Masonic Order (Liberia)

The Masonic Order of Liberia is a fraternal organization in that West African country. It was based on principles of Freemasonry which had been gleaned by former slaves from their masters in the United States prior to their being "returned" to Africa under the auspices of the American Colonization Society, a 19th century U.S. group advocating the freeing of African-American slaves and their removal to that continent. The former slaves' knowledge of Freemasonry had to have been gained covertly, as they were not eligible for admission to the organization and its rituals are not open to outsiders; neither black American Masons nor their Liberian counterparts are regarded as being "real" Masons by many members of the parent group.

In Liberia, Masonry became associated with the Americo-Liberian elite and involvement in it almost a prerequisite for postions of political leadership in the True Whig Party, which for over a century was the nation's only legal political organization. After Master Sgt. Samuel Doe assumed leadership in a coup d'etat in 1980, the political monopoly formerly held by the Americo-Liberians was destroyed and the Masonic Order's influence in Liberia was greatly diminished.