The Secretive Fraternity

Since 1952, Bob McTavish has belonged to the West Toronto Masonic Temple at 151 Annette St., where he became an honorary treasurer and secretary in the 1980s. The West Toronto chapter is one of the last operational temples in Toronto.

Freemasonry, which has a global membership today of over 6 million, had its start in the Middle Ages among England’s cathedral builders and stonemasons. The fraternity spread overseas through the British colonies in the 1700s. There are still about 36,000 members in Ontario — a significant decline from the brotherhood’s heyday after World War II, when membership topped 100,000.

Bob was just 23 when he joined, and more than 70 years later he remains an active member. He was willing to lift the veil just a little on what happens within the walls of the world’s largest fraternal society.

A West Toronto brotherhood

Before numbers started to decline, a large portion of the West Toronto membership were Canadian Pacific Railway employees who worked on the West Toronto Diamond lines. There were also group memberships for Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Ontario Provincial Police.

Over the years, Bob joined in many Masonic officiation ceremonies across Ontario. These can be either an institution (presenting the Charter and appointing officers) or a dedication and blessing of a new lodge. Bob would reveal only that these secret Masonic rituals involved “corn, wine and oil.” But he shared some stories about the Annette St. branch.

Secrets in the eaves

The second mayor of West Toronto Junction, Dr. George W. Clendenan, was a Mason. Years after his death in 1939, a relative discovered the original copy of the West Toronto Masonic Temple Charter, much to the delight of West Toronto members. The charter, dated 1910, was tucked away in the eaves of Clendenan’s now-demolished house at the northeast corner of Pacific Ave. and Dundas St. W. The charter and a trowel, used to lay the cornerstone of 151 Annette, had apparently been hidden for safekeeping. They are now on display in the temple’s meeting room, which is filled with Masonic imagery and emblems.

Accessible only to members, the room has a high sky-blue ceiling representing a heavenly ascension for all who enter. Hanging on the walls are portraits of past leaders, and, most notably, a painting of the crest of the Grand Lodge of England. Theatre seating and columns give a sense of grandeur. One floor above is a reference library of Masonic literature.

The temple does open its doors to the public — as a rental hall for weddings and community events — but the meeting room and its secrets remain strictly for members.