United Grand Lodge of New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory

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The United Grand Lodge of New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory is the main governing body for Freemasonry in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory, which includes Canberra. Its building is in Sydney at 279 Castlereagh Street; the foundation stone for the current building was laid in 1976, it opened in 1979, and an office tower was added in 2005. The building houses the Museum of Freemasonry, open to the public. The Grand Lodge is led by a Grand Master, with a Deputy Grand Master and an Assistant Grand Master, and a Grand Team. It is divided into four Regions, each led by a Regional Grand Counsellor, and into Districts led by a District Grand Inspector of Workings, with lodges meeting in various places across NSW and ACT.

Freemasonry arrived in New South Wales with the British Army after the First Fleet in 1788, but was briefly banned by Governor King. The early lodges included The Australian Social Lodge No. 260 (Irish Constitution) and several English, Irish, and Scottish lodges, some admitting civilians. In 1877, Irish and Scottish lodges formed a breakaway Grand Lodge of New South Wales. After some years of disharmony, the United Grand Lodge was formed in 1888 when the NSW Grand Lodge joined with lodges from Ireland and Scotland; the mother lodge, The Australian Social Lodge, was given the number 0 on the register. The first Grand Master of the united body was Lord Carrington. On 12 August 2015, James Robert Melville became the youngest Grand Master in NSW and ACT history, serving until 2018. The Grand Lodge supports several charities, including the Grand Charity Fund, the Benevolence Fund, and the Grand Master’s Disaster Relief Fund, all under Masonicare (masoniCare).