Our history 

The Feltmakers Lodge No 3839 was formed by, and for, Freemasons who were also members of the Worshipful Company of Feltmakers. The Lodge was authorised to use the same motto “Decus et Tutamen” as the Livery Company and the hat and glove symbol of the Feltmaking trade. The motto translates as an ornament and a safeguard. It was commonly used on the edges of coins to prevent coin clippers removing valuable metal. You may recall it’s use on the very first decimal £1 coin.

On the 8th January 1918 Sir Louis Newton and others decided that when they were in town for Livery meetings it would be a jolly good time to meet for masonic purposes. By the 25th March 1918 less than 3 months later, and coinciding with a court meeting of the livery, the lodge was being consecrated. Our sponsoring and mother lodge is St Catherine’s Lodge which is allied to the Turners Livery Company.

The consecration meeting was held at Café Monico, near Piccadilly, and Sir Louis Newton was installed as the First Master of the lodge by the then Grand Secretary. The founders included 3 Aldermen and 2 Knights of the realm. The worshipful master qualified as both and was a few years later to become Lord Mayor of London. There were several more aldermen, sheriffs and in Sir Hugh Wontner another Lord Mayor of London to follow in the founders’ footsteps. The sumptuous 7 course menu at the consecration dinner included oysters, turtle soup, curried eggs and poached salmon.

To place the founding of or lodge to some historical context, when the Feltmakers Lodge was consecrated the country was still at war and thousands of men, including freemasons, were losing their lives daily just over the Channel in France and Belgium. Emily Pankhurst and the suffragettes were campaigning for the right for women to vote. These were then potentially radically changing times. Thankfully the Great War would end within the year but over the next 100 years there were changes our founders would not have foreseen. A second World War, the vote being given to women, albeit at first only to those over 30 with independent means and property. 

The lodge met and dined at Café Monico in Shaftesbury Avenue which was replaced by the iconic Neon sign in Piccadilly overlooking the statue of Eros. Later, The Imperial Restaurant in Regent Street and then during the Second World War at lunchtimes at the Frascati Restaurant before moving to The Café Royal in 1948. There followed a move to Butchers Hall in 1977. Subsequently the lodge has moved to the historic premises at Charterhouse and only recently we have enjoying our masonic meetings at the Furniture Makers Hall. For an historic reference of the Lodge records please select here 

The dates of the meetings were originally set around the Court meetings and it was not until 1948 with that move to The Café Royal that the current four meetings in January, April, June and September were adopted.

In the early years it was common practice for the master to receive a solid silver salver after his year in office. Nowadays the Master must settle for a past master’s jewel and the pre-dinner drinks bill!

There have been many occasions to involve the ladies and families with white tables and festivals. A more unusual event was held in 1936 when the master invited all to his Essex home to partake in tea and various sports including using his 9-hole putting green, tennis courts and to do some fishing and bathing. More recent events have included river trips, a day at Henley Regatta, luncheon at The Royal Naval College, Greenwich, the Ceremony of The Keys at the Tower of London but for many the social events were based upon the Livery Company events and in particular The Mansion House banquet.

At the Jubilee meeting in 1968 both the Grand Secretary J. Stubbs and the Grand Chaplain Revd Canon Tydeman were in attendance.

In the past 100 years the lodge has had many different masters with Reg Southall, Hugh Sylvester, John Sylvester, William Horsman, Ian Wellesley-Harding and Eric Shawyer being the 6 members with the honour of being installed in the master’s chair twice. William Horseman was also the master for the Centenary year and the first to be master for a third time.

Of those masters 22 have also been masters of The Worshipful Company of Feltmakers and in our Almoner Nick Heal we have a 23rd   master of the Livery Company waiting to take his place in King Solomon’s chair.

The lodge is no longer restricted to members of the Livery Company but has been extended to members of other Livery Companies of The City of London. The Master of the Lodge is entitled to attend a meeting of any of our Sister City Livery Lodges as an honoured guest. These include our mother lodge St. Catherine’s 3743 and other lodges in our family tree including Needlemaker’s Lodge 4343, Farrier’s Lodge 6305 and Blacksmith’s Lodge 7175 all part of the total 23 Sister City Livery Lodges in existence today 

The Feltmakers Lodge is thought of as very traditional and prides itself on the moral virtues of its members and their good standing in society. It has been honoured by having some very distinguished masons amongst its membership and frequently amongst its visitors all contributing to making this lodge what it is today.

Charity 

Charity is at the heart of any freemason and The Feltmaker’s Lodge is no different. In 1924 it was noted that Sir William Veno had made a most generous donation of £10 to lodge funds. This £10 donation being considered notable it puts into context his earlier personal bequest to cancer research in 1922 of some £10,000.

More recently in 2001 the lodge received a bequest of £100,000 through its’ members connections to the by then closed Wharton Lodge. The lodge has been donating generously from both the capital and interest generated since the Smith-Wharton sum was bequeathed.

Freemasonry is now highlighting its charitable fundraising which exceeds £30,000,000 per annum and its donations to masonic and non-masonic charities makes it year on year one of the largest charitable givers in the country.

Most of our meetings are dedicated to our masonic rituals but when we have time we include a lecture from a member or visiting brother.