By the early 1970s, the older Lodges in Port Talbot, such as Afan Lodge No. 833, Margam Abbey Lodge No.5257 and Baglan Lodge No. 6079, had a very large Membership, and it was not unusual for a Master Mason to take up to 16 years to reach the Chair. To address this problem, Lord Swansea, ProvGM, made it known that he would welcome the formation of additional Lodges, which were to meet less frequently than the established ones. In consequence, Margam Abbey Lodge decided to Sponsor a new Lodge in Port Talbot, which was to become known as “Lodge of St. Theodore No. 8536.           In 1897, a Church, dedicated to St. Theodore, was built in Port Talbot to serve the needs of the then rapidly growing population of the town, as the original Chapel of Ease, Holy Cross Church, as it is now called, was proving too small. The Founders proposed the name of “Lodge of St. Theodore”, in acknowledgement of all that this magnificent Church had meant to countless people over so many years. It also followed the tradition of other Port Talbot Lodges, which all had long standing affiliations with many of the other churches within the area.          A Warrant for the formation of Lodge of St. Theodore, was duly granted on 12th September 1973 and it was Consecrated on Monday, 10th December 1973, at the Masonic Temple, Port Talbot.           On 16th May 1988, the Petition for the Lodge’s Daughter Lodge, South Wales Clerics’ Lodge No. 9298, was presented and duly signed. The Warrant was granted on 14th September 1998 and the new Lodge was Consecrated on 7th April 1989.            In spite of its short existence, the Lodge of St. Theodore has taken part in four Provincial Festivals, namely 1976, 1986, 1999 and 2010, and is currently involved in the 2021 Festival.Its Members are not only proud to have met their targets for all the Festivals, but also the Lodge was amongst the top ten in the Province for donations per capita. Early in the life of the Lodge, it was decided to establish, in addition to Festival Appeals, a totally separate Charity Fund devoted mainly to local Charities. Sponsored by Lodge raffles, by 2015 the Lodge has donated in excess of £17000 to deserving local causes.           
THE HISTORY OF THE LODGE OF ST THEODORE No 8536