It was on November, 9 1865 that application was made to the Grand Lodge of Michigan for a chapter forGrand Ledge Lodge #179 F.&A.M. The Lodge was officially instituted on January 12, 1866.
George W. Thomas was the first Worshipful Master and he held that office until the end of 1872. Other officers were Marvin T. Streeter, Senior Warden; William F. Jennison, Junior Warden; Hiram Cole, Treasurer; Porter Tinkham, Secretary; J.W. McMillian, Senior Deacon; T. Boyer, Junior Deacon; E. Russell, Tiler.
Dues were 50 cent those early years with 25 cents going to the Grand Lodge. In January 1875, they raised it to $1.00 payable at 25 cents a quarter. The regular meetings of the Lodge were held Saturday evenings on or before the full moon of each month.
The second floor of the Goodrich block served as the first Masonic Temple. In October of 1875, the order of the Eastern Star, Chapter #14 was chartered. The Royal Arch Masons Chapter #85 was charted in January 1877. In November of 1893, the Lodge moved into the third floor of the Babcock building and the present Temple was dedicated on February 22, 1894. Royal & Select Masters was formed in January 1896.
During World War I, many Masons served their Country in the cause of freedom and after the war many veterans joined the Lodge.
The 75th anniversary was observed on January 15th, 1941 with a banquet and program. Two hundred people attended the occasion with the Most Worshipful Grand Master as the principal speaker.
The Grand Ledge Masonic Temple Association was incorporated on April 1, 1955. It was made up of representatives of each of the bodies using the Temple. On May 12, 1960 ground was broken for the new temple at 200 W. River Street. Gordon Biggs was Worshipful Master; Robert Waldo, Senior Warden; Kenneth Spencer, Junior Warden. Brother Carl T. Holbrook conducted a fund raising campaign that was very successful and assured the finishing of the building. The Grand Ledge Masonic Temple was dedicated on October 27, 1962. Brother Harry Kowalk was the only casualty in the building of the Temple and was brought by ambulance to witness the dedication.
Many prominent citizens of Grand Ledge have been members of the Lodge. Among them were S.S. Messenger, Velorus M. Kent, H. Marr Byington, John Ewing, Bert Townsend, Gordon Briggs, Elmer Edwards, Howard Baker, Willard Davis, Charles McKee, Douglas Bouck, Gerald Elsie, Robert Byant, Harry Towner, Frank Baid, Charles Shane Sr., Fred Guild, Leon Hayes, Dean Doty, Hayes Wells, T. Carl Holbrook, Walter McComb, Danald J. Welch, Jonas Sawdon, Thomas Murry, and Harley Kinne.
The Past Master club was formed to act as an advisory group to the Lodge officers and the temple Association. One of their duties for many years was to pick a Mason of the year. The winner is awarded a plaque named in honor of T. Carl Holbrooks.
The 100th anniversary of Grand Ledge was celebrated the week of April 24, 1966. It began with a Centennial Worship service at First United Methodist Church of Grand Ledge on Saturday. On Wednesday, April 27, a Past Master night was held. Lansing Lodge #33 conferred the second section of the Master Mason Degree. The Centennial Banquet was held Saturday, April 30, in the Masonic Temple. The Reverend Donald E. Bodley was the keynote speaker.
Grand Ledge Lodge #179 has continued to move forward in the years since 1966. Dinners to honor our Past Masters, Life Members, and Ladies are held every year. On May 15, 1968 a large crowd was on hand for a combined Past Master and Ladies night to hear the speaker of the evening, the verend Gene Slep. On May 14, 1980 a surprise dinner was held for Brother Harry Kowalk, the only Brother who was seriously injured during the building of the Temple. He suffered a compound fracture of the leg after falling from a scaffold.
The Lodge has been involved in many community activities over the years and continues to support as many activities as possible. Some of the highlights of the past few years are listed, through probably not in nological order.
Taking part in the Masonic blood drive, the Lodge has many certificates of appreciation from the Red Cross for participating in this project. The Masons and Order of Eastern Star have joined in sending several hundred local children and many senior citizens to the annual Caravan Circus held at the Lansing Civic Arena. The only cost for admission is a can of food. The canned food is then donated to the local food bank. Many other school children from Grand Ledge, Mulliken, Sunfield, and Lake Odessa have been to the Circus because of the efforts of several Brothers of this Lodge.
On May 13, 1989 a dinner was held to honor an outstanding member of the Grand Ledge community. Colonel Warren K. Wells, Ret. received the Edgar A. Guest award at the dinner. Worshipful Brother Thomas George, P.M. acted as Master of Ceremonies for the evening.
Public dinners have also been held and all profits donated to several community groups including the Grand Ledge police Department, Grand Ledge Ambulance Service, the Senior Citizens Center, and the Sarah Andres Fund.
In 1986, the Grand Ledge Chamber of Commerce as the oldest active organization in Grand Ledge honored the Lodge at a dinner.
Over the years the Lodge has engaged in many projects to earn money for upkeep of the building and to support our many philanthropies. For many years, dinners served for Lions Club was a main source of income. Later pancake breakfasts raised money to support donations to the International Order of Rainbow for girls, International Order of Job's Daughters, DeMolay, Heart and Cancer Funds, and the city parking lot adjacent to our building. In 1990 we established a Memorial Scholarship Fund. The interest from this fund provides at least one scholarship for a high school graduate each year.
On September 14, 1991 our Lodge sponsored the First Ever Grand Ledge10K Run for the benefit of the Michigan Juvenile Diabetes Program. All of the profits were donated to the Grand Lodge of Michigan for this project.