Consecration Date
26th April 1938
Meeting Dates
- 3rd Saturday in March (Installation)
- 2nd Saturday in June
- 2nd Saturday in October
- 2nd Saturday in December
Meeting Time
16:30 (4:30pm)
The Lodge today
Applications for prospective candidates are now welcome from men of all backgrounds and walks of life to enable them to develop into more thoughtful and confident people. We aim to inspire and challenge them to practise the core values we celebrate – Integrity, Friendship, Respect, Charity – in their private and public lives and to cement our reputation as a force for good in our communities and society at large, and as a thriving organisation that people aspire to join.
Our history
It is worth recording in some detail the history of The Old Stortfordian Lodge and how it came into being. The Non Conformist Grammar School (now called Bishop's Stortford College) was founded in 1868. While much has changed over the last century the ethos of the school remains very much the same. However, when the school opened over 150 years ago there were just 100 boys – today there are around 1,200 pupils and the College is now fully co-educational, with pupils attending from 3 to 18 years of age.
How did the OS Lodge start?
In 1937 a handful of masters at the school, largely through the efforts of C S Colman, were already members of Stortford Lodge No 409, and had the vision to for this, the Old Stortfordian Lodge. Their aim was to establish a Lodge primarily for those with some association with the College, and meetings were held on Saturdays so as not to 'interfere with a man's employment'. The Lodge was consecrated on 26th April 1938 by the Provincial Grand Master of Hertfordshire, Admiral Sir Lionel Halsey. On that evening 77 masons dined together and collected £5 3s 6d for charity. The first Master was Dr Grantly Dick-Read, a renowned obstetrician and a leading advocate of natural childbirth, publishing his first book, Natural Childbirth in 1933. Dr Dick-Read set up a private clinic at 25 Harley Street in 1934. The first Secretary of the Lodge was H Stanley Tee. [Tees, the solicitors in BS are known to many, H Stanley Tee was the founder of the firm, and in September 2021 a great-grandson of his has become the fourth generation of the family to join the firm.]
The consecration meeting was held in the school Memorial Hall – which now features on the Lodge banner. It is fitting to have the Memorial Hall depicted on our banner as it was built in memory of those Stortfordians, Masters and Pupils, who lost their lives in WW1. Their names, added to which are those who lost their lives in WW2, are carved in tablets of stone on either side of the impressive entrance doors. The carving on the doors holds a significant place in Freemasonry, for the depiction of a pelican, apparently drawing blood by pecking its own breast to feed its chicks is said to be a symbolic one.
In the community
The Lodge endeavours to be involved with the local community. As with all Freemasons charity is the basis of our foundation, and much will be learned as a young mason progresses through the Craft. Freemasons are one of the biggest charitable givers in the country and support charities ranging from disaster relief to medical research. Rest assured no giving is required beyond what an individual feels he can afford.
Testimonials
Every member of this Lodge has their own and sometimes very personal reasons for being thankful that they are a member and it would be churlish to only select a few! Testimonials come from within .
Other info
By joining The Old Stortfordian Lodge a new member will be welcomed into an historic Lodge where he will be able to live and develop his masonic life according to the four core values of integrity, respect, friendship, and charity:
a) Integrity through advancement in masonic practice.
b) Respect through supporting, and from the support of, the Brethren in the Lodge.
c) Friendships with other members across the Province that can be lifelong.
d) Making Charity happen rather than merely supporting it financially.
Contact details
Stephen C. Appelman – Lodge Secretary
scatali@aol.com