Saturn Club

About this property

Saturn Club is a private social club, founded in 1885, in Buffalo in Erie County, New York that currently operates out of an National Register of Historic Places-listed building at 977 Delaware Ave. in Buffalo, New York. It operates under US law for 501(c)(7) Social and Recreation Clubs. In 2024 it claimed total revenue of $1,457,962 and total assets of $3,561,624. The separate and related Saturn Club Historic Preservation Foundation is a 501(c)(3) Public Charity. In 2023 it claimed $62,322 in total revenue and $206,207 in total assets. Initially, the members met in a house owned by Sprague's grandfather but by 1886, the members decided to rent three rooms at the rear of a dwelling at 640 Main Street. In 1887, they moved to another rented house, a small Second Empire style home at 331 Delaware Avenue, before relocating to a larger, Italianate cottage at 393 Delaware Avenue, opposite the Buffalo Club. In 1889, the club and its 150 members formally incorporated in Erie County and decided to construct their own building. By February, the directors had purchased a lot, 417 Delaware Avenue, at the southeast corner of Delaware Avenue and Edward Streets, not far from the Buffalo Club. On this site, they constructed a three-story brick building, designed by Herbert C Burdett of the Buffalo firm of Marling & Burdett. The building was dedicated on December 13, 1890. Beginning in the 1890s, the club added baseball games, lectures, costume balls, and vaudeville shows to the club's programming. A library was initiated and debates were held on the important issues of the time. These debates often included participation with other area clubs, including the Buffalo Club, the University Club, and the Garret Club. In 1900, then Gov. Theodore Roosevelt visited and had dinner at the club during his visit to Buffalo. In 1985, women were officially admitted as full members, however, in the immediate years preceding the change, women had full use of the club, through a relationship with the Garret Club, as well as through their spouses or other connections. In December 1920, only 30 years after the original building's dedication, a new building committee suggested selling the existing clubhouse and erecting a new building elsewhere. Club member Duane Lyman, of Bley & Lyman, was asked to develop new plans for a clubhouse along with Ralph Plumb, a club member. The club purchased property at 977 Delaware Avenue and approved Lyman's plans for the present day Tudor style building, by February 1921. On October 21, 1921, the cornerstone of the new building was laid and exactly one year later, on October 21, 1922, the clubhouse was dedicated. The Tudor Revival structure featured an enclosed open courtyard. By completion, the project ended up totaling US$500,000 (equivalent to $9,617,296 in 2025).

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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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