Square Wheels’ Lodge No. 9966

Following on from last month’s F1 lodge, here is another ‘specialist’ lodge, very common under the UGLE. The core of this lodge has emerged from the Square Wheels Classic Car Club which was formerly the Masonic Classic Vehicle Club which having existed for many years was relaunched following the success of the national Classic 300 classic car runs supporting the Tercentenary celebrations in 2017.

The Square Wheels Cub (MCVC) was relocated to Warwick and it seemed appropriate that the home for the new Lodge should also be based at Alderson House High Street Warwick being close to the centre of the British Car Industry in England.

It is the belief of the Founders that consecrating the new lodge will not only serve and bewidely supported by Square Wheel Club members but will act as a most useful recruitment catalyst for Classic vehicle enthusiasts not currently Freemasons.

It is worthy of noting as a statistic that independent research shows the Classic vehicle industry alone in the UK employs 34900 people and is worth £5.5 billion giving a serious indication of the size of the hobby serving a wide and predominantly male demographic. The Lodge will of course be open to all Classic vehicle enthusiasts and owners as well as any other suitable applicant for membership. It is not intended to operate as a closed Lodge per se. the Lodge develops. However the “inside” knowledge of those Founding members involved in the Square Wheels Club means we are cognisant and aware of what the potential is to recruit from within the Craft and also to involve and recruit new members from within the wider hobby. At major exhibitions there has been great interest shown which the Founders believe that capable of being capitalised upon successfully.

Thus there are interestingly two different aspects to membership of a new Lodge. The Lodge has 75 Founding Members primarily drawn from within the membership of the Square Wheels Club which itself has a strong and growing constituency to draw upon. In addition there is a much larger and untapped constituency of Freemasons who own use and enjoy the classic vehicle hobby who it is hoped will become interested. The Founders are equally optimistic that through their attendance at shows social runs etc. that enthusiasts for the hobby who are not currently Masons will want to be become involved.

The primary aim will be to nurture a real understanding of Freemasonry, to encourage the new Brethren to assimilate into and enjoy the Lodge and Freemasonry and to encourage their Masonic aspirations. We hope to foster relations with the other special interest Lodges and all based on a common enthusiasm for the hobby the lodge serves.

We have considered the question of recruitment and have to accept that some of this will be empirical with a learning curve to travel as The lodge meets four times a year on the fourth Thursday of January, the first Saturday of May and July and the fourth Saturday of September in the High Street, Warwick.