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It would appear that the Eldon Lodge No. 1755 first saw the light of day on the petition of one W.Bro.Robert Compton, Past
Master of Royal Clarence Lodge No.68 in the Province of Bristol, and other
brethren residing in Portishead. The town being in Somerset it was necessary to
obtain support from that Province and this was duly provided by a recommendation
from St.Kew Lodge No.1222 at the request of W.Bro.V.H.Scott, (on behalf of
W.Bro.Compton), a member of that lodge and a Past Master of the Colston Lodge
No.610, Bristol.
The senior Founder was one W.Bro.Charles
Fisher, an interesting personality, nephew and heir to W.Bro.John Fisher, a
wealthy Bristol wine merchant. Charles carried on the wine business and built
Eldon Villa, described as a beautiful residence with a fine garden and
picturesque tower. From this tower in ignorance and mistaken loyalty he flew the
White Ensign until an irate captain in the Royal Navy called upon him and
ordered him to take it down without a moment's delay!! Charles is reputed to
have befriended Prince Louis Napoleon, later to become Emperor Napoleon III of
France, and to have lent him money. Be that as it may, the Emperor gave Charles
a portrait of himself which was hung on the grand staircase of Eldon Villa.
W.Bro.Charles financed the founding of the Lodge and as a compliment to him it
was agreed that the Lodge should take its title from the name of his home.
Subsequently he was elected as the first treasurer of the Lodge.
The Consecration of the Lodge took place at
the Royal Hotel, Portishead on September 3rd, 1878. The first regular meeting of
the Eldon Lodge took place on the 14th September, 1878, the second Saturday of
the month and our meetings are still held on that particular day of the month.
Eldon Lodge continued to meet at the Royal
Hotel until 1911 when the Lodge entered into an agreement with the Great Western
Railway to lease the Pier Station, now no longer in use, for the sum of £30 per
annum and also to be responsible for any repairs or alterations. However, in
June 1933, due to the foresight of some of the members, the premises were
purchased outright for the sum of £800. Here, with the exceptions described
hereunder, the brethren continued to meet until May 2004, when, due to a
combination of local development, the lack of adequate parking facilities and
problems with local utilities, the brethren reluctantly agreed to vacate the
premises and transfer to the Masonic Hall, Clevedon, until such time as a
suitable new building becomes available in Portishead.
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The exceptions mentioned above concerned the War years 1939-1945
when the exigencies of brethren being in the armed forces or on other war work,
petrol rationing and transport problems, blackout restrictions and catering
difficulties necessitated alterations in the arrangements for meetings. In 1939
and 1940 some meetings were cancelled while the Installation of W.Bro. E.C.
Harvey in 1940 was held, by dispensation and by the courtesy of the Vale of
Brislington Lodge No.1296, at the White Hart Hotel, Brislington. From 13th June,
1942 until 9th June, 1945, when a return was made to Portishead, the Lodge met
at the Albert Hall, Dowry Square, Hotwells, Bristol by dispensation from the
Provincial Grand Masters of Bristol and Somerset with W.Bro G.E. Denman actually
being installed in 1944 at the Victoria Rooms, Bristol, again by dispensation.
It is reported that in those days the festive board consisted of weak tea and
biscuits!!
Eldon has always been considered 'a maritime lodge', having had among its
members many master mariners, pilots and boatmen. Indeed such brethren are still
numbered among the members, even if some of them are now retired. It has been
reported that some skippers, passing the Lodge either inbound to the docks or
making their way seaward, and knowing that the Lodge was meeting, would give
three blasts on the siren. An outward sign of this relationship in the Lodge is
the display of the White and Red ensigns on the dining table in front of the
Worshipful Master at the festive board.
One such member worthy of note was W.Bro.T.G.H.Hunt who completed
50 years in Masonry in our Centenary year. W.Bro. Tom was a Master Mariner who,
in his career, had spent time 'before the mast' under sail. He was a real
'character' and would entertain the brethren with tales of his experiences, more
often than not, out East. He 'got the book out' whenever he could on his
voyages, very often while 'hove to' in Lady Bay awaiting tide and pilot. He put
off taking office until he retired at 65 and eventually became an exemplary
Worshipful Master. The Lodge, of course, not only had connections with the sea
through its members but also through both of its Portishead locations, the Royal
Hotel and the old Pier railway station, both of which were within a cable's
length of the shore, albeit in the opposite direction to the shifting sands of
the sea. There was a disadvantage in this however in the days before accurate
radar and pollution control when dense fog would sometimes descend on Lodge and
sea and the local fog-horn would come into operation. While not completely
drowning the words of the participants in the Lodge it was enough to disrupt
proceedings more than a little, particularly when the first blast occurred
unexpectedly. The maritime connection is important to Eldon Lodge and it is to
be hoped that it will not be long before the Lodge is once more situated close
to the sea.
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A proposal was made by the brethren in 1905 to form a Royal Arch Chapter at
Portishead but it was another 4 years and more before Eldon Chapter was
eventually consecrated on 16 April, 1910. In September, 1921, the brethren of
Eldon Lodge took the first steps toward forming a new lodge at Portishead
leading to the consecration on 27 May, 1922, of our first daughter lodge, the
Severn Lodge No.4399. In 1924 the Warrant of Eldon Mark Lodge No.807 was issued,
the Founders being mostly Eldon and Severn brethren who were members of the
Lyegrove Mark Lodge No. 218 or Canynge Mark Lodge T.I.. In 1946, under the
sponsorship of Eldon, our second daughter lodge, the Gordano Lodge was
consecrated on 5 October and our third daughter lodge, the Olympian Lodge
No.9703 on 8 January, 2000.
Over the years many fraternal visits have been made and received
by a variety of lodges but the only regular and reciprocal ones still going
strong are those with St.Alphege Lodge No.4095 in Bath. Their first recorded
visit to Portishead was on 11 July, 1925, and long may they continue.
Like a number of other lodges Eldon Lodge does not adhere rigidly
to Emulation Working. Many of the differences, albeit slight, originated many
years ago and have been passed on by word of mouth from generation to
generation. However, at rehearsals differences of opinion were sometimes aired
so it was decided, eventually, to commit an agreed version to print with the
result that in 1999 "Eldon Practice in Emulation Working" rolled off the press.
A unique piece of ritual included in this booklet is the description of the
Eldon Cable-Tow which had its origins in Royal Navy tradition. It was brought to
Eldon by a joining member of the Lodge, Bro.R.Derrick, a one-time serving
officer in the RN, whose Royal Marine Lodge regularly used it in their
ceremonies. This description is delivered to every candidate once he has been
raised, using as an example such a cable-tow fashioned by Bro.Derrick himself
and presented to the Lodge. A copy of the Eldon Practice booklet is presented to
every new member. It is much cherished in the Lodge, great care being taken to
see that it is adhered to.
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