Whitewright Masonic Lodge No. 167
Historical marker location: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).