James F. Taylor Lodge No. 169, A.F. & A.M.

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about this one, and it's a story worth sittin' with for a minute. Now, out in Harrison County, there's a Masonic lodge with a name, a history, and a building that did double duty in a way that says everything about how a community holds itself together. It starts in 1856, in a town called Ash Springs.

That's where James F. Taylor Lodge Number 169 of the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons received its charter. The lodge was named for James F.

Taylor, born in 1812, died in 1889, a leading citizen, a state legislator, and a Mason. A man whose name was worth putting on a door. For a while, Ash Springs was the place to be.

Then came the railroad, and the railroad, as it so often did in Texas, went somewhere else. It bypassed Ash Springs in the late 1860s, and when the railroad moves on, the town has a way of followin'. A new town rose up: Hallsville.

And the lodge went with it. Once they got to Hallsville, the members didn't just find a corner to meet in. They built.

A two-story lodge hall, raised by their own hands and intention. Now here's where it gets interesting. The first floor of that building became a school.

The second story, up above, that's where the lodge held its meetings. One building, two purposes, and the whole town better for it. Because here's the thing: the Masons ran the only school in Hallsville.

The only one. And they kept it running until 1915. Generation after generation of children walking through that front door, right below the room where the lodge men gathered upstairs.

Throughout its history, the marker tells us, the lodge has been a leading force in civic activities. That's an understated way of saying: when this community needed something done, these were the people who showed up. Chartered in 1856.

Still standing in its story. Some institutions just refuse to be bypassed.

What the marker says

Chartered in 1856 in the town of Ash Springs, this Lodge was named for James F. Taylor (1812-1889), a leading citizen, state legislator, and Mason. After the railroad bypassed Ash Springs in the late 1860s, the Lodge moved to the new town of Hallsville, where the members built a two-story lodge hall. The first floor of the building was used for a school, while the second story was the Lodge meeting place. The Masons continued to operate the only school in town until 1915. Throughout its history the Lodge has been a leading force in civic activities. Texas Sesquicentennial 1836 - 1986