Masonry was introduced into Ontario by Lodge No. 156 of the 8th (King’s) Regiment of the British Army which was stationed at Fort Niagara from 1773 to 1785. Locals who had been initiated into the lodge formed Niagara Lodge No. 2, the oldest lodge in Ontario, in 1792.
In October of 1855, the Grand Lodge of Canada was formed at a meeting in Hamilton and two months later, a number of members of St. John’s Lodge No. 35 met in Corey’s Hotel in Caledonia and decided to open a lodge in Caledonia. The first officers were installed on 21 February 1856 and St. Andrew’s Lodge No. 31 was warranted on 30 July 1856. In 1858, the Grand Lodge of Canada merged with the former Provincial Grand Lodge and St. Andrew’s was renumbered as No. 62.
St. Andrew’s No. 62 is part of Hamilton “B” District of the Grand Lodge of Canada in the Province of Ontario but has applied to move to Brant Masonic District in 2025. The three lodges closest to us; St. John’s No. 35 in Cayuga, Onondaga No. 519 in Onondaga, and Hiram No. 319 in Hagersville, are all in Brant and St. John’s is our mother lodge while Onondaga is our daughter lodge, so the move is logical.
For many years, the lodge met on the third floor of the Opera House, at the north-east corner of Argyle & Caithness. When that building was destroyed by fire on June 18th,1947, the lodge found various locations to meet till 1954 when land on Argyle Street North next to the railroad tracks and in front of the old St. Paul’s Anglican Church cemetery was purchased from the church and a Second World War army hut from Hamilton was purchased and installed on the site. The first meeting in the new hall was held on 13 January 1955 and the hall was dedicated on 23 March 1955.
Hamilton B District https://www.hamiltonmasons.com
Grand Lodge of Canada in the Province of Ontariohttps://ontariomasons.ca/
