Mineola Masonic Lodge No. 502, A.F. and A.M.. . On February 8, 1878, the 17 members of this lodge were set to work under dispensation of the Grand Master of Texas. Mineola Lodge was chartered at the annual communication in Houston on December 15, 1879, with a membership of 48. J.R. Rutherford served as the first worshipful master. The early Masons included prominent business and professional men and civic leaders. One member was the well-known lawman William Jesse McDonald (1852-1918), a merchant who became deputy city marshall, Wood County sheriff, and finally a Texas Ranger. Another was J.H. Newsom, a city alderman and county commissioner. Newsom owned the lodge's first meeting place at Broad and Line streets. That building burned on August 10, 1880, destroying the original lodge records. , Other groups associated with the lodge include the Mineola Council of Royal Arch Masons, chartered in March 1910. An Eastern Star chapter was active even before its official charter date of 1923., Mineola Masonic Lodge occupied several meeting places before moving to the present location. Two other Masonic lodges have consolidated with Mineola: Golden in 1938 and Albia in 1944.
On February 8, 1878, the 17 members of this lodge were set to work under dispensation of the Grand Master of Texas. Mineola Lodge was chartered at the annual communication in Houston on December 15, 1879, with a membership of 48. J.R. Rutherford served as the first worshipful master. The early Masons included prominent business and professional men and civic leaders. One member was the well-known lawman William Jesse McDonald (1852-1918), a merchant who became deputy city marshall, Wood County sheriff, and finally a Texas Ranger. Another was J.H. Newsom, a city alderman and county commissioner. Newsom owned the lodge's first meeting place at Broad and Line streets. That building burned on August 10, 1880, destroying the original lodge records.
Other groups associated with the lodge include the Mineola Council of Royal Arch Masons, chartered in March 1910. An Eastern Star chapter was active even before its official charter date of 1923.
Mineola Masonic Lodge occupied several meeting places before moving to the present location. Two other Masonic lodges have consolidated with Mineola: Golden in 1938 and Albia in 1944.
Erected 1979
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by Texas Historical Commission. (Marker Number 8978.)
Location. 32° 40.953′ N, 95° 30.135′ W. Marker is in Mineola, Texas, in Wood County. It is on Farm to Market Road 564 north of County Road 2201, on the left when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1172 W FM 564, Mineola TX 75773, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in the American South, specifically in the Deep South, and in the Piney Woods. Globally, it is in North America, a Gulf of Mexico state, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain, the Republic of Texas, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Mineola Schools (approx. Ύ mile away); Wisener Field (approx. 0.8 miles away); Mineola Fire Department (approx. 1.1 miles away);
Photographed by Jeff Leichsenring, September 1, 2024
Credits. This page was last revised on September 4, 2024. It was originally submitted on September 3, 2024, by Jeff Leichsenring of Garland, Texas. This page has been viewed 467 times since then and 61 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on September 3, 2024, by Jeff Leichsenring of Garland, Texas. • James Hulse was the editor who published this page.
