Museum of Freemasonry

At the Quarterly Communication of the United Grand Lodge of England on 7 March 1838, it was announced:

"...that a sum of money not exceeding £100 to be placed at the disposal of the Board for the purpose of providing for the reception of books, manuscripts and objects of masonic interest, and for commencing the formation of the Library and Museum."[4]

Following a campaign for donations among members, by 1841 the Library and Museum was open to English freemasons of the Grand Lodge. When the third and present Freemasons’ Hall opened at Great Queen Street in 1933 it included a dedicated space for the Library and Museum, which was a stipulation of the architectural competition won by architects Ashley and Newman. Gordon Hills was the Librarian and Curator who oversaw this most significant move, and the original space remains the home of the Museum today.

In the 1980s the Library and Museum began opening to the public for the first time on certain days, and in 1996, under Librarian and Curator John Hamil, the Library and Museum became a charitable trust. The permanent collection held by the Museum that existed before the change in 1996 is a permanent loan from the United Grand Lodge of England and makes up approximately 80% of the collection. From 1996, new acquisitions, whether purchased or donated, normally belong to the Library and Museum Charitable Trust. From 2001 there has been an evolving electronic catalogue and succession of supporting public exhibitions and events. From 2003, various projects partly funded by external bodies such as the Heritage Lottery Fund, have seen certain sections of the archive collection catalogued.

In 1999 the Trust appointed Diane Clements as Director who oversaw an individual Librarian, Curator and Archivist to manage each department. The appointment of Mrs Clements broke with the tradition of having a mason in charge of the collection, although trustees include senior members of Grand Lodge. In 2017, Mrs Clements was succeeded by Dr Vicky Carroll as Director, who oversaw a process of redevelopment beginning with a change of name from the Library and Museum of Freemasonry to the Museum of Freemasonry.

The Museum of Freemasonry is located on the first floor of Freemasons' Hall, Great Queen Street, London. Originally known as the Masonic Peace Memorial Building, the imposing landmark found on the edge of Covent Garden was designed by architects Ashley and Newman in the Art Deco style and completed in 1933. It is a Grade II* listed building today. In addition to the Grand Temple, offices, lodge meeting rooms and the Museum, Freemasons' Hall is a frequently used venue for television and film productions such as James Bond, Assassin's Creed, Spooks and The Crown being shot there more recently.

The Museum of Freemasonry provides free guided tours of the building, taking in the Grand Temple and Shrine. Tours are not available when the Grand Temple of other areas are in use for ceremonial purposes, and groups must book in advance.

The Museum of Freemasonry holds masonic artifacts belonging to individuals of note including:

• King George IV, 1762–1830, British monarch
• King Edward VII, 1841–1910, British monarch
• Prince Augustus Frederick, The Duke of Sussex, 1773–1843, British royal
• Winston Churchill, 1874–1965, British politician and former Prime Minister
• Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener, 1850–1916, British Army Field Marshall
• Oscar Wilde, 1854–1900, Irish poet and dramatist
• Malcolm Campbell, 1885–1948, British land and water speed record holder
• Alvin Langdon Coburn, 1882–1966, American photographer
• Alphonse Mucha, 1860–1939, Czech painter and designer
• Johan Zoffany, 1733–1810, German painter and engraver
• Rudyard Kipling, 1865–1936, British poet and author
• Theodor Reuss, 1855–1923, German signer and occultist
• Wally Hammond, 1903–1965, British cricket player
• Herbert Sutcliffe, 1894–1978, British cricket player

• Museum of Freemasonry, London