Bro. Tom Davidson PPGM during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown has been researching the history of our Provincial Grand Lodge with the aim to providing a list of Provincial Grand Masters and Commissions. We should and hope to be in a position to publish these lists shortly. The larger project is researching the development of the PGL of Lanarkshire Middle Ward and its Commissioned Office Bearers from Alexander Drummond appointed in 1738 as the first Provincial Grand Master over fourteen lodges in the Western Country, an area of Scotland covered by the present day Provinces of Argyll and the Isles, Ayrshire, Dunbartonshire, Galloway, Glasgow, Kilwinning, Lanarkshire Middle Ward, Lanarkshire Upper Ward, East Renfrewshire and West Renfrewshire. All of these provinces can therefore claim to arise from a common origin.
Lanarkshire at that time was generally described as Clydesdale and four of the fourteen lodges were located in Clydesdale at Coltness, Hamilton, Lanark and Lesmahagow. Later development saw the wider development of the system of Provincial Grand Lodges and by the beginning of the 19th century Lanarkshire was divided the PGL of Lanarkshire Under Ward (now part of Glasgow) and Lanarkshire Upper Ward which subsequent was further sub-divided in 1816 to create the present day provinces of PGL Lanarkshire Middle Ward and Lanarkshire Upper Ward with the serving Provincial Grand Master staying in the newly named province of Lanarkshire Middle Ward.
The lists of Commissioned Office Bearers from 1816 to 1966 will be compiled by Bro. Tom Davidson and from 1966 up to present compiled from information provided by Bro. William M Craig, PG Secretary.
These lists will be very much a “work in progress” and presently have reached a hiatus due to the lockdown of various library facilities and the current travel restrictions. The Secretaries of the pre-1866 lodges within the province may hold records which contain names of members of Provincial Grand Lodge deputations from before 1866 at special events such as consecrations, dedications etc, when published it is the intention if you have information which can help to fill in some of the gaps you can contact:- Bro. Tom Davidson – Mob. 07913 813383 or e-mail [email protected]
(Hover over and select the Provincial Grand Masters portrait to view details on their commission)
