Researching the founding members of Lodge Temperance is proving challenging. Census returns, old newspapers, Masonic periodicals, subscription sites, etc., all help to provide biographical information but the Provincial Library is another resource we recently “discovered”.
The website of the Provincial Grand Lodge of Northumberland has a page dedicated to the Provincial Library and Museum and mentions two Libraries devoted to Freemasonry and related Orders. One is maintained by the “Societas Rosicrucania in Anglia”, an order which meets at Maple Terrace, and the other is the Provincial Library and Museum, which has recently moved to its new home in Gosforth with the Provincial Grand Lodge offices. However, the website doesn’t really convey what a fantastic resource the Gosforth library is.
In addition to books, the library contains many items of local Masonic interest including a large, composite portrait of the Founders of Lodge Prudence, most of who were from Lodge Temperance 2557. One bookcase contains books, summonses and individual Lodge histories where several of our founding members are mentioned.
W. Bro. Ian Brown PProvGReg, the librarian, is very knowledgeable and is very happy to help. If you need Masonic information for your research this is a resource well worth checking out.
Many thanks to W. Bro. Ian who can be contacted at [email protected].
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Usefull information as my lodge is coming up to it’s centenary year, and could be a point to begin research on our founder members.