What are the roles of the Junior and Senior Deacon in a Lodge?

Deacons are two officers attached directly to the Worshipful Master and Wardens of a lodge, whose responsibilities include taking charge of candidates 1.

The Senior Deacon is placed in charge of the inner door of the lodge 2. The Junior Deacon has charge of the outer door and handles communication with the Tiler on the outside, report of alarms, and messages conveyed to and from the interior on the order of the Worshipful Master 2.

Historically, the office of Deacon was not part of the earliest eighteenth-century rituals, where these duties were divided between the Junior Warden and Senior and Junior Entered Apprentices 2. The practice was derived from Irish usage and adopted in English Craft lodges following the Union of 1813 2. Symbolically, Deacons carry the dove as their characteristic emblem 1.