Freemasons require new members to meet several criteria, including being adult men and being religious in some capacity.
In order to become a Shriner, members must first be Freemasons. The Shriners came to Chicago not long after the organization’s founding, creating their first permanent home in the city in 1883. They called their fraternal order the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. Soon afterwards, according to the Shriners’ own historical accounts, the two men brought together a small group of Masons to create a new organization based loosely on the “glamour, pageantry and mystic splendor” Florence had seen during his travels. Fleming created a ritual incorporating symbols and motifs from Florence’s notes. Florence returned from a trip to Cairo and Algiers and shared notes and drawings from his travels with another member of his fraternity, Walter M. From the book ‘100 Years of Love: Medinah Temple, Ancient Arabic Order, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, Desert of Illinois, Oasis of Chicago.’ Courtesy of the Chicago History Museum Abakanowicz Research CenterIn 1870, a New York Freemason named William J.
