Greetings Brother Masons,

Members of our venerable fraternity have labored in the fertile vineyard of Mississippi Masonry for more than two hundred years, devoted patrons of Freemasonry having arrived here well in advance of the founding of our state’s Grand Lodge in 1818. Our Masonic ancestors were integrally involved in the process of taming the wilderness that was to become the western side of the Mississippi Territory by Act of Congress in 1798, and in 1817, the twentieth state of the United States of America. Under the auspices of the Grand Lodges of Kentucky and Tennessee, Masonic lodges had begun to appear and function years in advance of statehood. In the ensuing decades, Masons were instrumental in the social and economic development of the state, and, following the devastation of the U. S. Civil War, in its rebuilding.

Mississippi Lodge of Research No. 640 is the youngest of the 247 “Blue Lodges” now extant in our state, having been chartered by the Grand Lodge of Mississippi in 2009. Our lodge’s members, who reside throughout the state, are proud of Mississippi’s rich Masonic heritage, and are committed to a meticulous and scholarly process of identifying and preserving the historical data and documents that provide reliable and trustworthy evidence of Masonic influence upon many of the good and laudable achievements of our people.

We of the Mississippi Lodge of Research are at least as concerned about the fraternity’s future as we are its past, and we earnestly beseech the Great Architect of the Universe that Freemasonry will prosper and thrive in Mississippi during 2013. As the only statewide Blue Lodge in our Grand jurisdiction, we solemnly pledge to work diligently and consistently to promote the good name and the good work of Masonry in Mississippi, and we enthusiastically invite our Brethren across the length and breadth of our beloved state to join us in that noble endeavor!

Fraternally,
James W. Kitchens, PM
Master, Mississippi Lodge of Research DCXL