Historical Marker

Hopkinsville Lodge No. 183, A.F. & A.M.

Historical marker location:

Waelder, Texas

( N. Main & WE 1st St., Waelder)

After migrating from his native Georgia, Dennis Sheffield Hopkins (1819-1917) founded the community of Hopkinsville (5 miles NW) in 1852. He helped organize this Masonic Lodge there in 1855. The thriving village also had a grist mill, gin, several businesses, churches, and a school. When the Galveston, Harrisburg & San Antonio Railroad bypassed Hopkinsville during the 1870s, most residents moved to Waelder. The lodge relocated and built this meeting hall in 1882. Churches, schools, and civic groups have shared use of the structure.