A notice appeared in the December 3rd, 1881, issue of the Edmonton Bulletin requesting a meeting be held at McDougall hall to organize a Masonic Lodge. There were twenty-two Masons in attendance.
On January 13th, 1882, the Grand Lodge of Manitoba granted dispensation for the formation of a Masonic Lodge to be known as Saskatchewan Lodge and numbered 17 on the register of the Grand Lodge of Manitoba, and so the first Masonic Lodge in western Canada outside the boundaries of Manitoba came into existence.
There were thirteen charter members.
The population of Edmonton at that time was less than 1000.
Saskatchewan Lodge #17 was instituted on February 13th, 1882 and consecrate on April 21st, 1883.
Saskatchewan Lodge held regular meetings and social events which were the social highlights of early Edmonton.
The shifting of the population at that time was not conducive to the growth of a Masonic Lodge, as a result, hard times fell on Saskatchewan #17. They fell behind on their Grand Lodge dues, but later paid them.
A gala ball was held in 1886 and only fifteen Masons were present.
Also in 1886, there were not enough Past Masters to conduct an installation, so the Grand Lodge of Manitoba issued a dispensation to Bro. Donald Ross to confer degrees and transact business for the Lodge until a required number of Past Masters could perform an installation ceremony.
On January 11th, 1888, the secretary of Saskatchewan Lodge #17, a Bro. Francis Wilson wrote the Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of Manitoba. In his letter he wrote that the Worshipful Master and the Officers of Saskatchewan Lodge had decided to return the Charter of the Lodge as they now found it impossible to keep up any longer.
The 1889 proceedings of the Grand Lodge of Manitoba report that Saskatchewan Lodge #17 had voluntarily surrendered its Charter and had returned its records to the Grand Lodge Office. The furniture of the Lodge had been stored subject to the directions of Grand Lodge. After seven uncertain years, the first Masonic Lodge in what was to be the Province of Alberta ceased to exist on February 13th, 1889.
A disastrous fire destroyed the library of the Grand Lodge of Manitoba in Winnipeg on November 14th, 1894, the valuable books and records of Saskatchewan Lodge #17 were forever lost.
In 1892, the railroad came to Edmonton, the economic picture improved drastically, Freemasonry re-emerged.
Ibbetson’s Hall of Edmonton, on July 22nd, 1892, was the setting for a meeting where the Freemasons of Edmonton would consider, again, the possibility of having a Lodge in their town. There were eighteen Freemasons in attendance, seven from the defunct Saskatchewan Lodge plus eleven others. The name “Saskatchewan” did not meet with favour and the name “Edmonton” was selected.
On October 20th, 1892, the Grand Lodge of Manitoba granted dispensation for the formation of Edmonton Lodge, to be numbered 53 on the Grand Register.
Worshipful Bro. C.W. Sutter, formerly of Saskatchewan Lodge #17 was the first Worshipful Master of this new Lodge. The charter for Edmonton #53 was granted on June 16th, 1893, with a membership of thirty four.
The fee for a charter member was $5.00, the initiation fee was $35.00, the yearly dues were $30.00, and an affiliation fee was $5.00.
On September 1st, 1905, Alberta was established as a Province of Canada. A meeting of the eighteen Lodges chartered under the Grand Lodge of Manitoba that still existed within the boundaries of Alberta was held on October 12th, 1905, for the purpose of establishing a Grand Lodge of Alberta. Seventeen of the eighteen Lodges were represented.
Elected as the first Grand Master was Rt. Wor. Bro. George Macdonald.
Edmonton Lodge #53 G.R.M. became Edmonton Lodge #7 G.R.A.
At that time the Grand Lodge of Alberta consisted of three districts with three D.D.G.M.’s.
Saskatchewan Lodge #92 as we now know it was instituted on December 9th, 1915. The first regular meeting was held under dispensation on January 28th, 1916. A charter was issued and the Lodge consecrated on June 1st, 1916.
M.W. Bro. Douglas N. Trook
April 2, 2006
