Mt. Hiram Masonic Lodge marking 125 years in Cove
Posted On: Monday, Dec. 7 2009 04:59 AM
By Alicia Lacy
Killeen Daily HeraldCOPPERAS COVE – Freemasons have a rich history that goes back centuries; the same goes for the Mt. Hiram Lodge in Copperas Cove.
In the same year that the city is celebrating its 130th birthday, Mt. Hiram Lodge No. 595 celebrates its 125th year in the city.
The lodge was chartered Dec. 12, 1884, in Copperas Cove. Many of the founders of Copperas Cove were Masons at the lodge, according to the lodge's written history.
Saturday, members of the lodge and the community will celebrate the lodge's history in the city.
The coordinator of the 125th anniversary celebration, Marty Rodriguez, said the program will highlight the charity work that the lodge has done over the years.
"You have seen Masons involved in civic organizations like the Shriners and Exchange Club," Rodriguez said. "We've been doing it for 125 years, and we like to think we had a strong influence on the city of Copperas Cove."
During the ceremony, Rodriguez said there will be a pin ceremony for widows.
The pin for widows of lodge members "was created as an emblem to symbolize our continued concern and honor fore the widows of a brother master Mason," he said.
James Cooney, past district deputy grand master of District 69, will speak at the celebration. Linda Ledger will speak about her family ties with the organization.
In May 1884, 20 members of the lodge petitioned the Grand Lodge of Texas to organize a Masonic lodge in the city.
According the lodge's history, the lodge had modest beginnings in a two-story facility the group shared with a school.
The oldest lodge member, B.C. Peters, 89, said it was located where the Avenue E school is now located.
Peters said that the Masons have always been an advocate of public education, and like many lodges in the state, the Mt. Hiram lodge shared its building with a school.
Ten years later, the lodge moved to the corner of Avenue D and Main Street, which is now the Ledger Furniture building.
Discussions for the current building began July 10, 1962, according to lodge records.
Peters said he headed the finance and building committee during the discussions for the construction of a new lodge.
"We had to figure out how to pay for it," Peters said because the only source of income was donations made to the organization.
Members of the lodge decided to start a building fund to pay for the building; after a year, a little more than $1,500 had been received, with more than $5,000 pledged.
Melvin and Georgia Kielman donated the land where the lodge is located.
Finally on June 4, 1970, a cornerstone-laying ceremony for the building was conducted.
In the early 2000s, Peters said an addition was added to the building as a memorial to past members.
Peters has been a member of the lodge for 60 years. His membership began at the Killeen lodge, but he later transferred his membership to the Mt. Hiram Lodge after moving to Copperas Cove.
Peters recalled the Depression years and the years before World War II.
"Our membership numbers dwindled," he said. "We had less than 100 members and in 1954 we got our 100th member for the first time."
Peters said he researched the minutes the lodge kept since its inception, and at the 75th and 100th anniversary celebrations, he helped write the history of the lodge with the help of Ledger.
"There are real serious purposes for the work we do," Peters said. "Only members with good character are accepted.
"We are always taught to help our fellow man, not just as an organization, but if we're out and see somebody in need."