Golden Rule Lodge #5 / Annual Owl's Head Communication

Golden Rule Lodge No. 5: A Short History...
by Matthew Farfan

Golden Rule Lodge No. 5 (Stanstead, Quebec, Canada) traces its roots back to 1803, when Lively Stone Lodge was founded in Derby Line, Vermont. That lodge, composed of Masons from both sides of the border, met in a building situated half in Canada and half in the United States. During the War of 1812, the Canadian members of Lively Ston

e formed a new lodge in Stanstead, on the Canadian side of the border. Golden Rule Lodge, as it was called, received its first charter from the United Grand Lodge of England in 1813. In 1856, the lodge received a new charter from the Grand Lodge of Canada; in1869, yet another charter was granted, this time from the Grand Lodge of Quebec. Golden Rule Lodge has occupied the same hall for over a century and a half. That hall, financed and built by Masons from both sides of the border, is the oldest functioning lodge building in Quebec. Situated on Dufferin Street in Stanstead, it was built in the Classical Revival style in 1860. Bearing a strong resemblance to a Greek temple, with pilasters, cornices and a pediment suggestive of the architecture of antiquity, the lodge is considered one of the architectural gems of Stanstead. It has undergone little alteration, and in 2009, was designated a heritage site by the Town of Stanstead. The walls on the first floor are covered with photographs of early pioneers and leading citizens from both sides of the border. The more formal second floor is decorated with allegorical paintings pertaining to the teachings of Freemasonry. Golden Rule claims another distinction: it is the only lodge in Quebec permitted to hold an outdoor “communication.” Thanks to an 1857 dispensation from the Grand Lodge of Canada, Golden Rule holds an annual gathering atop the 2,425-foot (739-metre) summit of Owl’s Head Mountain, overlooking Lake Memphremagog. In the over 150 years since this meeting was first held in the open-air lodge room (actually a natural cleft in the rock) at the summit, it has become one of the most popular events on Quebec’s Masonic calendar. It attracts members of the fraternity from around the province, and from elsewhere in Canada, the United States, and further afield. The event, which usually includes the “raising” of a new Master Mason, is a much-anticipated occasion for fraternal exchange. The ceremony takes place rain or shine each June, and is a tradition of which Golden Rule Lodge is extremely proud. Sources:
H. Brainerd, A History of Golden Rule Lodge No. 5 A.F. & A.M; Q.R. from 1906 to 1963, Sherbrooke, QC, 1964. Moore, History of Golden Rule Lodge No. 5, Q.R., A.F. and A.M., 1803-1903, Toronto, 1905.