A portrait of Thomas Golightly, a founder of the Merchants Lodge, a lodge that was involved in the Liverpool Masonic Rebellion. The above photo is after a portrait displayed at the Walker Art Gallery Liverpool.

‘Michael Alexander Gage: The Masonic Rebel and the Liverpool Waterworks Bill’ was a peer-reviewed paper of mine that was published in the Liverpool History Journal, Vol.13, (Liverpool History Society, 2014), pp.31-43. The Liverpool History Society was founded by a number of Liverpool academics and local historians and meets monthly at Liverpool Hope University, working closely with local Universities and museums on various projects. Their programme can be seen on their website here http://www.liverpoolhistorysociety.org.uk/

Michael Alexander Gage was a leader of the Liverpool Masonic Rebellion, a rebellion that included a number of Liverpool and Wigan based lodges, and in 1823, they came together to re-launch the Antients Grand Lodge. This rebel Grand Lodge eventually settled in Wigan, having a number of lodges under its sway based in Wigan, Liverpool, Warrington and Ashton-under-Lyne, taking on a local identity in industrial towns in the north-west of England. The last remaining rebel lodge came back into the fold of the UGLE in 1913.

However, Gage resigned from the Grand Lodge and embraced a local political career in Liverpool, a career that finally led to his downfall. This formed part of my research that also resulted in my book The Liverpool Masonic Rebellion and the Wigan Grand Lodge which was published in September 2012. The paper was presented to the Liverpool History Society leading to the book also being reviewed by the society, which can be seen here: http://www.liverpoolhistorysociety.org.uk/the-liverpool-masonic-rebellion-and-the-wigan-grand-lodge-david-harrison/

The paper can be downloaded for free at the Academia.edu website here: https://www.academia.edu/31013657/Michael_Alexander_Gage_The_Masonic_Rebel_and_the_Liverpool_Waterworks_Bill_Liverpool_History_Journal_Vol.13_Liverpool_History_Society_2014_pp.31-43