About Brownrigg Lodge 1638

Brownrigg Lodge No. 1638 was warranted on 9 August 1876 and consecrated on 20 September 1876 at the Swan Hotel, Thames Ditton.

The Lodge was named in honour of Lieutenant-General John Studholme Brownrigg, C.B., Provincial Grand Master of Surrey, who personally conducted the consecration. General Brownrigg was a distinguished soldier who had served in the Crimean War and fought at the Battle of the Alma on 20 September 1854.

The date held particular significance for him. At the Lodge’s consecration, General Brownrigg spoke of the honour he felt in having the new Lodge named after him, while recalling that the ceremony had taken place on the anniversary of the Battle of the Alma.

By 1883, Brownrigg Lodge had established itself at the Sun Hotel, 10–11 Market Place, Kingston upon Thames. Contemporary Masonic records show the Lodge meeting there during the 1880s, a period in which Brownrigg continued to grow and develop.

By 1886, the Lodge had grown to such an extent that its Installation meeting was held at the larger Albany Hall. Following the meeting, the brethren returned to the Sun Hotel for the festive board, where 64 brethren and guests gathered.

The Sun Hotel became an important part of Brownrigg’s early history in Kingston before the Lodge eventually established its home at Surbiton Masonic Hall.

Following the First World War, plans were made to establish a permanent Masonic centre in Surbiton. Glenmore House was purchased in 1920 and developed for use as a Masonic Hall.

Brownrigg Lodge No. 1638 was one of the 16 Founder Lodges whose members supported the establishment of the new Masonic centre through the purchase of shares.

This began Brownrigg’s long association with Glenmore House, an association that continues today.

In more recent years Brownrigg Lodge entered a new chapter in its history. On 22 May 2025, Brownrigg Lodge No. 1638 was formally launched at Glenmore House as The Fishing Lodge, bringing together the traditions of Freemasonry with a shared passion for angling, friendship and community.

Today Brownrigg Lodge continues to meet at Glenmore House, Surbiton. In 2026 it celebrates its 150th anniversary, preserving the heritage of a Lodge founded in Victorian Surrey while building a distinctive future as The Fishing Lodge.