The chronicles of Grand Lodge record that Bro William Gill was appointed as Grandmaster of the province of Bedfordshire in 1799, there were no Freemasons Lodges at the county at that time, making the office – complimentary only.
The first Bedfordshire Lodge to be consecrated was St John the Baptist No 475 on July 29th 1841. By 1874 there were five within the county, and on July 3rd 1885 the province of Bedfordshire was born with Col. William Stuart as its first Grand Master. During the next six years, in 1890 only one more lodge – Sir William Harper No 2343 was consecrated. In that year Lord Ampthill became Provincial Grand Master and the decade that saw the Birth of the Ampthill lodge 2490 with its consecration on June 22nd 1894.
