Ladies' Literary Club

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Ladies' Literary Club
LadiesLiteraryClubGrandRapidsMI.jpg
Ladies' Literary Club
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Location61 Sheldon St., SE., Grand Rapids, Michigan
Coordinates 42°57′45″N85°40′01″W / 42.96250°N 85.66694°W / 42.96250; -85.66694 (Ladies' Literary Club)
Arealess than one acre
Built1887 (1887)
Architect William G. Robinson
Architectural styleRomanesque, Richardsonian Romanesque
NRHP reference No. 71000400 [1]
Added to NRHPOctober 26, 1971

The Ladies' Literary Club also known as Wednesday Literary Club [2] was built as a social club building located at 61 Sheldon Street SE in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971. [1] As of 2019, the building is being renovated into a social event space known as The Lit. [3]

Contents

History

In 1869, a group of Grand Rapids women organized a small history class. In 1870, this grew into the Ladies' Literary Association, which was formally organized as an association that year. The Association was influential in opening a public library in the city. In 1882, the group was re-incorporated at the Ladies' Literary Club to promote literary and scientific subjects. The club grew, and in 1887 they decided to construct their own building. The Club purchased a lot and hired local architect William G. Robinson to design a clubhouse. Ground was broken in 1887, and construction was completed by December of that year. Major additions and renovations were completed in 1931. [4]

Major additions and renovations were completed in 1931. [4] In 2005, the club disbanded due to declining membership. In 2006, the remaining members transferred ownership of the building to Calvin College, which made $1 million worth of improvements to the building. The college used the building as a music, theater and entertainment venue. However, in 2014, they decided to sell the building. [5] In 2018, a group of investors purchased the building with the intention of renovating it to become The Lit event space. [3]

Over the years, the club has hosted speeches by Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and Woodrow Wilson. [4]

Description

The Ladies' Literary Club is a two-story brick structure with a tall single-story wing attached to the rear housing an auditorium. Bluestone trim is used around the doors and windows, and it has a slate roof. Although the building is substantially brick rather than stone, the design exhibits the massive Richardsonian Romanesque style. The building has French plane and stained glass windows. [4] This includes a Tiffany glass window appraised at $225,000. [5]

Notable people

References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  2. ↑ "Carmel Library | Carmel Clay Historical Society".
  3. 1 2 Justin Dawes (July 4, 2019). "Historic downtown building becoming event space". Grand Rapids Business Journal.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Constance Henslee (May 11, 1971), National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Ladies' Literary Club, File Unit: National Register of Historic Places and National Historic Landmarks Program Records: Michigan, 1964 - 2013, National Park Service
  5. 1 2 Brian McVicar (November 12, 2014). "Why Calvin College is selling historic Ladies Literary Club of Grand Rapids". MLive.
  6. ↑ Willard, Frances Elizabeth; Livermore, Mary Ashton Rice (1893). "IMMEN, Mrs. Loraine". A Woman of the Century: Fourteen Hundred-seventy Biographical Sketches Accompanied by Portraits of Leading American Women in All Walks of Life. Charles Wells Moulton. pp. 409–10.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .

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