DUANE
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Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker says about Fredericksburg Lodge Number 794, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, out of Gillespie County. Now, every good story has a beginning, and this one starts in 1897. That's when the Grand Lodge of Texas Ancient Free and Accepted Masons granted a warrant of dispensation, and just like that, a new lodge was born in Fredericksburg.
The first worshipful master, a man named D. C. Darroch, was installed by Neal Caldwell, who held the title of deputy district grand master of the 47th Masonic District.
Right from the start, this was something bigger than one town. Members came in from Willow Creek, from Kerrville, from Johnson City, and they gathered for the first time in the Schandua Building. Think about that.
Men traveling from different corners of the Hill Country, converging on Fredericksburg, building something together under one roof. That's a kind of faith all by itself. They wouldn't stay in that first home forever.
By 1910, the Lodge had acquired the Otto Kolmeier Building on East Main Street, their second home, and they shared the space with the Eastern Star organization. Two groups, one building, East Main Street humming along. Then came 1925, and another move, this time to the Beckmann Building on West Main Street.
Lodge meetings on the first floor, Eastern Star meetings on the second. Neat as you please. But the chapter that may say the most about who these people were came in 1963, when they laid the cornerstone for a brand new Lodge building, at the corner of South Adams and Hale streets.
A cornerstone is a statement. It says: we are not going anywhere. And they haven't.
Lodge 794 has kept up a strong tradition of supporting education. Every year they give an award named for Mirabeau B. Lamar, president of the Republic of Texas, along with a scholarship.
Charitable causes throughout the community have received their help. More than a century of service, from that first warrant in 1897 right on through to today. Some institutions are built to last, and some actually do it.
Fredericksburg Lodge Number 794 is the second kind.
What the marker says
traces its history to 1897 when a warrant of dispensation was granted by the Grand Lodge of Texas Ancient Free and Accepted Masons. The first worshipful master, D. C. Darroch, was installed by Neal Caldwell, deputy district grand master of the 47th Masonic District. Members joined from willow Creek, Kerrville, and Johnson City, and first met in the Schandua Building. In 1910 the Otto Kolmeier building located on East Main Street was acquired as the second home for the Lodge, and was shared with the Eastern Star organization. The Lodge moved to the Beckmann Building on West Main Street in 1925. Lodge meetings were held on the first floor, and the second floor housed Eastern Star meetings. The cornerstone for a new Lodge building was laid in 1963 at South Adams and Hale streets. Lodge members maintain a strong tradition of supporting education. An award named for Republic of Texas President Mirabeau B. Lamar has been given annually, in addition to a scholarship. Many charitable causes have received assistance from the Masons, who continue to serve the community as they have for more than a century. (1997)