Freemasons For Dummies: BREAKING: GL of Arkansas Recognizes Arkansas Prince Hall

Thursday, February 05, 2026

BREAKING: GL of Arkansas Recognizes Arkansas Prince Hall

by Christopher Hodapp

The Old Fashion Masonic Podcast is reporting on its Facebook page tonight that the Grand Lodge F&AM of Arkansas has just voted in favor of recognizing the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Arkansas.

The vote was 79% Yay / 21% Nay

As of today, only the Grand Lodges of South Carolina and Mississippi are the last two remaining US jurisdictions that have not achieved some form of Prince Hall recognition. However, the Grand Lodge of Mississippi reportedly has the question on its annual meeting's agenda later this month.

For clarification, the GL of Louisiana has recognized the Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Maryland, and the GL of West Virginia has recognized the Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Kentucky.

This story will be updated.

5 comments:

AnonymousThu Feb 05, 07:19:00 PM 2026
Bro Chris, it is TRUE!! Very happy that our Grand Lodge did pass the recommendation of MW Grand Master Michael Olegario to recognize Prince Hall. GM recommendations in our jurisdiction require only a simple majority, so the 79% in favor was excellent!! Next steps will be to finish a treaty between the two Grand Lodges and have it signed by both Grand Masters. A wonderful day for Arkansas Freemasonry James Graham, PGM Arkansas and SGIG in Arkansas
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AnonymousThu Feb 05, 07:20:00 PM 2026
This is outstanding news! It will be a great day in this nation when all states have respective recognition!
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Tom EzellThu Feb 05, 08:51:00 PM 2026
The proposal (Resolution #6) passed around 3:00 p.m. this afternoon with a 79% favorable vote. There's still a little coordination to be finished between the two grand lodges concerning intervisitation; but the main hurdle has been overcome.

In the same day's work, we came within about 3 or 3 percentage points of eliminating PGM George Thornburgh's old 1879 prohibition of alcohol anywhere inside Masonic premises ;-)
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Keith Donaldson, PM MinnesotaFri Feb 06, 08:27:00 AM 2026
The Fraternity has moved forward over the last 50 years. Sometimes glacial change is good, in this case we can say finally.
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AnonymousFri Feb 06, 07:43:00 PM 2026
Glory be god im very happy this is mile stone P.G.M. Howard Woods would be proud lot has been lot been moving .
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The Legendary brotherhood
A mythic past
A visionary future.

Freemasonry is the largest, oldest and best-known gentleman's fraternity in the world. Historically, it is based on the Medieval stonemason guilds who built the great castles and cathedrals of Europe. Mythologically it is founded upon the building of Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem, as told in the Old Testament of the Bible.

Modern Freemasons likewise use the tools, traditions and terminology of those Biblical stonemasons as allegories for building Temples in the hearts of men.

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Christopher L. Hodapp is the author of Freemasons For Dummies, the international, best-selling introduction to the Masonic fraternity; and Solomon's Builders: Freemasons, Founding Fathers and the Secrets of Washington D.C..

Prior to joining the Masons and becoming an author, Chris spent 23 years as a commercial filmmaker with Dean Crow Productions in Indianapolis.

Since 2009 he has been on the Board of the Masonic Library & Museum of Indiana, and currently serves as its President and Co-Director.

As a Freemason, Chris is a Past Master of Broad Ripple Lodge No. 643 and of Lodge Vitruvian No. 767 under the Grand Lodge F&AM of Indiana; he is a member of Indiana's Schofield Lodge 1818 U.D.; and of Internet Lodge No. 9659 in the Province of East Lancashire of the United Grand Lodge of England. Most recently, he served as the Worshipful Master of the Dwight L. Smith Lodge of Research U.D. in Indiana for 2019-21.

In 2018 he was awarded the Caleb B. Smith Medal of Honor by the Grand Lodge F&AM of Indiana for his "distinguished service to Freemasonry in Indiana and worldwide."

Chris is a 33° Mason in the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite (NMJ), Indianapolis Valley. He is a Past Sovereign Master of Imhotep Council No. 434 of the Allied Masonic Degrees. He is a founding member of Levant Preceptory, a medieval Knights Templar period recreation degree team in the York Rite, and he is an officer of the Indiana College of the Societas Rosicruciana in Civitatibus Foederatis. He belongs to numerous other Masonic appendant organizations.

Chris is a Fellow of the Philalethes Society. As a Masonic author, in 2012 he was named as Friar No. 101 in the Society of Blue Friars. Chris was also a Founding Fellow of The Masonic Society, and was the founding Editor in Chief of The Journal of The Masonic Society. He was the editor and a contributor in 2004-5 to "Laudable Pursuit: A 21st Century Response to Dwight Smith" by the Knights of the North, a Masonic leadership think-tank focusing on modern lodge solutions. He has written for Indianapolis Monthly, Heredom, Masonic Magazine, Templar History, the Scottish Rite Journal, the Knight Templar Magazine, the Indiana Freemason , the Phylaxis, and numerous other publications.

His most recent Masonic book, Heritage Endures, was published in January 2018 as part of the 200th anniversary of Indiana's Grand Lodge.

Chris is also the co-author with his wife Alice VonKannon of The Templar Code For Dummies and Conspiracy Theories And Secret Societies For Dummies. Together they developed scripts for the History Channel program, Brad Meltzer's Decoded in 2010, and contributed material on conspiracies and secret societies for TruTV and the American Heroes Channel. They have both appeared on National Public Radio, the History Channel, Discovery, National Geographic, Smithsonian, and the American Heroes Channel - most recently in the 2024 episode of America's Book of Secrets - The Freemason Factor for History and Prometheus Productions.

Chris and Alice reside in Indianapolis with their canine companions , Sophie the Flying Poodle and Maxwell, the Idiot Circus Doodle, who have them both answering to basic commands. They can frequently be found alarming the wildlife and dazzling the rustiks in their Airstream trailer as they crisscross the country. Appropriately, their newest books together are RVs and Campers For Dummies, released in June 2021; and RV Vacations For Dummies - 7th Edition, released in June 2023.

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