Crafty MasonIn most Masonic documentaries I’ve seen on TV or articles in the paper or what have you, the notable Masons were always American - Benjamin Franklin, John Wayne, Buzz Aldrin, Louis Armstrong, and the list goes on. But I was rarely given insight into famous Canadian Masons.
Below are the Top 5 Most Interesting Canadian Freemasons
5.
First Canadian Stamp
Sir Sanford Fleming - Creator of the first Canadian postage stamp and suggested the use of worldwide timezones. This pick for the number five spot may seem wild and out of left field, but if you take a moment to wonder- how does someone think up the concept of timezones worldwide? Before that, it simply didn’t exist. Maybe I find it more weird than it is, but Sir Sanford Fleming has earned his spot as number five on our list!
4.
Sir John A MacDonald
Coming in as number four is Sir John. A. MacDonald - Canada’s first Prime Minister. He was born in Scotland in 1815, but in 1820 his family moved to Kingston, in then Upper Canada. He led the Conservative party for 24 years, and served as Prime Minister for most of them- from 1867 to 1873. It’s also interesting to note that America’s first president, George Washington, was also a Freemason.
3.
Dr James Naismith
Dr. James Naismith - Inventor of the sport of Basketball, takes the third spot on our countdown. One more time: he invented basketball! There can’t be any contest to James Naismith making this list. Born in Almonte, Ontario, Dr. James Naismith was talented in sports and represented his university in football, soccer, and gymnastics. It wasn’t long after leaving to start a job at the YMCA in Springfield that he was charged with creating an indoor game to provide an “athletic distraction”. And then basketball was born.
2.
Molson
John Molson - Founder of Molson Breweries takes our number two spot for most interesting, and should be placed highly in any well-known Canadian Mason list as well. I’d be surprised if there were more than a handful of resident Canadians who haven’t heard of Molson Beer.
1.
Tim Hortons
And to cap this list off, taking our number one spot is… Tim Horton - NHL hockey legend and founder of the large coffee shop chain “Tim Horton’s“. The coffee chain that is known all over Canada, and one of the, if not THE largest Canadian brand still in operation. What would any morning be like without a Tim Horton’s coffee? What would your life be like if these Masons hadn’t made the achievements they had?
Were you surprised? Would you put anyone else in the Top 5? Don’t be shy, leave a comment!
7 Comments
For a larger list of famous Canadian Masons, please visit:
http://mastermason.com/eureka283/canadianmasons.htm
Or an all encompassing list of famous Masons worldwide, please visit:
http://www.masonicinfo.com/famous1.htm
I’d throw Alexander Keith in there, only because his product is better than that of the other Canadian Masonic brewer.
I’ve never been to Tim Horton’s. And that’s even though a regional manager is the IPM of one of my Lodges.
Were there six spots on the list, one would go to Bro. Tommy Douglas, credited with developing universal medical care in Canada.
Alexander Keith?
Proudly nominating the late John G. Diefenbaker, our only Prime Minister ever to be a Noble of the Mystic Shrine and just as proud to remember sitting with him in a Montreal Lodge Room while we enjoyed a ritual performed by an RCMP Drill Team in the 1970’s.
Naturally, being from Saskatchewan, I also endorse our late Premier Tommy Douglas.
Perhaps what’s needed, Wes, is a list of the Saskatchewan Top 5?
According to the book “Salazar, o maçon” [Salazar, the freemason], from the Portuguese author Costa Pimenta, the former Portuguese dictator Salazar was a mason.
Alexander Keith
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http://www.freemasonry.bcy.ca/biography/keith_a/keith_a.html
October 5, 1795 - December 14, 1873
Canadian politician and brewmaster, Alexander Keith was mayor of the city of Halifax, Nova Scotia, a Conservative member of the provincial legislature, and the founder of the Alexander Keith’s brewing company.
Initiated: 1816
St. John No. 118, Sunderland, Scotland
Affiliated: 1817
Treasurer: 1824-1829 , 1831-1843
Master: 1834 - 1838, 1845
Virgin Lodge No. 2, Halifax SC
Provincial Grand Master for Nova Scotia: 1839;
Scottish Lodges in the Maritimes : 1843;
New Brunswick and the Islands of Prince Edward and Newfoundland: 1846
Grand Master: 1869-1873
Grand Lodge of Nova Scotia
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Source: Grand Lodge records.
You should all look at the website of the B.C F.M site at this address. It’s really well researched !
http://www.freemasonry.bcy.ca/biography/index.html
P.S. If we can give informations about other brethens, with the initiation date or at least the lodge they attended, we might make sure more of them are knowned.