National Register of Historic Places

Masonic Temple Building

Lansing, Ingham County, Michigan
Listed
September 16, 1980
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
80001868

About this property

The Masonic Temple Building, located at 217 South Capitol Avenue in Lansing, Michigan, is a former Masonic building constructed in 1924. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. Lansing's Masonic community was established in 1849. They constructed their first temple at the turn of the twentieth century, and constructed this much larger one in 1924. The building was designed by Lansing architect Edwyn A. Bowd. The building was purchased by Cooley Law School in 1974. They continued to use the building until 2008, and put it up for sale in 2014. Following several failed proposals for various uses of the building, it was purchased in 2021 by the Boji Group. In September 2023, Lansing Mayor Andy Schor announced acceptance of a proposal made by the Boji Group in 2022 to convert the building to Lansing's City Hall. The former Lansing Masonic Temple is a seven-story, Classical Revival structure clad with limestone in the front and buff-colored brick on the sides and rear. The main facade has a lower basement containing a recessed entry, above which is a pedimented, antae-decorated block. Anthemion and acroterion motifs are repeated along the roofline and metal grills in the pediment frieze. The temple's interior was extensively altered by Cooley Law School to house classrooms and offices. Society of Environmentally Responsible Facilities: Thomas M. Cooley Law School Temple Conference Center Cooley Temple Conference Center of the Cooley Law School

Location

217 S. Capitol Ave.
Lansing, Ingham County, Michigan
42.73192, -84.55342

Categories

ARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Knapp, J.W., Company Building
Industrial
0.1 mi
Capital Bank Tower
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0.1 mi
Strand Theatre and Arcade
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0.1 mi
Federal Building
Early Republic
0.1 mi
Lansing Downtown Historic District
Listed
0.1 mi

Questions about this property

When was Masonic Temple Building listed on the National Register?

Masonic Temple Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 16, 1980.

What type of historic resource is Masonic Temple Building?

Masonic Temple Building is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Masonic Temple Building?

The period of significance for Masonic Temple Building is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near Masonic Temple Building?

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