About Us
Roots
Prince Hall Freemasonry is the oldest recognized and continuously active organization founded by African Americans. Prince Hall Freemasonry had its beginnings on March 6,1775,when Prince Hall (ca. 1748-1807), an abolitionist and civil rights activist, along with fourteen other free black men were initiated into freemasonry. These men later organized African Lodge No. 1 on July 3, 1775. In 1784 they petitioned the Grand Lodge of England for a charter; it was granted, and African Lodge No. 1 became African Lodge No. 459 of Boston, Massachusetts. This organization laid the foundation for African American citizenship, education, and for the improvement of the condition of blacks.
In 1868, the state of South Carolina was undergoing lots of changes. The Civil War had just ended which meant that the African American community was busy building. They were building their own churches, schools, and businesses, as well as becoming politically engaged within the leadership structure of the state. It was during this time that the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of South Carolina was born.
The Early Days
One of the earliest known lodges in South Carolina started with a military lodge of African Americans during the Civil War. This lodge was said to be established by a group of African American soldiers attached to the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment on Morris Island in Charleston, SC. This lodge eventually closed, but in 1866, Paul Drayton, the Most Worshipful Past National Grand Master of Free and Accepted Ancient York Masons (FAAYM) was on a mission to establish what would become Union Lodge #1 in Charleston South Carolina. Additionally, in 1866, PGM Lewis Hayden helped establish Hayden Lodge # 8 under the auspices of the Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Massachusetts.
By 1868, lodges petitioned the National Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Ancient York Masons to formally start what we will eventually know to become the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of South Carolina (MWPHGLSC). By 1872 under the direction of Grand Master George E. Johnston, the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge ofFree Accepted York Masons of the State of South Carolina established itself as a sovereign jurisdiction under its own sovereign authority.