Coronado Lodge No.441

How it all Began

They were stonemasons who built castles and cathedrals in England and Scotland. Because of the inherent danger of their work, many stonemasons formed local organizations, called lodges, to take care of sick and injured members as well as the widows and orphans of those who were killed on the job. The masons also used the lodges as places to meet, receive their pay, plan their work, train new apprentices, and socialize.

In 1717, the first Grand Lodge was established in London. Within the next two decades, English Freemasonry spread throughout Europe and eventually made its way to the American colonies. The first lodge organized on American soil appeared in Philadelphia around 1730. By 1733 a Provincial Grand Lodge was organized in Boston. George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, John Hancock, and other founding fathers were among the first Masons in America. Of the 39 men who signed the U.S. Constitution, 13 were Masons.

Past Masters of Coronado Lodge #441

Coronado Lodge has its beginning on March 9, 1913, when 29 masons assembled in the old City Hall, located at the corner of the First Street and Orange Avenue, to establish a Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons in Coronado After preliminary meetings at the old City Hall and at The Coronado Boat House, The Lodge, on October 28, 1913, received a dispensation from the Grand Lodge in San Francisco to meet as a Lodge. On December 8, 1913, Neil E Brown, the first person to receive the Degrees of Masonry, was initiated into the Lodge. Brown resides in San Diego, is active in various San Diego civic and fraternal organizations and still is a member of the lodge.

The lodge received its Charter, October 15, 1914 and was constituted jointly with Blacmer Lodge No. 442 by then the Grand Master Benjamin F, Bledsoe, in the Masonic Temple in San Diego. William N. Darroch, Master in 1930, is the survivor of 30 charter members of the lodge.

First lodge officers were Huber A. Collins, Worshipful Master; Arthur A. Mathewson, Senior Warden; Alfred W. Bush, Junior Warden; Christian W. Harsough, Treasurer; Robert A. Robbins, Secretary; Max J. Taves, Senior Deacon; William D Rodgers, Senior Steward; Clark B. Rude, Junior Deacon; William S. Millen, Junior Steward, and Phillip W. Dill, Tyler.