Union Lodge at Sissiboo (Digby).

The rapid growth in the number of lodges and in membership, during the age of Pyke and Parr, caused the leaders of the Craft to seek larger quarters in which to hold the Provincial Grand Lodge and the subordinate lodge meetings. Hitherto, Grand Lodge had met in the Golden Ball Tavern, and the Halifax lodges in taverns or other rooms as available. Soon after Parr became Provincial Grand Master, some members of the Craft declared that taverns were not proper places in which to hold lodge meetings, but no immediate change resulted. The following year a proposal was made to build a Masonic Hall and to pay for it by means of a lottery, but this indirect method of financing was frowned upon both by the leaders in the Craft, and by the Legislature. A committee was then appointed to furnish a room "over the Market House," which stood where the Customs House is today. This too soon became inadequate so a move was made to a building on Grafton Street immediately behind the present St. Paul's Church Hall on Argyle Street. Here the Provincial Grand Lodge seems to have had its headquarters for most of the time until the opening of Masons Hall in 1801.

In 1786 the appointment of Sir Guy Carleton, Lord Dorchester, as Governor-General of British North America, reduced the status of John Parr and his successors to that of Lieutenant-Governor. Masonically, however, there was no change.

In June 1788, Lieutenant-Governor Parr presented Grand Lodge with a handsome canopy which was to be placed above the Grand Master's Chair. For this generous gift he received the thanks of his Brethren.. On November 25, 1791, he passed away. His last years were, as he wanted them to be, quiet and peaceful. He saw the beginning of the French Revolution, but not the renewal of the Anglo/French wars. He was interred under the Church, St. Paul's, in which he had worshipped, and in which his hatchment still hangs. His funeral was largely attended. Both army units and Masonic lodges paraded to pay their respects to a former leader.

II

Parr's successor as Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia was a Loyalist, Sir John Wentworth, who assumed office in May, 1792. In the months between Parr's death and Wentworth's installation, the Government was administered by Hon. Richard Bulkeley who had come to Halifax with Edward Cornwallis forty-one years before. To maintain a tradition, to reward a faithful Brother, and to secure an able executive, Grand Lodge elected Bulkeley as Provincial Grand Master.

Bulkeley's father, Sir Lawrence Bulkeley, was an Irish knight who, it would seem, had a title but little wealth. The son, therefore, came to the New World in search of a career, and found it in public service. Always courteous and affable, he kept on good terms with the Governors, members of the Council, and others under whom he served. He was Provincial Secretary under thirteen Governors. As a citizen he was active in the Charitable Irish Society, and helped to found the present University of Kings College.

Bulkeley joined the First Lodge the year of its establishment, 1750, and had therefore been a Freemason for more than forty years. He was the fifth to be Provincial Grand Master in Nova Scotia. Although well past three score years and ten when he assumed office, he served Grand Lodge with ability for the next eight years.

Under Bulkeley's leadership seven new lodges were established, four in Nova Scotia, and three in New Brunswick. Those in Nova Scsotia were a lodge at Annapolis Royal, Hibernia at Liverpool, Harmony at Sydney, and the Nova Scsotia Regiment Lodge in Halifax. None of these are now active.

During the latter part of the 18th century routine business which was of concern to the Provincial Grand Lodge came first before a Grand Stewards' Lodge. This body also had the duty of considering and acting upon applications for relief, which in those far off days of refugees were many and often distressing. Since regular funds were required for the current operation of the lodges, the extras had to come from the Brethren who seem to have taken seriously the obligation to care for "poor distressed Master Masons, their widows and orphans."

It was Bulkeley's honour and duty while Provincial Grand Master to welcome to Nova Sscotia a distinguished member of the Craft, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, son of King George III, who arrived in Halifax on May 10, 1794, to assume the command of the British troops that garrisoned the Capital and the Province. On the 27th, he was welcomed officially by his fellow Masons. Speaking for the Craft, Provincial Grand Master Bulkeley assured His Royal Highness of the "unshaken loyalty" of the Fraternity in Nova Scotia to the person of His Majesty King George III, and their "zealous attachment to every Branch of the Royal Family." The Prince expressed appreciation for the honour which had been done him and his family, and then spoke of his interest in Freemasonry:

"As it has been, so it always will be a principal duty with me to give every attention to the Royal Craft as far as my abilities go, and while I express my grateful acknowledgement of every wish you offer for my present and future happiness, I am happy in embracing the same opportunity of publicly offering my prayers to the Great Architect of the Universe for the protection of the Craft in general and more particularly for that of the Grand Lodge of Nova Scotia, from the members of which I have just received the most flattering mark of attention in this day's address."

Prince Edward was a resident of Halifax for more than four years. Much of his time was spend at Prince's Lodge on Bedford Basin which belonged to Lieutenant-Governor Wentworth. Here he set the tone of Halifax society.

 

HON. RICHARD BULKELEY
Provincial Grand Master 1792 - 1800

 

In August, 1798, he returned to England to receive medical treatment for an injury sustained by a fall from his horse. The next year hew as back in Halifax, but in August, 1800, he left Nova Sscotia never to return. It was during his second visit, June, 1800, that, on the request of Provincial Grand Master Bulkeley, he laid the cornerstone of a new Masonic Temple, plans for which had been under way for several years. A building fund had been initiated in 1797 which had received generous support from the Craft, especially the members of St. Andrew's. The site selected for the building was that bounded by Barrington, Salter, Granville and Blowers Streets. The cost of the land was &162.10 which is a mere fraction of present values. Trustees composed of the present and past Grand Lodge officers and the Master or a Past Master of each of the City lodges were to look after all matters "relative to the said Concern."

Cornerstone, Freemasons' Hall, 1800

Hundreds of citizens watched as the Prince laid the stone. Adding colour to the scene and significance to the event were the officers and members of the Halifax lodge bedecked in aprons, jewels, and regalia. Probably the most distinguished Mason on parade was the Lieutenant-Governor, Sir John Wentworth, who appeared as Worshipful Master of the Royal Nova Scotia Regiment Lodge No. 24. As a souvenir of the occasion and of his sojourn in Nova Scotia, His Royal Highness presented to St. Andrew's Lodge, as the senior Lodge in the Province and a leader in the Masons Hall project, a beautiful Punch Bowl bearing the arms of the Grand Lodge of England, Ancients, and other Masonic emblems5

Richard Bulkeley did not live to see the new hall in use. He was seriously ill when the stone was laid and died a few months later, December 7, 1800, at the age of eighty-three. It was said of him that he maintained always "a character for uprightness"6 For a number of years he had been esteemed as the "last of the pioneers," and "The Father of the Province." His death marked the end of an era.

NOTES

1. For the full Warrant see Grand Lodge Archives, Halifax.
2. These were citizens of standing in the capital. The Grand Secretary, Joseph Peters, for example, was Deputy Past Master of Nova Scotia.
3. Grand Lodge Archives, Halifax.
4. Two of the Shelburne lodges, Parr and Solomon, had come from New York, where they had functioned during the British occupation of that city. The former had been under the Provincial Grand Lodge of New York, and the latter directly under the Grand Lodge of England, Ancients.
5. This Bowl is a prized possession of St. Andrew's. The lodge has also a chair which Prince Edward used when he attended the Lyceum Theatre, 1796-1800.
6. Bulkeley's residence was on the site of the present Carleton Hotel, and the hotel includes the old house. The house was built from stone taken from the demolished fortress of Louisbourg. One of the mantels is of black marble taken from the residence of the French Governor.