Operation Masonic/ Ecclesiastical Circle Murder and Mystery Walking Tour
Updated: Aug 20
New dates are coming! Stay tuned.
Take a fascinating mystery and history walking tour in the St. John’s Ecclesiastical District National Historic Site of Canada featured in the bestselling crime thriller, Operation Masonic by Helen C. Escott (Flanker Press).
Get your tickets today: Tickets are $20 per person and can be bought at the visitor’s desk in the Basilica of St. John the Baptist, 200 Military Road, open 10 am-4 pm Mon-Sat, and Noon-4 pm on Sundays. Tickets are not available online. This walking tour includes stairs and hills, so comfortable shoes are required.
This tour takes you to the scene of a murder and explores actual sites discussed in Escott’s gripping novel, Operation Masonic. It is a unique experience that unveils some of the most exciting mysteries in Newfoundland and Labrador’s history: specifically, the history of freemasonry.
The tour takes place at the Basilica of St. John the Baptist, 200 Military Road, St. John’s. Tickets must be booked in advance.
Join author Helen C. Escott and John FitzGerald, Executive Director of the Basilica Heritage Foundation, as they take you on this fascinating tour, which is based on the investigation by the book's lead character, Royal Newfoundland Constabulary Inspector Nick Myra. The tour follows his trail as he investigates a murder at the Masonic Temple. Unravel the mystery and visit the sites mentioned in the book while looking for hidden Masonic symbols in downtown St. John’s.
The tour begins in the foyer of the Basilica of St. John the Baptist. Participants will be taken to the choir loft to see the ‘Iota Pulchra’ window where the mystery begins. We then head out on an hour and a half walking tour of some of the oldest streets in St. John’s and visit historic sites in the Ecclesiastical District where we go hunting for Masonic symbols.
You’ll receive expert insight into the meaning of the cryptic symbols hidden on the façades and some interiors of historic structures and churches, such as Gower Street United and St. Andrew's Presbyterian (The Kirk), that make up the Ecclesiastical district. The tour then finishes at the Sergeants’ Memorial in Veteran’s Square where Operation Masonic famously ends.