Ladies' Literary Club

Last updated
Ladies' Literary Club
LadiesLiteraryClubGrandRapidsMI.jpg
Ladies' Literary Club
Interactive map
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

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Union Depot (Lansing, Michigan)</span>

The Union Depot is a former train station, located at 637 E. Michigan Avenue in Lansing, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995. Despite the union name, Grand Trunk Western trains stopped at a different station in Lansing 1.5 miles away.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whitney Tavern Stand</span> United States historic place

The Whitney Tavern Stand served as an inn and local gathering place in Cascade Township, Michigan for fifty years after its construction in the 1852-53 period. In its first few years it served as a stop for stagecoaches on the lines that, connecting Battle Creek, Hastings, and Kalamazoo with Grand Rapids, passed through Whitneyville. It is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Athenæum (Das Deutsche Haus)</span> National Historic Landmark in Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.

The Athenæum, originally named Das Deutsche Haus, is the most ornate and best-preserved building affiliated with the German American community of Indianapolis. Once used as a German American Turnverein and clubhouse, it currently houses many groups, organizations, and businesses. The Athenæum is located across Massachusetts Avenue from the Old National Centre. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on February 21, 1973. On October 31, 2016, it was named the 41st National Historic Landmark in Indiana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Leland Hotel (Detroit)</span> United States historic place

The Detroit-Leland Hotel is a historic hotel located at 400 Bagley Street in Downtown Detroit, Michigan. It is the oldest continuously operating hotel in downtown Detroit, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. The ballroom of the Detroit-Leland has hosted a nightclub, the City Club, since 1983. The hotel is now named The Leland and no longer rents to overnight guests.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Masonic Temple Building (Cadillac, Michigan)</span> United States historic place

The Masonic Temple in Cadillac, Michigan is a commercial building built in 1899. It is the earliest surviving fraternal building designed by the prolific architect Sidney Osgood. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wyandotte Odd Fellows Temple</span> United States historic place

The Wyandotte Odd Fellows Temple is a community building located at 81 Chestnut Street in Wyandotte, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2009. As of 2010, the building serves as the Wyandotte Arts Center.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elk Rapids Township Hall</span> United States historic place

The Elk Rapids Township Hall is a former government building located on River Street in Elk Rapids, Michigan. It was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1973 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977. The building was refurbished, and as of 2020, the building served as a rental space and performance venue known as HERTH Hall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rood Building</span> United States historic place

The Rood Building is a commercial building in Grand Rapids, Michigan, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was built in 1873 for Charles Conant Rood, after whom the building is named.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mt. Pisgah Lutheran Church</span> Historic church in Indiana, United States

Mount Pisgah Lutheran Church, also known in its early years as the First Lutheran Church and First English Lutheran Church and more recently as The Sanctuary on Penn, is located at 701 North Pennsylvania Street in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana. The historic church was built by the city's first Lutheran congregation, which organized in 1837, and was its third house of worship. The former church, whose present-day name is The Sanctuary on Penn, is operated as a for-profit event venue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aldrich Building</span> United States historic place

The Aldrich Building is a historic building located at 98 Monroe Center, NW in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since November 12, 1982.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grow Block</span> United States historic place

The Grow Block is a commercial building located at 120-122 West Exchange Street in Owosso, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Cecilia Music Center</span> United States historic place

The St. Cecilia Music Center, built in 1894 as the St. Cecilia Society Building, is a performance space located at 24 Ransom Avenue NE in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971. As of 2019, the building continues to house a musical performance space, ran by the original organization which built it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loraine Building</span> United States historic place

The Loraine Building, located at 124 East Fulton Street in Grand Rapids, Michigan, was constructed as an apartment building, and was later converted into office space. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michigan Trust Company Building</span> United States historic place

The Michigan Trust Company Building, also known as the Michigan Trust Building or just the Trust Building, is an office building located at 40 Pearl Street NW in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Villa Maria (Grand Rapids, Michigan)</span> United States historic place

Villa Maria is a retirement community located at 1315 Walker NW in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The campus was originally operated for the purpose of ministering to troubled young women. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monroe Avenue Water Filtration Plant</span> United States historic place

The Monroe Avenue Water Filtration Plant is a municipal water treatment plant located at 430 Monroe Avenue NW in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Built in 1910, it was likely the first water filtration plant in Michigan. In 1945, the plant was the site of the first public introduction of water fluoridation in the United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002. The building now serves as an event center, known as Clearwater Place.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingsley Building</span> United States historic place

The Kingsley Building is a mixed use apartment building located at 1415 Lake Drive SE in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It was originally a warehouse and office building called the Grand Rapids Storage and Van Company Building. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Klingman Lofts</span> United States historic place

The Klingman Lofts is a former industrial building that has been converted to residential use, located at 400 Ionia Avenue SW, in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It was built in stages, beginning in 1895, as a furniture factory, and was formerly known as the Central Furniture Company Factory and the H.E. Shaw Furniture Company Factory. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2013. The building was renovated into apartment space in 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old Grand Rapids Christian High School</span> United States historic place

The Old Grand Rapids Christian High School is a former private school building located at 415 Franklin Street SE in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The building was the original site of Grand Rapids Christian High School, which constructed the building in 1930. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2018. The building has been rehabilitated into a community and religious center known as 415 Franklin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loraine Immen</span>

Loraine Immen was an American philanthropist, elocutionist, author, and social leader. She was a life fellow of the Society of Science, Letters and Art. Immen was one of the most active and best known clubwomen in Michigan. She was the inspiring prime mover and first president of the Grand Rapids City Federation of Women's Clubs.

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 .

Further reading