Matagorda Lodge No. 7, A.F. & A.M.

Matagorda's Masons laid the cornerstone of a new hall in early February 1839, a ceremony the Matagorda Bulletin reported. Caleb Ives took part, Samuel Rhoads Fisher is credited as donor, and the port collector, George Collinsworth, stood among them. The lodge ran a lending library and in 1848 backed a planned college near Caney Creek, Manhattan Academy, which never opened. A September storm in 1855 destroyed its books, papers, property and charter. The last returns went to the Grand Chapter in 1864, and the charter was revoked in 1868. Eleven men had signed the original petition.

What the plaque says

Matagorda Lodge No. 7, A.F. & A.M. One of the oldest Masonic lodges in Texas, this lodge traces its history to the Republic of Texas. A group of masons met together on June 24, 1838, and petitioned the newly created Grand Lodge of Texas for a charter to Seth Ingram as first master. From its beginning, the Matagorda Lodge was active and influential in the community's development. The first services of Christ Episcopal Church were held in the Masonic Hall. The masons operated a lending library for the town's citizens and supported local public education projects. In 1868, due to a succession of financial difficulties and the strains of the Civil War, the Matagorda Lodge was deactivated. The members maintained interest in the lodge, however, and it was finally rechartered by the grand lodge in 1911 under its original number. Many prominent Texans have been affiliated with this lodge, including local and state government officials. The lodge has counted among its members veterans of the war of 1812, the Texas Revolution, Mexican War, Civil War, World War I, World War II, Korea, and Vietnam. (1990)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Levi Jordan Plantation State Historic Site — 29 mi
  A sugar and cotton plantation on the San Bernard River whose enslaved builders and their descendants left one of the best-preserved African American archeological sites in Texas.
• Matagorda Island — 37 mi
  A 38-mile barrier island reached only by boat from Port O'Connor, with a lighthouse of 1852, the ghosts of two towns and a fort, and no water, power or cars.

More markers nearby

• Matagorda Methodist Church — steps away
• City of Matagorda — steps away
• Christ Church — steps away
• Site of Dream Colony of Jane McManus — 0.3 mi