History of Capron Lodge No. (UD))

• Capron No. [UD] (1911): Under Dispensation no Lodge number or charter ever assigned/issued
• Lodge No.: None assigned, charter delayed until 1912 Annual Communication. It seems the Lodge was not chartered. Not found listed or recorded in Proceedings
• Date closed: Under Dispensation in 1910-1911.
• Location of Lodge/where met: Capron in Southampton County

History of Centre Lodge No. 76

Chartered

**Cross Keys in house of Charles B. Nicholson

History of Door to Truth Lodge No. 128 at Barn Tavern (Famer’s Grove) Now Sebrell

*Membership from initial 29 to maximum of 35 members

History of Ivor Lodge No. 291

• Masonic Descendants of Berlin Lodge No. 42 [planning noted in DDGM Report to Grand Lodge in 1878]

The Community Builder Award is a prestigious honor bestowed by Virginia Masonic Lodges upon non-Masons who demonstrate exceptional service to their communities, churches, or government, embodying Masonic principles of service without expecting recognition

Courtland Lodge maintains a renewable scholarship for local young leaders with a Masonic affiliation continuing their education.

Every wonder why our minutes show two dates: the current date (Anno Domini or “In the Year of our Lord”) and another, listed as “A.L.” some 4,000 years greater? So many Brothers overlook this piece of Masonic trivia. As always there may be more than one option lost in the hazy fog of history and tradition:

• Ernest Beha, via the Grand Lodge of Iowa(1), cites A.L. as standing for Anno Lucis, Latin for “In the Year of Light”. Stemming from Genesis 1:3 (“And God said let there be light: and there was light”(2)), the early beginning of the world was generally believed to be 4,000 years before the birth of the Lord.
• Bro. Mendoza3 provides a comprehensive history of the term. His history shows usage as early as 926 AD of “Anno Latomorum” or “In the Year of Stone Cutters”, or “In the Year of Masons”.
• The revered Dr. Albert Mackey(4) also cites Anno Lucis, as a philosophical myth tying the idea of masonic enlightenment to the creation of physical light at the creation of the universe (again a Genesis 1:3 link).
• The Constitution of Masonry, as adopted by the Grand Lodge of Virginia 1791 (5) does not mention the term “A.L.”.

So how to summarize the real meaning. Bro. Mendoza ends his 3,500-word discourse by concluding (rationally) that although the A.L. may have truely been used for “Anno Latomorum”, or “In the year of Masons”; it has been adopted by freemasonry from England in the more speculative version of “In the Year of Light” (Anno Lucis).

For Secretaries and Worshipful Masters dues hold an annual dual-sided promise:

• Resources. The annual swell of the coffers to last throughout the year, often a sigh of relief for Lodge purses getting all too thin, especially from fall,holiday,installation and new officer expenses.
• The Chase. For a very small number of Brothers, the start of a cycle of emails, requests, calls, formal letters, and on rare cases submission for suspension. 

As we approach the new year, I stopped to contemplate dues.  That Freemasonry requires dues on its face is nothing different than any other organization, such as Ruritan, Lions. Rotary Clubs and professional organizations. The responsibility from a member to the organization, to be split between local and national/state organizations. The baseline financial resources to pay the bills and routine operations. Yet, on a higher level there is more to it. 

The following is a list of the District Deputy Grand Masters governing Courtland Lodge No. 85:

Boykins Lodge, No. 287 A.F. & A.M. In Celebration of Its First 50 Years

A brief history of Boykins Lodge No. 287 and masonry in Boykins since 1877.

The Committee for the 50th anniversary celebration:

R. T. Lassiter, Jr & L. F. Draper, Jr.

Attempting to compile a history of fifty years for Boykins Lodge #287 is impossible without going back in history to the beginning of masonry in Boykins. Brethren in 1877 first brought the light of Masonry to Boykins Lodge No. 64 was formed and chartered in that year by men whose names are not only recorded in Masonry, but in the political and religious annuals of our town. To these brethren who ignited the spark of friendship and brotherly love, we give thanks. They were small in number - fourteen brethren in all. Nonetheless, though dim at times, a flame was ignited by them and it continues to burn today. Dues were three dollars per year and degrees were five dollars for entered apprentice, five dollars for fellow craft, and ten dollars for Master Mason degree. On January 25th, 1982, the Masonic Lodge moved into a new lodge hall, located on the corner of Virginia Avenue and Broad Street. This building is known to us in this generation as the apartment house in which Mrs. Susie Beaton lived. There was no report from Lodge #64 to the Grand Lodge from 1892 through 1896, and the charter was surrendered and the new lodge hall was sold. The flame of masonry in Boykins was extinguished for a number of years. From 1896 until dispensation was granted in 1904, there was no lodge in Boykins. Under a new number (287) and with the following station officers: