Understanding Masonic Temples

Between 1870 and 1930, Masonic organizations constructed meeting spaces in almost every American community. Sometimes called Masonic temples, these imposing structures contained rooms designed specifically for the enactment of secret rituals tutoring members in masculine identities during an era of profound social and economic transformation. Today, participation in Masonic and other fraternal organizations is on a steep decline, leaving significant historic buildings at risk and placing historic fraternal lodges statewide on Indiana Landmarks’ 10 Most Endangered list, including Indianapolis’s Prince Hall Masonic Temple.

As we consider the endangered status of these community landmarks, William Moore, associate professor at Boston University, presents an illustrated talk on Masonic architectural spaces and fraternal practices including those of Blue Lodge Freemasonry, the Knights Templar, the Scottish Rite, and the Mystic Shrine.

An interdisciplinary Amerian Studies scholar, William D. Moore holds a joint appointment at Boston University in the Department of History of Art & Architecture and the American & New England Studies Program, specializing in material culture, the built environment, and cultural history. Among other publications, he is the author of Masonic Temples: Freemasonry, Ritual Architecture, and Masculine Archetypes (University of Tennessee Press, 2006) and, earlier in his career, served as the director of the Livingston Masonic Library & Museum at the Masonic Grand Lodge of New York in New York City.

Sponsored by the Cornelius O’Brien Lecture Series Concerning Historic Preservation. Free and open to the public.

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