Grand Lodge of Manitoba, Ancient Free (A.F) and Accepted Masons (A.M) was formed in 1875.
It is the governing body of the forty-three Masonic Lodges located throughout Manitoba.
Our Vision
Freemasonry in Manitoba will be the preeminent fraternal organization committed to improving good men through fellowship, leadership and education.
Our Mission
To teach and perpetuate a fraternal way of life of high moral standards through self-improvement, brotherhood, community involvement and benevolence.
Freemasonry in Manitoba
The presence of Freemasonry in the Red River Settlement may be traced back to John Palmer Bourke who arrived with the second group of settlers in the summer of 1813. He had arrived at York Factory the previous year and, because of their late arrival, had been forced to winter-over at that desolate place until the following spring.
He was a survivor of the Seven Oaks Massacre. Following that battle he was arrested by the North West Company on the charge of having participated in the destruction of Fort Gibraltar and taken to Montreal for trial. While there he became a member of Wellington Persevering Lodge No. 20 on the Register of Lower Canada.
He died just a few short years prior to the formation of Northern Light Lodge which took place in the fall of 1864. Among the founding members of this Lodge were John Schultz, who was later to become Lieutenant Governor of the Province of Manitoba, A.G.B.Bannatyne, a prominent merchant, and William Inkster.
The formation of this Lodge was the beginning of organized Freemasonry in the Red River Settlement and, ultimately, in the Prairie provinces of Canada.
Today, the 2,475 members of the Craft meet in the 43 Lodges spread out throughout Manitoba to practice their ancient ritual, study the symbolic meaning and history of the Craft and meet to determine ways or means to improve themselves and contribute to their community.
Some of the better-known public initiatives within Manitoba:
- The Masons Care program – a shuttle service for cancer patients established in Winnipeg and Brandon;
- Canadian Museum Of Human Rights Initiative – Info Here
- The Masonic Foundation of Manitoba Charity – which raises and distributes $50,000 annually to charitable causes;