Author archive
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Meet the Nzilani Glass Conservation in Oakland, the artists behind the cover image of the Prince Hall, Then and Now issue of California Freemason magazine.

A spate of new Masonic lodges have gone up across the state in recent years. What they are building is reshaping the landscape of California Masonry.

At La France No. 885, a longstanding legacy of French Freemasonry in California is being carried into the future.

From the Eastern Star to the Prince Hall Shrine, exploring the many appendant bodies of Prince Hall Masonry in California.

Celebrating the best and brightest of Freemasonry in California.

Dennis Caoile and Henry Dosdorian, the 2024 Masons of the Year, demonstrate that the common denominator of Freemasonry is service to others.

In a capstone to a remarkable life and career in Freemasonry, R. Stephen Doan is the 2024 Recipient of the Grand Master’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

For 175 Years, the Grand Lodge of California has left its mark on the state.

Since its founding in 1850, California Masonry has had a profound influence on the state we call home.

The Masonic ritual is an elaborate production seen by only a select few. And yet Masons are committed to putting on the best show possible.

Go behind the scenes at a performance of The Spirit of Hiram, a Masonic play put on by the Pasadena Scottish Rite.

The Masonic ritual is deeply emotional, says theater scholar Pannill Camp. Why? Because, as in theater, that’s what the audience wants.

In music and in Masonry, Chay Wright owes his life’s passions to his grandfather.

John Gaddis, a past master of Long Beach No. 327 and technical director of South Coast Repertory, brings the theater to life.

In film and TV, Erwin Stone has played all kinds of characters. Perhaps none is more important than the one he assumes in lodge.

In Berkeley, a new group is reviving an old-school idea.

Mapping San Francisco’s historic—and current—Masonic meeting places.

Four San Francisco Masonic landmarks of yesteryear get a new lease on life.

Hiding in plain sight on one of the city’s busiest blocks, the Mission Masonic Temple is a living link to the area’s wild and wooly past.

The Prince Hall Apartments, built by the fraternal order during San Francisco’s urban renewal, are a testament to the city’s black history.

At San Francisco No. 120, a crew of streetcar workers are making theirs the “Muni Lodge.”

Throughout San Francisco, street names share subtle reminders of a fraternal past.

Masonic remains from the 1906 earthquake recall San Francisco’s darkest days—and its rebirth.

With his Jazz Age flair, architect Timothy Pflueger brought his signature style to San Francisco’s skyline.

Researchers hope to uncover local history within the small Gold Rush-era Jamestown Masonic Cemetery.

In the San Gabriel Valley, San Dimas Masonic Lodge No. 428 is tackling food insecurity for military families.

From Beirut to the San Gabriel Valley, Seb Badoyan has made a point of giving back to others.

In Sonora, a historic lodge gets a facelift—and a new call group to call it home.

The International Conference on Freemasonry shines a light on some strange fraternal pop cultural phenomena—including lodge goats!

As the Los Angeles fires upended countless lives, California Masons rallied into action to offer Masonic relief, supplies, and support.

Groups like the Masons offer a way to strengthen community, combat loneliness, fight polarization, and maybe even save democracy.

The new documentary Join or Die revisits a seminal text of contemporary social theory—and makes a powerful case for connection.

The Masonic funeral rite unites Masons and their loved ones in a shared community of symbolism and fraternity.

What do 100-year-old Masonic banquet menus tell us about the cultural—and epicurean—history of the fraternity?

In Paradise, Table Mountain No. 124 is helping a community move forward.

Grand Lodge’s New Lodge Development team gives a sneak preview of the areas they’re targeting for growth.