In order to understand the history of Shekinah – Fernwood Lodge No. 246 as it exists today, we need to look at the history of the main lodges that have joined throughout the years to make up the fabric of the wonderful lodge we know today. It started back on Saint Johns day in 1796 where, at the Quaker Meeting House on 5th and Mulberry (Arch) Streets, the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania was holding its annual communication and received a petition from a number of brethren residing in the city of Philadelphia, who had just separated from Lodge No. 67 and praying that a Warrant be granted them for holding a Lodge in Philadelphia and that Brother Andrew Baum be constituted its first Master. Whereupon, on the motion made and seconded, it was agreed that the prayer of said petition be granted and a Warrant made out naming it Philadelphia Lodge No. 72.
One of the first public ceremonies in which Philadelphia Lodge No. 72 participated was that commemorating the death of President and Brother George Washington, held on December 26, 1799, twelve days after his death. After listening to a speech given by their Grand Master on Washington as a Freemason, the members set out, aprons trimmed in black, with their brethren to join the parade.
Just over 50 years after the founding of Philadelphia Lodge No. 72, on the evening of August 5, 1850, the Right Worshipful Grand Master, William Whitney along with the members of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania, met at Commissioners Hall, Frankford Road and Master Street, Philadelphia, when the following named petitioners being present: Brothers Henry S. Patterson, William H. Witte, John G. Michner and a few others were duly qualified and constituted a lodge under the name Shekinah Lodge No. 246, where Brother Henry S. Patterson was installed as Master. The membership numbered eleven by the end of December 1850. From that time on the lodge grew year by year until there were 420 members in 1900. The Lodge moved to 506 North Second Street in 1851. On June 27, 1854 the first meeting was held at the South Third Street Hall, Known as Washington Hall. The lodge met here until September of 1855 when the New Masonic Hall was dedicated (September 26, 1855) being situated on Chestnut Street. Shekinah Lodge No. 246 participated in the dedication ceremonies.
In 1861 Refreshments given by the lodge were discontinued until the end of the year, to enable the lodge to dispense charity more liberally. This, along with the lodge also giving charity to the widows in the form of turkeys for thanksgiving are just a few examples of how the lodge has given liberally over the years.
On October 20, 1873, the first meeting of the lodge in the new Masonic Temple, Broad and Philbert Streets was held. The very next year on June 13, the Right Worshipful Grand Master, Alfred R. Potter, was received with honors into the lodge. (This is a significant visit as the Lodge named in his honor, Potter Lodge No. 441, would eventually become a part of Shekinah Lodge No 246.)
| Lodge Name and No. | Constituted Date |
|---|---|
| Philadelphia Lodge No. 72 | January 14, 1797 |
| Industry Lodge No. 131 | June 22, 1811 |
| Shekinah Lodge No. 246 | August 5, 1850 |
| Potter Lodge No. 441 | January 13, 1869 |
| Saint Paul Lodge No. 481 | January 1, 1870 |
| Fernwood Lodge No. 543 | December 9, 1875 |
