Victoria Lodge No. 2
The Records showed that the Lodge has long been faithful in acknowledging the service of its Worshipful Masters. In 1937 W.Bro. George Geddes Wood initiated the custom of presenting a Past Master’s Jewel to the Immediate Past Master. W.Bro. James P. Millar PM was the first recipient In 1955 the gift was changed to a Past Master’s Apron and Case. W.Bro. Lloyd Hawkes was the first recipient. As the Lodge prepared to move into the Temple on Grafton Street, the Brethren voted to obtain portraits of Past Masters for display. (Minutes, July 4, 1892) In recent years the initiative was repeated and through the efforts of W.Bro. Frank Graham PM the portraits of several Past Masters have been displayed in Carl Peterson Hall. The frequency of Past Masters’ Night especially in recent years has been a meaningful practise in the Lodge.
The Recreation Room at the Grafton Street Temple was an important element in the life of the Lodge and the Brethren missed that facility in the new Temple on Hillsboro Street. In 1966 the Junior Warden, Bro. J.H. England, spoke of the lack of a banquet facility and suggested that it might be possible to excavate the basement for that purpose. A committee was appointed to study the idea and to make recommendations to the Temple Company. In 1979 the Senior Warden, Bro. Carl Bagnall, reported that he and a number of the Brethren had examined the possibility of excavating the basement and building a banquet room at an estimated cost of $25,000-$30,000. A further report was planned. In 1986 the initiative under the leadership of W.Bro. Carl Peterson was carried to a successful conclusion. A piece of adjacent property at the rear of the Temple was purchased and the existing basement was excavated and extended to provide a spacious Banquet and Recreation Room. Appropriately the Temple Company approved the recommendation to name the new facility “Carl Peterson Hall’ in recognition of the work and leadership given to the project by Bro. Peterson. The Official Opening was held on November 7, 1987. Hon. Tom McMillan MP and M.W.Bro. Carl K. Thompson, Grand Master, participated in the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Funding and support for the project came from many sources. Many Brethren contributed volunteer labour and materials. Victoria Lodge and St. John’s Lodge combined for a donation of $30,000. Donations were also received from other Masonic and related Bodies that use the Temple. A Canada Manpower Project provided eight workers. The inscription on a Commemorative Spade mounted in the Hall acknowledged W.Bro. Jack Smallwood PM as Building Chairman and the two Craft Lodges as partners in the Project. Total cost of the project was approximately $50,000 . (Minutes, June 2, 1986)