Eagles Home | |
Front and side of the Eagles Home | |
Location | 221 NW 5th St., Evansville, Indiana |
---|---|
Coordinates | 37°58′27″N87°34′18″W / 37.97417°N 87.57167°W Coordinates: 37°58′27″N87°34′18″W / 37.97417°N 87.57167°W |
Area | less than one acre |
Built | 1912 |
Architect | Boyle, Harry E. |
MPS | Downtown Evansville MRA |
NRHP reference No. | 82000090 [1] |
Added to NRHP | July 1, 1982 |
The Eagles Home is a historic building located in Evansville, Indiana. It was designed by Evansville architect Harry Boyle and was built in 1912. It has served as a clubhouse, college, and law firm. [2] The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. [1] It currently serves as the Evansville office of the Jackson Kelly law firm.
The building was designed by Evansville architect Harry Boyle and was constructed in 1912 for a local chapter of the Fraternal Order of Eagles. Originally made up of those engaged in one way or another in the performing arts, the Eagles grew and claimed credit for establishing the Mother's Day holiday in the United States as well as the impetus for Social Security. Their lodges are known as "aeries". The organization's success is also attributed to its funeral benefits (no Eagle was ever buried in a potter's field), the provision of an aerie physician, and other membership benefits. [3]
The local chapter was successful enough that in 1940 a rear addition was completed on the building, giving the building 32,000 square feet on three floors. By 1965 the group began discussions about moving to a new location. However, the Eagles' restrictive (and often racist) membership policies caused delays in a proposed move to another downtown location. [4] [lower-alpha 1] By 1968 it had identified a new location at a building on a 21-acre tract just west of Burkhardt Road on Boonville Highway. [6]
By the late nineteenth-century, a few business colleges operated in downtown Evansville, probably spurred by the recent invention of the typewriter. Melvin H. Lockyear co-founded Columbian Business College at Second and Main streets in 1893, and four years later the school was incorporated as Lockyear Business College. The school relocated to 209 NW Fifth St. where a new facility was built in 1911 (immediately adjacent to the Eagles Home in what is now a parking lot). In 1968 the college acquired the Eagles Home nearby and used it as the students' union. [7]
Besides offering traditional business courses, the Lockyear Business College offered a popular Dale Carnegie salesmanship development program that graduated over 6,000 by 1962. Lockyear was approaching its centennial when it closed in April 1991 after the school's owners filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. In March 1992 the Eagles Home building was sold to National City Bank at a sheriff's sale after foreclosing on $400,000 in loans made to former officials of Lockyear. The original college building was razed in 1993 to make way for a 41-space courtyard parking lot, but the Eagles Home remained standing. [8]
In 1994, the building was converted into office space and used by an accounting group and a law firm. About 6,500 square feet was occupied by Kemper CPA Group. About 5,700 square feet on the second floor was used by the law firm of Mattingly, Rudolph, Fine and Porter (later more commonly known as Rudolph, Fine, Porter & Johnson, LLP ("RFPJ") until 2014 which merged with the Jackson Kelly law firm). By 2006, the entire building was occupied by RFPJ and Lockyear Title until the merge with Jackson Kelly. [8]
Fraternal Order of Eagles (F.O.E.) is an international fraternal organization that was founded on February 6, 1898, in Seattle, Washington, by a group of six theater owners including John Cort, brothers John W. and Tim J. Considine, Harry (H.L.) Leavitt, Mose Goldsmith and Arthur Williams. Originally made up of those engaged in one way or another in the performing arts, the Eagles grew and claimed credit for establishing the Mother's Day holiday in the United States as well as the "impetus for Social Security" in the United States. Their lodges are known as "aeries".
The Koch Family Children's Museum of Evansville is an interactive children's museum in Evansville, Indiana. The museum educates and inspires children about the world. Exhibits include deconstructing objects, a water exhibit that spans multiple floors, experiences about the human body and its senses, and a gallery for freedom of expression.
The Masonic Temple in Evansville, Indiana, USA, is a building from 1913. It was designed by the local architects Shopbell & Company in Classical Revival style. The lodge building once hosted three separately chartered Masonic lodges: Evansville Lodge, Reed Lodge and Lessing Lodge. The building measures 72 x 104 feet, with four stories above ground and a basement. The exterior walls of the first two floors are faced with stone and the stories above are trimmed with both stone and terracotta. The interior floors and partitions are supported by steel columns and girders, also following the Roman classic order.
The Eagles Temple was a prominent Fraternal Order of Eagles building in downtown Akron, Ohio, United States. With its high-styled Art Deco architecture, it was home to an organization with thousands of members, and it was designated a historic site when not yet sixty-five years old.
The McCurdy Hotel is a historic building in the Riverfront District of Evansville, Indiana. It was designed by architect Henry Ziegler Dietz and built in 1916–1917 in the Colonial Revival style. The McCurdy was constructed on the former site of the St. George Hotel, which was razed in 1915. It opened for business on June 17, 1917, and closed on March 16, 1969, due to bankruptcy. In Spring 2017, the McCurdy Hotel building was reopened as redeveloped apartments.
American Trust and Savings Bank, also known as the Indiana Bank, is a historic bank building located at Fourth and Main Street in downtown Evansville, Indiana. It is designed by the architectural firm Harris & Shopbell and built in 1904. It is a Beaux-Arts style limestone clad building. It was enlarged in 1913 when two additional floors were added. The bank closed on October 19, 1931, during the Great Depression.
The Hulman Building is a ten-story art deco high rise in downtown Evansville, Indiana. Construction began in 1928 and was completed in 1930 with a brick facade of light yellow. It was the first of several Art Deco buildings to grace Evansville's skyline.
Busse House, also known as the Visiting Nurse Association, is a historic home located in downtown Evansville, Indiana. It was designed by the architectural firm Harris & Shopbell and built in 1901 for a prominent local physician. It is a 2 1/2-story, Queen Anne style limestone dwelling. It is located next to the Cadick Apartments.
223 Main Street is a historic commercial building located in downtown Evansville, Indiana. It was built in 1910, and is a three-story, Art Nouveau style building.
Court Building, also known as the Furniture Building, is a historic commercial building located in downtown Evansville, Indiana. It was designed by the architectural firm Harris & Shopbell and built in 1909. It is a seven-story, Beaux Arts style building sheathed in brick and limestone.
Indiana Bell Building is a historic commercial building located in downtown Evansville, Indiana. It was designed by the architectural firm Vonnegut, Bohn, & Mueller and built in 1929 for Indiana Bell. It is a seven-story, Art Deco style limestone clad building.
YMCA is a historic YMCA located in downtown Evansville, Indiana. It was built in 1924, and is a five-story, Tudor Revival style yellow brick clubhouse on a raised basement. It features terra cotta detailing.
YWCA is a historic YWCA located in downtown Evansville, Indiana. It was built in 1924, and is a three-story, Tudor Revival style red brick clubhouse on a raised basement.
Fellwock Garage, also known as Glass Specialty Company, is a historic commercial building located in downtown Evansville, Indiana. It was designed by the architecture firm Harris & Shopbell Co. and built in 1908.
Huber Motor Sales Building, also known as Kenny Kent Body Shop, is a historic commercial building located in downtown Evansville, Indiana. It was designed by the architecture firm Shopbell & Company and built in 1916. It is a two-story, brick building.
Kuebler–Artes Building is a historic commercial building located in downtown Evansville, Indiana. It was designed by the architecture firm Shopbell & Company and built in 1915. It is a three-story, one-bay, Prairie School style brick building.
Lockyear College, also known as Lockyear's Business College, was a historic school located in downtown Evansville, Indiana. It was built in 1911, and was a Classical Revival style building. It has been demolished.
Hillary Bacon Store, also known as Woolworth's, was a historic commercial building located in downtown Evansville, Indiana. It was designed by the architecture firm Shopbell & Company and built in 1921. It was in Chicago school style architecture. It was destroyed by fire in 1990.
Walnut Street School was a historic school building located in downtown Evansville, Indiana. It was designed by the architecture firm Shopbell & Company and built in 1913. It was in the Prairie School style architecture. It has been demolished.
Buckingham Apartments was a historic apartment building located in downtown Evansville, Indiana. It was designed by the architecture firm Shopbell & Company and built in 1911. It was in Arts and Crafts movement style architecture. It has been demolished.