A LIFE OF PURPOSE
A founder.
A voice for freedom.
An enduring legacy.
Prince Hall helped establish a Masonic tradition rooted in fellowship, education, and the dignity of Black Americans.
A leader in Boston’s African American community, Hall worked for the abolition of slavery, equal rights, and schools for Black children. His commitment to opportunity extended beyond the lodge: brotherhood and public service were part of the same purpose.
Denied admission to established Boston lodges because of race, Hall and fourteen other Black men found a path into Freemasonry through a British military lodge in 1775. Their perseverance laid the foundation for the fraternity that bears his name.
MILESTONES IN THE TRADITION
From a beginning in Boston
to a lasting brotherhood.
- 1775
The first step
On March 6, Prince Hall and fourteen other free Black men were initiated into Freemasonry. They organized African Lodge No. 1 on July 3 of that year.
- 1784
A charter for African Lodge
The Grand Lodge of England granted a charter following their petition. African Lodge became No. 459 in Boston, establishing a foundation for the growth of Black Americans in Freemasonry.
- 1807
A legacy beyond one lifetime
Prince Hall died in 1807. The lodges he helped establish in Boston, Philadelphia, and Providence carried his work forward.
- 1847
His name carried forward
African Grand Lodge adopted the name Prince Hall Grand Lodge in honor of its founder, forty years after his death.
AFRICAN LODGE NO. 459
A charter preserved.
A legacy carried forward.
SAVED FROM THE FIRE · 1869
Devotion that preserved our history.
In 1869 a fire destroyed Massachusetts' Prince Hall Grand Lodge headquarters and a number of its priceless records. The charter in its metal tube was in the Grand Lodge chest. The tube saved the charter from the flames, but the intense heat charred the paper. It was at this time that Grand Master S.T. Kendall crawled into the burning building and in peril of his life, saved the charter from complete destruction. Thus a Grand Master's devotion and heroism further consecrated this parchment to us, and added a further detail to its already interesting history.
FROM THE GRAND LODGE’S COLLECTION
Inside African Lodge No. 459
Aprons & lodge chairs
Gavels
The lodge Bible
The lodge room
Preserving the tradition
A living connection
Photographs from the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Massachusetts. African Lodge No. 459 · official history and collection
OUR CONNECTION
The tradition continues at Bethesda.
Bethesda Lodge No. 168 is Prince Hall Affiliated and operates under the Constitution of the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Texas. Here in Waxahachie, our lodge’s story is part of that wider tradition of fellowship and service.
Explore Bethesda’s historyExplore the history
Learn more through these historical resources.
Library of Congress · Prince Hall Freemasonry Scottish Rite Masonic Museum & Library · Prince Hall