Lodge St. Bryde No. 579 was Chartered by The Grand Lodge of Scotland on 7th. February 1876.
We have continually met in Uddingston since that date and our Lodge has in its possession a complete minute which traces not only the history of the Lodge but importantly the history of our village and the surrounding area.
Our present Masonic Hall was built in 1924 and is one of the finest examples of a building of its type in Scotland.
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Lodge St. Bryde No. 579
Member 1062. Initiated 24th of September 1919
Residing at 29 Old Glasgow Road, Uddingston he worked as a Plumber.
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John Meiklejohn was born on the 4th of June 1882 at Aitken's Land, Old Glasgow Road, Uddingston.
His parents were George (b.1850) who was employed as an Iron Monger and his mother was Isabella Reid (b.1850).
They married at Eastwood, Renfrewshire on the 29th of December 1871.
In the 1891 Census the family are residing at Old Glasgow Road, Porterswell in Uddingston with them being listed as George (40), Isabella (39), George (15), James (13), John (9), William (2) and Eliza (3 months).
At this time John was at school. Later in the 1911 census the family are residing at 29 Old Glasgow Road, Uddingston. Some of the children are missing and have most probably moved away from the family home, however listed are George (61), Isabella (60), George (35) Steel Moulder, John (29) Plumber, William (22) Painter and Eliza is (19).
Prior to the War John had a child with Mary Howitt Crichton (b.1881) on the 23rd of March 1912. The girl was named Mary after her mother.
We are unsure why but the relationship between John and Mary breaks down around the time of the outbreak of World War One. At the outbreak of War John enlisted with the 10th Gordon Highlanders and was given service number S/5534.
Although his service records no longer survive, by looking at the service numbers close to John (S/5531+S/5533) we can determine that he enlisted at Hamilton on the 7th of September 1914.
He was then transferred to Aberdeen, where the 10th Battalion was formed as part of the 44th Brigade in the 15th Scottish Division.
In November 1914 the 10th Gordons moved to Aldershot then again they moved to the town of Midhurst, a market town in the South of England. In March 1915 as they continued training they move South of Swindon to Chiseldon, before moving close by to Tidworth in May 1915 as they finalised preparations for embarking overseas.
They eventually landed at Boulogne in France on the 9th of July 1915 which entitled Private John Meiklejohn to the 1915 Star medal.
The Battle of Loos was the first major engagement that the 10th Gordon Highlanders were involved in. The Battalion war diary is an excellent source and gives in great detail a first-
The 10th Gordon Highlanders were part of the second column and were reserves to the 7th Cameron Highlanders.
They had a number of objectives with the town of Loos to be taken along with other key positions in the area.
At 5.50 am a 40 minute continued bombardment of shrapnel bombs assisted by Gas and smoke was aimed at the German Lines. At 6.30 the advance began and although there were losses things were going to plan with the town of Loos taken by 7am.
However around 11.30am as they advanced over the crest of Hill 70 assisted by other units they met a strong line of barbed wire and 'a seething machine gun and rifle fire was opened on them'.
It seems that anyone who made it over the crest of Hill 70 was in big trouble. It is most probably at this time that Private John Meiklejohn was wounded on the left foot and lay injured on the Battlefield.
By mid-
This position was held despite constant counter attacks continuing through the night. By the 27th of September the following was written in the War diary;
'3. NCO's and men, killed 23, wounded 221, wounded & missing 16, missing 114.'
Private John Meiklejohn was one of those reported missing. Unknown to his Battalion he was now in German hands and a Prisoner of War.
John is listed on a number of German P.O.W records beginning on the 30th of October 1915. Record PA3588 lists John as a wounded P.O.W who was being treated in the German military hospital at Froyennes in Belgium.
On the 13th of November 1915 the Hamilton Advertiser newspaper reports that Duncan Morton of Greenrig Street, Robert Coulter of 2 Crofthead Street and John Meiklejohn, Porterswell are Prisoners of War.
It also reports that Alex Daly, 74 Main Street is missing. All were Uddingston men who were involved in action at the Battle of Loos.
The newspaper article reports the following about Private Meiklejohn ;
'A postcard was received by Mr George Meiklejohn, Windsor Place, Uddingston, from his cousin Private John Meiklejohn, 10th Gordon Highlanders (son of the late George Meiklejohn, Porterswell, Uddingston), that he had been shot in the left foot in the Battle of Loos on 25th of September, and is now a prisoner of war in Germany. He was previously reported as missing.'
Records PA3920 and PA4015 detail that John was transferred to Stendal Camp, which lay to the West of Berlin. During WW1 Stendal was a cathedral town with a population of around 27,000.
The camp which lay one mile north east of the city was a working camp which could accommodate around 15,000 Prisoners. I find it quite remarkable that on the said two records two Uddingston men are listed together.
Corporal Duncan Morton, 7th Cameron Highlanders was from Greenrig Street, Uddingston and was also captured at the battle of Loos. John spent the remainder of the War as a Prisoner of War, however after 1915 we are not sure where. 
It is most likely that after a period of time as part of the British and German Governments agreement in August 1917 he was transferred to Neutral Holland. This agreement released from captivity to neutral countries those who had been in captivity for more than 18 months.
John's younger brother Private William Meiklejohn (11614) was killed on the 4th of May 1915 at the age of 26. While serving with the 1st Scots Guards he was killed by a sniper after only a week in the trenches.
William is interred at Cabaret-
On his pension record it lists two disabilities, Gastritis and Debilis. Debilis is a Latin word used to describe being weak or frail while Gastritis is a stomach problem.
Clearly his time spent as a P.O.W had taken a big toll on the health of John.
The record also lists two addresses for John in Uddingston at 29 Old Glasgow Road and at 19 Main Street. In the early 1920s John must have moved to the address on Main Street, Uddingston. John joined the Lodge on the 24th of September 1919.
On the 31st of October 1919 at 9 Victoria Street in Alexandria, John married 29 year old Jessie Doig of Alexandria.
Together John and Jessie had a Son John who was born on the 29th September 1921.
Still residing in Uddingston Private John Meiklejohn died on the 2nd of March 1947 aged 64.
In March 2019 the Lodge purchased his 1915 Star medal from Ebay. John was also awarded the British Service and Victory medal for his contribution during the Great War.