Whitewright Masonic Lodge No. 167

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about Whitewright Masonic Lodge No. 167. Now, if you want to understand how a town gets built, sometimes you have to start with a town that didn't quite make it. Back in 1855, men over in a place called Kentucky Town, right there in Grayson County, decided to organize themselves a Masonic lodge.

The following year they received their charter, and it came back with a proper name on it: the Kentucky Town Masonic Lodge No. 167. They had their number, they had their charter, and they had their community. Things looked settled.

Then came the railroad. More than twenty years passed quietly enough. But in 1878, the Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railroad came through that part of Texas, and it did not come through Kentucky Town.

It ran three miles east, through a newly established town called Whitewright. Now, when a railroad decides to go somewhere, people have a way of deciding to go there too. Residents of Kentucky Town, Orangeville, and Pilot Grove, they moved their homes.

They moved their businesses. Whole pieces of those communities picked up and went east. The Masonic Lodge, being a patient and deliberate institution, waited a few more years.

It moved in 1883. And then in 1893, the members did something worth noting: they changed the name to Whitewright Lodge No. 167, but they held on to that original Kentucky Town charter. The number stayed 167.

The roots stayed planted right where they'd always been. Over the years, the lodge occupied several buildings and extended its work through a family of affiliate orders. Whitewright Chapter No. 198 of the Royal Arch Masons was among them, before it merged with a Denison chapter in 1949.

Whitewright Council No. 136 carried on until it merged with a Denison group in 1971. And the local Order of the Eastern Star, made up of both men and women, received its charter in 1948 and continues to support the work of the lodge to this day. Now, a lodge is only as strong as the people who walk through its doors, and this one produced some consequential men.

Dan Scott McMillin rose to become grand master of Texas Masons in 1915, and he didn't stop there. He served as both a state representative and a state senator. James J.

Gallaher held the office of grand high priest of the Royal Arch Chapter of Texas and served as grand treasurer of Texas Masons for twenty years. Twenty years. That is not a brief stewardship.

And then there is John Thomas Bean, grand master of Texas Masons in 1959, who the very next year chaired the Conference of Grand Masters of Masonry in North America in 1960. Think about that arc for a moment. A small group of men organize in Kentucky Town in 1855.

The railroad redirects everything. The lodge follows, changes its name, keeps its charter, and from that reorganized community eventually comes a man chairing the entire North American conference of grand masters. Today, Whitewright Lodge No. 167 stands as the second oldest Masonic group in Grayson County with continuous service.

That charter has been traveling a long time. And the history of the lodge and its members, as the marker puts it, reflects the very formation of Whitewright and the county itself. Some roots run deeper than the ground they started in.

What the marker says

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)