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Old Masonic Hall

Bellville, Austin County, Texas Listed Ref. 86001611 Building Vacant per nomination

Also known as: Old Masonic Lodge Building

Old Masonic Hall, Bellville, Texas
Photo: Larry D. Moore, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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Why it's listed

Built in 1886-87 at 15 N. Masonic Street in Bellville, this two-story frame building was designed as a Masonic lodge on the upper floor and a community room below. It replaced an 1858 hall on the same lot, where a school met and St. Mary's Episcopal Church held its first Bellville services in 1861. J. J. Stopple, then Lodge Master, is named as architect and builder. Bellville Lodge No. 223 met here until 1967. The ground floor also hosted church business, Chamber of Commerce meetings, school banquets and parties. Its exterior has lapped siding, double-hung windows, cornice medallions and brackets. Inside, the lodge room keeps pine floors, bead-board wainscot and Eastlake-style trim. Roughly half the wall boards beneath the wallpaper may be reused from the earlier hall. By 1986 the Bellville Historical Society, which bought the building in 1984 after it was threatened with moving or dismantling, was removing 1950s additions and restoring the original doors and windows.

Significance in brief: The building served as the meeting place of Bellville Lodge No. 223 from 1887 to 1967, and its ground floor hosted school, church, civic and community gatherings. The site's earlier 1858 hall housed a school and the first services of St. Mary's Episcopal Church. Lodge members, including Senator A. Chesley, were prominent in the town's development. The building also retains a high degree of original interior and exterior fabric.

Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 86001611, listed August 14, 1986. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).

Key facts

Address15 N. Masonic St., Bellville
CountyAustin County
ListedAugust 14, 1986
Reference number86001611
Resource typeBuilding
Period of significance1800-1899 and 1900- (specific date 1886)
Architect / builderJ. J. Stopple
Architectural styleEastlake interior millwork on a simple, functional frame lodge design
Areas of significanceSocial History
Level of significanceLocal
Status (as stated in the nomination)At the time of nomination (1986) the building was unoccupied and vacant, with work in progress to remove 1950s additions and restore the original configuration; planned future use by the historical society and civic groups.
Acreage0.9
Coordinates29.95105, -96.25810 (NPS GIS)

What listing means for this property

National Register listing is honorary for a privately owned home: it does not by itself restrict what an owner may do with their own money, and it does not require public access. Restrictions come from local landmark or historic-district ordinances, which are separate (how they differ).

Owner-occupied houses are not eligible for the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit, which applies to income-producing buildings, but many states offer credits for homeowners. Listing also opens the door to preservation easements and to buying a plaque. Start with what listing means for homeowners, renovating a listed house and selling one.

Noted as vacant in the nomination. Nomination documents can be decades old; current status may differ. If you are considering buying an empty listed property, read the due-diligence checklist.

General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.

Sources and further reading

Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.