History Of The Airedale Lodge, No. 387,

Lund , William Fox , Abraham Bolton , and others , Do hereby constitute the said brethren s Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons , under the Title or Denomination of No . 814 . THE AIREDALE LODGE , to be opened and held at the Malt Shovel Inn , Baildon , in the West Riding of the County of York , on the Wednesday nearest the Full Moon in each month , empowering them in the said Lodge when duly congregated , to make , pass , and raise Free Masons according to the Ancient Custom of the Craft in all ages and Nations throughout the known WorldAnd

. , fnrthei' , at their said Petition , and of the great trust and confidence reposed in every of the above named Brethren , we do appoint the said Wainman Holmes to be the Master , tho said J ohn Smith to be the Senior Warden , and the said Abraham Hartley to be the Junior Warden for opening and holding the said Lodge , and until such time as another Master shall be regularly elected and enrolled , strictly charging that the Brother who shall be elected to preside over the said Lodge shall be installed in Ancient form and according to the laws of the Grand Lodge , that he may be fully invested with the dignities and powers of his office .

And we do require you , the said Wainman Holmes , to take special care that all and every of the said Brethren are , or have been , regularly made Masons , and that you and they and all other the members of the said Lodge do observe , perform , and enforce tho Laws , Rules , and Orders contained in the Book of Constitutions , and all others which may from time to time be made by our Grand Lodge , or transmitted by us or our Successors , Grand Masters , or by our Deputy Grand Master for the time being . And we do enjoin you to make such By-Laws for the Government of the Lodge as shall to the Majority of the Members appear proper and

necessary , the same not being contrary to or inconsistent with the General Laws and Regulations of the Craft , and a Copy whereof you are to transmit to us . And we do require you to cause all such By-Laws and Regulations and an Account of the Proceedings in your Lodge to be entered in a Book to be kept for that purpose . And you are in no wise to omit to send to us or our successors , Grand Masters , or to the Right Honourable Lawrence Lord Dundas , our Deputy Grand Master , or to the Deputy Grand Master for the time being , at least once in every yeara list of the Members of Lod and the Names and Descriptions of all

, your ge , Masons initiated therein and Brethren who have joined the same , with the Fees and Monies payable thereon . It being our Will and Intention that this onr WARRANT OT CONSTITUTION shall continue in force so long only as you shall conform to the Laws and Regulations of our said Grand Lodge . And you the said Wainman Holmes are further required , as soon as conveniently can be , to send us an Account in Writing of what shall be done by virtue of these Presents .

Given under our hand and the seal of the Grand Lodge , at London , this 12 th Day of March , AX . 5827 , A . D . 1827 . By Command of the M . W . Grand Master , DUKDAS , D . G . M . WILLIAM H . WHITE , ) „ „ EDW . HARPER , j " - ' The two minutes given in the two previous editions of the " History of

the Airedale Lodge " are from the end of the Duke of York Lodge minute book . That dated 11 th April should have been printed 4 th A pril , which circumstance accounts for its being styled Duke of York ' s Lodge , Baildon , No . 814 . Meetings were , no doubt , held on both 4 th and 18 th April , and the first is probabl y that referred to by Bro . Wainman Holmes in his " Reminiscences" as held in March , 1827 ; but neither of these meetings

appear to have been considered regular , and were not entered in the Airedale Lodge minute book . Having obtained access to this minute book it is undesirable , I think , to accept the two minutes differentl y to what the Brethren did , and they are therefore now excluded as irregular . Our founders wished to retain the old name , Duke of York ' s Lodge , and applied to the G . Secretary with that intention . However , the proper course

of paying up the arrears seems to have been objected to or overlooked , and they were informed that , the Dul-e of York having recently died , they could not be allowed to use it ; and although this might be somewhat disappointing at the time , my own feeling is that the forfeited warrants of lodges in arrears ought not , under any circumstances , to be allowed to pass into other hands . Although a few meetings at Bingley and-making proper returns would

undoubtedly have preserved both the name and warrant , I think the subterfuge ( for the Lodge deserved erasure if for nothing more than its lifelessness ) was wisely never entertained . Probabl y , also , the indifference of the few members remaining rendered such a course most difficult , for if they did not care to