THE HISTORY OF THE MICHIGAN MASONIC MUSEUM AND LIBRARY

WeFreemasons are proud of our fraternity. We are drawn to its symbols and heritage, so it should come to no surprise that Freemasons are often collectors of our fraternal paraphernalia such as books, documents, regalia, etc. Since the formation of the Grand Lodge of Michigan in 1826, these collections were usually in the private hands of our members or local lodges. They told the story of the Craft and showed pride in its history from a local perspective. Initial steps were taken in the 1940s to establish a Grand Lodge library to showcase these collections of our Masonic heritage in a broader light, but it wasn’t until 1980 that a more organized effort to maintain our historical legacy at a jurisdictional level gained traction with the formation of the Masonic Foundation of Michigan, which would eventually become the Michigan Masonic Charitable Foundation.

Early elements of an official Masonic library were housed at the Michigan Masonic Home in Alma, Michigan and primarily reflected the rare and extensive collection of books amassed by Brother James Fairbairn Smith (pictured) over the years. Brother Fairbairn Smith was raised a Master Mason in 1921 in Scotland, but he would move to the United States and affiliate with Kilwinning Lodge #297 (now Union of S.O. #3) in Detroit by 1938. There he would work diligently to increase the distribution of fraternal information by editing the popular

By Dirk Hughes, Museum and Library Director

Masonic World magazine published out of the Detroit Masonic Temple, the largest paid circulation Masonic news magazine in the country. He would also work hard maintaining our fraternal legacy by becoming the historian for the Grand Lodge of Michigan, and would eventually author two books specifically dealing with the history of Freemasonry in Michigan: Freemasonry in Michigan Vol. 1 published in 1963 and Dateline 1764: Michigan Masonry Vol. 2 published in 1979. In 1996, a formal budget was adopted for the creation of the Michigan Masonic Museum and Library. It remained in Alma until 2000 when it was decided to renovate the lower level of the Grand Rapids Masonic Temple for a new facility, combining the Fairbairn Smith collection with another large collection of books and artifacts already in Grand Rapids gathered and maintained by Brother Charles P. Sheffield.

The Michigan Masonic Museum and Library has been located in that space ever since, and has grown its collection from the original Smith and Sheffield contributions with the help of generous donations, loans, and acquisitions. With a full lending library of over 8,000 books, a wide variety of on-site artifact displays, and the repository for the Grand Lodge of Michigan archives, the Michigan Masonic Museum and Library has been a source of Masonic education and research for members of the Craft and the general public for over two decades. But just as our collections continue to grow and evolve, so do the plans for the Museum and Library evolve to help us remain viable, relevant, and accessible in this changing world. leverage the most effective, advanced, and interesting ways to tell our story to potential audiences.

Currently, the Museum and Library integrates technology in both our on-site displays and our informational outreach. Combining tradition with innovation, the Michigan Masonic Museum and Library is still a place that people can physically visit to see the artifact displays and documents in real life -- like an apron worn and signed by President William Taft, a letter of demit required to transfer to another lodge from 1810, and an ornate antique apron from the 1700s commissioned and hand-delivered as a gift by Bro. George Washington, the first President of the United States. And these are just three of the thousands of artifacts in our museum displays, many of those employing newer technologies like video monitors and virtual reality headsets to enhance the story of our prestigious fraternity.

In-person presentations by our staff are still available to be brought to your lodge or other organizational event, but we are also incorporating virtual ZOOM presentations as a method for providing more convenience and wider audience participation. In our pursuit to take advantage of opportunities on the internet, the Museum and Library has daily posts on Facebook to showcase interesting artifacts, photographs, and other Masonic-related items. We even have a YouTube channel with over fifty locally-produced informational videos on a variety of Masonic topics where viewers worldwide can learn about our proud fraternity. And as we’ve been doing in the past, we continue to organize our collections and archives to prepare for their eventual digitization and accessibility to anyone with a computer at any time of the day.

From the very beginning of its incubation, the Michigan Masonic Museum and Library was not intended to be just a storehouse for our Masonic artifacts and documents; but rather, and perhaps more importantly, it was intended to be a resource to share our Masonic message and legacy with members and others. It was meant to preserve and to educate. It was meant to be a safe home and a tool. It was meant to be the metaphorical can and the can opener. The general membership can help open that can of Masonic education by using what the Museum and Library has to offer in many ways. Schedule a presentation by knowledgeable Museum and Library staff as part of your lodge education, either in-person at your lodge or virtually. Use the facility as a lodge field trip destination. Invite potential lodge candidates to watch the videos on the Michigan Masonic Museum and Library YouTube channel to help them understand the organization they are about to join. Remember, the Museum and Library is yours to use.