Temple building at 2875 W. Liberty Road, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48103. - Graphic By Hill Building Co. 12-27-1976

Photos By Mitchell Ozog 2005

Architects - McConkey & Rousseau

327 S. 4th Avenue - Ann Arbor, Michigan

1925 - original Construction - $324,000
1973 - Replacement Costs - $1,496,714
1922 - Cornerstone Laying - Grand Lodge of Michigan
Lot size - 132 ft. 154 ft. - 22 car parking with 2 municipals structures within one block
Building size - 127 x 255 - 5 stories
Perimeter - 386 ft.
Interior space - 665,502 cubic ft
Class B Fraternal Building - prestige building built for impact as well as occupancy. (Marshall & Swift Valuation)
Structure: concrete beams and columns, concrete and clay tile walls, poured concrete floors, steel reinforcing.
Exterior Walls: Face brick over masonry. Brick is laid up in stretcher bond but with decorative Masonic emblems.
Interior Walls & Ceilings: Original partitions are masonry walls and ceilings and are finished in plaster with Masonic decorative gold leaf trim. Ceiling under roof is plaster on suspended methal lath.
Interior Features: Lobby and entry areas have Masonic decorative terrazzo flooring. Wash rooms are fitted with marble fixtures.
Five Floors - 20,000 sq. ft. - designed for Masonic functions Original building had entry Tyler's quarters.
Lobby - 1st floor - raised Masonic decorative ceilings
Main Lodge - 65 ft. x 44 ft. - 2,860 sq. ft.
Chapter Room - 50 ft. x 35 ft. - 1,750 sq. ft.
2 smaller lodge rooms - 902 sq. ft.
Dining Room - 100 capacity
Masonic Library - 374 sq. ft.
Board Room - 238 sq. ft.
Women's Lounge - 438 sq. ft.
Boiler Room - 252 sq. ft.
Masonic Brass fittings throughout structure

1977: After a 3 year Federal “Eminent Domain” Law Suit court battle, the USA Government narrowly prevailed. The Federal Government was required to pay $204,000 of which $80,000 was deducted to raize the Temple on behalf of the US Government. In other words, the Masons had to put settlement money up to demolish their former Temple. The $120,000 figure was one third of a M.A.I. appraisal by The Gerald Alcock Company of Ann Arbor. Federal Judge Charles Joyner of Detroit gave no value to the Masonic Temple structure, definitely one of the finest 1920's art deco architectural masterpieces in the City of Ann Arbor. The City Council and Mayor wanted the Federal Building and cleared away the political hurdles by allowing all structures in the 4th Avenue and Liberty Rd. block to be removed; all these properties were removed from the property tax rolls. The $120,000 net figure to the Masons bought 4.65 acres of land and started construction of a modest 7,200 sq. ft. Temple building at 2875 W. Liberty Road, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48103.

Article from Ann Arbor News September 4, 1975. Masonic Temple Being Demolished - Download this article here -

Eminent Domain, the right of government to seize private property, was written into the U.S. Constitution. But so too was the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment, which said that property could be taken only for public use, and on condition that its owners be justly compensated. In recent years, however, local governments, seeking to draw business and development into primarily residential neighborhoods, have increasingly invoked their power of eminent domain to seize houses and put the land they sit on to private use -- an expansion of the power that many legal experts deem unconstitutional. And so, all across the country, legal battles are being fought between homeowners on one side, and cities, developers and businesses on the other.

Photos & Data: Gerald V. Alcock, M.A.I. - Ann Arbor, Michigan 1973 . Two first photos Anonymous. Photos of AA Masonic Temple at 2875 W. Liberty: Mitchell Ozog, 8/27/2005.

Corinthian - DESCRIPTION:

The Corinthian order is the most decorative and is usually the one most modern people like best. Corinthian also uses entasis to make the shafts look straight. The Corinthian capitals have flowers and leaves below a small scroll. The shaft has flutes and the base is like the Ionian. Unlike the Doric and Ionian cornices, which are at a slant, the Corinthian roofs are flat.

Ionic - DESCRIPTION:

Ionic shafts were taller than Doric ones. This makes the columns look slender. They also had flutes, which are lines carved into them from top to bottom. The shafts also had a special characteristic: entasis, which is a little bulge in the columns make the columns look straight, even at a distance [because since you would see the building from eye level, the shafts would appear to get narrower as they rise, so this bulge makes up for that - so it looks straight to your eye but it really isn't !] . The frieze is plain. The bases were large and looked like a set of stacked rings. Ionic capitals consist of a scrolls above the shaft. The Ionic style is a little more decorative than the Doric.

Doric - DESCRIPTION:

Of the three columns found in Greece, Doric columns are the simplest. They have a capital (the top, or crown) made of a circle topped by a square. The shaft (the tall part of the column) is plain and has 20 sides. There is no base in the Doric order. The Doric order is very plain, but powerful-looking in its design. Doric, like most Greek styles, works well horizontally on buildings, that's why it was so good with the long rectangular buildings made by the Greeks. The area above the column, called the frieze [pronounced "freeze"], had simple patterns. Above the columns are the metopes and triglyphs. The metope [pronounced "met-o-pee"] is a plain, smooth stone section between triglyphs. Sometimes the metopes had statues of heroes or gods on them. The triglyphs are a pattern of 3 vertical lines between the metopes. There are many examples of ancient Doric buildings. Perhaps the most famous one is the Parthenon in Athens, which is probably the most famous and most studied building on Earth. Buildings built even now borrow some parts of the Doric order.