The Masonic Temple in Muncie, Indiana

Muncie, Indiana

Muncie is a city in Center Township, Delaware County in east central Indiana, best known as the home of Ball State University and the birthplace of the Ball Corporation. It is the principal city of the Muncie, Indiana, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which has a population of 118,769...

 is a building from 1920. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places

National Register of Historic Places

The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

 in 1984.

History

The Masonic Temple is the third building by the Masons in the city of Muncie. The land was acquired by the Masons to accommodate the increasing rise in membership. Beginning in 1920, construction ended in 1926 culminating in a cost of around $1 million. Well-known local architect Cuno Kibele was commissioned for the project.

The building is now primarily used by the Cornerstone Center for the Arts, while the third level continues to be used for various Mason functions.

Part of the Freemasonry order, the Free and Accepted York Masons formed the first fraternal organization in Delaware County in 1842, with Lodge No. 46 being institutionalized on March 20, 1843.

Construction

The Masonic Temple is in the form of Gothic Revival

Gothic Revival architecture

The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...

 style.

The first rough estimates for the construction were around $250,000. Each organization within the fraternity was to have its own assembly room. Plans were changed, however, when the Ball brothers offered up a $150,000 donation in order to add an auditorium to the structure. Frank C. Ball, in particular, stated that his hope was to provide a place for high-level entertainments to be held in Muncie and that he saw the construction of the new Masonic temple as a perfect place.

"Several years ago when our brothers Will and Ed were with us we talked several times of providing an auditorium for the benefit of the citizens of Muncie, where recitals, lectures, concerts, and entertainments of various kinds, of a high order, could be given. The control and management of such an auditorium was a difficult one to decide, and it was not decided until the time when the Masonic Order was planning to build a new temple. Ed, who was deeply interested in Masonry (he being Thirty-third Degree Mason), suggested that we build an auditorium in connection with the temple and place it under control of the Masonic Order."

Historical Significance

The construction of the temple was considered a major event for a number of different reasons. For one, the building was widely considered to be a crowning achievement in the city of Muncie. This was due to its architectural styling. While simple, it was still considered to be one of the most beautiful and highly recognizable landmarks in the city upon completion. Secondly, there was also a large draw in terms of the mystery and intrigue that surrounded the fraternal order of the Freemasons. More specifically, the people's interest in the building's cornerstone garnered much attention. The addition of the 1,600-seat auditorium to its original plans also gave the city of Muncie one of its first major entertainment venues.

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places

National Register of Historic Places

The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

in 1984.