Colorado’s Nevada Masonic Lodge No 4 was established in 1861. It is now “the only Lodge in the state that meets in a ghost town,” brags the Lodge’s website.

Late in the year 1858 a number of gold-seekers had gathered at the junction of Cherry Creek and the Platte River on land which was then a part of the Territory of Kansas, but which now is within the State of Colorado. This settlement was known as Auraria, and by the first of November a number of cabins had been erected there.

On the evening of November 3, 1858, seven Masons held an informal meeting in one of those cabins; and throughout the following winter these men and others continued to meet from time to time, having in mind the formation of a new Masonic Lodge.

“Gold was discovered in May, 1859, in what is now Gilpin County, and within a month several thousand men had rushed to the Gregory Diggings and were engaged there or in the vicinity in a search for the precious metal…. Accordingly, on June 12, 1859, a committee of three brethren preempted… a block of ground on which to erect a ‘Masonic Temple.’”

More than 200 Masons attended early meetings in this first “Masonic Temple” in the “vast territory” of the West. Some of those “took prominent parts in the organization a few months later of the first Masonic Lodge in Colorado…. Thus the first meeting of Masonic Brethren, in Nevada City… is believed to have been held … in the latter part of 1859.”

The first meeting of Nevada Lodge was held Jan. 12, 1861, at which time the Lodge authorized a contract to build “a certain brick and stone building, 55 X 60, feet on our lots on the North side of Main Street in Nevadaville, Gilpin County, Colorado.”

Restoration of this building is an ongoing endeavor, and the present project is the restoration of the second floor, on the West side of the building, with a library, office, and rest rooms.

The Annual Ghost Town meeting, Miners Breakfast, and the Gold Country Actual Past Masters Association are the main fundraisers.

The Nevada Masonic Lodge No. 4 hosted a Mountain Miners Breakfast on Sunday, July 9, at the Lodge, 1043 Nevadaville Road, Nevadaville. The event ran from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The breakfast menu included scrambled eggs, patty sausage, bacon, pancakes, hash browns, chilled mixed berries, coffee, milk, and juice. The DeMolay boys (a Masons youth group) helped serve.

When guests arrived, most parked on the Nevadaville Road just before the pavement ended, and then rode up to the Lodge in a truck-pulled trailer loaded with hay bales. Valet parking also was available.

The Lodge also showcased related historic items connected to the Lodge and to gold mining in the area. The original Nevadaville City Hall and jail, along with the Old Kramer Saloon, were also open for tours.

All proceeds from the Miners Breakfast will be used for the building renovation.

The Lodge website is at http:// NevadaMasonicLodge4.org.