{"nrhp_refnum":"05000775","name":"Hornitos Masonic Hall No. 98","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"2877 Bear Valley Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Hornitos","county":"Mariposa County","state":"CA","lat":37.50135304100007,"lon":-120.23833454099997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2005-08-03","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":[],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A small one-story stone Masonic hall at 2877 Bear Valley Road in Hornitos, Mariposa County, California, built circa 1855 by Italian stonemasons and bought by the local Masonic lodge in 1873.","why_significant":"Listed under Criterion A for social history, the hall served Hornitos Lodge No. 98 as a fraternal meeting place from 1873. Lodge members provided public service, fraternal relief and community leadership in the Gold Rush town. It is also the smallest single-story Masonic hall in California and remains largely intact.","narrative":"Hornitos Masonic Hall No. 98 is a compact stone building on Bear Valley Road in the Mother Lode town of Hornitos, Mariposa County. Built around 1855 by Italian stonemasons from native schist, local brick and limestone, it first housed businesses including a photography studio, tailor shop and saloon. After a fire destroyed its earlier meeting place in 1873, Hornitos Lodge No. 98 bought the building and has met there ever since. At 846 square feet, with a lodge room of just 516, it is described as the smallest single-story Masonic hall in California. Original iron fire doors, hand-laid unreinforced stone walls and nail-fastened timbers survive, along with later changes such as a 1925 basement dining room and a 1900 plaster coat. Its significance rests on social history between 1873 and 1930, when lodge members served as town officials, merchants and neighbors, and the lodge provided relief to widows and orphans.","period_of_significance":"1873 - 1930","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Mid-19th century; unreinforced masonry building","criteria":["A"],"status_note":"Described as in excellent condition and in continuous use for lodge meetings for 132 years; some restoration work is planned for 2005-2006.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:29.784333-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/05000775.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/05000775/090c9bc43b-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/05000775/090c9bc43b-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Covert Martin Collection, Stockton, CA","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Masonic_Hall_(Hornitos,_CA).jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Covert Martin Collection, Stockton, CA</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Masonic_Hall_(Hornitos,_CA).jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123859750","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornitos_Masonic_Hall_No._98","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5904434"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/mariposa-county/hornitos-masonic-hall-no-98-05000775/"}