What is the difference between the Scottish Rite, Northern Masonic Jurisdiction and the Scottish Rite, Southern Jurisdiction?

In the United States, the Scottish Rite is organized into two regional jurisdictions: the Southern Jurisdiction and the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction (NMJ). The Supreme Council of each jurisdiction operates independently, overseeing the states and Valleys in their region.

The Scottish Rite was established in the United States in 1801 in Charleston, South Carolina. The Southern Jurisdiction recognizes this date as its beginning. Today, the Supreme Council of the Southern Jurisdiction is headquartered in Washington, D.C. and oversees 35 states, primarily in the South and the West.

In 1813, a charter was granted to the Supreme Council of the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction in New York. Today, the Scottish Rite, NMJ is headquartered in Lexington, Massachusetts and oversees 15 states in New England, the Mid-Atlantic and the Mid-West: Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Wisconsin, and Vermont.

Read more about the history of the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction here.