Livestone Lodge No. 152, F. & A. M.

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'm just the one passing it along. Now, east of Grand Prairie, there was a community folks called The Line, an African American community that put down roots in a time and place when putting down roots wasn't easy. And it was right there, near The Line, that a lodge building rose up.

Not just any lodge, mind you; this was Livestone Lodge Number 152, Free and Accepted Masons, chartered on July 24, 1903, by the Prince Hall Masons of Texas. Think about what that date means. Nineteen-oh-three.

The members of Livestone weren't waiting on anyone's permission to build something lasting. They were leaders in the African American community of Grand Prairie, and they set about making their lodge exactly what a lodge ought to be: a center for community gatherings, for education, for public meetings. A place where people could come together and conduct the serious business of living.

Now, time has a way of moving things. In 1944, that lodge building was picked up and moved to the Dalworth community. And here's the detail that stops you cold if you let it: the site cost two hundred dollars.

Two hundred dollars, in one of the few areas where African Americans were even allowed to buy property. That number carries weight. It's not just a transaction; it's a statement about what was possible, and what wasn't, and what these men did anyway.

But here's the thing about Livestone Lodge Number 152. Whether they were at The Line or Dalworth, the work didn't change. The members kept on, leaders still, center of community still, gathering place still.

Same mission, different ground. Two hundred dollars and a charter dated 1903. Some foundations are built out of a whole lot more than wood.

What the marker says

Originally built east of Grand Prairie near the African American community known as "The Line," Livestock Lodge No. 152, Free and Accepted Masons, was granted a charter on July 24, 1903 by the Prince Hall Masons of Texas. In 1944, the lodge building was moved to the Dalworth community. The site, in one of the few areas where African Americans were allowed to buy property, cost $200. As at "The Line," Livestone members, leaders in the African-American community of Grand Prairie, have continued to provide a center for community gatherings, education, and public meetings. (1997)