Ninety-five years ago, the first masonic lodge was built in Plant City. Although a passerby may find Masonic Lodge No. 206 on South Maryland Avenue to be a small, unassuming building, the lodge has a rich history that dates back to the inception of freemasonry in the 1700s.
Just before the American Revolution, 15 black men were made freemasons by a British unit, including the prominent abolitionist Prince Hall. Since then, the Prince Hall-affiliated Masonic Fraternity has grown across the globe. Plant City’s lodge is Prince Hall affiliated.
Robert J. Godfrey Sr., was the Worshipful Master of Plant City’s lodge in 1994 and 1995. Godfrey has been a freemason since 1985. The mission of the nonprofit organization, he said, is to take good men and make them better men.
“It’s an organization that does not go out recruiting,” Godfrey said. “The general public usually does not know that much about masonry. You have to be a member to understand the principles of the organization.”
Although some people may confuse the lodge with a secret society because of its secret grips and passwords, Godfrey said that the lodge is more similar to a college fraternity with a focus on community service.
“Masonry is just a fraternal organization that does things similar to any other fraternity or organizations,” he said. “We are not a secret organization. However, we are an organization with secrets.”
They don’t dissuade new members from joining either. If a member of the public decides that he wants to become a freemason, he is invited to go through the extensive application and interview process.
“We try to get someone that is an outstanding young man,” Godfrey said. “We don’t accept everyone who submits an application.”
After approaching a member of the lodge, a potential member must fill out an application, complete a background check and have some type of religious affiliation. Then he is interviewed by a committee that is composed of three or four members of the lodge.
Based on the interview, the committee will let the lodge know if it recommends the individual to become a candidate for membership. The other members of the lodge then take a vote.
If the vote is found favorable, the applicant must go through a process to become a mason.
The rules of the organization have not changed since its humble start in the 1700s.
“[They] have been carried on over the years,” Godfrey said. “It’s not our duty to question, ‘Why.’ As you join, you find out what masonry is about.”
Masonry has a series of houses with various degrees, the first being the lodge. The lodge, often known as “The Blue House,” accounts for the first through third degrees. Just as students enter higher grades in school, freemasons can enter higher degrees through the Rites of Freemasonry, including the Scottish and York Rite.
The York Rite also has its own houses. After a member in the York Rite serves as the head of all four houses, he is eligible to become a member of Priory, whose members become Knights of the York Cross of Honour.
It’s no easy achievement, and a title that Godfrey proudly holds, as well as the 33rd degree in the Scottish Rite, which is honorary and awarded for years of dedicated service.
In 2001, along with the other members of his lodge, he helped expand masonry in Plant City. Today, he has multiple buildings in the city with his name, including the Robert J. Godfrey York Rite Masonry.
As is standard with the organization, the Plant City lodge is well known throughout the community for its service. Masons mentor kids and give out school supplies. In November, the lodge also gives out food boxes with turkey for Thanksgiving. Members of the organization meet socially for bowling nights, dinners and picnics.
Although members of the fraternity must have some kind of religious affiliation, the lodge does not identify with a particular deity.
“We’re not a church, and we make that very plain,” Godfrey said.
Masonry is also not associated with a political party, although members are encouraged to be registered voters and participate in elections.
In honor of the lodge’s 95 years in Plant City, the City of Plant City Commission presented the lodge with a proclamation at an August Commission meeting. The lodge’s official anniversary is Aug. 11, 2015.
Contact Emily Topper at etopper@plantcityobserver.com
WEBSITE: Lodge No. 206: PlantCityPHA.com