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The Hanley Masonic Hall in Snow Hill, Stoke-On-Trent, in the province of Staffordshire, England was set ablaze Sunday night after a gang of masked youths were seen breaking a window and hurling a lit firework through it. Fortunately, no one was in the building at the time, and there were no injuries. The fire was put out quickly by local firefighters.
Local police are studying surveillance videos and attempting to identify the yobs who were having a fine old time setting fires in the area. Officers were seen guarding the historic building on Monday.
In England, the evening celebration of Guy Fawkes Day on November 5th is often referred to as 'Bonfire Night.' It commemorates the failed 'Gunpowder Plot' in 1605 that had sought to kill both King James I and members of Parliament. As you can probably imagine, some miscreants occasionally use it as an excuse to do more than just shoot off fireworks in imitation of the Gunpowder Plot. The Staffordshire Fire and Rescue crews were called to some 54 incidents on Sunday night alone.
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Hanley Masonic Hall is seen in this Google image before the fire. |
The hall is an extremely active and significant Masonic and community landmark. According to the Staffordshire Freemasons webpage, the historic Hanley Masonic Hall is home to some sixteen lodges, including Sutherland 451, Etruscan 546, Josiah Wedgwood 2214, St. Peter ad Vincula 6835, North Staffordshire Round Table 8355, and University Lodge of Staffordshire 9907. It's also the meeting place of several Knight Templar Preceptories, Rose Croix /Scottish Rite Chapters, and Mark Master lodges. The Masonic hall is also home to the Shelton Conference Center.
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