History Of Masonry: The American Lodge System

Introduction
` There are few institutions that could be considered uniquely American, one of which is the lodge-style fraternal system. The very first lodge system in the United States was Freemasonry, which arrived in 1731. While Masonry is perhaps the most well-recognized of the American lodges, it is just one of many, and today, several organizations exist, such as Lions Club, Elks Lodge, and Kiwanis, that operate within the same paths of tradition. It is well-known that these types of organizations, which will be referred to as ‘lodges’ within the paper, have flourished in the United States, seeing a sharp decline in the 1960s that was never recovered (source). As Freemasonry is the most prominent of these lodges, it is used to represent
While the origins date back to the 18th century, it should be noted that it was not until the 19th century that Masonry really exploded in popularity, and all of the “imitator” lodges followed. Unquestionably, Freemasonry serves as the model for all American fraternal clubs, and there is substantial weight to the claim that Freemasonry has influenced American religious, social, and political life (source), anything from the important of ornate paraphernalia to complex initiations and secret rites. The expression “meet me on the level” is one small example of how Masonry has gone “mainstream” in the United States, as despite the terms Masonic roots, few Americans could actually place its
In the 1800s, there was mostly just Freemasonry and spin-off organizations. Practically, there were strong merchant clubs that were organized by American small-business owners and local chambers of commerce. These merchant clubs allowed business owners to compete with what they saw as “unhealthy” competition, and provide one reason Americans may have been attracted to these sorts of lodges. While Freemasonry, Eagles, and merchant clubs were relatively diverse in the occupations of their members, they oftentimes had exclusionary membership