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Property Record

117-119 S MAIN ST

Historic Name:
OREGON MASONIC LODGE
Other Name:
Reference Number:
5724

Property Location

Location (Address) 117-119 S MAIN ST
County Dane
City/Village Oregon
Township
Unincorporated community
Town
Range
Direction
Section
Quarter Section
Quarter Quarter Section

Property Features

Year Built 1898
Additions
Survey Date 1979
Historic Use social recreational/fraternal hall
Architectural Style Queen Anne
Structural System
Wall Material Cream Brick
Architect
Other Buildings On Site
Demolished No
Demolished Date
Additional Comments A 'site file' exists for this property. It contains additional information such as correspondence, newspaper clippings, or historical information. It is a public record and may be viewed in person at the Wisconsin Historical Society, State Historic Preservation Office. The construction of this lodge building coincided with the golden age of Freemasonry in Wisconsin. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, fraternal lodges included among their members the businessmen and professionals who made up the local elite. Membership in certain lodges helped establish a man's status, and some, such as the Masons’, were more prestigious than others, in part because here community leaders made business deals and forged political alliances. After a fire destroyed the hall used by several of Oregon’s fraternal organizations, the Masons erected this exuberant cream-and red-brick building, which also served the Order of the Eastern Star, the Knights of Pythias, and the Women’s' Relief Corps. Above the second-story windows, the Masonic emblem of compass and square appears at the center of a red sandstone medallion framed in red brick. Fine details, including the red-brick arcade at the roof parapet and the pointed ogee-arched window heads, lend an eclectic Romanesque and Moorish flavor to this vernacular commercial facade. The building retains its original, cast-iron storefront, where the Prichard and Cusick hardware store displayed its wares. The interior, too, has kept its historic appearance, including its pressed-metal ceiling embellished with garlands and geometric motifs. POLYCHROME BRICKWORK. ARCHED WINDOWS W/KEYSTONES. ORIGINAL IRON FRONT. MASONIC DEVICE ON FRONT.
Bibliographic References Wisconsin State Journal, 8/21/1994, p. 5J. “Architecture/History Survey. WHS project number 08-0176/DA. 2007. Prepared by Carol Lohry Cartwright. Buildings of Wisconsin manuscript.

National And State Register Of Historic Places Listings

National/State Register Listing Name Oregon Masonic Lodge
National Register Listing Date Jun 18, 1992
State Register Listing Date May 06, 1992
Contributing
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Attribution

For a credit line: Wisconsin Historical Society, Creator, Title, Unique Identifier. 

The Unique Identifier can be found at the top or bottom of the page for each item. The name of a downloaded file is NOT the unique identifier.

For bibliographic citations please consult the UW-Madison Libraries Citation Research Guide to ensure compliance with appropriate style guidelines.

 

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