Lavaca Lodge No. 36, A.F. & A.M.

The lodge's members built the Confederacy's Lavaca mines. When Edgar Collins Singer began experimenting with underwater explosives after the Union bombardment of October 1862, he enlisted help from several members of Lavaca Lodge Number 36, and local men including Benjamin A. Whitney, John D. Braman, Robert W. Dunn, John R. Fretwell, his brother-in-law C. E. Frary and David Bradbury joined his team. After Major Shea and then General Magruder watched the device work, several of them were detached from regular service in March 1863 to form Singer's Torpedo Company.

What the plaque says

Lavaca Lodge No. 36, A.F. & A.M. The first Masonic lodge in Calhoun County was chartered as Lavaca Lodge No. 36 in 1848. After a period of inactivity during and after the Civil War, the Port Lavaca Lodge disbanded. The fraternal organization reappeared in Port Lavaca in 1886, when Indianola Lodge No. 84 moved here from Indianola following a destructive hurricane. It was known as W. P. Milby Lodge No. 84 until 1935, when the name Lavaca Lodge No. 36 was reinstated. Over the years, its members have included businessmen, soldiers, and state, county, and city officials. (1985)

Where it stands

More markers nearby

• Site of the Town of Linnville — steps away
• First Presbyterian Church of Port Lavaca — 2.0 mi
• First Baptist Church of Port Lavaca — 2.2 mi
• Port Lavaca — 2.3 mi