If Things Don’t Change, Do They Remain The Same?

Clifton Lodge No. 703 marked its 150^th  anniversary on 2 October 2007 with a special celebratory meeting at The Masonic Hall in Blackpool, with the Provincial Grand Master as the principal guest. It is the oldest Lodge in the Fylde.

The theme of the commemorative booklet written by Ian Robertson, the Blackpool Group Chairman and a Past Master of Clifton Lodge, was based on a quotation from Aldous Huxley ““The charm of history and its enigmatic lesson consist in the fact that, from age to age, nothing changes and yet everything is completely different.” 

The world in which the men of 1857 lived was clearly remarkably different to the world of today. But perhaps surprisingly some things were the same.  The people of Blackpool in 1857 were really no different to the people today. They had the same hopes, fears and aspirations as we in the present age. So much has changed, yet so much has not changed.  It was exactly like present-day Britain, and yet utterly different. In some respects, the preoccupations, problems and aspirations of the mid-Victorians seem the same as ours. They too were fighting dubious wars in far-off places – the Crimea, India, China. They too were a society riddled with drugs problems, though their choice was opium, freely available.  Britain was getting richer and richer, house prices were soaring, prisons were full to bursting, celebrity gossip was rife and we were at war in Afghanistan.

An article appeared in the Blackpool Gazette on 2 October and in it Clifton Lodge has thrown down the gauntlet by claiming to being the oldest continuously-meeting institution in Blackpool. For example it pre-dates Blackpool Corporation by 20 years and the formation of the Police Force by 30 years.

The Lodge has been raising money for charity for some 8 years in preparation for this event. This culminated in the handing over of a cheque for £5,000 for the 2010 Festival thus enabling the Lodge to achieve Gold Patronage. The Lodge has also agreed to buy for the local Hospice a bookcase and books on bereavement, ensuring local charities are not forgotten.

To further commemorate the event the Lodge acquired some new working tools and these were formally presented and explained by the newer members of the Lodge (see photos).

The “icing on the cake” was the surprise promotion of the Lodge’s organist and most senior Past Master, W Bro Eric Lees to PPrSGW. This was well received by members and visitors alike.