Machias Valley Grange, No. 360

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Machias Valley Grange, #360 (Former)
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Location 1 Elm St., Machias, Maine
Coordinates 44°42′47″N67°27′27″W / 44.71306°N 67.45750°W / 44.71306; -67.45750 Coordinates: 44°42′47″N67°27′27″W / 44.71306°N 67.45750°W / 44.71306; -67.45750
Area 0.2 acres (0.081 ha)
Built 1907
Architectural style Queen Anne
NRHP reference # 07000410 [1]
Added to NRHP May 8, 2007

The Former Machias Valley Grange, No. 360 is a social and civic meeting hall at 1 Elm Street in Machias, Maine. Built in 1907, it features a distinctive design that eliminates support posts in its dining hall and auditorium. Now owned by a local artists' cooperative, it continues to function as a social and civic meeting space. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2007. [1]

Machias, Maine Town in Maine, United States

Machias is a town in and the county seat of Washington County in downeast Maine, United States. As of the 2010 census, the town population was 2,221. It is home to the University of Maine at Machias and Machias Valley Airport, a small public airport owned by the town. The word Machias roughly translates in Passamaquoddy as "bad little falls", a reference to the Machias River. Machias is best known as the site of the first naval battle of the American Revolution.

National Register of Historic Places federal list of historic sites in the United States

The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance. A property listed in the National Register, or located within a National Register Historic District, may qualify for tax incentives derived from the total value of expenses incurred preserving the property.

Contents

Description and history

The former Machias Grange hall is set on the south side of the Machias River, opposite the town's downtown area, at the junction of Obrien and Elm Streets. It is a 2-1/2 story wood frame structure, with a gabled roof, clapboard siding, and concrete foundation. Its main entrance is set at the eastern end of the long side facing Elm Street, under a hip-roofed portico supported by turned posts. The facade facing Obrien Street is distinguished by a deeply overhanging second story, with the overhang supported by large Queen Anne-inspired brackets. There are two pairs of sash windows on each of the main floors on this facade, and a single sash window at the attic level. [2]

Machias River river in Washington County, Maine, United States of America

The Machias River is a 60.0-mile-long (96.6 km) river in Maine, USA. It flows through Washington County in the eastern part of the state, from Fifth Machias Lake, passing the town of Machias and emptying into Machias Bay.

The main entrance opens into a foyer area that extends along the east side of the building, with stairs leading to the auditorium upstairs, and doors leading to the dining area that occupies most of the downstairs. The kitchen occupies the northeastern corner. The upstairs auditorium has a simple raised platform stage (with no backstage area) at the far end. The dining room ceiling is supported by a combination of heavy wooden timbers, with metal rods oriented laterally to them, eliminating the need for supporting pillars. A similar support system is also used in the ceiling of the auditorium, but it is obscured by a suspended tin ceiling. [2]

The Machias Grange was organized in 1903, and met in the town's Pennell Block until it built this structure in 1907. Records of the period have not survived, so the building's architect is not known. Because of the building's sizable dining room and kitchen, it quickly became an important local venue for social and fraternal events, dances, and religious services. When the town's last movie theater closed, the Grange also screened films here. With the Grange's membership in decline, the building was sold in 2001 to the Beehive Cooperative, an artists' cooperative, which has restored the building and continues to offer it as a social and community meeting space. [2]

See also

National Register of Historic Places listings in Washington County, Maine Wikimedia list article

This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Washington County, Maine.

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References

  1. 1 2 National Park Service (2009-03-13). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service.
  2. 1 2 3 "NRHP nomination for Machias Valley Grange, No. 360 (Former)". National Park Service. Retrieved 2015-11-09.
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