The Knights of Pythias is a fraternal organization and secret society founded in Washington, D.C., on February 19, 1864. The Knights of Pythias is the first fraternal organization to receive a charter under an act of the United States Congress. It was founded by Justus H. Rathbone, who had been inspired by a play by the Irish poet John Banim about the legend of Damon and Pythias. This legend illustrates the ideals of loyalty, honor, and friendship that are the center of the order. Membership in the organization was restricted to whites only. African Americans were excluded so they formed their own organization, the Knights of Pythias of North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia.
Frederic Joseph DeLongchamps was an American architect. He was one of Nevada's most prolific architects, yet is notable for entering the architectural profession with no extensive formal training. He has also been known as Frederick J. DeLongchamps, and was described by the latter name in an extensive review of the historic importance of his works which led to many of them being listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in the 1980s.
The Nevada State Capitol is the capitol building of the U.S. state of Nevada located in the state capital of Carson City at 101 North Carson Street. The building was constructed in the Neoclassical Italianate style between 1869 and 1871. It is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. It is also Nevada Historical Marker number 25.
Virginia City Historic District is a National Historic Landmark District encompassing the former mining villages of Virginia City and Gold Hill, both in Storey County, as well as Dayton and Silver City, both to the south in adjacent Lyon County, Nevada, United States. Declared a National Historic Landmark in 1961, the district is one of only six in the state of Nevada.
The Pythian Temple, built in 1906 for Commencement Lodge Number 7 of the Knights of Pythias, is an historic building located on Broadway in the Theater District of Tacoma, Washington. It was designed by noted Tacoma architect Frederick Heath.
The Pythian Castle is a historic three-story brick-and-stone Knights of Pythias building located at 610-612 Court Street in Portsmouth, Virginia. Built between 1897 and 1898 for the Atlantic Lodge, Knights of Pythias, it was designed by architect Edward Overman in the Romanesque Revival style of architecture. Like many multistory urban fraternal buildings built in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, its street floor was rented out for retail and office spaces while the upper floors were reserved for lodge use. In 1908 a single-story brick-and-stone Romanesque Revival addition was built to the north of the original building. In 1979 the Pythian Castle was sold by the knights. On October 30, 1980, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Today the ground floor is a Mexican eatery.
St. Paul's Episcopal Church is a historic Carpenter Gothic-style Episcopal church building located at F and Taylor Streets in Virginia City, Nevada, United States. It was built in 1876 to replace an earlier church that had burned down in 1875. St Paul's Parish, founded on September 1, 1861, is still an active congregation in the Episcopal Diocese of Nevada.
The Knights of Pythias Lodge Hall, also known as Pythian Castle, in Weiser, Idaho is a building built in 1904. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.
The Pythian Castle is a building in Arcata, northwestern California, that was built during 1884-85 for the North Star chapter of the Knights of Pythias fraternal order. It is notable for its commercial Queen Anne style architecture which features five projecting towers: two square towers projecting from the center of the two street-fronting sides of the building, and three round towers projecting from the street-side corners. Patterned shingles covered the tower roofs in the past. The corner ones have "witch hat"-shaped tops and used to sport tall finials. The side ones once had cresting.
The Knights of Pythias Temple in Louisville, Kentucky, also known as Chestnut Street Branch-Y.M.C.A., was built in 1914–15. It was designed by Henry Wolters. It is a buff-colored brick building with limestone trim.
St. Peter's Episcopal Church is a large historic Carpenter Gothic Episcopal church building located at the corner of Division and Telegraph streets in Carson City, Nevada. Built in 1868, it is the oldest Episcopal church still in use in Nevada. On January 3, 1978, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Courthouse Plaza Historic District is a historic district in Prescott, Arizona that was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1978.
Fraternity Hall is a site on the National Register of Historic Places located in Elkhorn, Montana. It was added to the Register on April 3, 1975.
The Smith and Weller Building, also known as the Knights of Pythias Hall, was a historic building in New London, Iowa, United States. Charles W. Smith and C.B. Weller bought the lot on which the building sat for $300 in 1872. The building itself was built sometime before 1879 when Smith and Weller sold the lot to Sam Keiser and W.S. Workman for $2,500. The structure was designed in the Italianate style and featured simple brick-patterned arches. Keiser and his wife owned the building until 1907, when they sold it to the Knights of Pythias for their lodge. A hardware store occupied the main floor, and the lodge was on the second floor. The Knights of Pythias sold the building in 1946 to Otis and Mae Maginnis. The building housed a bar in the intervening years. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2003, and it was delisted in 2020. The building was demolished in 2020.
Petersburg City Hall is a historic city hall building located at Petersburg, Virginia. It was designed by architect Ammi B. Young and built between 1856 and 1859, as the U.S. Customs House and Post Office.
The Former Audubon County Courthouse, also known as the Audubon County Historical Society Museum, is a historic building located in Exira, Iowa, United States. Court proceedings were first held in a schoolhouse in Hamlin's Grove after Audubon County was established in 1851. The county seat was relocated to Exira ten years later, and a disagreement erupted over where the county seat should be located. The county board of supervisors made an appropriation for a new courthouse in 1871, but its construction was delayed due to the disagreement. Exira eventually won and officials constructed the courthouse for about $2,200. The Exira Hall Company was established to build the two-story, frame structure. County offices were located on the first floor and the courtroom was located on the second floor. The county seat was moved to Audubon in 1879.
The Dr. Jesse Wasson Building, also known as the Knights of Pythias Lodge and the K. P. Building, is a historic building located in La Porte City, Iowa, United States. The late Victorian structure is the oldest surviving example of stone construction and the only extant first generation commercial building in La Porte City. It was built by Dr. Jesse Wasson for his office. Wasson founded the town and served it as postmaster, physician, newspaper publisher and editor, mayor, and its primary booster. He also served on the Black Hawk County Board of Supervisors and in the Iowa Legislature. The two-story native limestone structure features a unified canted entry. It has two symmetrical primary façades that face both Main and locust Streets. Both facades have a centered entry. The various owners of the building include the local Knights of Pythias lodge who used it for their purposes from 1914 to 1961. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999.
The Saratoga Masonic Hall is a two-story brick building in downtown Saratoga, Wyoming that houses Saratoga's Masonic lodge. Established in 1892, the lodge was the fourteenth to be established in Wyoming. After a time in rented space, the lodge bought the Couzens and Company Block in 1893, using the second floor for meetings and leasing the ground floor to storekeeper A. Johnson Dogget. From 1895 the ground floor was used as a school. The Masons allowed a variety of other organizations to use the building, including the Odd Fellows, Knights of Pythias, Pythian Sisters, Union Fraternal League, Modern Woodmen, Women of Woodcraft, Job's Daughters, the Republican Party and the Ku Klux Klan.
The Sandpoint Historic District in Sandpoint, Idaho is a historic district which was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984, and enlarged in 2018. When first listed, it consisted of 13 buildings on the block bound by 1st and 2nd Avenues, Main St., and Cedar St., plus two other buildings across from the block.
