History of the St. John’s Lodge
“Zum Widder” 1776 -1935
Soon after the constitution of our Grand Lodge of the Freemasons of Germany in 1770, a lively foundation of St. John’s lodges began. In 1776, among others, Brother Anton Thomas Palmié, then 1st Warden of the “Pégase” Lodge founded in Berlin on September 1, 1771, decided to establish a new St. John’s Lodge. The co-founders came from the St. John’s lodges “Pégase” Berlin, “Beständigkeit”, Berlin, “Zum goldenen Schiff”, Berlin, and “Goldenen Schlüsseln”, Berlin. The lodge was established in 1776 by the then Grand Master of the Land, Br. Ernst Ludwig II, Governing Duke of Saxony Gotha and Altenburg. The lodge worked until 1780 in the Corsicaschen Haus am Wasser in Berlin, then in the Gasthaus zur Stadt Paris in Brüderstraße in Berlin, from 1791 in the house of the Grand Lodge in Oranienburer Straße 72 in Berlin and this until 1935, when the lodge declared itself dormant. The founder of our lodge held the gavel for 35 years until 1811, when he was succeeded by his son Johann Michael Palmié.
Ernst II. (Sachsen-Gotha)
The brotherhood had grown to over 70 brothers that year. Brother J.M. Palmié was also Master of the Order from 1821 to 1841. In 1855, the St. John’s Lodge “Friedrich Wilhelm zur Mörgenröte” was founded. Of the 32 co-founders, half were Aries brothers. In 1875 the number of brothers had risen to 190, and in 1877 to 208. The First World War spared the brotherhood and brought no losses. In 1926 the number of members was still 160 brothers. Like all Masonic lodges, our lodge was banned from 1933 to 1935 and thus closed. The dissolution of our lodge took place on June 17, 1935; 35 brothers still belonged to the lodge at this time.