Hwy 165 S
Alexandria, Louisiana
31.259761,-92.477589
A grand home for its time, the children’s Masonic Lodge served as a quality refuge for orphans for nearly seventy years. The home was initially built in 1925. The local Masons believed that the construction of this new home would advocate much better living conditions and an overall improvement in well-being, as opposed to the state-ran orphanages of the time, which were notorious for not being in the most optimum of conditions.
The grounds initially consisted of a boys’ dorm and a girls’ dorm, with a chapel and large infirmary being built soon after. The lodge opened with its first residents, six young siblings, ranging from three to fifteen. The population soon grew quickly, as it is estimated that a total of seven hundred and seventy-six children once called this place home. The home finally closed in May of 1994, with the remaining ten children being moved elsewhere. The buildings have remained abandoned ever since.
