IF YOU want to understand a bit more about Freemasonry and the role of this secret society in the history of America, you might appreciate this video tour of the  palatial Masonic Temple of Philadelphia. Freemasonry existed since the 1700s in Pennsylvania, where Benjamin Franklin was a prominent member of the lodge. The ornate temple built in the 1800s, in the medieval Norman style, stands across from Philadelphia City Hall

The massive granite cornerstone, weighing ten tons, was leveled on St. John the Baptist’s Day, June 24, 1868. The ceremonial gavel used on that day by Grand Master Richard Vaux was the same gavel used by President George Washington in leveling the cornerstone of the nation’s Capitol building in 1793.

The construction was completed five years later, in 1873, and dedicated on September 29th of that year.

This is an amateur tour from a visitor five years ago, but it’s a fascinating glimpse inside this historic home of Masonry.

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