I have long been fascinated by Secret Societies such as the Freemasons. Their unwavering connection to the founders of our country, as well as current heads of political and economic power have garnered my attention since College. Upon moving to Harlem in 1995, a new wrinkle to these shadowy figures was added with my discovery of the Black Freemasons--also known as the Prince Hall Masons. As far as I can discern, Harlem hosts at least two Masonic Halls...the W.M. Hiram Grand Lodge on 124th (which is not a Prince Hall, rather its a Free and Accepted Masonic Hall).
and the Boyer Grand Lodge on 155th, which is.
Some more Masonic imagery from the African American Day Parade...
Here's a link to some famous Black Freemasons. Quite an interesting list here...Scottie Pippen, WTF!?!
Coincidentally, the Thurgood Marshall Academy is just up the street on 135th, further demonstrating the interwoven nature of the Black Elite. Some other notably African-Americans that may or may not be Masons...
Barak Obama, current NYS governor David Paterson, Jay-Z, Nas and Kanye West.
In addition to outright Masonic Orders, the Shriners are also very active in Harlem. Here's some pix from their initiation ceremony on 125th!
10 comments:
great informational post. I too am fascinated by secret societies. Was that one guy mad you were taking pics? Great Metrocard mockup!
I'm assuming you weren't supposed to take that photo of the initiation ceremony. Didn't know they "hazed" their initiates. Thought that was just a fraternity thing. On the flip side, the old guys seem to really enjoy being dressed as women!
Funny thing is that as soon as the leaders saw me they made all of those initiates pose for me. The gist of it is that they must be severely humiliated in order to gain entry, hence the woman's clothing. The crazy part is how they were all painfully bound together by the wrists.
Yes, I know. It is the same as fraternal hazing. I just didn't think the masons and shriners did it as well. Guess it makes sense as most members of these organizations are also members of greek letter organizations.
I haven't found any reliable information saying Obama is a mason. You can usually find out which lodge someone came into, and I've never seen that for Obama. Nice post. Interesting topic. Thanks.
Thanks SP, wasnt aware of your blog before, but I'll add it to my blogroll.
This info is not correct, this ceremony is Hiram GL located on 124th Street and currently they are not a legit masonic organization. The only Legit Masonic Organization In Harlem is the MW Prince Hall GL of NY, located at 454 W 155th Street. Boyer Grand lodge of NY is now Boyer lodge #1, and is no longer titled as a Grand Lodge. For more info go to MWPHGLNY.ORG
Thanks William, at the time of this post in 2008 it was accurate.
Princehall.org/history and History of Beacon Light Lodge 76.
This goes way beyond 2008 my Brother. Please forward
You have barely scratched the surface. There's currently 39 different lodge buildings up in Harlem. There were more, but Alpha Grand Lodge lost their building at 125 & Madison not too long ago. There's also the lodge that Schomburg joined in El Barrio on the East Side, to say nothing of the Internationals and the multitude of lodges that stem from John G. Jones.
Post a Comment