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| SEYMOUR FREEMASONS LODGE 87 |
| United Grand Lodge of Victoria |
| ANZAC Avenue, Seymour, Victoria, Australia |
| SEYMOUR FREEMASONS LODGE 87 |
| United Grand Lodge of Victoria |
| ANZAC Avenue, Seymour, Victoria, Australia |
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| Home | Membership | About Us | Lodge of Instruction | Seymour Links | Contact Us | Masonic Lodge Listings |
| Copyright 2012 |
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| SEYMOUR COMMEMORATES: |
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| HISTORY |
| HISTORY |
| Above: Seymour's Royal Hotel in Emily Street is the original home to Freemasonry in Seymour. The image shows the hotel as it was in the 1880's. |
| Above: Being located on the main Melbourne to Sydney line, Seymour's early development centred on her important role as a major railway junction and epicentre. Many early Freemasons in Seymour were Victorian Railways employees. |
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| Origins: Seymour Lodge No 87 had its origins at a meeting of Freemasons that was held in the ball room of the Royal Hotel, Seymour on 28 March 1883. Those present at that historic inaugural meeting were: |
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| - J.H. Wright - C.H. Bayler - R. Whitechurch - A. Guild (Proprietor of the Royal Hotel) - J. Brown |
| - Dr. W.J.R. Ray - R.G. Fuller - R. Whitechurch - F.T. Key |
| The meeting carried a motion that a Lodge be formed in Seymour under the English Constitution. A further meeting was re-convened on 15 May 1883 when motions were raised to raise a petition to be signed and forwarded to the District Grand Lodge of Victoria for a Warrant of Dispensation to the Grand Lodge of England for a Warrant of Constitution for the raising of a Seymour Lodge. A meeting constituting the Seymour Lodge No 2044 (English Constitution), installing the Master and investing the Wardens was held on Thursday 21 June 1883. |
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| Brother Robert Good Fuller was installed as the first Master and Brothers John Wilson Wright and Fredrick William Baines were installed as the Senior and Junior Wardens respectively. There were 50 brethren present at the initial Installation and Dedication. At the completion of the installation a banquet was held at the Royal hotel. Assistant Officers were not invested until a meeting on 16 August 1883. |
| On 20 March 1889 the four Constitutions comprising 149 lodges across Victoria united forming the United Grand Lodge of Victoria. Seymour was initially numbered Lodge 90 under the new constitution on 9 May 1889, however the number was changed to Lodge 87 when four lodges failed to join the new constitution. Brother Joseph Norton (a railway employee of Seymour) was the first candidate to be initiated into the Seymour Lodge No. 87 on the 23 October 1890. Brother A. Guild (A foundation member and owner of the Royal Hotel) passed away within three months of the lodge being founded but his widow allowed the Lodge to continue meeting at the Royal Hotel. |
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| MILITARY INFLUENCE |
| MILITARY INFLUENCE |
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| The Australian Army has been an important part of the fabric of the Seymour region for 100 years. The Puckapunyal Army base is today the headquarters and home of combat training for the Australian Army. The Seymour Lodge has had many Army members over the years. The Seymour Lodge has also hosted and conferred degrees for international personnel whilst on long term exchange or posting to Australia. |
| SEYMOUR LODGE SONG |
| SEYMOUR LODGE SONG |
| Sung to the tune of the Aeroplane Jelly jingle. A very popular Australian commercial song released in 1935 still remains popular today. |
| The song was reworded by Wor Bro Alan Gibbs and Ken Sheppard of the Seymour Lodge 945 NSW and was adopted by its sister lodge Seymour 87 of Victoria in the 1980's. |
| Why the tune of the Aeroplane Jelly Song? For two reasons really. Firstly, long before Australia had a national anthem or national songs it's citizens often sung popular folk songs and jingles. Along with Waltzing Matilda and other popular bush ballads, Aeroplane Jelly was a song that all Australians knew. The second reason is that Aeroplane Jelly was invented and marketed by a Freemason Bro Adophus Appleroth. |
| THE WORDS There's always a welcome at Seymour As soon as you step in the door From the country, the city The Mountains and plains In Seymour you're welcome Again and again Have a plate, and a glass, and a laugh and a song You can give us a speech Though it need not be long There's always a welcome at Seymour Come back and see more of Seymour |
| THE WORDS |
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| The 125th Anniversary Badge |
| The 125th Anniversary Badge |
| The 125th Anniversary Badge was designed by Bro C.A. Crout to commemorate the 125th Anniversary of the Seymour Lodge in 2008. The badge depicts all major elements of Seymour. The centre depicts the dark blue of the Goulburn River that fringes the township. The green centre represents the rich farmland whilst the lighter blue depicts the Tallarook Ranges that dominate the township. This is encircled by a railway line with the broken line road at the foot representing the Hume Highway (Linking Melbourne and Sydney) The phoenix in the bottom centre is the old town emblem of Seymour, while the boomerang symbolises Seymour 87 as an Australian Lodge. |
| Seymour continued to meet at the Royal Hotel rent free for a further five years and agreed to meet there after paying an annual rental fee of 5 pounds. In 1902 the Seymour Telegraph announced that the Seymour Lodge was "Moving out of Town". In those days there apparently wasn't very much built on the Southern side of the Railway Station. A site was bought by the lodge on Trawool Road (Now ANZAC Avenue), Seymour East on 23 January 1902. The new lodge was built in 1902 for the sum of three hundred pounds (including the land). The building was officially dedicated by R Wor Bro Dr. Balls-Headley D.G.M and Grand Lodge Officers on 30 June 1904. The present main lodge room and ante-room was built to the North in 1925 at a cost of one thousand, three hundred and eighty-three pounds and was dedicated by M Wor Bro W.P. Bice Grand Master and the Grand Lodge officers on 20 August 1926. |
| The Present Day Lodge Building: |
| The Seymour Lodge has an excellent array of furnishings featuring rare hard woods. Furnishings play an important role in Masonic ceremony and some items of furniture in use in Seymour have interesting stories. The timber columns were purchased for twelve pounds in August 1883, and the rough and perfect ashlers were presented in October 1895 by Bro K. Watson who carved and polished them fom Trawool granite with his own hands. In June 1902 Brother Tipple presented the Lodge with a a perfect ashler complete, and in October 1905 Brother A.G. Campbell presented the Lodge with a Gavel made from a piece of the original old warship HMS Nelson. In May 1909 Bro Greenwood presented a Director of Ceremonies Truncheon. Numerous other items have been presented over the years including the door knocker (still in use) from Wor Bro Percy Holmes and more recently an electric organ from Bro Ralph Uren. Within 12 months of the Lodge being established efforts were made to start a Lodge of Instruction but nothing came of this or other subsequent efforts until 10 August 1922 when Grand Lodge issued a licence for a Lodge of Instruction. This has proved invaluable to the Lodge ever since and remains active to this day. |
| Furnishings: |
| The Victorian Railways and the Australian Army have had major influences in the development of Seymour, and this has been reflected in lodge membership. The number of railway workers who have been installed as Masters evidences the fact that Railway personnel were able to stay in the area much longer than Army personnel. The Army influences were first noted in 1916, and from then until the end of the First World War as many as two emergency meetings were held nearly every month. Attendance books show that the Lodge hosted many servicemen from interstate during the Second World War and from 1942 U.S. servicemen were among the many regular visitors. The Seymour Lodge did in fact confer degrees for United States Lodges and still carries this tradition today for UK and other international visitors and military exchange personnel. Seymour lodge has actively encouraged the expansion and development of Freemasonry in Victoria and universally, and has from its very beginning maintained close fraternal contact with lodges and Masons around the world. Our association with our Sister Lodge, Lodge Seymour 945 in Sydney NSW commenced in 1961 and continues to this day with 2 reciprocal visits each year. These are only a few of the highlights and facts of our 128 year history. Our lodge has survived the quiet times as well as the enjoyed the periods of growth and expansion. Today we enter a new age of recruitment to ensure that Seymour is served by motivated and commited people into its future. |
| Membership: |