Freemasons' Hall, Chennai
Freemasons' Hall, Chennai is a Masonic meeting place and the headquarters of the District Grand Lodge of Madras, at Ethiraj Salai in Egmore, Chennai, India. The site borders the Cooum River.[1] The present hall opened in February 1925, following the laying of its foundation stone in 1923.[2]
From Mount Road to Egmore
The hall followed several earlier meeting places in Madras. In 1905, the District Grand Lodge acquired the Mount Road property of the Lodge of Perfect Unanimity for use as shared premises. The building was enlarged but eventually judged inadequate. Its sale financed the purchase of the Egmore site in April 1917.[1]
Members initially used the adjoining Chesney Hall. A temporary Masonic hall designed by J. W. Madeley was built on the new site in 1919; it later served as an auditorium, with District Grand Lodge offices and a library in the adjoining space.[2]
Construction and architecture
Lord Willingdon, Governor of Madras, laid the foundation stone on 26 February 1923.[1] H. W. Barker of Jackson and Barker designed the permanent hall. Contributions from lodges and individual donors, together with a loan from Madras Masonic Institutions, helped meet the construction costs. Lord Goschen opened the completed building in 1925.[2]
The hall uses a neoclassical design, with a columned portico on its south side sheltering arrivals from rain. The two-storey building includes meeting and dining accommodation. A stone staircase with a wrought-iron handrail connects the floors.[3] In 1986, a smaller dining room was converted into a third lodge room with funding from the Lodge of Perfect Unanimity.[2]
Materials, furnishings and memorials
The construction made extensive use of local suppliers. Sriram V's centenary history identifies Sholinghur stone in the staircase, a handrail made by the Crompton Engineering Company, marble from Lakshmi Ratans Limited and furniture supplied by Spencer & Co. P. Orr & Sons provided bronze grilles and commemorative tablets. Italian tiles for the verandah and some door and window fittings were among the exceptions to local sourcing.[2]
The two original lodge rooms were furnished differently. The larger room received newly made rosewood furniture, while the smaller reused restored woodwork from the former Mount Road hall. Rosewood was also used for the doors. These reused pieces connected the new premises with the lodges' earlier meeting place.[2]
At the opening in February 1925, Lady Goschen unveiled a tablet commemorating Freemasons who had died in the First World War. Other tablets in the stairway chamber record donors who contributed towards the building.[2]
Collections
The premises house a library and museum. The District Grand Lodge describes holdings of books, periodicals and institutional proceedings, including its own proceedings from 1867 onwards. A reorganisation in 2009–2011 inventoried and classified the library material; fragile volumes are retained for reference use.[4]
The collection also includes Raja Ravi Varma's portrait of Lord Ampthill in Masonic regalia. The District Grand Lodge identifies the main dining hall as the painting's location.[4]
See also
- Masonic architecture
- The Layout of the Craft Lodge
- Masonic museums and libraries
- History of Masonic regalia
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 District Grand Lodge of Madras, Freemasons Hall — Chennai. Accessed 30 September 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 Sriram V, Hundred Years of a Masonic Temple — II, Madras Musings, vol. XXXIV, no. 24, 1–15 April 2025.
- ↑ Sriram V, Freemasons Hall: Hundred Years of a 'Secret' Landmark, 7 March 2025; District Grand Lodge of Madras, Freemasons Hall — Chennai.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 District Grand Lodge of Madras, The Museum & Library. Accessed 30 September 2026.
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