Grand Lodge of Idaho
Encyclopedia
The Grand Lodge of Idaho (full formal name Grand Lodge of Idaho, Ancient Free & Accepted Masons) is one of several bodies that govern Freemasonry
Freemasonry
Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...

 in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....

 as recognized by the United Grand Lodge of England
United Grand Lodge of England
The United Grand Lodge of England is the main governing body of freemasonry within England and Wales and in other, predominantly ex-British Empire and Commonwealth countries outside the United Kingdom. It is the oldest Grand Lodge in the world, deriving its origin from 1717...

. It was established in 1867 by five Masonic Lodges operating in Idaho Territory
Idaho Territory
The Territory of Idaho was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 4, 1863, until July 3, 1890, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Idaho.-1860s:...

.

Membership in Freemasonry nation-wide peaked during the period from 1900-1950. In Idaho "membership in Masons statewide has declined from 11,000 in 1982 to 4,388 members" in 2010, and "the number of lodges has declined to 56."

The Grand Lodge of Idaho is headquartered in Boise
Boise, Idaho
Boise is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho, as well as the county seat of Ada County. Located on the Boise River, it anchors the Boise City-Nampa metropolitan area and is the largest city between Salt Lake City, Utah and Portland, Oregon.As of the 2010 Census Bureau,...

.

History

The first organized Masonic activity in present-day Idaho dates to 1862, when a group of Freemasons organized an informal Masonic club in Florence
Florence, Idaho
Florence is a ghost town in Idaho County, Idaho, United States. The town was originally settled as a mining camp in the winter of 1861, Several hundred miners who had come for the Clearwater Gold Rush of 1861, heard of a huge bonanza there on the Salmon River. Many of the miners walked from...

 in what was then Washington Territory
Washington Territory
The Territory of Washington was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 8, 1853, until November 11, 1889, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Washington....

. That same year, a dispensation was granted by the Grand Lodge of Washington to form a new Masonic Lodge
Masonic Lodge
This article is about the Masonic term for a membership group. For buildings named Masonic Lodge, see Masonic Lodge A Masonic Lodge, often termed a Private Lodge or Constituent Lodge, is the basic organisation of Freemasonry...

 in Lewiston
Lewiston, Idaho
Lewiston is a city in and also the county seat of Nez Perce County in the Pacific Northwest state of Idaho. It is the second-largest city in the northern Idaho region, behind Coeur d'Alene and ninth-largest in the state. Lewiston is the principal city of the Lewiston, ID - Clarkston, WA...

. This Lodge was chartered in 1864 but disbanded a year later after a decline in gold mining activities in the area.

In July 1863 the Grand Lodge of Oregon granted a dispensation to a Masonic group in Bannock City (now Idaho City
Idaho City, Idaho
Idaho City is a city in and the county seat of Boise County, Idaho, United States, located about northeast of Boise. The population was 458 at the 2000 census.Idaho City is part of the Boise City–Nampa, Idaho Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...

). This Lodge was chartered as Idaho Lodge No. 35 in 1864. The Grand Lodge of Washington, which considered all of Idaho Territory to be within its jurisdiction, charged the Grand Lodge of Oregon with illegally chartering the lodge. This controversy continued for some time and spread throughout the Masonic community in the United States. Even so, over the next couple years Masonic Lodges in northern Idaho Territory were granted charters in Washington while southern Idaho Territory Lodges continued to receive charters from Oregon.

By 1867 the need for a local Grand Lodge was recognized by the active Masonic Lodges in southern Idaho Territory. These Masonic Lodges, Idaho Lodge of Idaho City, Boise Lodge of Boise, Placer Lodge of Placerville
Placerville, Idaho
Placerville is a city in Boise County, Idaho, United States. The population was 60 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Boise City–Nampa, Idaho Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...

, Pioneer Lodge of Pioneerville, and Owyhee Lodge of Silver City
Silver City, Idaho
Silver City is a ghost town in Owyhee County, Idaho, United States. At its height in the 1880s it was a gold and silver mining town with a population of around 2,500 and approximately 75 businesses. Silver City served as county seat of Owyhee County from 1867 to 1934. Today, the town has about 70...

, met in December 1867 to form the Grand Lodge of Idaho. This meeting is considered to be the founding of the Grand Lodge of Idaho. The new Grand Lodge issued charters to these five Lodges in June 1868 which superseded their original charters from Oregon.

Idaho Lodge, which spearheaded the drive to create a Grand Lodge in Idaho Territory, was given the distinction of being recognized as its first chartered Lodge. Today Idaho Lodge No. 1 is headquartered in Boise.

A Masonic Lodge in Grangeville
Grangeville, Idaho
Grangeville is the largest city in and the county seat of Idaho County, Idaho, United States, in the west central part of the state. It had a population of 3,141 at the 2010 census.- Culture :...

 was chartered by the Grand Lodge of Idaho in December 1873, becoming the first northern Idaho Lodge under the Grand Lodge of Idaho's jurisdiction.

Freemasonry spread quickly in Idaho. By the time Idaho attained statehood in July 1890 there were 21 active regular Masonic Lodges in the new state. In 1910 there were nearly 60. Since its founding the Grand Lodge of Idaho has chartered 97 regular Masonic Lodges, of which 64 are active as of 2006. The Idaho Lodge of Research, a special Masonic Lodge dedicated to Masonic scholarship, was chartered in 1965.
At least three historic buildings associated with Freemasonry in Idaho, the Murray Masonic Hall
Murray Masonic Hall
The Murray Masonic Hall is a building in Murray, Idaho that was built in 1884. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987. It served as a meeting hall.It is a current meetingplace....

 built in 1884, the Coeur d'Alene Masonic Temple
Coeur d'Alene Masonic Temple
The Masonic Temple in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho is a building from 1909. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.A building at 525 Sherman Street in Coeur d'Alene, and another at 515 N. 4th Street, are given as current Masonic meetingplaces of Masonic lodges in the...

 built in 1909, and the Hailey Masonic Lodge
Hailey Masonic Lodge
The Hailey Masonic Lodge building was built in 1937 in Hailey, Idaho. It has served as a meeting hall since 1937. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2008....

 built in 1937, are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

. The Murray one is a current meetingplace.

Membership

As in most Masonic jurisdictions, membership in a Masonic Lodge under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Idaho is open to any male over 18 years of age who believes in a Supreme Being. In addition, Idaho Lodges require a candidate to be an Idaho resident for at least six months and apply for membership in his local Lodge. However, once he becomes a member of his local Lodge he may become a "plural affiliate" (i.e. a member of another Lodge simultaneously) elsewhere.

Prince Hall Freemasonry in Idaho

In the early 1990s the Grand Lodge of Idaho became one of the first in the United States to formally recognize Prince Hall Freemasonry
Prince Hall Freemasonry
Prince Hall Freemasonry derives from historical events which led to a tradition of separate predominantly African-American Freemasonry in North America...

. However, as of 2006 there is no separate Prince Hall Masonic jurisdiction in Idaho. Prince Hall Freemasonry in the state is currently administered by the Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Oregon.

Current Lodges

Lodge Chartered Location
Idaho No. 1 June 23, 1868 Boise (originally Idaho City)
Boise No. 2 June 23, 1868 Boise
Placer No. 3 June 23, 1868 Horseshoe Bend
Horseshoe Bend, Idaho
Horseshoe Bend is the largest city in rural Boise County, in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Idaho. Its population of 770 at the 2000 census was the largest in the county. It is part of the Boise City–Nampa, Idaho Metropolitan Statistical Area...

 (originally Placerville)
Mount Idaho No. 9 December 1873 Grangeville
Nez Perce No. 10 December 1874 Lewiston
Lemhi No. 11 December 1874 Salmon
Salmon, Idaho
Salmon is a city in Lemhi County, Idaho, United States. The population was 3,122 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Lemhi County...

Silver City No. 13 December 1874 Homedale
Homedale, Idaho
Homedale is a city in Owyhee County, Idaho, United States. The population was 2,528 at the 2000 census. The town name was chosen by drawing names from a hat...

 (originally Silver City)
Hailey No. 16 September 1885 Hailey
Hailey, Idaho
Hailey is a city in and the county seat of Blaine County, in the Wood River Valley of the central part of the U.S. state of Idaho. The population was 6,200 at the 2000 census. Hailey is the site of Friedman Memorial Airport , the airport for the resort area of Sun Valley/Ketchum, north. The town...

Paradise No. 17 September 1885 Moscow
Moscow, Idaho
Moscow is a city in northern Idaho, situated along the Washington/Idaho border. It is the most populous city and county seat of Latah County and the home of the University of Idaho, the land grant institution and primary research university for the state...

Portneuf No. 18 September 1886 Pocatello
Pocatello, Idaho
Pocatello is the county seat and largest city of Bannock County, with a small portion on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation in neighboring Power County, in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Idaho. It is the principal city of the Pocatello metropolitan area, which encompasses all of Bannock...

Eagle Rock No. 19 September 1886 Idaho Falls
Idaho Falls, Idaho
Idaho Falls is a city in and the county seat of Bonneville County, Idaho, United States, and the largest city in Eastern Idaho. As of the 2010 census, the population of Idaho Falls was 56,813, with a metro population of 130,374....

Coeur d'Alene No. 20 September 1886 Murray
Murray, Idaho
Murray is an unincorporated community in Shoshone County, Idaho, United States.Mines operated in the area from the 1880s to the 1950s. A Northern Pacific railroad line served the community for two years during the 1910s.-References:...

Richfield No. 21 September 1887 Richfield
Richfield, Idaho
Richfield is a city in Lincoln County, Idaho, in the United States. The population was 412 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Richfield is located at ....

Weiser No. 23 September 1888 Weiser
Weiser, Idaho
Weiser is a city in the rural western part of the U.S. state of Idaho and the county seat of Washington County. With its mild climate, the city supports farm, orchard, and livestock endeavors in the vicinity. The city sits at the confluence of the Weiser River with the great Snake River, which...

Kootenai No. 24 September 1891 Coeur d'Alene
Coeur d'Alene, Idaho
Coeur d'Alene is the largest city and county seat of Kootenai County, Idaho, United States. It is the principal city of the Coeur d'Alene Metropolitan Statistical Area. Coeur d'Alene has the second largest metropolitan area in the state of Idaho. As of the 2010 census the population of Coeur...

Shoshone No. 25 September 1891 Wallace
Wallace, Idaho
Wallace is a historic city in the Panhandle region of the U.S. state of Idaho and the county seat of Shoshone County in the Silver Valley mining district...

Washoe No. 28 September 1892 Payette
Payette, Idaho
Payette is a city in and the county seat of Payette County, Idaho, United States. The population was 7,054 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Ontario, OR–ID Micropolitan Statistical Area....

Ashlar No. 29 September 1892 Nampa
Nampa, Idaho
Nampa is the largest and the fastest growing city in Canyon County, Idaho, USA. The population of Nampa was 81,557 at the 2010 census. Nampa is located about west of Boise along Interstate 84, and six miles west of Meridian. Nampa is part of the Boise metropolitan area...

Elmore No. 30 September 1892 Mountain Home
Mountain Home, Idaho
Mountain Home is the largest city and county seat of Elmore County, Idaho. The population was 14,206 at the 2010 census. Mountain Home is the principal city of the Mountain Home, ID Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Elmore County....

Salubria No. 31 September 1893 Cambridge
Cambridge, Idaho
Cambridge is a city in Washington County, Idaho, United States. The population was 360 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Cambridge is located at ....

Unity No. 32 September 1893 Genesee
Genesee, Idaho
Genesee is a city in Latah County, Idaho, United States. The population was 955 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Genesee is located at ., in the Palouse region, approximately south of Moscow, about halfway to Lewiston...

Grove City No. 33 September 1896 Blackfoot
Blackfoot, Idaho
Blackfoot is a city in Bingham County, Idaho, United States. The population was 10,419 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Bingham County. Blackfoot is self-designated the "Potato Capital of the World", because it claims to have the largest potato industry in the world...

Cataldo No. 34 September 1896 Kellogg
Kellogg, Idaho
Kellogg is a city in the Silver Valley of Shoshone County, Idaho, United States, in the Idaho Panhandle region. The city lies near the Coeur d'Alene National Forest and about east-southeast of Coeur d'Alene along Interstate 90...

Butte No. 37 September 1902 Emmett
Emmett, Idaho
Emmett is a city in Gem County, Idaho, United States. The population was 5,490 at the 2000 census; it was estimated to have risen to 6,341 by 2007...

Mount Moriah No. 39 September 1902 Caldwell
Caldwell, Idaho
Caldwell is a city in and the county seat of Canyon County, Idaho, United States. The U.S. Census Bureau estimated the population to be 43,281, as of July 2009.Caldwell is the home of the College of Idaho. It is considered part of the Boise metropolitan area....

Rathdrum No. 41 September 1904 Rathdrum
Rathdrum, Idaho
Rathdrum is a city in Kootenai County, Idaho, United States. The population was 6,826 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Rathdrum is located at ....

Lakeside No. 42 September 1904 Sandpoint
Sandpoint, Idaho
Sandpoint is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Bonner County, Idaho, United States. Its population was 7,365 at the 2010 census.Sandpoint's major economic contributors include forest products and light manufacturing, tourism and recreation and government services...

Bonners Ferry No. 43 September 1904 Bonners Ferry
Bonners Ferry, Idaho
Bonners Ferry is a city in and the county seat of Boundary County, Idaho, United States. The population was 2,543 at the 2010 census.-History:...

Twin Falls No. 45 September 1906 Twin Falls
Twin Falls, Idaho
Twin Falls is the county seat and largest city of Twin Falls County, Idaho, United States. The population was 44,125 at the 2010 censusTwin Falls is the largest city of Idaho's Magic Valley region...

Meridian No. 47 September 1906 Meridian
Meridian, Idaho
-History:The town was established in 1891 on the Onweiler farm north of the present site and was called Hunter. Two years later an I.O.O.F. lodge was organized and called itself Meridian because it was located on the Boise Meridian and the town was renamed...

Arco No. 48 September 1906 Arco
Arco, Idaho
Arco is a city in Butte County, Idaho, United States. The population was 995 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Butte County.Craters of the Moon National Monument is located along U.S. Route 20, southwest of the city. The Idaho National Laboratory is located east of Arco...

Malad No. 51 September 1908 Malad City
Malad City, Idaho
For the Mumbai, India Suburb, see Malad .Malad City is the only city in and the county seat of Oneida County, Idaho, United States. Its population was 2,158 at the 2000 census....

St. Johns No. 52 September 1909 Shelley
Shelley, Idaho
Shelley is a city in Bingham County, Idaho, United States. The population was 3,813 at the 2000 census. The mascot for the city's high school is "King Russet", a russet-burbank potato that wears a crown, robe and scepter....

Buhl No. 53 September 1910 Buhl
Buhl, Idaho
Buhl is a city located on the old Oregon Trail in the western half of Twin Falls County, Idaho, United States. The population was 4,037 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Twin Falls, Idaho Micropolitan Statistical Area....

Wendell No. 54 September 1910 Wendell
Wendell, Idaho
Wendell is a city in Gooding County, Idaho, United States. The population was 2,338 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Wendell is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....

Kamiah No. 56 September 1910 Kamiah
Kamiah, Idaho
Kamiah is a city in Idaho and Lewis counties in the U.S. state of Idaho. The largest city in Lewis County, it extends only a small distance into Idaho County. The population was 1,160 at the 2000 census...

Spirit Lake No. 57 September 1910 Spirit Lake
Spirit Lake, Idaho
Spirit Lake is a city in Kootenai County, Idaho, United States. The population was 1,945 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Spirit Lake is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land.-Demographics:...

American Falls No. 58 September 1910 American Falls
American Falls, Idaho
American Falls is a city in and the county seat of Power County, Idaho, United States. The population was 4,111 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Pocatello, Idaho Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...

Lincoln No. 59 September 1910 Gooding
Gooding, Idaho
Gooding is the county seat and largest city of Gooding County, Idaho, United States. Its population was 3,384 at the 2000 census.The city is named for Frank R. Gooding, a local sheep rancher who became a prominent political figure in Idaho in the early 20th Century, serving as both Governor of...

Oriental No. 60 September 1910 Boise
Jerome No. 61 September 1910 Jerome
Jerome, Idaho
Jerome is a city in Jerome County, Idaho, U.S.A. The population was 10,890 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Jerome County, and sits at an elevation of 3763 feet above sea level. It is part of the Twin Falls, Idaho Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Jerome is located at ...

Prairie No. 62 September 1911 Craigmont
Craigmont, Idaho
Craigmont is a city in Lewis County, Idaho. The population was 501 at the 2010 census.-History:The city is named for Colonel William Craig , a mountain man and Idaho's first permanent white settler in Lapwai in 1838. A town named "Chicago", one mile west of the current Craigmont, was founded in 1898...

 (originally Gifford
Gifford, Idaho
Gifford is an unincorporated community in Nez Perce County, Idaho, United States. Gifford is northeast of Culdesac. The community had a post office as of 1908....

)
St. Maries No. 63 September 1911 St. Maries
St. Maries, Idaho
St. Maries is a city in Benewah County, Idaho, United States. The population was 2,652 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Benewah County. Pronounced St. Mary's.-Geography:St. Maries is located at ....

Mount McCaleb No. 64 September 1911 Mackay
Mackay, Idaho
Mackay is a city in Custer County, Idaho, United States. The population was 566 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Mackay is located at , at an elevation of 5,905 feet ....

Potlatch No. 66 September 1911 Potlatch
Potlatch, Idaho
Potlatch is a city in Latah County, Idaho, United States. The population was 791 at the 2000 census.-History:Potlatch was founded in 1905 as a company town by the Potlach Corporation. The townsite was chosen because of proximity to Potlatch Corporation's large holdings of western white pine on the...

Burley No. 68 September 1912 Burley
Burley, Idaho
Burley is a city in Cassia and Minidoka counties in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Idaho. The population was 10,345 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Cassia County....

Paul No. 77 September 1920 Paul
Paul, Idaho
Paul is a city in Minidoka County, Idaho, United States founded in 1907. The population was 998 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Burley, Idaho Micropolitan Statistical Area. The town received its name from Charles H. Paul, an engineer on the Minidoka Reclamation Project.-Geography:Paul is...

Hagerman No. 78 September 1921 Hagerman
Hagerman, Idaho
Hagerman is a town in Gooding County, Idaho, United States. The population was 768 at the 2007 census.-Geography:Hagerman is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....

Fidelity No. 80 September 1921 Glenns Ferry
Glenns Ferry, Idaho
Glenns Ferry is a city in Elmore County, Idaho, United States. The population was 1,611 at the 2000 census. The city is adjacent to Interstate 84 and the Snake River.-History:Glenns Ferry was one of the most famous river crossings on the Oregon Trail...

Keystone No. 81 September 1921 Pocatello
Pocatello, Idaho
Pocatello is the county seat and largest city of Bannock County, with a small portion on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation in neighboring Power County, in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Idaho. It is the principal city of the Pocatello metropolitan area, which encompasses all of Bannock...

Ionic No. 82 September 1922 Cascade
Cascade, Idaho
Cascade is a rural city in and the county seat of Valley County, Idaho, United States, in the west central part of the state. It sits at an elevation of , along the North Fork of the Payette River...

Caribou No. 84 September 1922 Soda Springs
Soda Springs, Idaho
Soda Springs is a city in Caribou County, Idaho, United States. The population was 3,381 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Caribou County....

Kooskia No. 87 September 1924 Kooskia
Kooskia, Idaho
Kooskia is a city in Idaho County, Idaho, United States. The population was 675 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Kooskia is located at ....

Challis No. 92 September 1949 Challis
Challis, Idaho
Challis is a city in Custer County, Idaho, United States. The population was 909 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Custer County.-History:...

Capital City No. 93 September 1950 Boise
Mount Kinport No. 95 September 1952 Pocatello
Pocatello, Idaho
Pocatello is the county seat and largest city of Bannock County, with a small portion on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation in neighboring Power County, in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Idaho. It is the principal city of the Pocatello metropolitan area, which encompasses all of Bannock...

Kaniksu No. 97 September 1995 Priest River
Priest River, Idaho
Priest River is a city in Bonner County, Idaho, United States. The population was 1,751 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Priest River is located at ....

Lodge of Research No. 1965 September 1965 Boise

Known as Nampa No. 29 until 1988.
Known as Acacia No. 62 until 1943.
Previously existed as Kaniksu No. 85, 1922-1987.
Lodge of Research No. 1965 is a special Lodge dedicated to Masonic scholarship.


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