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THE DAY a Belfast Orangeman broadcast on Radio Moscow will
be recounted in a new exhibition by the Orange Order.
The Orangeman in question was William John Alexander, who
was a leading light in the Independent Orange Institution
in Belfast.
Materials relating to him were donated last year to the Schomberg
House archives of the Grand Orange Lodge, and Director of
Services Dr. David Hume said that the Grand Lodge was delighted
to offer a home to them.
"The old antagonisms of the early 1900s between the
Orange Order and the Independent Order are now thankfully
part of history and there is a good relationship between our
two organisations in the modern world. When we were offered
these items, including old Independent Orange newspapers and
other documents, we were delighted to add them to our small
collection of Independent Orange memorabilia," he said.
"The material on William John Alexander's trip to Moscow
in 1954 was of particular interest as it shows an interesting
aspect of his wider involvement in the trade union movement,"
"He was part of a trade union delegation to the Soviet
Union, and on May 15, 1954, he broadcast on Radio Moscow,
the copy of his script now being in our archives. Photographs
and letters relating to the visit are also part of the collection.
It would be fair to say that not too many Orangemen visited
the Soviet Union in the 1950s, at a time when the Cold War
was prevalent, so this material is extremely interesting,"
he said.
The archives also include material on the Orange Order in
Nigeria, and researchers are piecing together information
on the lodge in Lagos in the early 1900s from an old photograph
and numerous mentions in Orange newspapers of the period.
"The lodge in Lagos was linked to Orangeism in England
and it helps to remind us that there is no colour bar in the
Orange Order. There is one particularly telling reference
from a report from the lodge in 1910 which states that an
officer from one of the European boats was to be initiated
and that he would be the only white man in the lodge, a reversal
of the Order in other parts of the world," said Dr. Hume.
"This new exhibition also looks at the 1690 Paymaster
General's Account Book, a 19th century minute book from Bandon
in Cork, a roll of honour from the Guinness Company in Dublin
and other paper archives which are in the care of the Grand
Orange Lodge of Ireland," the Director of Services said.
'Orange Papers: a rich vein of documentary history' is supported
by the Good Relations Fund of Castlereagh Borough Council
and will be officially opened by the Mayor, Cllr. Jim White
on November 28 in Cregagh Youth and Community Centre.
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