The Lodge was named in honour of Sir Wilhelm Herschel, the esteemed astronomer who discovered the planet Uranus in 1781. He lived and ran an observatory for many years, just a few hundred yards from the Slough Masonic Centre. A portrait of Sir Wilhelm, gifted by his grandson, graces the Slough Masonic Centre, establishing a direct link to the lodge's namesake.
The lodge itself was consecrated on Wednesday, 14th September 1881, within the then-combined Province of Berks and Bucks, at the Crown Hotel in Slough, under the sponsorship of Windsor Castle Lodge No 771. At that time, Buckinghamshire was home to only five lodges.

The original lodge banner, presented in 1888 by W.Bro. F. Charsley, is rich in symbolic detail. It features the Pentalpha, or Five-Pointed Star, in its right and left-hand corners, a symbol of significant ancient and universal importance, denoting health and widely used as a Mason's Mark in mediaeval times, as well as being the traditional seal of King Solomon. The banner also depicts an eagle atop a demi-terrestrial sphere, symbolising the highest aspirations and achievements. Additionally, it showcases an azure chief with the astronomical symbol for Uranus and Herschel’s Badge of Ulster as a baronet, centred around a representation of the 40-foot reflecting telescope, beneath which lies the motto ‘Coelis Exploratis’ or ‘The Heavens Explored’ in English, encapsulating the lodge’s homage to astronomical discovery and exploration.

You can read more about Herschel's 40-foot telescope here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/40-foot_telescope

If you would like to be part of a Freemasons' lodge like this and a global community that has its roots firmly in the ground in Buckinghamshire, please join us by following this link: https://buckspgl.org/join