This Toronto Orange Lodge recieved its original warrant in 1841 and it was re-issued in 1844 to William Hopkins who was the lodge master at that time. John Ross Robertson, founder of the 'Toronto Telegram' was initiated into this lodge. Francis H. Medcalf, mayor of Toronto in the 1860's and 1870's and the first Grand Master of the Grand Orange Lodge of Ontario West served as lodge master in 1884 and 1885.

The first certificate of membership of the Orange Mutual Benefit Association, later to become Orange Insurance was taken out by Major James Bennett of Temperance L.O.L. who later served as Grand Master of Ontario West.

Severn Bridge L.O.L. 1144

The first settlers who came to Severn Bridge, Ontario, arrived in 1858. Their unpretentious log shanties were the beginnings of settled Muskoka. It was here that the Orange banner first waved its patriotic colours over Muskoka. Orangemen were subject to the same rigours of pioneer life as everyone else, but they started to get together to share and discuss their common beliefs. These informal meetings were the origin of the first Loyal Orange Lodge in Muskoka.

Eventually an official lodge warrant was procured from the Grand Orange Lodge of British America. That document was issued to Moses McClelland on April 2, 1863, two years before Morrison Township became an organized municipality. The loyal Irish citizenry of the township provided suitable prospects for Orange membership and the lodge enjoyed a long and prosperous existence. The founder, Moses McClelland, later moved to Ryde Township and became its first reeve from 1879-1888. Well known families in the early days of the Severn Bridge lodge were: Robinson [Thomas, George and Moses], Young [William, James, and David], Boyd [John, James, William, Bert and George], and Canning [John Sr. and Howard]. John Canning came to the township in 1859 and later started the first Bible Class ever held in the District of Muskoka. He gave leadership to this Wesleyan Methodist group for 37 years. He died on August 13, 1905.

The lodge at Severn Bridge is remembered as a positive force within the village and one that made a worthwhile contribution to the social and religious life of the community at large. Unfortunately the Orange Hall and its contents [including the original minute books] were consumed by the village fire of 1906 and so most of the early history is gone. The rubble was cleared away and a frame, two-story building took its place. Older residents of Severn Bridge and places nearby fondly recall the socials, dances and St. Patrick's Day plays that were held in the lower auditorium of the hall. It also burned to the ground in 1944. The third Orange Hall was built beside Graham Road and served the lodge until it went dormant in 1958.

North Verulam L.O.L. 1410

This lodge was instituted in 1874, a year that saw John White M.P., as the Grand Master of the Grand Orange Lodge of Ontario East and Mackenzie Bowell M.P., a future Prime Minister of Canada, as the Grand Master of Canada. Dues were set at $1.00 per year and in December of that first year the lodge held its first election of officers with the following results:

Elijah Oliver - master, G. Britton - deputy master, John Moffatt - Recording Secretary, I. Robinson - Treasurer, William Mulligan, James Bolton, John Lyle, Samuel Whyte and William Nelson elected as lodge committeemen.

In July of 1875 as the lodge prepared for its first Orange Parade to be held in Bobcaygeon, the following by-law was adopted: "that anyone getting drunk or disorderly on the 12th of July will be fined - the lodge committee to decide the amount of the fine."

The year 1878 saw members instructed to have nothing to do with the newspaper, 'The Independent', and that the 'Victoria Warden' was to be patronized by Orange members. In 1879 Thomas Turk and Joseph Turk were "expelled for life for being absent on the twelfth." Life was apparently much shorter in those days as the records show that Thomas Turk was reinstated into the lodge in July of the following year.

Building of their own Orange Hall began in 1891 and the hall was dedicated in July of that year with a band from Fenelon Falls providing the music. Membership at the end of that year was reported at 55 members.

In October of 1914 it was noted that Miss Patterson was to have the use of the hall - "no dancing allowed and she leaves the hall the way she gets it." The following year it was decided to lend the lodge goat to the Fenelon Falls lodge. In 1916 a committee wa formed to purchase Christmas gifts for "the boys at the front." The next year the lodge sent "two good boxes and $2.00 to each of our soldier men."

The lodge decided not to parade in 1940 due to the fact that so many Orangemen were overseas in the armed services. This was a difficult time and the lodge failed to meet on a regular basis for the duration of the second World War. In 1952, sixty-one years after the opening of their Orange Hall, hydro was installed. Needless to say there were no further references to expenses for coal oil.

On May 12, 1985, the last regular meeting of North Verulam was held, ending one hundred and eleven years of service to their community, country, the Orange Order and the Protestant faith.

Bond Head L.O.L. 1053

Meetings were held as early as 1845 in Bond Head although the warrant for the lodge as we know it was not issued until 1860. My grandfather Robert Matson transferred from Palgrave lodge to Bond Head in 1925. At one time there were five members of the Matson family that belonged to Bond Head lodge: Robert and his four sons, Ira, Wilmot, Dave and Harry. On the '12th' morning the members always assembled at the Orange Hall and held a meeting and afterwards they would form up and have a parade through the village.

Due to the fact that the Bond Head Orange Hall was bult on the edge of the street a front portion of the hall was on the road allowance. After the members amalgamated with Newton Robinson lodge in 1967 the hall was to be torn down. However due to the efforts of David Chalmers the hall was dismantled and moved to Mr. Chalmers property in Bond Head and erected and totally restored. The hall is now used by the local historical society and other groups in the village.

Robert Matson

Bracebridge L.O.L. 218

This lodge was officially organized on December 2, 1868, but Orangemen had held meetings in the area before this time. There was an Orange Parade in Bracebridge as early as 1866. This view finds support in a special edition of the Bracebridge Gazette, published in 1906. The writer describes the hamlet as it appeared about 1866 including the fact that "crossing the bridge the first building to the right was the Orange Hall...." Whatever the case, L.O.L. 218 is among the oldest functioning community institutions. It ranks with the postal service [1864], education [1866], religion [1861], and the municipality itself [1868].

The first Orange Hall was a real community centre in the pioneer days. Methodists and Anglicans used it for church services, socials and concerts. The hall was a meeting place for school board, municipal council and many other meetings. The inaugral session of the Village of Bracebridge Council met there on January 19, 1875. The first issue of the Muskoka Herald was published on April 11, 1878 in a room at the back of the Orange Hall. The Bracebridge lodge was a bastion of Orange strength and influence in Muskoka. Its members were numerous [since 1882, 525 men have joined; before that the records are incomplete] and noteworthy.

Thomas McMurray the first Reeve of the United Townships of Draper, Macaulay, Stephenson and Ryde, David Edgar Bastedo and George W. Boyer were all associated with newspaper publication. The first District Judge of Muskoka, W.C. Mahaffy [whose tenure of duty ran from 1886 to 1912] and William Lowe, the Inspector of Colonization Roads for Muskoka both became members of L.O.L. 218 in 1911. James Boyer, who was village clerk from 1875 until 1889, began his active Orange career in Bracebridge in 1876, At times, all members of the Macaulay Township Council were Orangemen, many associated with the Bracebridge Lodge.

The lodge could even claim priests among its membership! Walter H. Frith [1915] and Robert H. Loosemore [1936] of the Society of St. John the Evangelist [S.S.J.E.] were active Orangemen. A silk Union Jack and a leather-bound bible are still in use by the lodge, gifts from Father Frith. Captain Cornthwaite of the Salvation Army and Reverend F.L. Brown of the Methodist Church were active in the lodge.

Some of the well known personalities of the town who were members included T.J. and Wilbur Anderson [merchants], Harry Boyer [monument works], George and Frank Crozier [merchants], William R. Fisher [florist], Alfred Hunt [banker], Wilbert Richards [town clerk], William J. and W.W. White [undertakers]. None ever came close to the devotion of James Clark of Macaulay Township. Born on July 12, 1839 in County Tyrone, Ireland he joined the Orange Society on his 17th birthday and never missed a cleebration of the Battle of the Boyne 1932. His obiturary claimed that his record of attendance at Twelfth celebrations was probably unequalled in Ontario.

Clark's life was one of community interest. He was a hunter of big game and founded the Spring Lake Hunt Camp. He was councillor in Macaulay Township for 30 years, postmaster of Monsell for 42 years and laid the cornerstone for the Purbrook Anglican Church and served as Church Warden for many years. Men of professional influence joined the lodge as well. The first medical doctor in town, J.N. Byers was a member, and in the 1890's, Dr. R.N. Topp was a member and held the position of lodge physician. He was paid $55.00 a year to physically examine every candidate for membership.

Gary Dennis

Thunder Bay L.O.L. 1093

This lodge was instituted on March 17, 1891, the original warrant having been transferred from Bruce County to what was then known as the Coundy of Algoma, now the County of Thunder Bay. The first master of the lodge was William Newcombe. When the lodge was first organized Fort William was a small scattered hamlet clinging to the left bank of the Kaministiquia River. It would not be incorporated as a town until the next year, 1892, and as a result the lodge is older by a few months than the town of Fort William itself.

In 1969, Port Arthur L.O.L. 927 amalgamated with Fort William L.O.L. 1093, with the new lodge being named Thunder Bay L.O.L. 1093.

Harcourt T. Johnston, Past Master, 1962-63

Gravenhurst L.O.L. 1301

The Orange Lodge at Gravenhurst was the first one instituted by the new Muskoka County Orange Lodge. The warrant was issued to Joseph Brock on October 23, 1869. He owned a good portion of Gravenhurst and it seems that he gave a site for the building of an Orange Hall which was built in 1877. The hall became a convenient meeting place for many groups. Records reveal that the Sons of England, Dover Lodge No. 72 was meeting there by 1889 and continued to meet there until they closed in 1925. The Orange Hall was rented to the Sons of Temperance [1879], the Ancient Order of United Workmen [1879], and the Canadian Order of Foresters [1896.

In 1898 the Reverend Charles E. Perry made application to rent the hall to enable him to organize a Loyal True Blue Lodge. Although the True Blues had separate men's and women's lodges, they also allowed mixed lodges. This bothered the Gravenhurst Orangemen so they granted the Reverend's request "to organize a lady's True Blue Lodge but will not allow a mixed lodge"!! The Orangemen of Gravenhurst got along well with the town although there were a couple of times when things got a little rocky. In 1890 the lodge had gone to Orillia for the Twelfth and for some reason the editor of the 'Gravenhurst Banner' chose to make some negative comments about Orangemen. The lodge members met and passed a motion ruling that "all who are not subscribers to the Gravenhurst Banner refuse to have anything to do with it while the present editor has charge of it."

The problem with the Gravenhurst Band lasted a little longer. A motion was passed on June 26, 1901 saying "that this lodge never have anything more to do with the Gravenhurst Band." And "never" lasted for three whole years! The lodge attended the Twelfth in Huntsville in 1915. Even though Canada was at war and many of the lodge members were in khaki, the Orangemen opened lodge on the morning of July 12, and then proceeded with their goat and banner boys to board the special train bound for Huntsville. Although the crowd of 6000 that gathered was considered smaller than usual the celebration was thoroughly enjoyed. The twenty lodges paraded to the park where Orange Manyor H.E. Rice welcomed the Orange supporters. William Wright M.P. and Reverend W.L.L. Lawrence [member of 1301] were the programme speakers. The first clergyman to be initiated into L.O.L. 1301 was Rev. Enos Langford [Methodist] whose family was well known in Macaulay Township. His $4.00 fees were "refunded as acknowledgement of his profession". He joined the lodge on March 17, 1877.

At one point, 1916, the ministers of the four main Protestant churches in Gravenhurst were Orangemen: Rev. J.B. Lindsell - Anglican; Rev. A.A. Smith - Presbyterian; Rev. A.H. Brace - Baptist; Rev. W.L.L. Lawrence - Methodist. Lawrence later went on to become the Grand Master of the GOL of Ontario West in 1926. Goats, the Gravenhurst Orangemen could handle, horses were another story. For the Twelfth parade in 1880, the lodge borrowed the Anglican minister's horse. Things didn't go well for the minute book records "the Master stated that he had received $11.25 from Bracebridge to help aid in replacing the horse which was killed on the 12th. day of July, the property of Rev. Mr. Lloyd". Immediately the Master himself contributed $4.00 to the cause and the members followed suit with donations of various amounts until they were able to outdo Bracebridge by 75 cents. It doesn't say if horses were available in Gravenhurst for $23.25 in those days, but we'll assume they were. At least three members of L.O.L. 1301 became mayors of Gravenhurst: J.D. Vanstone, Alfred Ditchburn and John S. Gibson.

Gary Dennis