Whitewright Masonic Lodge No. 167
Whitewright, Grayson County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Whitewright Masonic Lodge No. 167 In 1855, men in Kentucky Town organized a Masonic lodge, receiving their charter the following year as the Kentucky Town Masonic Lodge No. 167. More than 20 years later, in 1878, the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad bypassed Kentucky Town, running three miles east in the newly established town of Whitewright. Many residents of Kentucky Town, Orangeville and Pilot Grove moved their homes and businesses to Whitewright. The Masonic Lodge moved in 1883, and in 1893, members changed the name to Whitewright Lodge No. 167 but kept the original Kentucky Town charter. The lodge has occupied several buildings since its founding. It has also served several affiliate Masonic orders, including Whitewright Chapter No. 198 of Royal Arch Masons, which merged with a Denison chapter in 1949, Whitewright Council No. 136, which merged with a Denison group in 1971, and the local Order of the Eastern Star, which received its charter in 1948. The Order of the Eastern Star, comprised of men and women, continues to support the work of the lodge. Several lodge members have been leaders in government and in the Masonic order. These men include Dan Scott McMillin, grand master of Texas Masons in 1915, who served as both a state representative and state senator; James J. Gallaher, grand high priest of the Royal Arch Chapter of Texas, who served as grand treasurer of Texas Masons for 20 years; and John Thomas Bean, grand master of Texas Masons in 1959, who chaired the Conference of Grand Masters of Masonry in North America in 1960. Lodge membership has also included other prominent leaders. Today the lodge is the second oldest Masonic group in Grayson County with continuous service. The history of the lodge and its members reflects the formation of Whitewright and the county. (2003)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Chartered in 1856 as the Kentucky Town Masonic Lodge, this fraternal order followed its members east in the 1880s after the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad bypassed Kentucky Town and drew residents to the new depot town of Whitewright. Renamed in 1893 but keeping its original charter, the lodge counted several Texas grand masters and elected officials among its ranks.
Why it matters
The lodge's move traces in miniature how the railroad remade the map of rural Texas, killing off bypassed hamlets and concentrating civic life in the new track-side towns.
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Related people
- · Dan Scott McMillin
- · James J. Gallaher
- · John Thomas Bean
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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