Melrose Masonic Lodge

About Melrose Masonic Lodge

It is said that the masons who founded the Lodge, which was originally sited in Newstead, worked on the Abbey during its early stages of construction. The lodge moved to Melrose in 1791.
On December 27, St John the Evangelist's Feast Night, the Freemasons of the town and from further afield take part in the "Masons Walk", a torch-light procession. This involves walking around the Mercat Cross three times led by a band playing "The Merry Masons". From here the band leads the procession to the Abbey where a short service and ceremony is held. Afterwards they return to their Lodge for a social event.
The plan of the town centre has changed little over the years although the buildings certainly have. Until the 17th century, most domestic buildings in Scottish towns were thatched. However, in 1681 a Parliamentary Act was passed which stipulated that roofing material should be "lead, slate, scailzie, or tile and not otherwise". This was in an attempt to stop fire spreading from building to building. To the rear of the houses were the "backlands" or gardens, which were roughly three times as long as they were broad and these would sometimes contain a private well. Here the householders would have grown some produce and kept animals and even carried out industrial activity on a small scale. Before an effective public sewage system was introduced, the backlands would also have contained a cesspit, hopefully a fair distance from the well.