The Conception and History of
The Cambrian Provincial Grand Lodge
Chapter One.
The Cambrian Province covers a large area of North Wales from
Porthmadog and Maentwrog in the North to Trawsfynydd in the East, Dolgellau
in the South to Barmouth and Dyffryn Ardudwy on the West Coast, just six Lodges
with many beautifully scenic miles in between. The Minor Lodges of what we now
know as the Cambrian Province were originally divided between the Bangor &
District Provincial Grand Lodge and the North Wales Provincial Grand Lodge.
The Information in the following text was researched and compiled by Bro: John
Skelton R.O.H. P.G. Secretary of the Cambrian Province during his term of office
between 1998 and 2001.
Way back in 1964 there must have been quite a few discontented
Brothers in the region that we now know as the Cambrian Province. Brothers were
getting annoyed at having to travel all the way to Bangor each month to P.G.L.
and Examining Council (a round trip of about 100 miles), at the same time the
Prysor Lodge in Trawsfynydd came under the North Wales Province and had to travel
to Llandudno (a round trip of about 80 miles). It was in the March meeting of
1964 at the Bangor and District P.G.L. that the Harlech Castle Lodge No: 9359
put forward a resolution that would instigate the forming of the Cambrian Province.
That resolution was “ that the P. G. L. is moved to a more central venue
for all the Lodges in the Province “. The resolution was rejected and
as a consequence the Harlech Castle Lodge went on to convene a meeting to discuss
the possibility of forming a new Province. That meeting was held at 8 P.M. on
Wednesday the 8th of April 1964 at the Queens Hotel in Porthmadog and the following
Lodges sent representatives:
The Cader Idris Lodge No: 6443 of Barmouth.
The Cambrian Lodge No: 9380 of Porthmadog.
The Harlech Castle Lodge No: 9359 of Harlech.
The Prysor Lodge No: 9184 of Trawsfynydd.
The St David’s Lodge No: 5479 of Pwllheli.
The Maenofferen Lodge No: 2178 of Blaenau Ffestiniog sent a message expressing
interest and promising support.
During the meeting the St Davids lodge proposed that an application
be made for a new Province to be formed, to be named the Cambrian Province.
It was also decided that the new P.G.L. would meet on the second Thursday of
each month and the area covered by the new Province “be twenty miles from
the P.G.L. meeting place”, which was to be the Queen’s Hotel in
Porthmadog. The seeds were sown though it would be another ten months before
the birth of the Cambrian Province.
On the 24th May 1964 the acting Secretary Bro: W. H. Sawers
C.P. applied to Bangor and District P.G.L. for permission to form a new Province,
naming the five Lodges concerned (the Maenofferen Lodge having withdrawn from
the action). The application was submitted to Grand Lodge and was supported
by Bangor and District P.G.L. together with permission from the North Wales
P.G.L. for the Prysor lodge to proceed. Subsequently the application came before
Grand Lodge in December 1964 and permission was granted
Following the decision of Grand Lodge a meeting was hurriedly
called a week before Christmas, but unfortunately the Queen’s Hotel was
not available so the meeting was held at the Ship and Castle Hotel also in Porthmadog
on Friday the 18th of December 1964. It must have been a happy meeting that
night when it was decided that the new P.G.L. would meet on the second Friday
of each month at 7:30 P.M. and the venue would now be the Ship and Castle. The
meeting went on to elect the first Cambrian Provincial Grand Primo Bro: T. Wyn
Williams of the Cader Idris Lodge. The first Provincial Grand Secretary was
Bro: W. H. Sawers of the Harlech Castle Lodge and the first Provincial Grand
Treasurer was Bro: H. Thomas of the Harlech Castle Lodge.
At this hurried meeting it was decided that the initial expenses
of getting the new P.G.L. up and running would be shared equally by each Minor
Lodge and all Minor Lodges should be prepared to pay the princely sum of five
guineas on demand when considered necessary. It was decided that the opening
night for the new Province would be sometime around the end of January or the
beginning of February 1965 and the opening ceremony would be at the Sportsman
Hotel in Porthmadog. There would be another two meetings before the consecration
of the Cambrian Provincial Grand Lodge; the first of these was held on Friday
the 20th of January 1965 at the Ship and Castle Hotel.
This meeting decided that the date for the consecration would
be Friday the 26th of February 1965 at the Ship and Castle Hotel with the numbers
attending limited to thirty. There would be a social evening immediately after
the ceremony at the Sportsman Hotel, the Bangor and District P.G.L. were invited
along with the North Wales P.G.L. and the Cardigan P.G.L. It was on this night
that the representatives from each Minor Lodge would be sent home requesting
the five guineas as was previously passed and an account was opened in Barclays
Bank in Barmouth.
The next meeting was held on Friday the 19th of February 1965
again at the Ship and Castle Hotel at a cost of 7/6d for the hire of the room.
It was decided at this meeting to order thirteen collars from F. C. Parry at
a price of £3-18/- each, the colour if possible was to be red and green
although eventually being claret and blue. At this meeting the St David’s
lodge promised to donate the cost of three of the collars.
A week later at 7.00 pm on the 26th of February 1965 with 42
Brethren assembled the Consecration Ceremony took place at the Ship and Castle.
The ceremony was carried out by the Grand Primo Bro: C. N. Bennett who was assisted
by the Deputy Grand Primo Bro: A. Simmons and the Grand Secretary Bro: J. W.
Cooper. The Grand Primo then went on to take nominations for the P.G.P. and
P.G.L. Officers and duly installed them. The first Cambrian Provincial Grand
Primo was Bro: T. Wyn Williams K.O.M. of the Cader Idris Lodge. The registration
fee was set on a proposition from Bro: E. W. Edwards at 2/- per meeting on the
second Friday in each month. The Grand Primo then addressed the Brethren present
and welcomed the new P.G.L. The Cambrian Province now consisted of the Harlech
Castle Lodge, the Cader Idris Lodge, the Cambrian Lodge and the St David’s
Lodge, (there had been an irregularity with the application from the Prysor
Lodge to the North Wales P.G.L. to join the new Province). The Grand Primo wished
everyone the very best of success and stated that the Cambrian Province was
the only Province formed in North Wales in fifty years. After the ceremony the
assembled Brethren then moved to the Sportsman Hotel for a social evening, together
with Brethren representing all the Minor Lodges in the area.
At the first meeting of the new P.G.L. on the 12th of March
1965 it was reported that the Grand Lodge Officers had made no charge for expenses
at the opening ceremony and on the evening the raffle had made £13-1s-2d.
The treasurer reported that there was now a fund of £35-16/-, the first
Cambrian Examining Council and Benevolent Committee were formed on this evening
and the Grand Lodge Delegate would be Bro: Edward Cass R.O.H. Incidentally the
first Brother to pass the Cambrian Examining Council was Bro: John Preston R.O.H.
P.G.P. 2003. (Honorary Member).
The Province was only four months old and it looked as if was
going to increase in size, as at the April meeting an application to open a
new lodge in Bala was received and approved. At the next meeting it was decided
that the new Lodge would be called the Llyn Tegid Lodge and would be opened
on the 20th of May 1965 and the sum of five Guineas was donated to the new Lodge’s
funds. At the June meeting with the Province only six months old the Cambrian
Lodge asked permission to move their Lodge from the Ship Inn, to the Ship and
Castle. The Cader Idris Lodge sought permission to move from the Gors-y-Gedol
Hotel to the R.A.O.B. Club in Barmouth. Was this the start of a nomadic existence
for the Cambrian Lodge? At the August meeting permission was given to the Cader
Idris Lodge to move Lodge night from a Tuesday to Wednesday the 25th August,
as a Grand Lodge Officer would be attending to initiate three deaf and dumb
gentlemen. This was such a special occasion that it was decided to make an official
visit from P.G.L.
In 1966 the ‘Mawddach Disaster Fund’ was set up.
The fund had been set up when on the 1st of August 1966, a small ferryboat from
Barmouth had sunk at the Penmaenpool toll bridge by the George III Hotel, eleven
people lost their lives in the tragedy. In the September meeting it was announced
that the Mawddach Disaster Fund was given donations of 100 Guineas from the
Cader Idris Lodge, £10 from the Harlech Castle Lodge and £5 from
the Prysor Lodge. The Province was once again expanding as a new Lodge was opened
(the Mawddach Lodge) in Dolgellau. It was considered that the registration fee
for P.G.L. at 2/- was too expensive and it was decided to lower the fee to One
shilling. The Examining Council was having difficulty in raising funds, so for
a time raffles were held on P.G.L. nights to help rectify this.
In April 1967 following an appeal by the Grand Lodge of Tasmania
a considerable sum of £50 from Minor Lodges and P. G. L was donated to
the “Tasmania fund”
1968 saw the opening of the Cambrian Knight’s Chapter
on the 26th January at Harlech. This was a quiet year although the Mawddach
lodge moved home twice. I noticed an old bone of contention, as there were problems
with the length of time degree jewels were taking to arrive. This must have
been a headache for all concerned as there were so many raisings going on; almost
every P.G.L. meeting had applications for raisings at this time.
It was interesting to see that the P.G.P. was being given £10
a year to assist with expenses incurred when attending raisings. In the March
meeting of 1969 it transpired that the room in the Ship and Castle at Porthmadog
that was used by both the P.G.L. and the Cambrian Lodge was no longer available.
The Queens Hotel in Porthmadog was considered as an alternative venue for P.G.L.
In the end at 10/- a night, the Castle Hotel in Harlech was preferred. The Cambrian
Lodge meanwhile moved to the Queens Hotel, this was almost a short stay as a
serious fire at the Queens in June rendered the Cambrian Lodge homeless. Help
was at hand with several Minor Lodges offering the use of their Lodge rooms,
albeit on a temporary basis. It turned out that things were not as bad as at
first thought as the Cambrian Lodge continued to meet at the Queens Hotel.1969
was the year of the Investiture of the Prince of Wales and to celebrate, the
Province held a dinner at Harlech to which 128 attended, the total cost of the
dinner and entertainment £202-8s-8d. With raisings now being held every
month it was decided that all second-degree raisings should be held on a Friday
night. So, the swinging sixties came to an end. The Cambrian P.G.L. was five
years old and going from strength to strength, what would the seventies hold
in store?
Chapter Two.
With seven Lodges in the Cambrian Province the seventies started
of promisingly enough, though at the first meeting of that decade a familiar
concern raised its head. The use of the ceremonial sword at raisings was thought
by some to be dangerous and the use of a ceremonial baton was considered instead.
P.G.L. decided in its wisdom to look danger squarely in the face and continued
to use the sword.
P.G.L. were certainly taking their responsibilities seriously
as two delegates attended the convention in the Channel Isles and received £50
expenses! The P.G.L. dinner had become an annual event and once more it was
held in Harlech. One item of correspondence from Grand lodge in December gave
new instructions on how to keep the accounts with the changeover to decimal
currency looming, (15th February 1971).
At the first meeting of 1971 the Harlech Castle lodge announced
that they would be increasing their registration fee to 1/6d from the first
of January and then from the 15th February to 8 new pence. The age-old question
of apologies to P.G.L. was raised again and the P.G.P. quoted the relevant rule
to the lodge. With decimalization imminent, the February meeting saw all the
Minor lodges changing their registration fees as follows:-
Cader Idris..................10p
Llyn Tegid...................10p
Prysor........................7½p
St Davids......................8p
Harlech Castle..............8p
Mawddach.................10p
Cambrian....................10p
After six years in existence the Cambrian P.G.L. had a healthy
balance of funds that now stood at £308-8s-1d, the P. G. Treasurer was
still using the old currency! A Brother of the Cader Idris lodge was concerned
that with the onset of decimal currency the increase of fines from 1d to 1p
was far too much and proposed that a motion be made at the next convention to
reduce the amount to ½p! The rest of the year was pretty quiet.
At the January meeting in 1972 it was decided to obtain a wall
plaque on which the names of past P.G.P’s would be displayed. Once again
as in previous years there was an annual dinner, but sadly numbers were dropping,
only 68 attended the function which was held at Trawsfynydd. It must have been
a busy time as every month there were applications for raisings put before P.G.L.
and there were many Nominations to join the Order rejected by lodges, principally
the Cader Idris Lodge.
In 1973 the Cambrian Lodge had got itchy feet and was on the
move again this time to the “Scouts H.Q.” The Quay, Porthmadog.
There was an application for a dispensation for a new Lodge, namely the “Arran
Lodge” in Bala; this was defeated by 15 votes to 13. November bought the
sad news of the death of Bro: Edward Cass R.O.H.
In 1974 the Mawddach Lodge changed their name to the Edward
Cass Lodge in memory of the late Brother Eddie. This year the annual dinner
became a buffet dance with 115 attending. The Cambrian Lodge was on the move
again, this time to the Sportsman Hotel in Porthmadog. In the November meeting
there were five nominations for P.G.P.
1978 was the fiftieth anniversary of the Cader Idris Lodge
and a celebration was held on St Valentine’s Day. On a less happy theme
there was concern about the diminishing numbers attending P.G.L. at some meetings
there were only 19 brethren opening the Lodge and the St Davids Lodge were not
attending P.G.L.? At the same time the Maenofferen Lodge No: 2178 in Blaenau
Ffestiniog applied to join the Province.
There was a bit of a mix up in the election of officers for
1981 as Bro: E. W. Edwards R.O.H. P.P.G.P had questioned the eligibility of
the election of the D.P.G.P, it turned out that the D.P.G.P. had not been eligible
to stand for election (had not held a collar in P.G.L. for twelve months). The
Brother resigned his office and a new D.P.G.P. was elected. It now becomes apparent
that the St Davids lodge was still a part of the Cambrian Province because at
the June meeting they requested to transfer to the Bangor and District Province.
Also at the June meeting Minor Lodges were complaining of the ‘removal’
of Regalia by visiting Lodges! In the July meeting it was agreed to send a congratulatory
card to Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer on the occasion of their marriage.
The Province gave £100 towards the Morfa Mawddach Trail for disabled people.
The Harlech Castle Lodge and the P.G.L. both moved premises, though the minutes
neglect to say where to. In the October meeting a Cambrian Province Newsletter
was handed out by its editor Bro: Clem Holden R.O.H. it was hoped to make this
a monthly publication. The Newsletter was successful for a time but news dried
up and eventually, despite repeated requests for news items the venture folded.
Numbers attending P.G.L. were on the decline once again in particular on the
busiest night of the year, the December meeting only fifteen Brethren were present.
On 4th May 1984 the Province opened another new lodge ‘The Ardudwy Lodge
No: 10376’ at The Cadwgan Hotel, Dyffryn Ardudwy.
In 1991 on St David’s day saw the opening of another
new Lodge in the Cambrian Province. ‘The Groes Lodge No: 10505’
at the Pengwern Arms in Llan Ffestiniog. Later settling at The Oakeley Arms
Hotel, Maentwrog, but with several meeting places in the iterim period.
In 1992 ‘The Harlech Castle Lodge’ were on the
move, to the Royal St Davids Hotel. The Ardudwy Lodge were in the habit of holding
their Raisings on a Lodge night and with four Lodges meeting on a Monday night
it was pointed out that Brothers would put their own Minor Lodge meetings first,
thus the attendance of such Raisings would be poor. All other Minor Lodges held
their Raisings on a Friday night as no other Lodge except P.G.L. met on that
night. There were terrible floods in Llandudno and the North Wales P. G. L.
launched a flood appeal. The Cambrian P.G.L. and all Minor Lodges in the Province
donated a total of £150 and in the October meeting Bro: Erik Scott R.O.H.
announced that the fund stood at £4,160. Bro: Tommy Porter R.O.H. was
singled out in the December minutes as he had been presented with a Certificate
of Honour from the Chief Constable of the North Wales Police. Bro: Tommy had
disarmed and brought to order a Brother in the R.A.O.B. Club in Barmouth.
In 1994 during the May meeting, concern was expressed about
the poor attendances at the Harlech Castle Lodge; subsequently there was a visit
from P.G.L. to the Lodge. It transpired that there had not been a meeting of
the Lodge since December 1993. Sadly in the June meeting it came to light that
the Harlech Castle Lodge, the instigators and one of the founder Lodges of the
Cambrian Province would have to close. Included in the correspondence of the
June meeting was a letter from Grand Lodge asking for assistance in contacting
the ‘Llyn Tegid Lodge’!
In 1995 during the March meeting, concern was again expressed
about the attendances of the ‘Llyn Tegid Lodge’. At the July meeting
the P.G.L. was informed that Bro: Mark Roberts of the Edward Cass Lodge had
been involved in a serious motorcycle accident and had lost a foot, as well
as receiving other serious injuries. Bro Mark was in hospital in Swansea and
when that Province was informed several Brothers from the area visited Bro:
Mark. A charity evening was held at the R.A.O.B. club in Barmouth in December
to raise funds for Bro: Mark and raised over £500. Sadly after a difficult
time and many attempts to contact the Brethren concerned the Llyn Tegid Lodge
was finally closed.
In 1996 At the March meeting some good news, the ‘Llyn
Tegid Lodge’ is going to reopen on Tuesday the 19th March. The P.G.L.
annual function was held in June this year to coincide with a visit from Brethren
from Dublin who were paying a return visit to the Ardudwy Lodge. At the July
meeting a letter from the ‘Llyn tegid Lodge’ was received, the Lodge
had decided to close down. At the August meeting P.G.L. were informed that the
Ardudwy lodge had held a family fun day with a view to making this an annual
event, the weather had been wet but the day had made £1000 to be distributed
amongst local charities.
On the 27th April 1997 the Brethren of the Ardudwy lodge staged
a sponsored cycle ride to every Lodge in the Province. It was a great success
both financially and socially that will long live on in the memories of all
concerned. The event raised £2,126 which was presented to the ‘Hope
House Children’s Hospice’. In August the Ardudwy Lodge went on to
hold another family fun day and with better weather and raised over £1,500
for local charities.
1998 The Cambrian Lodge was on the move again, this time to
the ‘Pen Cei’ in Porthmadoc. In the September meeting it came to
light that the P.G.P. Bro: R J Griffiths ROH should not have been attending
the Lodge due to ill health. Bro: Richard is confined to a wheelchair and would
be going to hospital for a major operation on his back and as a result would
have to spend over four months lying prone. Everyone wished Bro: Richard luck
and Bro: Erik Scott R.O.H. P.G.P.1996 agreed to stand in for him in his absence.
1999 It was in the April meeting that Bro: R. J. Griffiths
R.O.H. returned to P.G.L. Even on the bed of sickness Bro: Richard had been
thinking of others, two of the nurses from the Gobowen Orthopaedic Hospital
where Bro: Richard had been a patient, were intending to run in the London marathon.
The nurses were trying to raise money for a new Spinal Injuries unit for the
Hospital. Bro: Richard asked for sponsorship and the Province donated a total
of £378:53. The nurses completed the marathon in six hours and raised
over £5,000 for the new unit. In July the Ardudwy Lodge once again held
a fun day and was able to give £1000 to local charities.
Upon entering the twenty-first century, with Six active Minor
Lodges the Province celebrated it's Thirty-Fifth anniversary; there have been
many high points in this time, but also many low ones.
In 2005 The Groes Lodge No 10505 was granted permission by
Grand Lodge to change the name of the lodge to: The Oakley Lodge No 10505. The
Province is Forty years old and celebrated the event at the annual P.G.L. Buffet
/ Dance at the R.A.O.B. Cader Idris Club on 29th October 2005.
We are constantly being reminded that the Order is in decline,
well, we are the only people who can change that trend. With better communication,
with the right kind of publicity when required, and with an enthusiasm to want
the Order to grow, I see no reason why the Cambrian Province should not reverse
the trend. There have been many instances of Benevolence during the life of
the Province. I apologise here and now to those Lodges and those Brothers who
have not been mentioned for the wonderful acts of benevolence that they have
carried out, but I have only reported on the instances mentioned in P.G.L. minutes.
Obviously there have been many more instances of fund raising for the less fortunate
and those in need and I hope this will continue with a renewed enthusiasm. The
seventies were a golden period for the Province with many ceremonies taking
place throughout the years, not to mention what now seems a luxury, of being
able to turn down many gentlemen that wished to join the Order.
There have been many moans over the years that still pop up today, the late
arrival of Degree Jewels, the instances of P.G.L. Officers not attending Second
Degree Raisings and the ongoing argument as to whether or not the Examining
Council should meet when there are no Candidates to examine. It is sad to see
the demise of Lodges especially the Harlech Castle Lodge who
started the whole thing rolling! There are Lodges in the Province that meet
with the same small-dedicated bands of Brothers that support more than one lodge
year after year, thank goodness. There are also Lodges that grow from strength
to strength and thankfully a recent ruling at Grand Lodge means that the smaller
Provinces are safe, at least for the time being. Perhaps we don’t blow
our own trumpets enough, perhaps we should try harder to get the message across,
perhaps in these modern times there is no place for a Philanthropic Brotherhood.
Now that would be a sad world to live in!
P.G.P's Honours Board
1965: I.P.P.G.P. Bro J Williams ROH
1965: Bro T W Williams KOM
1966: Bro W B Wakeley ROH
1967: Bro G R Williams ROH
1968: Bro A Lucas KOM
1969: Bro O T Owen KOM
1970: Bro H I Thomas KOM
1971: Bro E W Edwards KOM
1972: Bro F C Clegg ROH
1973: Bro M F Dent KOM
1973: Bro R T Tyson KOM
1974: Bro R S Edwards KOM
1975: R J Underwood KOM
1976: Bro T J Porter KOM
1977: Bro M H Blanks ROH
1978: Bro F Cocksey KOM
1979: Bro A G Owens ROH
1980: Bro T W Hadland KOM
1981: Bro J R Baskeyfield ROH
1982: Bro E R Owen ROH
1983: Bro G Blake ROH
1984: Bro F Silcock KOM
1985: Bro I J Davies KOM
1986: Bro K J Evans KOM
1987: Bro D E Jones KOM
1988: Bro E D Jones ROH
1989: Bro E Williams ROH
1990: Bro I W Hughes ROH
1991: Bro E B Jones ROH
1992: Bro W S Holmes ROH
1993: Bro D A Jones-Morris ROH
1994: Bro D P Hughes KOM
1995: Bro W A Angus-Butterworth ROH
1996: Bro E Scott ROH
1997: Bro J P Raghoobar KOM
1998: Bro R J Griffiths ROH
1999: Bro R E McComb KOM
2000: Bro J E Williams ROH
2001: Bro S P Stebbings KOM
2002: Bro J Wall ROH
2003: Bro J E Preston ROH
2004: Bro D Thomas KOM
2005: Bro C J Thompson KOM
2006: Bro P K Scott ROH
2007: Bro A M Nimmo KOM
2008: Bro H E M Pitcher KOM
