The Grand United Order of Oddfellows has had a presence in Bermuda since 1848.

History records that the first of the Oddfellows’ Lodges established here was Somers Pride of India Lodge No 899 in St George’s.

Alexandrina Lodge was the next to open under the Oddfellows banner, in 1851. That was followed by the creation of Victoria & Albert Lodge No 1027 in Somerset, though the exact date that Lodge received its Charter is unknown.

The guiding principles of the Order are friendship, love and truth and those enduring moral tenets have been one of the reasons why Oddfellowship continues to exist in these Islands.

These Lodges, as well as their fraternal counterparts, have since 1848 been a very valuable part of Bermuda’s social and cultural history.

The Lodges, historically black institutions, provided a useful forum for its members to develop skills in leadership, money management, social interaction and community outreach.

In many ways, Lodges were a hub of social life in Bermuda, often being the venue for community-based events such as concerts, bazaars, fairs, wedding receptions and other social events.

In the case of Alexandrina Lodge, the building was once used to hold church services when St Paul’s Church did not have the use of its building.

It was also the home for various social and cultural events.

It was the starting point for the Alexandrina Band which, in subsequent years, morphed into the renowned North Village Band.

It is the home to Past Grand Masters Council No 8, which was established in 1859 and which is still in existence.

It is the home also to Household of Ruth No 61, an organisation for the Sisters of the Grand United Order of Oddfellows.

This organisation took root in 1922, and though numbers have diminished in recent years, the organisation is still active.

Alexandrina Lodge sits on a property at 75 Court Street East in the City of Hamilton and was constructed in its present form in 1859.

The forces of nature intervened some 67 years later, when in 1926, the building was all but destroyed in a fierce hurricane.

However, by sheer dint of the courage, determination and commitment of its members, Alexandrina Lodge rose, like the phoenix from the ashes, in 1930 and it has been thriving ever since.

Time was when each year the Lodges would hold colourful and large parades on its thanksgiving anniversary, complete with the musical accompaniment of the North Village Band.

But those days are gone, both because their membership is ageing and because other institutions have arisen and there are, frankly, more options for social interaction available to potential members of the Order.

Throughout the years the Brethren of Alexandrina Lodge have established themselves as men of influence in the community and played prominent roles in business, agriculture, sport and in the Island’s social, cultural and political life.

Against this rich, colourful and historical background, the Officers and Brethren of Alexandrina Lodge No 1026 look to the future with anticipation and optimism.

They are indebted to attorney and acting magistrate Leopold Mills for these elements, with a concentration on Alexandrina 1026, Court Street Hamilton, of which he is Noble Grand.

It also reflects research carried out about the Order by the late Bro Henry L Conyers, one of the luminaries of the Order in Bermuda in general, and of Alexandria Lodge in particular.

Bro Conyers served in virtually all of the offices in Alexandrina Lodge, most notably as Noble Grand.