Waterville in Lucas County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Browning Masonic Community
— Ohio Historical Marker —
Photographed By Dale K. Benington, May 18, 2016
1. Browning Masonic Community Marker
A close-up view of the text on Side A of the marker.
Text on Side A:
This location was selected in 1936 for a Memorial Home for aged Masons, at the wishes of Otis Avery Browning. Browning, a prominent Toledo businessman, book publisher, civic leader, and Mason, set forth the plans for this Home in a will he prepared in 1922, creating a trust for the Otis Avery Browning Masonic Memorial Fund. His will states, "It is one of the chief purposes of my will, that I may become an instrument, under God's directing care, in providing for the erection and maintenance of a home for aged people, where they may be properly cared for and with all modern comforts."
Text on Side B:
Otis Avery Browning's will required that funds be invested for fifty years after his death. The memorial fund grew from the time of Browning's death in 1923 until 1979, when ground was broken here for the construction of a Memorial Home for Master Masons, their wives and their widows. The formal dedication took place on July 26, 1981, and the first residents moved into the Home in October 1981. Browning said of The Home in his will, "God will ever reward the true and faithful, and that same love and care extended for others may sometime
this page online
Erected 2006 by Browning Masonic Community, Ohio Historical Society. (Marker Number 49-48.)
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Charity & Public Work • Fraternal or Sororal Organizations. In addition, it is included in the Ohio Historical Society / The Ohio History Connection series list. A significant historical date for this entry is July 26, 1981.
Location. 41° 28.45′ N, 83° 45.269′ W. Marker is in Waterville, Ohio, in Lucas County. Marker is at the intersection of Browning Drive and Neowash Road (County Route 143), in the median on Browning Drive. This marker is located at the entrance to the Browning Masonic Community, a short distance west of South River Road (County Route 53). Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 8883 Browning Drive, Waterville OH 43566, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. The Towpath Trail (approx. 0.3 miles away); The First Presbyterian Mission in the Maumee Valley (approx. 0.8 miles away); a different marker also named The Towpath Trail (approx. 1.3 miles away); Roche de Bout (approx. 1.3 miles away); Fort Deposit / Roche de Bout (approx. 1.4 miles away); Bowling Green Fault (approx. 1˝ miles
Photographed By Dale K. Benington, May 18, 2016
2. Browning Masonic Community Marker
A close-up view of the text on Side B of the marker.
Photographed By Dale K. Benington, May 18, 2016
3. Browning Masonic Community Marker
A distant view of the marker, looking east along Neowash Road, towards the Maumee River.
Photographed By Dale K. Benington, May 18, 2016
4. Browning Masonic Community Marker
A distant view of the marker, looking west along Neowash Road.
Credits. This page was last revised on April 26, 2021. It was originally submitted on May 19, 2016, by Dale K. Benington of Toledo, Ohio. This page has been viewed 395 times since then and 20 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on May 20, 2016, by Dale K. Benington of Toledo, Ohio.
