when did lodges stop meeting in London taverns and move to dedicated halls

The Grand Lodge of England initiated plans for a dedicated central hall in London in 1773, acquiring property in Great Queen Street 12. The foundation stone was laid in May 1775, and the building—named Freemasons' Hall—was dedicated on 23 May 1776 12. Following the completion of the London hall, the practice of constructing dedicated Masonic halls gradually spread to other towns and jurisdictions 2.

The available sources record when the Grand Lodge established its primary headquarters in London 12, but they do not provide a specific date when individual London lodges entirely ceased meeting in taverns.

Charles Dillon, while serving as Deputy Grand Master, proposed the initial plan to raise a fund for constructing a central hall for the Grand Lodge 1. The Duke of Beaufort, during his presidency as Grand Master, supported and promoted the project alongside plans for incorporation 1.

Following Lord Petre's accession as Grand Master in May 1772, a committee was formally appointed to manage the business of building the hall 1. Lord Petre, along with the Dukes of Beaufort and Chandos, Earl Ferrers, and Lord Viscount Dudley and Ward, served as the trustees appointed to hold the Great Queen Street property acquired for the building 1.

Country lodges in England did not build dedicated halls before the London Freemasons, but rather followed their example 2. The Grand Lodge dedicated its hall in London in May 1776 2. Later in that same year, the lodge at Newcastle erected its own hall, having been stimulated by the enterprise of the London brethren 2. The lodge at Sunderland followed two years afterward, in 1778, after which the construction of individual halls for lodge use became widespread across England, Scotland, and Ireland 2.

The earliest recorded dedicated Masonic hall anywhere in the sources was erected abroad by a lodge in Marseilles, France, in 1765 2.