| Bloomington Lodge #340, A.F. and A.M., was granted a charter from the Grand Lodge of Minnesota in 1955. For a number of the early years Bloomington Lodge rented space for their meetings in the old Fire Hall in Bloomington. There has been a long and mutually beneficial relationship with the Bloomington Fire Department, as a number of Masons were volunteer Firemen and Firemen became Lodge members.
In the early 70's Bloomington Lodge moved their Charter to the Community Center at the Collins Mobile Home Park in East Bloomington. For many years this served as an excellent home. Eventually the Collins Park gave way to Wal-Mart and Bloomington Lodge found it necessary to relocate. The Lodge first moved to the Lake Harriet Masonic Lodge facility at 45th and France in Minneapolis, where lodge meetings and events were held for several years. The Lodge then moved back closer to Bloomington with space in the Richfield Masonic building, where it met until that building was sold as part of a redevelopment for the Best Buy corporate headquarters. In January of 2001 the lodge returned to the Lake Harriet Masonic Lodge building, where it now meets. Long range plans call for a return to a Bloomington-based lodge facility.
Despite not having a meeting place in Bloomington, Bloomington Lodge remains very strongly attached to Bloomington as its community home through volunteer services such as donations of money and labor to the VEAP food shelf program. For many years Bloomington Lodge also supported and funded the Diabetes monitoring at Bloomington Schools and was involved in an annual cleanup at Moir Park.
The Grand Lodge of Minnesota has sponsored a "We Care" theme of involvement for
helping kids from 'Care Bears' to hospitals. More recently the "We Care" programs are speaking out against domestic violence and Lodges are contributing to shelters and safe places for women and children. Bloomington Lodge has contributed “Care Bears”, which are huggable teddy bears, to the Bloomington police, fire and rescue squad for distribution to children who may be traumatized by a fire, accident, family violence, or other event in their young lives.
Bloomington Lodge # 340 has approximately 370 members, and is open to males of legal age who are of good character and believe in a supreme being.
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