Celebrating the 150th anniversary of freemasonry in Nanaimo, masons held an open house Saturday at Ashlar Lodge No. 3 on Commercial Street.
The freemasons originally applied for a Nanaimo lodge back in 1865, said Tim Findlay, Ashlar Lodge No. 3’s worshipful master, but the lodge’s charter was delayed until 1867 after the ship carrying the original document sank.
The masons are part of Nanaimo’s history and Findlay even thinks the Harbour City’s layout of streets is influenced by freemasonry. He points to the Nob Hill district in Nanaimo.
“It’s bordered by Albert Street on one side and then Victoria Street on the other … Queen Victoria and Prince Albert were the Royal Family because the royal family have always had a lot of influence within freemasonry coming out of Great Britain and it does in the other countries too. Sweden and France and the royal families were all involved with freemasonry in those various countries,” Findlay said.