Category talk:Freemasons of the United Grand Lodge of England

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Inclusion criteria[edit]

Many of the people currently in this category are included based on dubious criteria and unreliable sources, often masonic websites with no indication of editorial oversight. For example:

Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondal: The source doesn't mention whether Albert Victor was a member of the UGLE, and I see no indication of editorial oversight.
William Amherst, 3rd Earl Amherst: The source mentions various lodges he was a member of, but not the UGLE.
Ian Allan (publisher): Who's Who lists freemasonry as one of his recreations, doesn't mention any lodge.
Claude Auchinlek is included in a list of "famous freemasons". I see no indication that the source is reliable or that all those freemasons were members of the UGLE.

For very few of them is freemasonry a significant aspect, no more so than, say, religious affiliation or a membership in a sports club would be. We wouldn't categorize people by soccer club unless they're active players or club functionaries. Similarly, categorizing random people who happen to have been freemasons not just as freemasons but - often without evidence or with original synthesis - as members of a specific Grand Lodge doesn't seem appropriate to me. Only those whom reliable third-party sources connect to the United Grand Lodge of England should be categorized here. Huon (talk) 01:50, 16 October 2017 (UTC)[reply]