The Genesis of American Freemasonry

The Genesis of American Freemasonry offers a richly researched history of how Freemasonry developed in eighteenth-century America and helped shape the emerging United States. Drawing on primary source material, Ric Berman traces the spread of Masonic lodges across the thirteen colonies, from major centres such as Philadelphia, Boston, Charleston, Savannah, and New York to the expanding western frontier.

The book explores the influence of British and Irish Freemasonry, the impact of Enlightenment ideals such as religious tolerance, meritocracy, and self-improvement, and the role Freemasonry played in America’s political and social transformation leading up to and following Independence. It also examines difficult but important subjects including slavery, migration, and the personal successes and failures of key Masonic figures.