Hoge Lodge No. 8 A.F. & A.M.

                                                                  Wise, Virginia

Hoge Lodge No. 8 was instituted on December 2, 1875 in Gladeville, Virginia, which is now known as Wise, Virginia, and was the first Masonic Lodge to be located in Wise County. Johnson Lodge No. 201, believed to have been located in Scott County, Virginia, recommended Hoge Lodge for its dispensation in 1875, which allowed Hoge Lodge to get its charter.

Wise County was formed from the three surrounding counties of Lee, Scott, and Russell and many of the Masons who helped form Hoge Lodge No. 8 were caught in the boundaries of the newly formed county. The members of Hoge Lodge No. 8 came from many walks of life including lawyers, farmers, coal miners, and ditch diggers. The first Worshipful Master and namesake of Hoge Lodge was Daniel S. Hoge. He was one of the petitioners who asked the State Legislature to form the County of Wise, and he was also chosen as a Commissioner to select the County seat. Mr. Hoge was a farmer. The first Senior Warden of Hoge Lodge was C. T. Flanary, a merchant who lived around Gladeville. The first Junior Warden was J. M. Durham, a farmer who relocated in Gladeville from North Carolina. The first meeting place of Hoge Lodge was in the Mann Hotel, which was located on the Main Street of Gladeville.

Hoge Lodge received its charter from the Grand Lodge of Virginia on December 11, 1877, but because of bad weather the charter was not delivered until April 8, 1878 by the District Deputy Grand Master, Right Worshipful C. L. Duncan of Abingdon Lodge No. 48. All the other Masonic Lodges, which were formed in Wise County, sprang from Hoge Lodge.