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Odenton Masonic Lodge No. 209
Inventory No.:
AA-2423
Other Name(s):
Old Masonic Hall; Odenton Historical Center
Date Listed:
7/25/2022
Location:
1367 Odenton Road, Odenton, Anne Arundel County
Category:
Building
Period/Date of Construction:
1912 (Construction); 1948 (Interior Remodel); 1912-1971 (Period of Significance)
Architect/Builder:
Asa J. Warfield (Builder)
Boundary Description:
The nominated property is described in Liber 10544, folio 00150 among the Deed Records of Anne Arundel County, Maryland, and is further depicted among the Plat Records of Anne Arundel County in Plat Book 0008, Plat 0047. These references are current as of the date of submittal of this nomination.
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Description:
Odenton Masonic Lodge No. 209 is a two-story frame meeting hall constructed in 1912, located on the south side of Odenton Road in Odenton, Maryland. The rectangular building measures 5 bays by 3 bays and is covered by a gable roof with a pronounced flare or “kick” and deep overhanging eaves. A small kitchen wing projects to the rear. The entrance comprises paneled double doors surrounded by an elaborate Colonial Revival architrave. Windows throughout the building are 2/2 sash. The building is a Colonial Revival-influenced white two-story frame structure constructed between 1909 and 1912, after which the kitchen was added. The building stands on a rectangular lot containing approximately one-quarter acre at the southeast corner of Odenton Road and Waco Avenue. The foundation is poured concrete and concrete block on concrete footings. The exterior is sheathed in asbestos shingles; the gable roof has asphalt shingle covering. The principal entrance is located in the rightmost bay. The door surround, with fanlight, pediment, and dentilled cornice, is the most elaborate exterior architectural feature of the building, and appears to have been derived from the entrance of the Hammond-Harwood House (1774) in Annapolis. The front porch is concrete with decorative balusters. A lighted Masonic symbol, probably dating from the mid-20th century, is located above the entrance. The remaining first-floor bays are defined by 2/2 sash with louvered shutters (fabricated in 2019 to replicate original fabric). Five identical windows mark the five bays of the second story. On the east side, the first floor holds two double-hung windows. On the second floor there is an apsidal protrusion measuring one foot wide by two feet deep, topped by a gable. The flare of the gable roof is most evident from the east and west ends. Eaves are finished with a simple boxed cornice with returns. The south (rear) façade is lighted by a pair of 2/2 double-hung windows. A transomed secondary exit is accessed by a handicap ramp added in 2018. The one-story kitchen wing, approximately 23 feet wide, projects from the western side of this elevation. The wing has an asymmetrical gable roof with overhanging eaves. On the second floor of the main block are four double-hung windows and a fire exit. A brick chimney rises from the lower slope of the roof. The west side of the main block has three 2/2 windows evenly spaced across the second story; the lower story is unfenestrated. A small pedimented projection at the northern corner provides an entrance to the basement. The kitchen addition is approximately 15 feet wide and is spanned by a wooden entrance porch. On the interior, dominant architectural features include the decorative wooden staircase, wainscoting, paneled doors, and fluted door and window frames and cornices. During restoration work, a decorative metal cornice was discovered near the ceiling, and behind the cornice, a decorative frieze stenciled on the upper wall. These elements were preserved in place.
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Significance:
Odenton Masonic Lodge No. 209 is architecturally significant as a well-preserved representative example of a type of fraternal hall characteristic of small communities in the early 20th century. Its interior organization reflects a processual movement from more public spaces to increasingly private areas associated with Masonic practice. The entry hall and Social Hall on the first floor are separated by a decorative staircase from upper-story spaces dedicated to specific aspects of Masonic ritual. The stair provides access to the Preparation Room where Masonic regalia is donned, and the Ante Room where members’ credentials are challenged, finally entering the Lodge Hall whose furnishings conform to the hierarchy of the organization. The building retains a high degree of integrity and recently benefited from a sensitive campaign of rehabilitation. The period of significance begins with the completion of the building in 1912 and extends to a date fifty years in the past. The building remained in continuous use by the Masons until 2001 when they built a new lodge in a different Odenton location.
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