Kentmere Lodge No 7480 – A brief History
Conceived in 1955, Kentmere Lodge was registered on the books of Grand Lodge on 25th July 1956, and consecrated at Gravesend Town hall in the Province of Kent of the 11th January 1957.
Several names had been considered based on local areas such as parks, parishes etc, with the final decision being to name the Lodge ‘Kentmere’ as it was a) in the Province of Kent and b) ‘mere’ being an alternative name for a lake which had a connection with the name of Lakedale Lodge, a London Lodge to which most of the Founding members belonged.
Social activity was high on the agenda from the outset when the consecration was celebrated at the Fox Under the Hill Public House at Shooters Hill. As well as the usual dances of the era, it is interesting to note that other social activities included trips on the river, and Motor Rallies!
Over the last few years, declining numbers led the remaining active members to feel that the Lodge had reached the end of its days, and in 2019 they reluctantly prepared to hand in the Warrant.
The concept of the Motoring Lodge was gathering pace in parallel with this, and sufficient commitment was made by our first members to make it viable to take over the existing Lodge.
The relaunch of Kentmere 7480 as the West Kent Motoring Lodge provides the perfect opportunity to modernise Freemasonry and to widen its appeal. We look forward to driving the Lodge into the future!