Hiram Lodge No. 433, A. F. & A. M.
Collinsville, Grayson County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Chartered on June 7, 1875, Hiram Lodge first met in a building on the original Collinsville Town Square. Since 1881, when that building burned, the organization has met in six locations and shared facilities with local businesses and a school. In 1881, when the Texas & Pacific Railroad came through the area, Hiram Lodge, along with most of the town, relocated to be near the railroad tracks. Civic activities have included aid to Masonic widows and orphans, support of war bonds, and assistance to schools and the Scottish Rite Hospital for Crippled Children.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Chartered in 1875, Hiram Lodge No. 433 first met on Collinsville's original town square. When fire and then the arrival of the Texas & Pacific Railroad in 1881 reshaped the town, the lodge—like most of Collinsville—picked up and moved to be near the tracks. Over generations its Masons aided widows and orphans, backed war bonds, and supported local schools and the Scottish Rite children's hospital.
Why it matters
The lodge's move to follow the railroad captures how the coming of the rails literally relocated Texas towns, and fraternal orders like it were quiet engines of small-town charity.
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Themes & tags
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