The Waltz of History’s Sources: methodological research of Freemason women in Spain and Latin America

Abstract

The female Masonic membership, of inclusive or mixed rites, are not mentioned explicitly and hence the difficulty in identifying the women belonging to said orders. This paper describes the methods and sources that make it possible to track them. We range from the women belonging to the early artisan lodges prior to the Anderson Constitutions to the most recent organizations in Spain and Latin America. We include the organization chart of different fields of Masonic studies of Professor Ferrer Benimeli to locate the Masonic presence, activities, and characteristics, which is a very useful template for the investigation of female Freemasonry.