Sterling in Whiteside County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Masonic Temple
1885-1996
Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, July 8, 2023
1. Masonic Temple Marker
National Register
of
Historical Places
November 7, 1996
by
U.S. Department
of
Interior
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Fraternal or Sororal Organizations. In addition, it is included in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) series list. A significant historical date for this entry is November 7, 1996.
Location. 41° 47.279′ N, 89° 41.896′ W. Marker is in Sterling, Illinois, in Whiteside County. It is on West 3rd Street east of Avenue B, on the right when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 111 W 3rd St, Sterling IL 61081, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Northern Illinois. It is also in the American Midwest, in the Corn Belt, and in the Great River Road Region. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture and also the Northwest Territory.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 9 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Hezekiah Brink (approx. 0.4 miles away); Yellow Billed Loon (approx. 0.4 miles away); Original Site of Sterling Township High School 1898-1950 (approx. half a mile away); Lincoln in Sterling (approx. 0.6 miles away); Col. Edward N. Kirk House (approx. 0.9 miles away); Illinois and Mississippi Canal (approx. 1.1 miles away); The First School House in Palmyra Town (approx. 7½ miles away); 82 Rods South of This Spot Was Born in a Log Cabin (approx. 8.8 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Sterling.
Regarding Masonic Temple.
this page online
It was designed by Riverside, Illinois architect George W. Ashby in 1899 following a fire on December 30, 1898 which nearly destroyed the old Masonic Temple. Ashby designed the new building, salvaging as much of the original material as possible to save costs. The original stone foundation, first story brick wall, and portions of the second story were reused for the new building with new brick walls built on top of the old walls and a new front facade added to the building. The Steriing Masonic Temple was formally dedicated on May 16, 1900.
The Steriing Masonic Temple [w]as the headquarters of the Masonic fraternity of Sterling, a secret fraternal society which included the men's organizations of the Rock River Lodge No. 612 A F. & A. M., Sterling Chapter No. 57 Royal Arch Masons, and Sterling Commandery No. 57 Knights Templar and the women's Sterling Chapter No. 354 Order of the Eastern Star. Built at the height of the Golden Age of Fraternity when over five and a half million males in the United States belonged to fraternal groups such as the Freemasons, Odd Fellows, and Knights of Pythias, the Sterling Masonic Temple was part of the Freemasonry movement, a ritual-based fraternal brotherhood with roots stretching back to sixteenth-century Britain which reached its greatest strength in the United Statesin the last third of the nineteenth and first third of the twentieth centuries.Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, July 8, 20232. Masonic Temple Marker
Also see . . . Sterling Masonic Temple (PDF). National Register nomination for the building, which was listed in 1996. (National Archives) (Submitted on August 13, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)
Credits. This page was last revised on August 13, 2023. It was originally submitted on August 13, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 432 times since then and 37 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on August 13, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
