The Equitable Fraternal Union Building was the largest and most costly of four neoclassical structures constructed in the City of Neenah. Completed in 1909 at a cost of $90,000, it was designed by noted Oshkosh architect William Waters for the Equitable Fraternal Union, a non-profit insurance company that also functioned as a social organization. Reorganized through a merger as the Equitable Reserve Association in 1929, it became the largest fraternal insurance company in Wisconsin without church or ethnic affiliation. The company remained headquartered in this building until 2012 when it merged with Modern Woodmen of America.

The building design is noted for its studied application of classical detail, demonstrating how Waters, in the final years of his career, remained adept at adapting his creative vision to both changing taste and new types of construction. The exquisitely detailed aedicule framing around the main entrance attests to a fine understanding of the classical orders, while the less ornamented side elevations demonstrate a skill for adapting classical massing and scale to modern office construction.

The social component of the organization was served largely by the third floor ballroom, parlor, dining hall, and kitchen, facilities that for several decades were the best and most desirable in a city noted for its social sophistication.