{"nrhp_refnum":"70000206","name":"Old Seminary Building","other_names":["Old Masonic Lodge","Lawrencevile Female Seminary Building"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Perry St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Lawrenceville","county":"Gwinnett County","state":"GA","lat":33.952500033000035,"lon":-83.98895823799995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1970-12-29","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Social History"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story solid brick building on Perry Street in Lawrenceville, Gwinnett County, Georgia, built as the Lawrenceville Female Seminary and later used as a Masonic lodge. The form dates it to 1838, though a later correction says the original was wooden and burned around 1850-51.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it the most imposing early building in Gwinnett County and notes its long service as a school, a Masonic meeting space and a county civic gathering place. It is described as a simple late-Federal, early Greek Revival structure resembling similar buildings in North Georgia. It is also significant for the town of Lawrenceville, the county seat.","narrative":"Built as a girls' school in Lawrenceville, this two-story brick building on Perry Street was dated to 1838 in the original nomination. It is a plain cube of about 36 by 51 feet under a low gable roof, with wide pilasters, a brick frieze, a box cornice and nine-over-nine windows with stone lintels. Inside are reeded Federal-style mantelpieces, wide pine floors and original wainscot. The Lawrenceville Female Seminary used it until 1886, while the Masonic Lodge began using the upper floor in 1860. The lower floor long served as a civic gathering space for the county. Daniel Killian, a seminary trustee, is credited as builder. A 1974 correction, based on newly found trustee minutes, says the first building was wooden and burned around 1850 or 1851. The brick replacement came after 1854, with the Masons involved in its planning. It was described as the most imposing early building in Gwinnett County, and the county historical society sought to preserve it.","period_of_significance":"19th Century (specific date 1838)","architect_builder":"Daniel Killian, a trustee of the Female Seminary, is named as the builder (erected by).","architectural_style":"Classical Revival; described elsewhere in the form as late-Federal, early Greek Revival","criteria":[],"status_note":"Condition fair, original site, occupied. A 1974 update says restoration was in process, with a museum planned, and the building was then owned by Gwinnett County and used for club meetings.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:41.23228-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_GA/70000206.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/70000206/60b28ae07c-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/70000206/60b28ae07c-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Jcherepy","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_Female_Seminary_Building_-_Lawrenceville,_Georgia.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Jcherepy</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:Old_Female_Seminary_Building_-_Lawrenceville,_Georgia.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/93208515","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Seminary_Building","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7084949"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/georgia/gwinnett-county/old-seminary-building-70000206/"}