Odd Fellows Hall, Boston

Odd Fellows Hall (1872–1932) in Boston, Massachusetts, was built for the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Grand Lodge of Massachusetts.^[1] It occupied a large lot in the South End, at no.515 Tremont Street at Berkeley Street.^[2] Architect Joseph Billings designed the structure which had several large meeting rooms: Covenant Hall, Encampment Hall, Friendship Hall, Oasis Hall.^[1][3] Tenants included Emerson College of Oratory.^[4] Among the events that took place in the hall: 1892 annual dinner of the Tremont House Waiters’ Association.^[5] In January 1932 fire destroyed the building.^[6]

Images

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  Odd Fellows Hall, corner Tremont and Berkeley Streets

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  Advertisement for Caledonian Club event at Odd Fellows Hall, 1883

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  Advertisement for Emerson College of Oratory, 1893

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  Detail of 1898 map of Boston, showing Odd Fellows Building

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  Army and Navy marching, first men to World War I, 1917; Odd Fellows Hall at right (Boston Public Library)

References

1. Boston Almanac, 1887
2. King's handbook of Boston, 1881
3. James F. O'Gorman. "H. and J. E. Billings of Boston: From Classicism to the Picturesque." Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, Vol. 42, No. 1 (Mar., 1983)
4. Emerson College. A short history of Emerson College. Retrieved 2012-03-14
5. Henry Voigt, a 21st-century collector of menus, describes the 1892 waiters' dinner: “The waiters at Tremont House catered to upper-class white society. These waiters knew how it was done. So they weren’t like blacksmiths getting together. ... These guys were doing it for themselves in style. They didn’t have a lot of money, but they knew how to throw a party.” Quoted in: Jeanne Schinto. "A Taste for Menus: Henry Voigt Touches History." Gastronomica: The Journal of Food and Culture, Vol. 5, No. 4 (Fall 2005)
6. Annual Report of the Fire Dept. and Wire Division of the City of Boston, 1932

External links

• Bostonian Society. Photo of Odd Fellows Hall, ca. 1880
• Boston Public Library. Photos of January 1932 fire, by Leslie Jones:
  • General alarm fire at Odd Fellows Hall, corner of Berkeley and Tremont
  • General alarm fire at Odd Fellows Hall
  • Six alarm fire at Odd Fellows Hall, Warren Ave, Tremont and Berkeley
  • Six alarm fire, 4:20am at the Odd Fellows Building - Corner of Warren Ave., Tremont and Berkeley
  • Ice-covered engine
  • Crowd after the fire

Coordinates: 42°20′41.89″N 71°4′12.23″W / 42.3449694°N 71.0700639°W