2324 Gervais Street
2324 Gervais StreetM.W. Prince Hall Grand Lodge
Following the Civil War, participation in fraternal orders assumed an important role within the African-American community throughout the South, as notable citizens became members of organizations like the Masons. In 1909 within a former fire station at 1125 Washington Street, Columbia blacks established the Prince Hall Lodge, in honor of the "Father of black masonry." By 1963, the order had purchased enough land on Gervais Street to begin construction on its new building that still stands today. Along with its affiliate organizations, the Knights of Pythogas, the Grand Girls Assembly, and the Order of the Eastern Star, the Lodge is known for facilitating charitable events, including food and clothing drives. The Eastern Star was a benevolent organization founded in 1855, open to both the wives of Masons and Masons themselves. In Columbia, the Eastern Star Chapter would meet in the Masonic Temple at 2314 Gervais Street.
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2324 Gervais Street, 2018. Historic Columbia collection
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Harriet McMillan (far left), Maryanne McMillan (back), Shirley Alberta Sanders (far right), and Lucy Elizabeth Sanders (front), play on Senate Street, circa 1950. These homes were demolished before the temple was built. Image courtesy Jean Hopkins
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Members of the Prince Hall Lodge are pictured wearing their lodge regalia. Image courtesy Folklife Resource Center, McKissick Museum, University of South Carolina
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Members of the Eastern Star board. Image courtesy Folklife Resource Center, McKissick Museum, University of South Carolina
