Freemasons and motorbikes

The direction of the blog is usually determined by the direction of either my research or my footsteps, and lately there seems to be a good deal of the latter involved! Well, I suppose, the events of today are the history of tomorrow so telling you about things I've been to over the last week is thereby justified!!

Again this week, I've been lucky enough to hear about and see things that are not often on open show, and most of it has been hugely exciting!

Over on Facebook there's been a few posts about the Masonic Hall on the corner of Orchard Street and Brook Side, which relatively recently had a couple of new signs erected on the outside near the entrance. I took the pictures below on 16 October 2017, and have included this building in my Plaques Walk (which is on the blog, but hasn't quite made it to the Walks section yet!)  

Previously the sign said "Carillion Banqueting Rooms" and originally this was the Independent Congregational Chapel. I love looking at "particulars" of old sales, and as well as the Market Place sale of 1961, I've now seen the details of the sale of the above property to the Freemasons in 1956:

Messrs. Garton the Mart were again the auctioneers, and again, Moss, Toone and Deane were the solicitors involved. At the time of the sale, the building, originally constructed in 1828, with a later addition to the back, was in use as the Loughborough Adult School. There was also a brick and slated workshop at the rear, and various other outbuildings, including two former air raid shelters and "adequate lavatory accommodation"!

Back in the Market Place, not for a sale this time, but for an event. As I walked along Devonshire Square, I was overtaken by 24 motorbikes! Gosh, they were noisy! And when I got to Cattle Market there were loads parked up - all shiny and bright! Imagine the excitement when I realised there were many, many more bikes (I'm using this term to cover motorbikes, trikes, scooters etc.) - along Market Street, filling the Market Place, spilling along the pedestrianised parts of Swan Street / High Street. In the centre of the Market Place there was a makeshift arena with a musical group playing at one end, a berry van selling fresh fruit on one side, and bikes queuing to enter the arena at the other end.

Well, I don't think I've seen so many bikes in one place since I last went to Matlock, or Abergavenny!!! Here's a few of my fav things:

Now where did I put that photo of me on my father's motorbike when I was about 3??

You are welcome to quote passages from any of my posts, with appropriate credit. The correct citation for this looks as follow:

Dyer, Lynne (2018). Freemasons and motorbikes. Available from: https://lynneaboutloughborough.blogspot.com/2018/05/freemasons-and-motorbikes.html  [Accessed 20 May 2018]

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Lynne