Castro Valley Masonic Lodge No. 713 Records, 1951-1990's

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Summary

Title:
Castro Valley Masonic Lodge No. 713 Records
Dates:
1951-1990's
Creators:
Abstract:
The Castro Valley Masonic Lodge No. 713 Records document a 20th century Masonic lodge in Castro Valley, California.
Extent:
2.5 linear feet
Language:
Preferred citation:

Castro Valley Masonic Lodge No. 713 Records. Henry W. Coil Library and Museum of Freemasonry

Background

Scope and content:

The Castro Valley Lodge No. 713 records (1951-1990’s) consist of ephemera, handwritten notes, meeting minutes, membership records, photographs, a scrapbook, and tiler’s registers. Ephemera (1958-1993) includes programs and printed materials related to Lodge events. Handwritten notes (1950’s) are related to the Lodge’s history. Meeting minutes are from 1951-1990. Membership records are from the 1950’s-1990’s. Photographs (1950’s-1960’s) include color photographs of the Castro Valley Masonic Temple, black and white officer portraits, and black and white film negatives. The scrapbook (1959) contains newspaper clippings related to public schools. The tiler’s registers (1951-1990’s) are records of Lodge meeting attendance. See records for Crow Canyon Lodge No. 551 for related Lodge information.

Biographical / historical:

On December 19th, 1950, a group of Masonic brethren met in Castro Valley, Alameda County, California, with the purpose of establishing a lodge there. On May 19th, 1951, Grand Master of California Arthur Paulson granted the Lodge a dispensation. On October 11th, 1951, during its Annual Communication, the Grand Lodge of California granted Castro Valley Lodge No. 713 its charter. On July 1st, 1986, Castro Valley Lodge No. 713 merged with Bay View Lodge No. 401 to become Bayview-Castro Valley Lodge No. 713. On September 1st, 1992, Bayview-Castro Valley Lodge No. 713 merged with Chateau Thierry Lodge No. 569 and Ashland Lodge No. 789 to become Crow Canyon Lodge No. 569. On September 1st, 1997, Crow Canyon Lodge No. 569 merged with Tri-Square Lodge No. 551 to become Crow Canyon Lodge No. 551. The Lodge first met at the San Leandro Masonic Temple. In 1966, it moved to its next meeting place, a Masonic Temple at Crow Canyon Road and East Castro Valley Blvd., which it shared with Chateau Thierry Lodge No. 569. Both Lodges met there until 1980, when the State bought the property and they were forced to meet in a former Hayward dance studio. Four years later, during construction of the a new temple, the Lodges met at the Masonic Home in Union City. In March 1985, the Castro Valley Masonic Temple was dedicated and the Lodges began holding their meetings there.

Acquisition information:
Received January 24th, 2025 from Crow Canyon Lodge No. 551.
Processing information:

Processed according to DACS standards by Jennifer Bloom, January 2026.

Indexed terms

Subjects:
Freemasonry
Places:
Castro Valley, California

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Finding aid created by Henry W. Coil Library and Museum of Freemasonry staff.
Date Prepared:
1951-1990's
Date Encoded:
This finding aid was produced using Record Express for OAC5 on Jan. 13, 2026, 1:50 p.m.

Access and use

Restrictions:

Please email requests for access to the Museum Collections Manager at the Henry W. Coil Library and Museum of Freemasonry, Grand Lodge of California at hwclibrary@freemasonry.org.

Preferred citation:

Castro Valley Masonic Lodge No. 713 Records. Henry W. Coil Library and Museum of Freemasonry

Location of this collection:
1111 California Street
San Francisco, CA 94108, US
Contact:
(415) 292-9141
hwclibrary@freemason.org
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