{"nrhp_refnum":"09000150","name":"Prince Hall Masonic Temple","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"1050 E. 50th St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Los Angeles","county":"Los Angeles County","state":"CA","lat":33.99731063300004,"lon":-118.25713789099996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2009-03-17","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Black"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story unreinforced brick masonry lodge building at 1050 E. 50th Street in Los Angeles, California, constructed in 1926 for the city's Black Masons. It has a flat roof and a plain, commercial-looking design.","why_significant":"The building is significant at the local level under Criterion A in the area of Ethnic Heritage - Black, for its role in African American civic and fraternal life. It is one of two remaining club buildings in Los Angeles founded by and for African Americans. Its construction also reflects the southward movement of the Black community along the Central Avenue corridor.","narrative":"Built in 1926 at 1050 E. 50th Street, just off South Central Avenue in Los Angeles, this two-story brick building served the city's Black Masons, who belonged to the Prince Hall branch of Freemasonry. It occupies its whole lot and has a flat roof and a symmetrical, three-bay front of medium brown brick, with dark red brick outlining panels, pilasters, sills and lintels. Its only decoration is a simple cast stone capital on each pilaster. Its plain look resembles a commercial building. Before construction, the group had met in a shared building at 1209 South Central Avenue. In the 1930s several chapters of the Order of the Eastern Star also met here. The building is significant for its role in African American civic and fraternal life at a time when many mainstream lodges excluded Black members. It is one of two remaining club buildings in Los Angeles founded by and for African Americans, and it still serves as a meeting hall.","period_of_significance":"1926-1958","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Late 19th & Early 20th Century American Movements - Commercial Style","criteria":["A"],"status_note":"Still used as a meeting hall; the form states it retains all aspects of integrity.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:29.510471-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/09000150.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/09000150/710732e300-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/09000150/710732e300-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Cbl62","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Prince_Hall_Masonic_Temple_(Los_Angeles,_California).jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Cbl62</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Prince_Hall_Masonic_Temple_(Los_Angeles,_California).jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123857588","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_Hall_Masonic_Temple_(Los_Angeles,_California)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7244048"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/los-angeles-county/prince-hall-masonic-temple-09000150/"}