Queen's Lodge No. 34 A.F. & A.M. fonds

Queen's Lodge No. 34 A.F. & A.M., located in Sherbrooke, Guysborough County, Nova Scotia, dates from December 1864 when a dispensation was granted by the Hon. Alexander Keith, Provincial Grand Master for Scotland in Nova Scotia. The Lodge worked under this dispensation until 1866 when it received its charter from the newly-organized Grand Lodge of Nova Scotia. The Queen's Lodge was first known as No. 10, but became No. 34 in 1869. Alfred K. White, a tinsmith born in England in 1841, was the first master of Queen's Lodge, but was demitted from Queen's in 1889 to become the first master of Canso Lodge No. 79.

Local tradition suggests that the lodge met initially near the corner of Main St. and the Goldenville Rd., in a building known as Rock Hall. This building eventually became the general store (and later warehouse) of A. Anderson & Sons, and was located on the site where Sherbrooke's modern grocery store stands in 2020. The Masonic Lodge eventually moved up the street to a building located on the corner of Main Street and the road leading to Back Street, just between Main St. and the brook. The A.F. Church map of Sherbrooke shows the hall at this location by 1876, the year the map was published. By 1882, it was discovered that the title to the hall was unsatisfactory, and a clear deed for the hall was placed on record in October of 1882. At this time, interior work was also performed on the hall, including plastering, painting, and redecorating.

In the summer of 1895, it was decided to moved the Masonic Hall (known locally as the Machinist Hall) down Main St. to a lot purchased from Adam MacLane, located directly across the street from the Joe MacLane blacksmith shop. The lot on which the Hall had previously stood was sold. The Masons continued to meet in their new location until March 1957, when Queen's Lodge No. 34 purchased the I.O.O.F. Hall, located further down Main St., from the Unity Hall Building Company. This structure had been originally built for the Odd Fellows circa the 1920s by Johnny MacKenzie Cameron of East River St. Mary's. The Masons made repairs to the building and redecorated it, and the first regular communication (or meeting) of Queen's Lodge No. 34 was held there on 16 April 1957. The old hall, the home of Queen's Lodge for over ninety years, was sold and later became a store. It was demolished in 1994.

As goldmining, lumbering, and other industries flourished in Sherbrooke and area throughout the mid-to-late decades of the 19th century, Queen's Lodge grew in membership. Masons were members of all levels of local society, from goldminers to merchants, doctors to clergy. The nearby community of Goldenville eventually formed its own lodge, Hiram, which decreased membership in Queen's Lodge (it closed, however, in 1889, and members returned to Queen's Lodge).

Queen's Lodge played an active role in the social lives of its members and worked towards the benefit of the wider Sherbrooke community. Early records indicate that in addition to weekly meetings and other member-only gatherings, ceremonies, and rituals, Queen's Lodge offered charity to those in need, frequently paid for the funeral expenses of members, maintained a library and reading room, and supported public music festivals and the Freemasons' Home in Windsor. Queen's Lodge masons even joined together to make hay for a sick member. The Lodge hall was also used for community purposes, such as dances and lectures.

Queen's Lodge No. 34 A.F. & A.M. is still active in Sherbrooke in 2020. Monthly meetings are held the first Tuesday of the month in the lodge building, which is now part of Sherbrooke Village Restoration. Members do not meet during the months of July and August. In addition to regular meetings, Queen's Lodge members offer support to important community initiatives including school breakfast programs and scholarships.