Raleigh, Charlotte:
York Rite Bodies
The York Rite is one of the appendant bodies of Freemasonry in which a master Mason may proceed to supplement and amplify the blue lodge degrees, affording historical background on the work and meaning of Freemasonry.

The York Rite takes it name from the old English city of York. The Rite is not a religion in itself; it does, however, develop themes based on the medieval crusades. It confers degrees beyond the three blue lodge degrees. In the York Rite a master Mason may become a member of three bodies that consist of nine additional degrees: Chapter- Mark Master: Past Master, Most Excellent Master and Royal Arch Mason. Cryptic: Royal Master, Select Master and Super Excellent Master. Chivalric Orders: Illustrious Order of the Red Cross, Order of Malta and the Order of the Temple.

In none of these is any memorization required to advance from one degree to another. There are many easily learned parts that any interested Mason may acquire and participate in the conferring of the work. In the York Rite most of the work is by a cast of characters made up to portray the message more vividly. The cast is robed to add to the impressiveness of the lessons.

Many believe the Sublime Degree of Master Mason to be the ultimate degree of Freemasonry and that all others are added and explanatory. Most students of Freemasonry agree that the story of the craft as presented in the three degree is incomplete and that the degrees offered in the York Rite complete the story and answer many questions in the mind of the newly made Master Mason.

Brother Bob Schafer, Grand-Secretary-Recorder of the Grand York Rite Masonic Bodies of NC, reports our state currently has 4,500 York Rite Masons.

Here are all 28 York Rite Body cities in North Carolina and their addresses:
Asheville, 80 Broadway
Charlotte, 1229 North Sharon Amity Road
Durham, 1416 Watts Street
Elizabeth City, Eureka Lodge, Hughes Boulevard
Fayetteville, 2860 Village Drive
Franklin, 50 Church Street
Gastonia, 214 South Street
Goldsboro, 2301 Norwood Avenue
Greensboro, 426 West Market Street
Greenville, 1104 Charles Street
Henderson, 401 Brodie Street
Hickory, 30 Sixteenth Avenue Southeast
High Point, 3202 North Main Street
Jacksonville, New River Lodge, Old Highway 30
Kinston, 1810 North Heritage Street
Lenoir, 106 West Main Street
Monroe, 520 East Franklin Street
North Wilkesboro, 203 Temple Street
New Bern, US 17 and Glenburnie Road
Oxford, 105 West College Street
Raleigh, 1520 Caswell Street
Rocky Mount, 1700 Winstead Avenue
Salisbury, 401 North Fulton Street
Washington, 116 East Third Street
Waynesville, 508 Marshall Street
Wilmington, 1312 Shipyard Boulevard
Wilson, 2501 West Nash Street
Winston-Salem, 34 Miller Street

Produced by the public relations committee of the Grand Lodge AF&AM of Masons in North Carolina,
2921 Glenwood Avenue, Raleigh, NC 27628 MMVIII
Author/editor: Walter J. Klein wklein(at)carolina.rr.com