In Maryland, the first lodge was established in 1770, and the Maryland Grand Lodge formed after the Revolution in 1787. Freemasons fought on both sides during the American Revolution, as depicted at the Friend-to-Friend Masonic Memorial in Gettysburg, PA. After the Revolution in Maryland, the first lodge of Black Masons was established in Baltimore on February 2, 1825, as part of a movement that became known as Prince Hall Freemasonry.
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Freemasons were active in the creation of this country with at least eight of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence being Freemasons, thirteen out of the 39 signers of the Constitution were Freemasons, and at least fourteen of our Presidents, including George Washington, Teddy Roosevelt, Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR), and Harry Truman were Freemasons. There is still research going on to determine how much influence Freemasonry has had on the documents and institutions of American government.
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