FREEMASONRY IN THE EARLY 1600 AND 1700

Bro. W.J. Hughan

There is such an abundance of evidence in proof of the continuity of Freemasonry during the period selected, that it is only necessary to study the special records of the old Lodges, happily still preserved, the Rolls of the “Old Charges”, and especially the extant minutes of the Masons’ Company of London, to be assured that the Freemasons of the present day are the lineal descendants of the operative builders, who in the 17th century, and earlier, admitted speculative or non-professional members.

The moon in Masonic history

Image by Miguel Mendez, shared under a Creative Commons licence

by James P. W. Goss Grand Historian, Grand Lodge of Vermont There is no more spectacular reminder of our Masonic historical and ritualistic heritage than…