Saturday, September 27, 2014

Former Elks Lodge added to National Register

From the Queens Gazette:

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced on September 22 that the New York State Board for Historic Preservation recommended adding 22 properties, resources and districts to the State and National Registers of Historic Places.

One of the locations is here in Queens. The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, Lodge Number 878 on Queens Boulevard in Elmhurst is on the list. The 1923 building is a distinctive architectural example of a 20th-century fraternal organization building designed in the Italian Renaissance Revival style.

10 comments:

JQ said...

noted lodgers include:

the he-man woman haters club
the royal order of water buffaloes
the international brotherhood of loyal raccoons
and the ECW wrestling organization

Anonymous said...

Good news!

Anonymous said...

Don't forget the The Royal Order of the Raccoons !

georgetheatheist said...

"And the Best Costume Award goes to . . . Brother Ed Norton - the Man From Space!" - The Grand High Exalted Mystic Ruler

Anonymous said...

Good one George !

Jaime Lannister said...

Coming soon: homeless shelter.

Anonymous said...

Good news. Now in the very near future, when the area doesn't even remotely resemble the American town formally known as Elmhurst, the indigenous tribes inhabiting the area will have at least one archaeological remnant to remind them that Americana once thrived there.

Anonymous said...

I'm shocked nobody has stolen or pilfered that magnificent elk for scrap metal yet.

Ned said...

From what I have educated myself (via books or in the field) about Queens. This Elks lodge, its members names, rules & practices were included in many of "Archie Bunker" scripts. All the shows writer's and O'Connor himself were liberals FROM CENTRAL QUEENS making fun of and taking swipes at every issue they didn't like including this Elks Lodge and massive membership that was once the beating heart, life and culture of true Queens.

In one particular script by Norman Lear (plagiarized straight out of the 1965 Johnson era manifesto) Archie's private lodge is hitting all sorts of red tape and can no longer receive tax credits for not having any black or Jewish members. So Archie suggests that they invite one black to join - Solomon Jackson. And one Jew - also Solomon Jackson. At the end of the episode Jackson accepts the invitation to join the lodge, and promises to invite all his black friends and all his Jewish friends to join too.
Then everybody is pissed at Archie

BTW: I dated a woman whose mom was a crossing guard at PS68 in Ridgewood back in the 60's-70's (I think she said her moms name was Agnes perhaps ?) According to her Carrol O'Connor mom taught at PS68 over 20 years also played piano for school plays in the auditorium. (I no longer see this girl, she had nasty "Jeckle and Hyde" problem with alcohol)

-Ned
www.nra.org

Anonymous said...

So the Flushing Keith's theater is on them national register historic places. Look at what happened there. Only full bonafide municipal landmark status means anything.