Edmund Taylor Lodge celebrates its Centenary
 
17th December 2013
 
Edmund Taylor Royal Ark Mariner Lodge No 296 celebrated 100 years of existence in festive fashion in Blackpool putting on a show which rivalled the town’s famed illuminations.
Dep.Grand Master, Richard Wallis, Tony Farrar Commander and Peter Connolly ProvGM.
Worshipful Commander of the lodge, Tony Farrar, welcomed a procession of illustrious guests who included not only ProvGM Peter Connolly but also Deputy Grand Master Richard Wallis, Grand Director of Ceremonies Kessick Jones, Deputy Grand Secretary Angus Hannagan, GMRAC Thomas Jackson, Deputy Provincial Grand Master Keith Beardmore, Assistant Provincial Grand Masters Michael Clarke and Ian Nairn, Special Representative John Forster, Provincial Grand Secretary Geoffrey Lee, Provincial Grand Director of ceremonies David Emmerson and Provincial Grand Chaplain Rev Graham Halsall as well as the Provincial team who, together with the members of the lodge and their guests numbered 111 strong.
Tony Farrar and Peter Connolly share a toast
After the early business of the lodge was ably despatched by Tony and his officers he welcomed Prov GM Peter Connolly who who accepted the Sceptre. Deputy Grand Master Richard Wallis and his entourage were then received to play their part in the celebrations marking the anniversary of the 100 year old lodge.
RW Bro Richard addresses the festive banquet diners
The newly acquired lodge banner was dedicated and the new lodge regalia was blessed by Rev Graham Halsall with all due ceremony during the assembly.
Wally Atcheson appointed to Provincial RAM by the PGM

After the centenary ritual was completed, Peter Connolly the ProvGM rose, asked his Wardens to stand, and then summoned a stunned Wally Atcheson to be brought before him. He then conferred on Wally the great honour of RAM Provincial Grand Rank. The assembled mariners all broke into spontaneous applauds to congratulate Wally, who has been a very hardworking acting officer on the Mark Team this year.

The Deputy PGM and Assistants congratulate Wally
After the assembly was closed and, following the closure of the lodge, brethren retired to continue the centenary celebrations at the festive banquet.
The Deputy Grand Secretary Lt Cdr Angus Hannagan examines the Centenary warrant
Richard tries on the PGM's RAM waistcoat
Resplendent in the PGM's rainbow waistcoat and hoping he won’t be seen in it on the Mark website
Preparations for the centenary event have been ongoing for some seven years. Kevan Beardmore RAMGR instigated a fund to raise money for the celebrations hoping that sufficient funds could be raised to purchase new regalia and a banner which the lodge previously never had.
Delighted Peter with his model Coronation tram
The fund ticked over nicely in the intervening years with Kevan organising all manner of fund raising events until, sadly, just over 12 months ago Kevan was called to higher service. His brother DProvGM Keith Beardmore took over the task and following some exceptional fundraising events in 2013 the lodge not only met but exceeded the target set, beyond all expectations.
Howard Emmett, Scribe of Edmund Taylor, and Provincial Charity Steward
Worshipful Commander Tony Farrar with the new banner
So much so, that as well as being able to purchase all the new regalia and the coveted banner (with the assistance of a very generous donation from one of the members) the lodge together with Fylde Mark lodge was able to make a large donation of almost £4,000 to help towards the refurbishment of the lower lodge room at Adelaide Street Masonic Hall. This amount was also helped by a generous donation of £400 from Bispham with Norbreck Mark Lodge No 866 and a further amount of £1,000 from Provincial Grand Lodge of Mark Master Masons of West Lancashire and St John's Craft Lodge helped with a donation from the Malcolm Newbould legacy, Malcolm had been a member of both St John's Craft and Fylde Mark Lodges. A plaque commemorating that fact that the donation was made in Kevan’s memory is to be affixed to the lower lodge room entrance.
The cheque presentation for £2013 to the MBF 2014 Festival

Thanks to the generosity of members of Edmund Taylor RAM this Charity cheque  for £2013 was presented to the Dep GM . With the addition of a £1 coin from the Dep Pr GM, Keith Beardmore, it came to £2014: a very suitable figure for the MBF Festival in 2014! This is to be held at The Double Tree Hotel, Milton Keynes  on 19th of July 2014 , which the PGM and Exec will attend. The Dep GM accepted with surprise and thanks, with his assurance that it would be forwarded for the Province of  Buckinghamshire's MBF  Festival in 2014. He praised the hard work and generosity of the brethren.

Edmund Taylor RAM Lodge
Research of the lodge’s history was undertaken by Keith Beardmore and lodge DC David Bell. They compiled and produced a booklet tracing the last 100 years of the lodge, which bears the name of one of its founders, Edmund Taylor. This booklet together with a copy of the original 1913 consecration booklet was presented at festive board to everyone attending the centenary meeting.
Cake and port, a real welcome from the Lodge
Another souvenir of the evening’s celebrations given to everyone attending was a desk stand made by one of the lodge’s past Commanders and keen carpenter, John Powell. These beautifully crafted mementoes were made from recycled wood and came from a diverse variety of sources. The stands were constructed from such woods as American white oak, English oak, cedar of Lebanon, mahogany, beech, maple and Asian hardwood - the latter from former display shelves from St Anne’s department store J R Taylor’s!
At festive board following the centenary banquet which included a specially commissioned celebratory cake, which was shared out as part of the dessert course, PrGM Peter Connolly led the presentations first welcoming Deputy Grand Master Richard Wallis and the other eminent Freemasons accompanying him to Blackpool and to the Edmund Taylor Lodge celebrations.
He remarked that with 1,500 Mark lodges and 1,000 RAM lodges meeting on average three times a year he estimated that as Richard received something like 6,500 toasts to his health annually there was no need for him to visit gyms and do sports like everyone else had to do but that it was a delight for him to be able to propose the toast to him in person.
 
Reference was made to the Blackpool illuminations which Richard had hoped to see during his visit but unfortunately the lights were at an end for the season. John Forster improvised by orchestrating the illuminated upper dining room’s Christmas lights in honour of the lodge’s distinguished guest.
 
Peter Connolly, Tony Farrar, DepGM Richard Wallis and GrDC Kessick Jones
Reference was also made to the differences in dialects found throughout the country with Peter, following a tale on the subject, pronouncing that it had been a ‘gradely’ meeting and the brethren were privilaged to honour the toast to RW Bro Richard personally.
 
In response, Richard expressed his delight in having shared in the centenary celebrations saying there was “Nothing quite like a centenary event”. He said he wondered what Edmund Taylor would have thought of the advances in present day technology; some of which would have seemed like science fiction to the lodge’s founding father. But, as with technology, Edmund Taylor Lodge had moved forward keeping pace with the times.
He thanked Peter and the lodge for the kindness shown to him and the grand lodge team and he wished Tony and the lodge and Peter and the Province well for the future.
Once a steward, always a steward! DepPGM Keith Beardmore serves cake
Tony took the opportunity to thank Richard for the sentiments he had expressed and, as a souvenir of the grand lodge team’s visit to Blackpool, he presented Richard and his colleagues with huge sticks of rainbow coloured Blackpool rock and a Lancashire Cheese. The visitors also received the latest version of the Mark tie and pocket square.
 
Richard tried on for size the Prov GM's rainbow striped waistcoat – at which the Deputy Grand Master said he that he hoped that a picture of him wearing it would not appear on Peter’s much vaunted Mark website...!
DepGM forbids us to use this picture!
Peter discovered that, for the part he had played in the evening’s events, he had not been overlooked in the presentation of gifts as Tony presented him with a model Coronation tram to add to his collection.
 

Pictures from the celebratory banquet
Article and Photographs Courtesy of Bob Boal and Giles Berkley