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Masonic Temple (Springfield, Massachusetts)

Buildings and structures in Springfield, MassachusettsClubhouses on the National Register of Historic Places in MassachusettsMasonic buildings completed in 1923Masonic buildings in MassachusettsNational Register of Historic Places in Springfield, Massachusetts
Masonic Temple, Springfield MA
Masonic Temple, Springfield MA

The Masonic Temple is an historic former Masonic building at 339–341 State Street in Springfield, Massachusetts. The four story Neo-Classical building was built in 1923 to serve as the headquarters of the local Masonic lodge. It occupies a prominent position opposite the Springfield Armory, just outside the downtown area. The building, which is no longer owned by the Masons, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.The first Masonic lodge was established in Springfield in 1817. Between then and the early 1920s, Masonic organizations in the city met in a variety of places, including the town hall, and facilities in an insurance company building. The various lodges banded together to build their first dedicated space in 1893 at the corner of State and Main Streets. In the 1920s a fund drive was organized to construct a new facility. The firm of Edward McClintock and Charles Craig, both active Masons, was hired to design the building, which was built by A.E. Stephens beginning in October 1923, and formally dedicated in June 1924.Unlike the lodge built in 1893 (in which the ground floor contained retail space), the entire building was used for lodge purposes. The main entrance opened into a two-story foyer with marble floors and staircase, and was decorated with Greek Doric columns. The first floor housed two Blue Lodge facilities, one with space for 240 people the other for 450. Each of these rooms had inlaid cork floors and limestone walls, and house a pipe organ. The balance of the first floor included a reception area, and a meeting room for the lodge trustees. A mezzanine area had an office for the blue lodge secretary and a fireproof vault.The second floor housed a large space devoted to York Rite activities. The large space accommodated 500 people and was, like the first floor chambers, floored in inlaid cork, with limestone walls and a pipe organ. The chamber also had an arcade supported by pillars. Smaller offices and storage rooms line the remainder of this level, and there was again a mezzanine area with more storage. The third floor had the largest space in the building. With a capacity of 1,500, including 300 in a balcony, this chamber was used for Scottish Rite ceremonies, and featured a large and elaborate stage flanked by the pipes of an organ.On November 10, 1983, the building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was acquired in 2007 by the Archdiocese of New England of the International Communion of the Holy Christian Orthodox Church, which made substantial renovations, converting some of the space into an art gallery, and repurposing others for religious use. The archdiocese had financial difficulties, and the property was sold at a foreclosure auction to its mortgage holder in January 2012.

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Masonic Temple (Springfield, Massachusetts)
State Street, Springfield

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N 42.105555555556 ° E -72.581111111111 °
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State Street 319;325;327
01105 Springfield
Massachusetts, United States
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Masonic Temple, Springfield MA
Masonic Temple, Springfield MA
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Springfield Armory
Springfield Armory

The Springfield Armory, more formally known as the United States Armory and Arsenal at Springfield located in the city of Springfield, Massachusetts, was the primary center for the manufacture of United States military firearms from 1777 until its closing in 1968. It was the first federal armory and one of the first factories in the United States dedicated to the manufacture of weapons. The site is preserved as the Springfield Armory National Historic Site, Western Massachusetts' only unit of the national park system. It features the world's largest collection of historic American firearms.Famous first as the United States' primary arsenal during the American Revolutionary War, and then as the scene of a confrontation during Shays' Rebellion, the Springfield Armory in the 19th and 20th centuries became the site of numerous technological innovations of global importance, including interchangeable parts, the assembly line style of mass production, and modern business practices, such as hourly wages. The facility would play a decisive role in the American Civil War, producing most of the weaponry used by Union troops which, in sum, outpaced Confederate firearm production by a ratio of 32 to 1. American historian Merritt Roe Smith has posited that advancements in machine manufacturing which allowed the facility to increase production capacity by more than 25 fold, from 9,601 rifles in 1860 to 276,200 in 1864, served as a precursor to the mass production of the Second Industrial Revolution and 20th century assembly line production. The numerous firearm models produced at the Springfield Armory from 1794 to 1968 are referred to as "Springfield muskets and rifles".

South Congregational Church (Springfield, Massachusetts)
South Congregational Church (Springfield, Massachusetts)

The South Congregational Church is a historic church at 45 Maple Street in Springfield, Massachusetts. The 1875 High Victorian Gothic building was designed by William Appleton Potter for a congregation that was established in 1842, and is still active today. The building is also noted for some prominent donors who funded its construction, notably Daniel B. Wesson (of Smith & Wesson fame), Charles and George Merriam (of Merriam-Webster fame), and Daniel Harris, who owned and capitalized on the Howe truss patent for bridge design.The church is one of Potter's early works, predating the extensive work he did for the United States government. The church was described in contemporary writing as "a rather bold departure" from normal church design of the period. The church is 136 feet (41 m) long and 77 feet (23 m) wide, and is made of limestone (quarried in Longmeadow) resting on a granite foundation (quarried in Monson). The rounded apse faces Maple street, and is topped by a conical roof with red banding in the slate roof. The apse has nine windows with Gothic arches shaped of alternating light and dark stone. To its right is a tower, which rises 120 feet (37 m) above the main entrance to the building. The tower is richly decorated with arched windows and yellow Ohio sandstone banding. There is a second entrance at the northwest end (the far end of the nave) that was originally similar in styling to the front entrance, but was later enlarged and given more ornate detailing.The interior was designed, uniquely for the time, to provide unobstructed views of the pulpit area from pews located in the transepts of the building. This gave the interior a sense of resemblance to an amphitheatre. The interior also contains decorations in themes drawn from nature, notably seasonal decorations in the tower entrance.A parish house was added to the east side of the church in the 1940s. Built of brick, it was faced with limestone that was quarried in Longmeadow at about the same time as that of the church itself. It was recovered from the First Baptist Church prior to its demolition. The church was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.

Maple-Union Corners
Maple-Union Corners

Maple-Union Corners is a historic district centered at the intersection of Maple and Union Streets in Springfield, Massachusetts. The area is prominent as the location of the Springfield Female Seminary building (77 Maple Street, built 1832, now in residential use), and for the distinctive homes of several of Springfield's prominent 19th century citizens. The house at 83 Maple Street, was first owned by Solomon Merrick, inventor of the monkey wrench, and was later owned by Ansel Phelps, the fourth mayor of Springfield. Townhouses at 76-78 and 80-84 Maple Street comprise the rest of the district; owners or occupants included Francis Fuller, owner of the Fuller Block, and Edmund Chapin, president of the John Hancock National Bank. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.The cluster of buildings are located on the north and south sides of Maple Street, extending westward from its junction with Union Street. 83 Maple Street is at the corner on the north side; it was built in 1841, and is a fine example of Greek Revival architecture in brick, with a two-story columned portico across the front. The former seminary building stands just to its west; it is a two-story brick structure, with a three-bay facade and gabled roof. On the south side of Maple Street, 80-84 is a row of three brick townhouses, two stories in height, built in 1870. The two right ones are topped by a mansard roof, while that at the corner has a decorative parapet. Number 76-78 is a duplex with a mansard roof and a pyramidal tower at the right corner.